Why retune at all
Standard tuning, E A D G B E, is a compromise. It makes scales and chord shapes workable in every key, but it doesn't favour any key in particular. Alternate tunings give some of that up. They make a few keys sound huge and easy, with open strings ringing under everything, at the cost of having to relearn shapes.
Every tuning below can be reached from standard by loosening or tightening a few strings, and every one is built into the fretboard: pick it from the tuning menu and the note names, the chord identifier and the sound all follow, so you can try a shape before retuning a real guitar.
| Tuning | Strings, low to high | From standard |
|---|---|---|
| Drop D | D A D G B E | low E down a whole step |
| Open G | D G D G B D | low E down a whole step, A down a whole step, high E down a whole step |
| Open D | D A D F♯ A D | low E down a whole step, G down a half step, B down a whole step, high E down a whole step |
| Open E | E B E G♯ B E | A up a whole step, D up a whole step, G up a half step |
| Open A | E A E A C♯ E | D up a whole step, G up a whole step, B up a whole step |
| DADGAD | D A D G A D | low E down a whole step, B down a whole step, high E down a whole step |
| Half Step Down | E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ B♭ E♭ | every string down a half step |
| Full Step Down | D G C F A D | every string down a whole step |
Drop D
Lower only the low E string a whole step, to D. It is the easiest alternate tuning to get into and out of, and most of your standard shapes still work as long as they don't use the low string.
To tune it by ear, play the low string together with the open D string. They should be the same note an octave apart, with no wobble between them. You can also fret the low string at the 7th fret and match it to the open A.
What you gain: the bottom three strings are now D, A and D, a power chord played open. Lay one finger across those three strings at any fret and you have a power chord rooted on that fret, which is why drop D is all over heavy rock. It also gives D-major songs a low D to ring under the open D shape.
Open G
Strum the open strings and you hear a G major chord. Getting there from standard means lowering three strings a whole step: the low E and high E to D, and the A to G.
Any chord in the key is now one finger across all the strings: the 5th fret is C, the 7th is D, the 12th is G an octave up. That is why open G is the standard tuning for slide guitar, and why it is behind so many blues and rock rhythm parts. Keith Richards famously plays in open G with the low string taken off altogether; the low D puts the 5th in the bass, and some players prefer the chord rooted on G.
Open A (E A E A C♯ E) is the same tuning a whole step higher. The shapes are identical; it just raises the tension on three strings instead of lowering it.
Open D
The open strings make a D major chord: D A D F♯ A D. From standard, lower the low E, B and high E a whole step and the G a half step. It is a deep, full-sounding tuning used a lot in folk and for slide, and like open G, a one-finger barre gives you the other chords in the key.
Open E (E B E G♯ B E) has the same shapes a whole step higher. It means tightening three strings, so many players prefer to tune to open D and put a capo on the 2nd fret.
DADGAD
Named after its strings, DADGAD is drop D with the B string lowered to A and the high E lowered to D. The open strings make Dsus4, neither major nor minor, which is the source of its open, droning sound. It is the classic tuning for Celtic guitar, and Led Zeppelin's “Kashmir” is in it.
Because the open chord has no 3rd, a fretted note or two decides major or minor, and the open strings keep droning under everything you play. For D major, fret the D string at the 4th fret to add F♯, and the G string at the 2nd to turn the sus4's G into another A.
Tuning down a half or whole step
Half step down (E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ B♭ E♭, often called E♭ tuning) lowers every string by one fret's worth. All your shapes stay the same and everything sounds a half step lower: an E shape sounds as E♭. Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan both played tuned down this way. It makes bends easier on looser strings, and it suits singers who find standard keys a little high.
Full step down (D G C F A D) does the same thing by two frets, so an E shape sounds as D. It is heavier and darker, and on a guitar with light strings it can get floppy; a heavier gauge helps.
In both, a song sheet in standard still works, it just comes out lower. To play along with a recording in one of these tunings, retune rather than moving every shape.
Tips for switching tunings
- Tune up to pitch, not down. If you overshoot, go below the note and come back up to it. Strings settle better under rising tension and stay in tune longer.
- Expect to retune twice. Changing several strings shifts the tension on the neck, which pulls the strings you already tuned slightly out. Go round again.
- Watch for buzzing. A string tuned down a whole step is looser and can buzz against the frets. Pick a little lighter, or keep a guitar set up for the tuning you use most.
- Think in intervals, not shapes. Your standard chord shapes mostly won't work in open tunings. Learn where the root, 3rd and 5th sit in the new tuning, and the shapes follow.
The chord library uses standard tuning. On the fretboard, switch the tuning and use Other voicings to see shapes for any chord in the tuning you're in.