One of the great things about fans asking famous guitarists questions is that they tend to spill the beans, like when Dream Theater's John Petrucci revealed that he and Ernie Ball Music Man are working on a signature eight-string guitar.
Petrucci was speaking in a video segment with the Japanese magazine Young Guitar, talking about the essentials: his approach to practice – balance is all-important – and songwriting philosophy, memorising complex songs, and of course growing a thick and well-maintained beard.
Why not add one more string?
John Petrucci
But when the conversation turned to his line of Majesty signature models, things got really interesting. Petrucci talks about the importance of the onboard boost and how tweaking the sensitivity makes it all the more versatile.
But the idea of an eight-string? That's something he is keen to explore and is presently developing with Ernie Ball Music Man.
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"It has been an incredible 20 years with Ernie Ball Music Man, so that's unbelievable," said Petrucci. "I has been an incredible relationship – but they all come in a six-string and, as you guys know, a seven-string version.
"One of the things I have talked about for a while now – there have been rumours and the rumours are correct – is an eight-string model. Why not add one more string?"
It has been a project that we have been working on with myself and the engineers that are involved with Music Man, and it should be ready in some form for me to use on the next Dream Theater album
John Petrucci
A superlative idea. The Majesty is already the most tricked-out signature model on the market, extending its range seems like a logical next step.
"Specifically, we are going to come out with an eight-string Majesty model," Petrucci continued. "And that is something that is being developed."
"It has been a project that we have been working on with myself and the engineers that are involved with Music Man, and it should be ready in some form – even if it's a prototype – for me to use on the next Dream Theater album. I'm looking forward to that."
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