How to change tuning on a guitar

First of all let me point out that this lesson assumes that you are using a guitar without a Floyd rose system installed or that the Floyd rose system is “unlocked” which allows you to tune using the heads. I will be posting lessons on how to use Floyd Rose systems, but be aware that because of the way they are set up they are much harder to tune than regular guitars, and I will explain why in a different lesson. Also I’m doing this lesson so that people who don’t have advanced tuners can still get to the tunings they want if all their tuner can do is find standard E.

In this lesson I will show you how to get to a drop D tuning and how to get to a Drop C#(C sharp) tuning.

The first is actually really simple as it only requires the alteration of tuning for one string, but the second requires all strings to be altered; also keep in mind that chord shapes involving the thickest string are changed in drop tunings, and because of this power chords are used much more often by guitarists using these tunings, for example system of a down, black label society or Slipknot.

To tune a guitar in standard E tuning to drop D all you have to do tune the thickest string down to a D from its usual E. The easiest way to do this is to strum the third thickest string open (which in standard E tuning produces a D note) and then tune the Thickest string down until both strings are sounding the same note; This changes the tab bars from this (look at the letters to the side of the lines representing the strings)-

E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
B||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
G||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
A||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|

To this-

E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
B||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
G||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
A||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|

To reverse the drop tuning so that you get standard E again, tune the thickest string up until it sounds like the thinnest string open (the thinnest string in standard E tuning is tuned to an E note as well).

There are two main ways to do this; you can either tune all the strings down a half step and then repeat the Drop D detuning, or do it one string at a time (half step means to change the note by one note higher or lower, and a full step means to change the note by two notes higher or lower). I prefer to use the first method as although it may seem like more effort it’s actually simpler and means there’s less chance of you doing something wrong while you’re tuning it. To do this your first going to have to put your guitar into standard E flat tuning.

To do this will only take one real difference to the usual way that I tune my guitar up, but I’ll go through the entire way to tune it up anyway.

First tune your thickest string down a half step by tuning it down until you get the same sound as the second thickest string open when you pluck the thickest string on the 6th fret.

E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
B||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
G||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
A||--0---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
E||--6---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|

These two notes should sound the same if you’ve detuned it properly. Now it’s just a case of following the usual tuning steps. First tune the second thickest string so it sounds the same as the thickest string plucked while fretted on the 5th fret:

E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
B||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
G||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
A||--0---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
E||--5---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|

These two notes should sound the same if the guitar is properly tuned. Now follow the usual pattern of tuning up like so, always using a string that has already been tuned as a reference.

E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
B||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
G||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||--0---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
A||--5---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|

Then

E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
B||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
G||--0---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||--5---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
A||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|

Now remember that because of the way a guitar is built, this next string has to be tuned from a different fret than the rest.

E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
B||--0---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
G||--4---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
A||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|

And finally,

E||--0---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
B||--5---------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
G||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
A||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|

And then that should be it. Your guitar should be in E flat standard tuning now.

Now how to put this into drop C sharp/D flat: simply do the same as I showed you at the beginning. Tune down the thickest string until it sounds the same as the third thickest string open. That should be pretty much it. This tuning is the tuning used for BYOB by SOAD, which to most metal-heads I’ve talked to is referred to as SICK. Remember though there is a change to how chords are played. All the usual notes are pushed two frets higher on the thickest string. So here is an E power chord in standard E:

E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
B||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
G||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||-2----------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
A||-2----------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
E||-0----------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|

And here’s the same chord in drop D tuning:

E||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
B||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
G||------------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||-2----------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
A||-2----------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|
D||-2----------------|------------------||-----------------|-----------------|

In the next lesson I’ll show you how to reach drop C and if I double check, I think I’ll probably put how to reach the rolling stones signature open chord tuning as well. Let me know if this was helpful to you.

Take care guys and I’ll see you next time!