Guitar Lessons

Learn How To Tune a Guitar

Tuning your guitar may take a beginner 5 minutes but seasoned guitarist with trained ears can do this in just 30 seconds. The idea is to adjust the pitch of the strings till they play the correct note. Tightening and loosening of the tuning machine helps in doing this. For higher pitch tighten the machine and for a lower pitch loosen the tuning machine. Yes it is that simple!

There are different methods of tuning the guitar. It is something that gets better with practice as it takes time for your ear to fine tune the instrument. This is also going to prove a great method to judge yourself while playing. No matter what guitar scales you are playing, if your guitar is not tuned well, nothing will sound good.

How to tune your guitar

If you learn and practice one method of tuning, things will become clearer and you would find your self better placed while learning. Here is one of the simplest and most commonly used methods of tuning your guitar is given below:

As you learn how to play electric guitar you know a guitar has six strings from the thickest to thinnest that is from E to E. And in between you have A, D, G and B if we go from thickest to thinnest.

The standard tuning method is most common in tuning both Electrical and Acoustic guitars following notes from low to high: E A D G B E.

1. Here we use E string as a reference note. This is one string that you can trust not to detune easily. If you have another instrument to compare say a Piano, you can tune it to first E below middle C.
2. The A String: Now keep your figure on the “A” note (Fifth fret) and Pluck the fifth and sixth string in turn. As you do that, adjust the fifth string tuning machine until both notes sound same.
3. The D String: Pluck the D string and compare it to sound of fifth fret A string. Now Pluck both the fifth and fourth string in turn and adjust tuning machine till both sound the same.
4. The G String: Place your left hand first finger just behind fifth fret of D string. Pluck both the fifth-fret D and G string alternatively. Tune your G string until they sound same.
5. The B String: Place your left hand first finger on fourth fret (not fifth fret), then tune B string till they sound same.
6. The E string: Place the first finger of left hand on fifth fret of B string, and then tune your string E till they sound same. As the E string on the bottom is the thinnest, please take care while tightening the tuning machine as it can break easily.

Only problem with this method is that if you get one string wrong all the following strings will also be wrong. If tuned accurately, the interval between two E strings should be exactly two octaves.

Learning how to tune your guitar is one of the basic steps of becoming a good guitar player. When taking online guitar lessons, knowing how to tune a guitar can be very useful. Many people give up learning the instrument as they think they sound bad, though it does take time to learn the technique needed to play songs but out of tune guitars can be really frustrating.
How to tune your guitar: Important Tips

• Tuning your guitar may take you time but it will save you the hassle of asking others to do it for you. You may be surprised to find out how soon a guitar can go out of tune.
• Not many know that temperature changes affect a guitar. Extreme temperature changes and mishandling are some of the most common causes that make a guitar out of tune.
• It is advisable to use electronic tuner in loud surroundings. But training your ears for tuning is best in long.
• As you learn to play guitar from guitar lessons dvd, also make an effort to learn to put strings to a guitar. As you do this ensure that they stretch as you tune them to pitch. This can be done by holding them down to the neck around the 24th fret. Use your right hand to do this and pulling them away from guitar body with your left hand. However avoid using too much force.