Guitar Tuning Online
HI I’m Teejay O'Neill welcome to my guitar tips page, thanks for stopping by. I started out playing when I was 13 when my Dad bought me my first acoustic, it was terrible, I struggled and struggled to learn to tune it and nearly gave up. Some 47 years later, and having traveled the world a few times as a pro musician I am glad I stuck at it. Once you master tuning the guitar you are well on your way to becoming a rock God or Goddess, if that’s your wish, because tuning will teach you some of the notes on the guitar which are so all important to playing.
Tuning For Guitar
Tuning is the process of manipulating the tuning pegs of a guitar to tighten or loosen the string so that each string rings at the correct pitch.
The strings are numbered from 1 to 6 with 1 the top string being the thinnest(it is also at the bottom as you look down at your guitar, and 6 being the thickest. Each open string has a letter associated with it, and this is the note it should be tuned to, and will play when plucked and played open (no finger pushing down the string)
So:-
1 top E
2nd B
3rd G
4th D
5th A
6th bottom E (this is 2 octaves lower than the top E)
There are three principal ways of tuning a guitar:
Reference tuning
Relative tuning
Electronic tuning
These processes are the same no matter whether the guitar is electric or acoustic, or even if it has nylon or steel strings.
There are many different notes that a guitar can tune to.
Standard Tuning Guitar
Blues and finger style players as well as many of today’s legendary rock gods are famous for using altered tunings, for different songs. Ever noticed them swapping guitars between numbers? However there is a standard guitar tuning and this is where all nubies should start.
This tuning is, low (thickest string) to high,(thinnest string) E, A, D, G, B and E.
Reference Tuning is tuning the guitars strings to another source such as a piano, pitch pipe, tuning fork, or another guitar. The reference pitch is first played and then the corresponding pitch (usually an open string) is played on the guitar you are tuning. The tuning pegs are then turned either to the left or the right, moving the pitch of the string up or down until the pitch of the other instrument and the pitch of the guitar are exactly the same. This is probably the most difficult method and is best to have someone who knows how, to show you a few of times until you get the hang of it.
It is so easy to blow a pitch pipe out of tune. In the past many budding guitarists gave up because of the difficulty in tuning the guitar. I was almost one of them some 47years ago.
Relative Tuning is the process of tuning the guitar to itself. Notes and chords will sound correct as long as the guitar is playing solo, but if you want to accompany other players or singers he pitch of the entire guitar may be too high or too low when compared to another instrument.
To tune one string to another, you need to know some of the notes on the fret board and their relationship to each other. If you look down at your guitar and stop the thickest string bottom E, at the 5th fret ,the stopped string will play the same note as the open string below it, i.e. A, If you then stop the A string at the 5th fret it will play D, the same note as the open string below, Again if you now stop that D string at the 5th fret it will play G, which yes you’ve got it, is the same as the open string below. This is the same for all the strings except the next, this is an anomaly of the tuning of the modern day guitar, if you stopped the G string at the 5th fret you would play a C which we both know is not the name of the next string, but if you move your finger to the 4th fret and stop the string you will get the B you were looking for. Now return to the 5th fret of your B string to tune your last string which is the high E.This of course is if your guitar is in tune. so lets go over it,
If you Play (stop) the low E string at the fifth fret, then play the A string open. These two pitches should be exactly the same. (so you should have your index finger pressing down the thickest string at the 5th fret. play this note, listen to the pitch and then play the same fret on the next string open,(without pressing the string to the fret board.)
Move the tuning key for the A string either flat or sharp as necessary until the two strings both ring at the same pitch. Repeat this process with the other strings with the exception of the second, or B, string. To tune this string you must play on the third, or G, string at the fourth fret. Return to the fifth fret to tune the high E string. so its frets 5-5-5-4-5-
Electronic Tuning is generally the easiest form of tuning for the novice guitarist to master.(and believe me, on a noisy stage is often the only way as it is completely visual.)
This method uses an electronic tuner to locate the correct pitches. Electronic tuners are available at any music store for around £15.$30.They generally have a microphone built in so that if you are playing acoustic you can still use this method.
As with most things in life you get what you pay for, so the more expensive tuners tend to be much more accurate and therefore, easier to use. Purchase the best model of tuner that you can reasonably afford - it will pay off in the long run. Look for features such as input and output so that the guitar can be tuned in line while plugged into your amp. But the most useful feature is the chromatic tuner, this not only shows if you are flat or sharp, but also what note you are actually playing. With these things tuning becomes a very quick task, you simply loosen or tighten each string in turn until the tuner indicates that the string is in tune:-) and your ear soon becomes accustomed to the pitch, as you progress try tuning without looking at the tuner until you think you are in tune, you will soon be very pleasantly surprised. Quite a few amps now have a tuner built in.
Well done, you should now have your guitar in tune but please remember it wont stay in tune, changing temperatures as well as the way you play,(string bending, whammy bars etc) all help to stretch the strings and put them out of tune.
Don’t forget to change your strings when they start to sound dull, and even if you aren’t using the guitar that much (shame on you) you want to change them about every 6 months.
Now that you have learned a few of the notes on the guitar why not learn them all? does that sound a daunting task? its a lot easier than you think. Learning to tune your guitar taught you 2 notes on each string, and as the 1st and 6th string are the same once you have learned the notes on 1 e string you have learned them on both which cuts the task down. If you want to learn more and can learn a little story you can master the entire fret board in no time at all. click on this link to learn more good luck and if I can help you with anything please feel free to contact me.
To learn how to tune your guitar
your friend in music
Teejay O'Neill
