John Petrucci and Ernie Ball Music Man are working on a new eight-string Majesty
Dream Theater's strings honcho is looking to expand his signature line in time for the band's next album
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.
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.
- The 11 best high-end electric guitars 2020: our pick of the best guitars for experts and pro players
- Best 7-string guitars 2020: the top pro and cheap 7-string guitars
"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?"
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.
Get the MusicRadar Newsletter
Want all the hottest music and gear news, reviews, deals, features and more, direct to your inbox? Sign up here.
"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."
Jonathan Horsley has been writing about guitars and guitar culture since 2005, playing them since 1990, and regularly contributes to MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitar World. He uses Jazz III nylon picks, 10s during the week, 9s at the weekend, and shamefully still struggles with rhythm figure one of Van Halen’s Panama.
“It didn’t even represent what we were doing. Even the guitar solo has no business being in that song”: Gwen Stefani on the No Doubt song that “changed everything” after it became their biggest hit
"There was water dripping onto the gear and we got interrupted by a cave diver": How Mandy, Indiana recorded their debut album in caves, crypts and shopping malls