Tuning half a step down

F

freefly.freak

New member
Hey all I've just gotten my ibanez back from the shop and i had it tuned half a step down. Only problem (which i knew would come) is that my tuner only tunes for standard. SO as i play and my guitar goes slightly out of tune i can't tune it back correctly.

I tried searching the net for audios of tunings to tune to but i could only find ones for standard. Does anyone know where i can get an audio of a guitar tuned half a step down that i could go by?

thanks.
 
Tune it to standard and then drop everything a half step. Serious there is many ways to do. If your ear is not trained then when your tuned standard fret the 4th on the low E string and make the open A sound the same. Next fret the 5th on the low E string and tune it to the now 1/2 step dropped open A string. Then go to the 5th fret of the A string and make the open D sound the same. Then go to the 5th fret of the D string and make the open G string sound the same. Then got to the 4th fret of the G string and make the open B sound the same. Then go to the 5th fret of the B string and make the open High E sound the same. BAMMMMMM!
 
chadsxe said:
Tune it to standard and then drop everything a half step. Serious there is many ways to do. If your ear is not trained then when your tuned standard fret the 4th on the low E string and make the open A sound the same. Next fret the 5th on the low E string and tune it to the now 1/2 step dropped open A string. Then go to the 5th fret of the A string and make the open D sound the same. Then go to the 5th fret of the D string and make the open G string sound the same. Then got to the 4th fret of the G string and make the open B sound the same. Then go to the 5th fret of the B string and make the open High E sound the same. BAMMMMMM!
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It may not be that easy if he has a floating tailpiece, as do a lot of Ibanez models. Altering such a guitar from standard tuning can be a nightmare. With each string that you detune, it alters the pitch of every other string. Plus, you have to adjust the spring screws in the back of the guitar to compensate for having less tension pulling on them in order to keep the tailpiece level.

If you have the ability to interface your guitar with your computer, then check out this tuner:

http://www.jhc-software.com/gtune.htm

The demo version is free, but will only let you keep it open for 10 minutes at a time. But I have to say WOW! I was able to set my intonation better than I've EVER been able to do myself with this tuner. I think I'm going to register it, because it really looks to be worth it.
 
Tadpui said:
It may not be that easy if he has a floating tailpiece, as do a lot of Ibanez models. Altering such a guitar from standard tuning can be a nightmare. With each string that you detune, it alters the pitch of every other string. Plus, you have to adjust the spring screws in the back of the guitar to compensate for having less tension pulling on them in order to keep the tailpiece level.

If you have the ability to interface your guitar with your computer, then check out this tuner:

http://www.jhc-software.com/gtune.htm

The demo version is free, but will only let you keep it open for 10 minutes at a time. But I have to say WOW! I was able to set my intonation better than I've EVER been able to do myself with this tuner. I think I'm going to register it, because it really looks to be worth it.
Click to expand...

Ah good point I forgot about that. Dumb me. God if you have a floating tailpeice and don't know how to tune already I suggest you do some research and learn the right way.
 
I usually just fret the first fret and use the tuner. It's not the most accurate but it works.
 
Just to let all of you guys know... Tuning using the frets isn't the best way to tune. Learn to tune your guitar with harmonics.... much more accurate. And if you are using a guitar with a floating bridge (unless is a PRS), you'll have to constantly adjust the spring tensions in the back to conpensate for the tuning. This is because the strings - as they break in more and more - tension changes.

~darknail
 
darknailblue said:
Just to let all of you guys know... Tuning using the frets isn't the best way to tune. Learn to tune your guitar with harmonics.... much more accurate.
~darknail
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I agree. Also, if you'r dead set on tuning a 1/2 step down, just use a keyboard.
 
Many tuners today let you set them so they tune your guitar a half step down. That Boss pedal (TU-2 I think) works well. You just press a button and it reads like a regular tuner, but it's a half-step down.
 
I play a Strat that is tuned to Eb...just fvcking capo the first fret...and tune to standard pitch with yer tuner...than remove the capo...and voila!
 
Just buy a chromatic tuner. This is the price for not following the standard. There are several half-assed ways to get around it, but sooner or later, you will want to tune a full step down, then drop D, Then 1 1/2 steps down. Just get the right tool for the job.
If you decide to get a 7-string, you will need a new tuner anyway.
 
darknailblue said:
. Learn to tune your guitar with harmonics.... much more accurate.
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WRONG.


Tuning to harmonics is extremely inaccurate, because harmonics are not tempered. You will never get any complex chords to sound in tune if you tune to harmonics.

The guitar is an equal tempered instrument, and so needs to be tuned as such. I actually tune my a little stretched, which makes it play better with piano's, but none the less, you need to tune in an equal temperament.

The best way I have found to tune is to tune my A string to a tuning fork. I then tune all of the strings to that, using the "A" on each string (the fifth fret on the E strings, the seventh fret on the D string, the second fret on the G string, and the 10th fret on the B string). I finish up, and stretch the tuning a little, by playing a very angular E power chord which uses all six strings (O-7-9-9-12-12). Once you have the power chord in tune, you are set. It takes me about 10-20 seconds, except of course when restringing a guitar.

Your ear is MUCH better for this kind of tuning than any electronic device ever made, because your ear can stretch things a little, which tuners do not do.



Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
Light said:
WRONG.


Tuning to harmonics is extremely inaccurate, because harmonics are not tempered. You will never get any complex chords to sound in tune if you tune to harmonics.

The best way I have found to tune is to tune my A string to a tuning fork. I then tune all of the strings to that, using the "A" on each string (the fifth fret on the E strings, the seventh fret on the D string, the second fret on the G string, and the 10th fret on the B string). I finish up, and stretch the tuning a little, by playing a very angular E power chord which uses all six strings (O-7-9-9-12-12). Once you have the power chord in tune, you are set. It takes me about 10-20 seconds, except of course when restringing a guitar.
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As your frets wear, they become flatter and wider, shortening the distance between the nut and the contact point of the fret. Therefore, intonation problems occur and your tuning method becomes impossible.
 
Plus your nut :) will always keep your guitar from staying in tune as you work your way up the neck. Unless you have the ervana (SP) nut :)
 
Farview said:
Just buy a chromatic tuner.
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This is what I said. Forget this other crap and just shell out the twenty dollars or so to get one, it will save you much headache. I already gave you the websites to get them.
 
cobradenim said:
As your frets wear, they become flatter and wider, shortening the distance between the nut and the contact point of the fret. Therefore, intonation problems occur and your tuning method becomes impossible.
Click to expand...

The method I use for tuning (it is not my method, I learned it from one of my teachers at Berklee, a guy who played about 400-500 shows a year, and always tuned this way, though he would tune his A string to the piano he was playing with) naturally compensates for the problems of fret wear. The problem with tuning to harmonics is that there is NO TEMPERMENT. You are tuning to a Pythagorean "temperament," which is to say no temperament. This is fine if you are only ever going to play in one key, tune for that key, and are never going to play with any other instruments, ever. It doesn't work in the real world.




chadsxe said:
Plus your nut :) will always keep your guitar from staying in tune as you work your way up the neck. Unless you have the ervana (SP) nut :)
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While I can not dispute the theory behind those things, they are none the less a crock of shit. The nut DOES need to be compensated, but it is not different for each string. They need to be about .010" closer to the first fret than the theoretical intonation point. Well, I (and every other builder in the world) have been doing this for generations. I use a .022" screw slitting blade to cut my fingerboards, using a jig made on a CNC machine (which cuts to the nearest .0001"). This includes the nut location. When I cut these slots, the center of the blade is at the theoretical intonation points for all for the frets, including the nut. The blade kerf is .022" of an inch wide, so my nut ends up being .011" closer to the first fret than the theoretical intonation point. This is close enough, and then some.

The reason most people end up thinking their cool compensated nut, or the Buzz Feitien system, or what ever, makes an improvement is that they go into the shop with a guitar which needs a setup, and when they get it back, the guitar is intonated properly (or at least closer than it was), and so it sounds more in tune. It does not, however, sound more in tune than it would have with just a normal setup, tuned by a well trained ear. I know, I have heard these things side by side, and I have an obsessive ear for intonation. Guitars NEVER sound perfectly in tune, no matter what you do. But a good setup, and a well trained ear, gets you as close as you will ever get.

And yes, I know, I get a little too worked up over this stuff. I just get a little upset when people who are basically con-men try to convince my customers that I don't know what I am talking about in this regard (I am not talking about anyone here). I have an awful lot of experience in this area. I know what I am talking about.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
For 90 % of guitar players who don't have the special guitar tech or the "amazing" ear, the nut helps a lot. All I know is when I play Cliffs of Dover on my strat with a standard nut it sounds more out of tune then my other guitar with a compenstation nut.
 
chadsxe said:
For 90 % of guitar players who don't have the special guitar tech or the "amazing" ear, the nut helps a lot. All I know is when I play Cliffs of Dover on my strat with a standard nut it sounds more out of tune then my other guitar with a compenstation nut.
Click to expand...


You don't need an amazing ear, you just need to train yours. I do a lot of live sound, and though I am very carful about using Earplugs in those situations which demand it, I still have some pretty noticable high end hearing loss. I can still tell when a guitar is out of tune, no problem. It is just one more thing you need to practice. And like I said, most guitar makers nuts ARE compensated.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
you can either get a tuner that will let you recalibrate it for an alternate tuning, or just tune it standard and then re-tune your E string to the Eb (based on the 6th fret of the A string) and just tune it by ear from there.

if your into hard rock or metal, the early Kiss albums are all tuned to Eb.
 
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