What is 8-string guitar tuning?

Standard 8-string tuning is F#-B-E-A-D-G-B-E, adding a low F# and a low B below the standard 6-string guitar. This gives you a full octave of extra range below standard tuning.

What scales work on an 8-string guitar?

All scales apply across the full range. F# minor, F# Phrygian, and the diminished scale are popular for exploiting the low range. The extended fretboard also opens up massive arpeggio patterns spanning multiple octaves.

Who plays 8-string guitar?

Meshuggah pioneered 8-string guitar in extreme metal. Tosin Abasi (Animals as Leaders) brought it to progressive metal. Other notable players include Misha Mansoor (Periphery), Javier Reyes, and many djent/progressive metal artists.

F Prometheus Neapolitan Guitar Scale

Guitar scale in 8-string tuning — fretboard diagram

Tuning

Frets

F Prometheus Neapolitan in 8-string — Notes and Intervals

The F Prometheus Neapolitan scale is a variation of Scriabin's mystic scale that adds a dark, flattened second degree. On Guitar, it contains the notes F, Gb, A, B, D, Eb. It combines the otherworldly sound of the Prometheus scale with an extra layer of exotic tension. Commonly used in Contemporary Classical, Experimental, Avant-Garde. Notable players include Alexander Scriabin. Use in atonal or free composition contexts. A specialized tool for experimental music that pushes beyond standard harmony.

Notes: F, Gb, A, B, D, Eb

Intervals: 1P, 2m, 3M, 4A, 6M, 7m

Degrees: 1 b2 3 #4 5 b6

Formula: H-WH-W-WH-H-W

Number of notes: 6

Tuning: 8-string (F#-B-E-A-D-G-B-E)

About 8-string Tuning

The 8-string guitar adds both a low B and a low F# string (F#-B-E-A-D-G-B-E), pushing the instrument's range almost into bass guitar territory. This massive tonal range has become the weapon of choice for djent, progressive metal, and experimental composers who need bone-crushing low-end and soaring highs in a single instrument.

With artists like Tosin Abasi, Meshuggah, and After the Burial leading the charge, the 8-string guitar has redefined what's possible in modern heavy music. The low F# string delivers subsonic heaviness that you can feel in your chest, while the upper strings maintain standard guitar voicings for leads and clean passages. Extended-range compositions often exploit the full span of the instrument, creating a wall of sound that covers bass, rhythm, and lead guitar roles simultaneously.

DjentProgressive MetalTechnical Death MetalExperimentalAmbient

Notable artists: Meshuggah, Animals as Leaders, After the Burial, Intervals, Monuments

Best for: Djent polyrhythms, extended-range metal riffs, experimental compositions, and one-instrument arrangements spanning bass to lead

Musical Character

Dark-MysticalExoticOtherworldlyTense

Adds a b2 to Scriabin's Prometheus scale — layering exotic Neapolitan darkness over mystic transcendence.

Explore This Scale in Other Tunings

← All Guitar scales in 8-string tuning