Tuning a guitar??

rox5

I am new to the acoustic guitar and I keep tuning it but it does not sound right to me. I keep looking at online guides but a lot of them are different, so can someone help me out with this?

refusetolose

tried something like this?

http://www.all-guitar-chords.com/tuner.php

topcatcbr

rox5 wrote: »

I am new to the acoustic guitar and I keep tuning it but it does not sound right to me. I keep looking at online guides but a lot of them are different, so can someone help me out with this?

Buy a tuner.

I'm not being smart. I am playing years and wouldn't be without one. If you have a smart phone you can get an app to help.

You can relatively tune if you have one correct note but for starting out it is difficult to tell if the notes are correct.

Wise Old Elf

rox5 wrote: »

I am new to the acoustic guitar and I keep tuning it but it does not sound right to me. I keep looking at online guides but a lot of them are different, so can someone help me out with this?

Normal tuning takes a while to get your ear into, but from low to high is E A D G B E.
If you have a piano or keyboard, use it to get E on the lower end right. Use the 5th fret of each string to tune the next (except g to b, where it's the 4th fret), and off you go.
You can buy electronic tuners, but I think you'd be better off not, as you might need to get your ear to hear tuning imperfections yourself. Tuners can make you lazy!

wild turkey

if you have a smartrphone there are plenty of apps for this

-=al=-

Takes a couple of years to tune it from scratch with just the ear and even at that it might be a bit sharp or flat

get a tuner, or an app or anything that has the pitches!

TheUsual

I have a tuning fork.

I feel old now thanks guys.

CianRyan

I use a tuning fork too, in G!

I have a Boss Chromatic Tuner but I only use it on stage.

KeithTS

Disco Stuart wrote: »

Normal tuning takes a while to get your ear into, but from low to high is E A D G B E.
If you have a piano or keyboard, use it to get E on the lower end right. Use the 5th fret of each string to tune the next (except g to b, where it's the 4th fret), and off you go.
You can buy electronic tuners, but I think you'd be better off not, as you might need to get your ear to hear tuning imperfections yourself. Tuners can make you lazy!

Terrible advice, as somebody starting out I presume our friend here wants to tune his guitar and start playing, not spend an hour tuning it.

Tuners don't make you lazy they make you accurate, if you're on stage and don't use a tuner and have a band trying to tune by ear it's a disaster.
Yes orchestras do it all the time but those guys are top of their game.

I do agree with the sentiment that using your ear is a massively important skill but that will come with practice over the years, you can't recognize tuning imperfections before you know what correct tuning sounds like.

Wise Old Elf

KeithTS wrote: »

Terrible advice, as somebody starting out I presume our friend here wants to tune his guitar and start playing, not spend an hour tuning it.

Tuners don't make you lazy they make you accurate, if you're on stage and don't use a tuner and have a band trying to tune by ear it's a disaster.
Yes orchestras do it all the time but those guys are top of their game.

I do agree with the sentiment that using your ear is a massively important skill but that will come with practice over the years, you can't recognize tuning imperfections before you know what correct tuning sounds like.

I take your point, I don't agree though, and I did use a tuner on stage myself (a few years ago now unfortunately ). I made the point about tuning by ear as I think it's a vital skill to learn, and the earlier the better. I suppose we'll all differ though

KeithTS

Disco Stuart wrote: »

I take your point, I don't agree though, and I did use a tuner on stage myself (a few years ago now unfortunately ). I made the point about tuning by ear as I think it's a vital skill to learn, and the earlier the better. I suppose we'll all differ though

Ah no, I agree totally, it's a vital skill without a doubt, however no point in having a great ear if you never have any motivation yo play the instrument as beginners tend to get frustrated with things like tuning early on.

First Up

At this stage, tuning it to concert pitch is less important than getting the strings tuned to each other.

Start at the lowest pitch (the thickest one nearest you as you look down.) Then tune the next one to the 5th fret on the lowest. Then the next to the 5th fret of the second, the next to the 5th fret of the third. Next one is the trickiest - tune it to the 4th fret of the fourth string. Then for the last tune it to the 5th fret of the fifth.

As for not "sounding right", The sound made playing the six "open" strings does not sound tuneful. You have to play a chord of some sort.

Gregor Samsa

Tuning against a piano or keyboard is all well and good, assuming you have one, that you're in the same room as the instrument (pianos aren't as easy to move as guitars), that the piano itself is in tune, and that you know which E on the keyboard you should be tuning your bottom string against.

Using an electronic tuner allows you to quickly get your self tuned up accurately so you can start playing. They're also handy for checking intonation.

It also lets you easily get set up with other tunings in the future if you want to experiment with stuff like that. Tuning by ear is a great skill to have, but you'll never develop it unless the notes are accurate, and that's exactly the issue that the OP seems to be having at the moment.

I have a few iPhone tuning apps, but I mainly use a clip on Snark Quick Tune on the various guitars, basses, ukuleles that myself and wife use, and my daughter's harp:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Qwik-Tune-Snark-Instrument-Tuner/dp/B003VWKPHC/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1371460811&sr=8-2&keywords=snark

Cheap, accurate and handy.

martinedwards

no one has mentioned intonation.

the strings need to be exactly the right length.

sounds like it should be set in the factory, right?

no. a host of factors will bean that this needs set for you, today.

check by plucking a harmonic at the 12th fret and then the fretted note at the 12th on each string.

the harmonic and fretted note should be the same for each string.

if it's not, you'll never get it in tune.

a decent set up will sort it out, any decent music shop should do it for you

KeithTS

martinedwards wrote: »

no one has mentioned intonation.

the strings need to be exactly the right length.

sounds like it should be set in the factory, right?

no. a host of factors will bean that this needs set for you, today.

check by plucking a harmonic at the 12th fret and then the fretted note at the 12th on each string.

the harmonic and fretted note should be the same for each string.

if it's not, you'll never get it in tune.

a decent set up will sort it out, any decent music shop should do it for you

Somebody new to guitar has more worries than perfect intonation.
Besides, it's an acoustic, a beginner acoustic isn't going to have a handy way to set up perfect intonation, and even if it did the necessity isn't really there.

And as you're being so pedantic, using the 12th fret harmonic for checking intonation is probably the most inaccurate way of testing it, next time you want to give advice, give proper advice!

martinedwards

sorry old chum, but a budget guitar is more likely to be off than a big money one.

and if the intonation is off it'll never get into tune.

and as to doing intonation this way, that's how George Lowden showed me how to do it and how I did it on the 90 (yes, NINETY) guitars mandolins and basses that I've built from scratch, and the bunch of others that I've replaced the nut & saddle on to get the intonation right.

OK, so assuming you have a better way than the industry standard, please elaborate!!

penzo

martinedwards wrote: »

sorry old chum, but a budget guitar is more likely to be off than a big money one.

and if the intonation is off it'll never get into tune.

no offence but are you mental? relax, he's only starting ffs

martinedwards

he's only starting, so he wants to tune his guitar, which he's having difficulty with.

if his intonation is off then he'll never get it tuned and he'll put it down and never pick it up again.

when my kids learn to drive, I'll not expect them to be skilled mechanics, but I WILL expect them to be able to check that the tyres have air in them (and that there are 4 of them) before they drive off.

I'm not suggesting that he fixes a possible intonation problem himself, but I did give a simple way of finding out if there IS a problem, and then, armed with this knowledge he can go to a guitar shop and get it sorted.

and more people give up learning because thay started on a POS Guitar shaped plank with structural defects than any other reason.

I'm just asking him to check that the guitar is playable and tunable.

If that makes me metal, then guilty as charged.

endacl

martinedwards wrote: »

If that makes me metal, then guilty as charged.

Makes you totally metal, dude!!

\m/

martinedwards

doolox

..when dinosaurs roamed the earth and the steaming jungles of Gondwanaland were teaming with Pterodactyls flapping lazily through the thick Jurassic air I bought my first guitar for IR£12.50.

In spite of it being a piece of **** i learned basic first position chords and a few simple tunes in G D open scales.

I then "upgraded" to a Yamaha FG..... series which had great sound and volume and good bass response. It had a very high action which I was unaware of until I bought my 3rd guitar after many years with the Yamaha.

I tried several different guitars in several different shops in Galway (3) and came down in favour of a Takamine EN10 which I have had for 23 years.

It has been refretted 3 times since I bought it and is a good player when set up properly with new strings. it does not suffer old strings gladly and buzzes when rust and other **** builds up. Since I play 19-20 hrs a week for money I change the strings fortnightly to avoid breaks in my sessions and tuning and other problems.

I have got a new saddle and nut installed as well made from buffallo bone which has increased the volume and improved the tone a lot.

I second the opinion of using Electronic Tuners frequently and often in sessions especially when using a capo to transpose tuning up and down to suit peoples voices etc.

I personnally find that capo in 2nd or 3rd fret suits my voice better than open position. But you need to TUNE on each change of capo especiially the high E and sometimes the low E slightly to avoid going out of tune on the changes.
You will see professionals do this in concerts when changing capo positions so there must be a change in settings which alters tuning when changing capo postions. This probably varies from guita to guitar. The strings needing retuning probably varies as well. Develop a patter and take the time to try out a few chords in the new position and take the time to get the tuning right. I'll admit this is harder to do in a band situation as the other members are always anxious to PLAY, but a badly tuned guitar is torture to the ears. You will see the true professionals give a brief history and info on the song etc while tuning their guitar and getting things right, vital for a good rendition of a song or tune.

When I started playing solo sessions I found the clip on tuners invaluable for keeping the guitar in tune throughout the session. Also play a few chords and tweak things a little until you get things exactly right.

If tuning becomes difficult after a few weeks of playing think about changing the strings. Steel strings lose their tuning after a while of constant playing, unless you are a gentle player. While cleaning might help there is nothing that can restore the basic crystalline structure of the steel on which the strings depend for the volume,tone and clarity and this worsens with time and constant playing. If using a floating bridge guitar (rare ) make sure you have the exact position set up, players will notice a slight angle in the bridge needed to compensate for the thinner strings being more sensitive to tuning when fretted than the thicker strings.

KeithTS

martinedwards wrote: »

sorry old chum, but a budget guitar is more likely to be off than a big money one.

and if the intonation is off it'll never get into tune.

and as to doing intonation this way, that's how George Lowden showed me how to do it and how I did it on the 90 (yes, NINETY) guitars mandolins and basses that I've built from scratch, and the bunch of others that I've replaced the nut & saddle on to get the intonation right.

OK, so assuming you have a better way than the industry standard, please elaborate!!

Ok so Marty, do you mind if I call you Marty, no? Good.
So Marty old chum:
Point 1 - name dropping and stating you've built 90, yes NINETY, guitars on an online forum carries as much weight as me saying I'm a billionaire philantropist with 13"'s and a six pack on a dating site so you can leave all that bragging for private time because I doubt anybody cares.

Point 2 - Of course a cheap guitar will have more issues, I'd be upset if my encore strat played better than my American standard. However, the point also holds true that somebody playing it (if they're just starting) won't notice the subleties of poor intonation, especially for open chords. When Barres are used or a capo the player can tune up again quickly without much messing around, the simple solution is best, if somebody can't tune a guitar they don't want to get into the realms of thinking it's this complicated task to b afraid of.

Point 3 - An industry standard, which is more reliable than fretting a note is using mid scale harmonics, 5th - 17th frets etc.
This is much more accurate for testing intonation as there are fewer variants when you play the harmonic. Fretting a note will result in different variations each time you do it, more/less pressure, a slight bend, tight against the fret or a bit further away etc.
I have and still do check intonation quickly by ear using the 12th fret on occassion but it's definitely not the best way of doing it.

Sorry for hijacking the thread!

endacl

I know George too!

CianRyan

Intonation is important for everyone, not having a guitar set up properly is like going a learner driver a car with a dodgy clutch. Is ****ing stupid and you know it.

groovie

I feel a little embarassed that this simple query has turned into shouting match. You know who you are, get over it for fcuks sake.

I doubt that the op is still reading, but if you are, and despite your best efforts the guitar is not tuning up, and you are new to stringed instruments, perhaps you should take it into a shop and get them to change the strings and set it up for you.

rox5

groovie wrote: »

I feel a little embarassed that this simple query has turned into shouting match. You know who you are, get over it for fcuks sake.

I doubt that the op is still reading, but if you are, and despite your best efforts the guitar is not tuning up, and you are new to stringed instruments, perhaps you should take it into a shop and get them to change the strings and set it up for you.

No, I stopped at the first page because I got what I needed, but did not expect this to turn into a fight! So lads, I appreciate the advice, but just leave the thread as it is.

groovie

rox5 wrote: »

No, I stopped at the first page because I got what I needed, but did not expect this to turn into a fight! So lads, I appreciate the advice, but just leave the thread as it is.

Best of luck with the guitar.

endacl

Guitar has an odd effect on people. Everybody's wrong when you know your right. And for some reason it's all very important...

You'll get better at tuning as you go OP. it's all part of the process. No big deal.