Schecter Guitar Research OMEN-7 Electric Guitar Vintage White

I was looking at 7 strings for a while and finally decided on this one. Ordered online and packaging kept the guitar clean and safe. Mine was out of tune when it arrived but nothing a tuner couldn't fix. Stock strings are nice and the overall sound surprised me as I was expecting it to be muddy or too deep. My only complaint is that the stock pick ups are just ok. For out of the box they're not bad but I'll eventually swap them out for my preference. As is though they'll get you by if this is your first 7 string. Would definitely recommend to anyone who wants an intro 7 string but something better than the really cheap ones!

Ordered the Omen-7 online from Guitar Center after sampling a number of 7 strings including Ibanez, Jackson, PRS SE and ESP/LTD in-store. The Demon-7 came close to what I was looking for both look and feel-wise, but I'm not a fan of active pickups, and the Omen looked to be the equivalent with passive pickups. Plus I could order it in a color I wanted fresh out of the box rather than settle for a slightly used floor model in a color I didn't. After a slight wait, the Omen-7 arrived in about 3 business days (4 if you don't consider Columbus Day a business day). Right out of the box it was perfectly set up, only a few cents flat tuning-wise, which is pretty remarkable considering the days and miles it spent in transit. The neck was smooth and buttery and very fast, yet very solid at the same time-- remarkable for a neck that is thicker and longer (in scale length) than the Ibanez RG series. My only complaint would be that the neck joint, while pretty solid, interfered with access to the higher (19-24) frets on the bottom 4 strings, and sometimes I needed to make adjustments to play on the highest frets on the top strings-- if I were to have a USA model made, I'd keep almost all the physical specs but shave down the heel a bit, similar to what was done on the SGR C-8s. The unplugged tones sing out nicely, the guitar has lovely sustain, although as force of habit I swapped out the stock Ernie Balls with a fresh set of D'Addarios (I tend to like the bell-like brightness it brings to longer scale 7-strings-- Sorry, Ernie Ball. You'll always have a place on my 6-strings). Tuning was smooth and easy-- the stock Schecter tuners are money and keep everything in tune, even after some hard playing, but the stock Tusq nut needs some kudos for that as well. Plugged in, the stock pickups complained about on forums throughout the internets served up rock solid clean and distorted tones, although the bridge pickup was a little hot and started clipping even on the cleanest settings. Overall, the guitar is pretty well-balanced, but due to the inconsistencies in basswood densities, it wound up being slightly heavier than I had expected (using the 3-4 Demon-7s I'd demo-ed in-store as a reference), but nothing too unmanageable. Despite being constructed in Indonesia, the guitar is inspected and put through its paces in the Schecter shop in Sun Valley, CA, and the quality and workmanship is far above other 7-string guitars in roughly the same price range (equivalent ESP and Ibanez 7s are actually about $50-$150 more, barring any sales or clearance deals) There was an extremely tiny blemish on the side of the rosewood fingerboard, but I'd only noticed after a really thorough inspection under bright lighting, as well as a slightly tinier dimple on the back, but other than that, cosmetically it was spot-on. tl;dr: The Omen-7 is a nice alternative to the pricier Demon-7 if you can live without the active pickups (I plan to eventually drop in a set of the Seymour Duncan Nazgul/Sentient 7s, but that's a long way off and in the meantime the stock pickups fit the bill just fine)-- less expensive than its competitors from Ibanez, Jackson, and ESP and with much better workmanship. For some people the longer scale may need need some getting used to, but that's just personal preference.

Even though it comes installed with the Schecter designed pick-ups, you'll want to swap them out for some upgrades. It has beautiful note sustain, resonates very well through the solid body. I'm aiming for a Seymour Duncan 7-string neck pickup to be installed to give my deep lead channel more dimension. This Omen-7 loves to be plugged into digital effects, and should probably have active EMG's or something in it for some truly crystal clear tone. I ordered it to be shipped to Brookfield, WI store, which took 4-6 business days. It arrived well packaged and set up. A rating sticker on the back panel read "16/16" meaning it was diagnosed before shipped out.

My first 7 string was a Schecter Blackjack ATX Solo 7. So, that is my basis for comparison. I wanted a rock solid "beater" 7 that I could take to the beach, camping, etc. When I vacation, I want a guitar with me to practice. Being my first 7 was a Blackjack, I was prepared for a let down in quality when I purchased my Omen 7 (walnut). The let down never came. Don't get me wrong, an Omen is not a Blackjack. The Blackjack has a ton of quality points packed into it, but the Omen is built to the same design standard without the extras. I play each daily (I keep the Omen in my office and the Blackjack at home). They booth have great acoustic sustain. The action on both is exactly the same. The electronics on the Omen could use an upgrade, but for the price, they are rock solid. Of the two, the Omen is slightly lighter and because of the lower positioning of the through-body the Omen is shorter (while still the same 26.5 scale), so if fits a gig back I have for my 6 string (barely). It is the least expensive 7 string that is of great quality that is 26.5. If I were not fixated on the 26.5, ESP also makes solid 7's down to their consumer M17. Avoid the Schecter C-7 SGR, the necks are flat and buzz like crazy.

I ordered this for my son after trying to get him the SGR7 for a month. It shipped to our house in 3 days and was well packaged. The OMEN-7 is a beautiful guitar and sounds great. My son plays mostly metal and tunes the guitar accordingly. It came with Eddie Ball strings which is what my son prefers. The hardware and pickups seem to be of good quality. He's had it about 2 weeks and has hardly put it down.