String gauge

[cacaphony]

I was wondering what is the best string gauge for speed metal like jason becker stuff and whats a good guitar for this kind of music heh all I have now is a peavey raptor :( and the amp that came with it it takes all I have to make it sound good please help thanks

[Incidents Happen]

man get .009's then

[James8831]

I guess almost any guitar can be ok for Speed Metal- i'm not knocking Speed Metal- what i'm trying to say is that you need a decent amp [maybe a mid sized Marshall or Laney HM series], a good pedal/fx box,and a well set up guitar (9s or 10s for strings i'd say as you'll probably be distorted a lot and getting "electronic" sustain).

Jackson and BC Rich make good "metal" guitars in budget ranges and ESP further up the price range.

The Raptors are a good beginner guitar[more suited to the 50s-60s-70s tone i go for tho:)].
On the raptor you'd need the frets stoned/dressed,a pro setup and different pickups - for the cost of which you can get a "Metally" guitar.

Dont forget Yamaha and Ibanez- check out their websites

[Sivert Skaaren]

Ibanez RG520 and up... the same with the S serie...
higer pirzed Jackson and ESP... and there are some
newer guitarlabels coming out with some good shred-
guitars..
and ofcourse,
Hurricane.. if u find them... hehe..

well.. first of all.. u have to find some strings u like,
the thickness ain't that important... u can always get
a custom stringset.. still.. i recomend 9s and 10s...
if u got a too heavy stringset.. they may be alittle
hard and u'll 'burn' your fingers if u're not used to them,
but this can also be a problem on the light side.. that u can cut them... but this is only a temp. problem....

when u chose guitar... u should chose a neck that fits u..
some says that and that label got the fastest necks..
but it may not be the best and fastest neck for u...
it takes a while getting used to another neck..
like me.. going over from a SG neck to a Ibanez Custom neck.
i'm not 100% compfortable with it now... and i have played
on it for like 6-7 months...

ahh.. i'm just babling... if u got questions... mail me..
binary_creed@yahoo.no

[Zosomagick]

The others are right. You shoudn't be too worried about strings right now but about better equipment. I would defifetly recomend a better amp. Maybe a Marshall or a Fender. I use both. If you don't want to get a new guitar you could change the pickups out with EMG's or Seymour Duncans, both have a good metal sound if you get the right ones. For string gauge I would recomend 10-46's. They allow you to be heavy & to have a great lead as well.

Good Luck!!!

[cacaphony]

thanks heh yay I know I need a guitar heh I mean i've been playing for 11 years and my guitar sucks I guess I better look for a job im 17 and do nothing all day hah ;)

[PonyOne]

You know what's a really good buy? An Epiphone SG. Make sure it's a standard or at least has a set neck, the bolt ons suck and for the price you may as well just pay the extra $50 for a set neck.

They feel nice, look cool, and have lots of room for improvement if you want to have some fun... I'd get some DiMarzio Super Distortions or Tone Zones (pickups) and put those in. Basically for speed metal you can use any guitar but it's best to have something with humbuckers and massively high output.

When I play speed metal I usually use Gibson Ace Frehley signatures or Ernie Ball Super Slinky's.

[albo]

For Jason Becker type stuff, I would definitely recommend 9's. I think it's mostly the player though. A good player can get that sound out of any equipment. I myself play Becker type style and I have a Jackson SL-2 and I really like it.