Is the Fallout Burst Mach-7 FR S Worth Chasing in B-Stock?

If you've settled on the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 FR S and want the Fallout Burst finish specifically, the question is whether B-Stock gets you there for less without a catch. For most home-studio players, it does. The B-Stock price is $1,479.20, against $1,849.00 new, a savings of about $370.

We'll skip the EverTune comparison, since this isn't that guitar. The feature that sets the FR S apart in a studio is the Sustainiac. This post is about that, and about whether a Floyd Rose 7-string suits the way you track.

View the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 FR S guitar in Fallout Burst Product Page

The Sustainiac: A Sustain Tool for Quiet Tracking

The neck position holds a Sustainiac, a powered system that keeps the strings vibrating. It runs off a 9-volt clip-in battery compartment and has two extra controls beyond the usual volume, tone, and 3-way pickup switch:

• 2-way on/off switch to engage or bypass the Sustainiac.
• 3-way mode switch with Fundamental, Mix, and Harmonic settings.

The practical benefit in a home studio is that you can hold a note, or push it into a harmonic, without turning an amp up to feedback volume. That helps for ambient leads, drones, swells, and long sustained lines in the low register of a 7-string, especially at apartment-friendly levels or through a DI or amp sim. Fundamental keeps the note's root, Harmonic jumps the sustained tone up, and Mix blends them. Try each mode against your track before you commit to a take.

The catch is that it's another thing to power and manage. Keep a spare 9-volt in your drawer so a dead battery doesn't stop a session.

The Bridge Pickup and Controls

The bridge position has a Lundgren M7. Combined with the Sustainiac at the neck, the 3-way switch gives you two distinct voices to pick from when layering parts. Controls are one volume and one tone, so there's not much to dial in, which is good when you want fast recall between takes.

Build: What Matters on a Recording Guitar

The swamp ash body with a flamed maple top is where the Fallout Burst finish shows up. The neck is neck-through, built from roasted maple and purpleheart multi-ply with Schecter's Ultra Access neck-body transition for reaching the upper frets. Carbon fiber reinforcement rods are in the neck, and a 2-way truss rod is adjustable from the heel with a spoke wheel, so you can tweak relief without removing the neck.

• Scale length: 26.5" (673mm), which helps keep the low B tight when you're tracking riffs.
• Nut width: about 1.87" (47.6mm).
• Profile: Ultra Thin U, roughly 0.75" (19mm) at the 1st fret and 0.79" (20mm) at the 12th.
• Fingerboard: ebony with a 12"-16" compound radius, flatter toward the upper frets for lead playing.
• Frets: 24 X-Jumbo stainless steel.
• Tuners: Grover Rotomatic 18:1.
• Hardware: Black Chrome, with Floyd Rose 1500 Series nut and bridge.
• Strings: Ernie Ball 7-string set, .009 to .062.

The stainless frets are a studio perk. They stay smooth, so bends and slides stay clean over a long session. Note that this is a single 26.5" scale guitar with a compound radius, not a fanned-fret multi-scale.

But Here's the Catch: Floyd Rose Isn't for Everyone

The Floyd Rose 1500 Series bridge and nut give you dive bombs and return to pitch, but they make string changes slower. You'll need to lock and unlock the nut and work with fine tuners. If you swap strings or alternate tunings between songs, that adds friction to a session. A 7-string with a Floyd isn't ideal for drop-tuning hopping on the fly. If you do that often, a fixed-bridge guitar will save time.

Also consider B-Stock itself. These are open-box or lightly blemished units, so check the listing photos and notes for the specific cosmetic issue. On a burst finish, look closely at the top and edges. Test the Sustainiac and all three switches when it arrives.

Our Take

If you want a 7-string that can do heavy rhythm parts and sustained, feedback-style leads at low volume, the B-Stock Fallout Burst FR S is a good use of $1,479.20. You get the same specs as new for about $370 less. If you rarely use sustain effects, or hate dealing with locking trems, look at a fixed-bridge 7-string instead. And if you want a flawless finish for collecting, pay the difference for new.

View the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 FR S guitar in Fallout Burst Product Page

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do you save with the B-Stock Banshee Mach-7 FR S?

The B-Stock price is $1,479.20, versus $1,849.00 new, a savings of about $370 for the Fallout Burst version.

What does the Sustainiac do when recording?

It keeps strings vibrating so you can hold notes or push them into harmonics without cranking an amp. It's powered by a 9-volt battery and has Fundamental, Mix, and Harmonic modes.

Is this a multi-scale guitar?

No. It has a single 26.5-inch (673mm) scale length with a 12-inch to 16-inch compound radius fingerboard, not fanned frets.

Is a Floyd Rose a hassle for home recording?

It can be if you change strings or tunings often, since the locking nut and bridge slow things down. If you stay in one tuning, it holds pitch well and gives you trem options.