How to Tune a Guitar to Open C Tuning

Open tunings are one of a guitar player's best friends. By tuning your guitar to an open chord, you can take advantage of the automatic harmony created when you strum the open strings. Learning how to tune a guitar to open C tuning, for example, opens up a world of possibilities. Grab a guitar and a tuner, and give that six-string brand-new sound.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Tuning source

1. Drop the pitch of the low E string (sixth string) by one and half steps, so that the sounding pitch of the string is one full octave below middle C. You can use an outside tuning source for this, or you can tune the open sixth string to one octave below the note sounded at the third fret of the A string.

2. Drop the pitch of the A string by one full step, to a sounding pitch of G. if you are not using an outside tuning source, tune the fifth string to one octave below the pitch of the open G string.

3. Drop the pitch of the D string (fourth string) by a whole step, to a sounding pitch of C. If you are using a piano as your tuning source, this new pitch is found at middle C.

4. Leave the G string (third string) alone. You will need to check the tuning, of course, but open C tuning doesn't change the sounding pitch of this string.

5. Raise the pitch of the B sting (second string) by a half step to a sounding pitch of C. If you don't have an outside tuning source, fret the G string at the fifth fret and tune the B string to that note.

6. Leave the high E string (first string) alone. You may need to fine-tune the first string, but open C tuning requires no major tuning changes for this one. Recheck the tuning of all the other strings, and you are good to go with a guitar tuned to open C.

Tips & Warnings

• Open C tuning is based off a C major chord. The second through sixth strings are all tuned to octave and fifth intervals, while the first string makes a major third interval.
• Jimmy Page uses a variant of open C tuning to play the acoustic song Bron-Yr-Aur (good luck pronouncing that one). The variant open C tuning that he uses is spelled CACGCE from low to high. Notice the major sixth interval between the sixth and fifth strings.
• You may wish to use a heavier-gauge string than normal for the sixth string. Tuning down by a step and a half may make the sixth string sound weak and flabby. Also, if you are using an electric guitar, the sixth string may bounce off your pickup pole pieces and create unwanted noise.

Resources

• Online guitar tuner