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Post by Admin on Sept 6, 2013 10:46:43 GMT -5
Over on GuitarZone (http://www.guitarzone.com/forum/topic/59779-open-d5-tuning-question/) there was a discussion about Open D5 tuning (DADADD). That made me think about other unusual tunings like DropB - BF#BEG#C# used in some heavy metal (Yuck) and CGCFCE used in Celtic music.
What other unusual or weird tunings do you know?
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Post by Admin on Sept 8, 2013 21:06:05 GMT -5
None, I had enough trouble with standard tuning! I know better than that Herb. groupwave |
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Post by Admin on Sept 9, 2013 10:03:37 GMT -5
Chet told me once that back in the 50's he tuned his guitar to F and sometimes to F# instead of E, he said he liked the sound and it made him sound different, so that's the reason some of his records are in odd keys. He gets a great sound on "A Little Bit Of Blues" but for that he is tuned down a whole step.
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Post by dadfad on Sept 13, 2013 15:18:18 GMT -5
Waaaaay back when, Crosby, Stills and Nash released "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes." On hearing it and trying to figure it out, at first I thought it might be in dropped-D capoed at the second fret. (Almost worked, but it didn't have that tremendous resonant drone.) So I tried tuning the five down as well, and then I tried DADF#AD capoed at the second. Still not quite right. Then later that summer I got to see them live from pretty close up. I made a mental-note of several important positions and exactly just how Steve Stills fingered them.
When I got home a few days later I held that position on my guitar and then tuned the strings down around my fingerings until I got that sound. I came up with EEEEEE, and it worked pretty well. Many years later I found out that he'd actually used EEEEBE (an open E5). Either way, a pretty weird tuning!
And in the years since, I've come across several other pretty unusual ones. (Like "Scotch-B" and "Sawtooth-G!" )
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Post by Admin on Sept 13, 2013 15:19:20 GMT -5
(And in the years since, I've come across several other pretty unusual ones. (Like "Scotch-B" and "Sawtooth-G!" ) What are those??? |
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Post by dadfad on Sept 13, 2013 15:42:58 GMT -5
Scotch-B is EF#BF#BE; Sawtooth-G is GGDGBD. Almost like open-G except both the 5 (down a whole-step) and 6 (up a step and a half) are tuned to G.
When playing in open-G, often that 6-string D kind of gets in the way. (Which is why for example Keith Richards removes his 6-string and just uses a xGDGBG when he's playing in open-G. Having both the 5 and 6 as G's also lets you be able to finger (or slide) other notes on the 5, yet you still have that G-drone on the 6 if you need or want it, or to able to "walk" that low-G with your thumb, etc. (For someone who might want to use that tuning a lot, I'd suggest putting two 5-strings on your guitar so there won't be as much tension on the neck.
(Couple more unusual tunings... Cut-Throat and Cut-Throat Spanish! LOL)
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Post by Admin on Sept 13, 2013 18:24:01 GMT -5
Scotch-B is EF#BF#BE; Sawtooth-G is GGDGBD. Almost like open-G except both the 5 (down a whole-step) and 6 (up a step and a half) are tuned to G. When playing in open-G, often that 6-string D kind of gets in the way. (Which is why for example Keith Richards removes his 6-string and just uses a xGDGBG when he's playing in open-G. Having both the 5 and 6 as G's also lets you be able to finger (or slide) other notes on the 5, yet you still have that G-drone on the 6 if you need or want it, or to able to "walk" that low-G with your thumb, etc. (For someone who might want to use that tuning a lot, I'd suggest putting two 5-strings on your guitar so there won't be as much tension on the neck. (Couple more unusual tunings... Cut-Throat and Cut-Throat Spanish! LOL) Thanks for the lesson John. groupwave |
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Post by Pistol Pete on Nov 15, 2013 6:59:06 GMT -5
I came up with EEEEEE, and it worked pretty well. Many years later I found out that he'd actually used EEEEBE (an open E5). Either way, a pretty weird tuning! A prog-rock loving bass player friend of mine told me that a lot of Jeff Waynes War of the Worlds used EEEEEE. often that 6-string D kind of gets in the way After years of playing in open G, I've recently started to find it useful, particularly for the riffs of old rock and roll songs like Great Balls of Fire and Summertime Blues! |
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Post by Pistol Pete on Jan 15, 2014 13:42:48 GMT -5
I was jamming with a chap at the weekend who drops the low D on an open-G guitar to a C. An awesome sound, especially for pretty finger-picked type stuff.
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Post by Admin on Feb 3, 2014 8:04:31 GMT -5
Does anyone use augmented fourths tuning?
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Post by Admin on Feb 24, 2014 16:51:32 GMT -5
Relative tuning
Who around this forum played with a band that depended on one person's pitch acuity to tune up the whole band?
Back years ago, we didn't have tuners and no harp, pitch pipe, piano, or tuning fork, so we relied on one band member's ability to tune for the rest of us. Now, that wasn't a problem, except when a vocalist would comment that we were sharp or flat.
I'm sure a lot of the old blues and appalachian musicians didn't have the tuning aids. Wonder hoe they felt the first time they were accompanied by an "in-tune" musician?
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Post by geezer on Feb 26, 2014 17:19:17 GMT -5
I've been dabbling with DGCGCD with a couple of songs. Led Zepplin's The Rain Song sure got easier when I found this tuning
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Post by earleg on Feb 27, 2014 0:55:14 GMT -5
I have a friend who uses C tuning quite a bit with or without slide.
It may actually be C7 tuning. I would have to guess on the string notes.
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Post by Admin on Mar 2, 2014 17:14:42 GMT -5
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