How to tune a guitar. Guitar tuning for beginners

An out-of-tune guitar is a difficult instrument to play.

It hinders the development of the correct musical ear for beginner guitarists, and does not allow professionals to perform compositions well.

How to tune your guitar

What will be required

It is easy for musicians to tune their guitar with a tuner as it is a simple method that will make the instrument sound accurate. But this requires silence, because extra noise prevents the device from correctly capturing the sound that comes from the instrument. Therefore, in noisy or concert conditions, a tuning fork is used. It is suitable for beginner musicians to use at home.

With the help of a tuning fork, the guitarist picks up the sound and tunes the guitar to the required parameters.

A six-string guitar is tuned by ear. It is conducted by beginners with naturally good hearing and experienced musicians. This method is universal – you need to know which strings to fret in order for the tuning to be correct.

When the guitar is heavily out of tune, it is recommended to use a tuning fork. The standard device has an “A” note pattern, but for the guitar, it is advised to use the “E” tuning fork, which corresponds to the 1st string. When the details are fine-tuned, you can move on to finer and finer tuning.

Tuner

This is a device that allows you to correctly tune the guitar by accurately capturing the pitch of notes and displaying it on the screen using a scale, indicator light, or other method. The tuner will replace the musician’s hearing, so it is advised to use it for beginners who have not yet developed auditory skills. The device can be in the form of a clothespin, which is attached to the neck, pedals. There are online tuners – programs that run on any device connected to the Internet: a computer, smartphone, tablet, etc.

Smartphone tuner apps

For Android:

• Guitar Tuna
• Ultimate Guitar Tuner
• Guitar tuning

For iOS:

• Guitar Tuna
• Pro Guitar Tuner

Tuning by tuner

If the musician uses an electronic device, you need to do the following:

1. Enable the appropriate mode on the device.
2. Extract the sound of the 1st string.
3. Look at the readings of the device. If the string is not stretched enough, the scale will deviate to the left, and if it is overstretched, it will deviate to the right.
4. The string is pulled to the desired parameters, then again the sound is extracted to check if it is tuned correctly.
5. The tool part is correctly tensioned, if the scale is in the middle, the green indicator lights up or a corresponding signal is heard.

After tuning, the strings must be periodically adjusted: they acquire the necessary parameters by stretching, so the system will “slide” at first.

With 1st and 2nd string

To tune a guitar for a beginner, you need to use the first, thinnest string of the instrument. It should sound in its purest form, that is, it should not be clamped to the fretboard e. The 2nd string is tuned relative to the 1st, clamping at the 5th fret. If the sound is the same, you need to go to the 3rd string. Its tuning differs from the action relative to the other strings in that you need to clamp the part at the 4th fret; 2nd string is open. When both sound in unison, you can move on to the 4th string. It, like the 5th, is clamped on the 5th fret.

After tuning, you need to play the strings in reverse order.

An important rule is that the 1st and 6th strings should sound in the same key. If the test confirms this, then the guitar was tuned correctly.

Tuning by ear

Reproducing the correct tuning of a guitar by ear assumes that the musician has excellent hearing. This method is simple and effective.

To achieve this possibility, it is necessary to train the ear.

6-string guitar tuning features

Classical guitars are easier to tune than others. It must be remembered that out of 6 strings , you need to clamp the 3rd string on the 4th fret. The rest are checked on the 5th fret, except for the 1st string. It is a model, so it should sound in its purest form.

FAQ

Summing up

Tuning the guitar is carried out in several ways: by ear, using the 1st and 2nd strings, a tuning fork or a tuner. The easiest way is the last one. And tuning the instrument by ear is the prerogative of professional musicians. It is also recommended to use the mi tuning fork. When answering the question of how to properly tune a guitar, it is worth noting that you can use various methods.