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Can the Variax 700 bass do alternate tunings and if so, how?


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Can the Variax 700 bass do alternate tunings and if so, how?

 

Alternate tunings are assigned by a patch by patch basis through workbench. Patches = every pickup selection position for each bank on the model knob.

 

Once you change the tunings through workbench, it will always be that tuning on that patch and you cannot disengage, change the guitar model that's tuned to that tuning without doing it through workbench again, this means if you want a Strat in E standard and a Strat in Drop D, you have to have 1 bank have the 5 pickup selections be in E standard then copy those to another bank and make all the pickup selections Drop D.

 

I suggest using Custom 1 and 2. It depends on what you value more, different models or different tunings. The more tunings you want the more models you'll have to replace on your model select roster.

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Alternate tunings are assigned by a patch by patch basis through workbench. Patches = every pickup selection position for each bank on the model knob.

 

Once you change the tunings through workbench, it will always be that tuning on that patch and you cannot disengage, change the guitar model that's tuned to that tuning without doing it through workbench again, this means if you want a Strat in E standard and a Strat in Drop D, you have to have 1 bank have the 5 pickup selections be in E standard then copy those to another bank and make all the pickup selections Drop D.

 

I suggest using Custom 1 and 2. It depends on what you value more, different models or different tunings. The more tunings you want the more models you'll have to replace on your model select roster.

 

 

You are thinking of the JTV or the regular variax. I'm talking about the bass variax.

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You are thinking of the JTV or the regular variax. I'm talking about the bass variax.

 

Ah sorry, I misread the title. 

It seems like you can't. Not 100% sure. It says it doesn't have workbench support, and I don't think there was any other way to change tunings other than through workbench prior to the JTVs.

 

Detuning a Variax physically can sometimes be a bit sketchy as it needs the tension of the strings to be on the piezos to respond properly, so if you ever do tune down physically you might need thicker gauge strings.

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  • 6 months later...

As mentioned in the post above, no alternative tuning are not available for the 700/705 basses. Apparently L6 stopped developing this feature when they discontinued the Variax basses.

 

Have any of you Variax 700 & 705 bass owners tried alternative tunings manually? Say a semi-tone down.

 

I'd like to know how the piezo's perform with lighter tension on them. 

 

TD

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