How to Tune a Guitar Down a Half Step

Tuning a guitar down a half step is a common practice among guitar players. This technique can be used for a variety of reasons. Some guitarists find it easier to solo tuned down. When a guitar is tuned down a half step the strings are easier to bend. The lesser tension allows for faster playing. Some guitars like the "heavier" and somewhat darker sound. Almost all 90s bands used this half step down tuning. Another reason may be to accommodate the range of a particular singer. Whatever your reason for wanting to try a half step down tuning, this article will walk you through how to do it.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Guitar
• Chromatic tuner

1. Buy a chromatic tuner. The easiest way to tune a guitar down a half step is to use a chromatic tuner. A chromatic tuner can be purchased at almost any guitar shop. Some more inexpensive guitar tuners only allow you to tune the 6 open strings of a guitar. However, a chromatic tuner allows you to tune to all possible notes, giving you a much greater level of flexibility.

2. Use your chromatic tuner to tune down a half step. A normal guitar is tuned E A D G B E. However, since you want to tune down a half step, you are going to tune your guitar to Eb Ab Db Gb Bb Eb. Simply play your open strings and tune them down one by one until you reach the desired lowered note.

3. Tune by ear. If you don't have a chromatic tuner, you can also tune your guitar down a half step by ear. Play the sixth fret of your fifth string and tune your low E string to match the fretted note. When in tune your sixth string should be one octave lower then the sixth fret of the fifth string. Once your low E string is in tune, continue to tune your guitar in the classic standard tuning way. Here is a quick refresher on standard tuning. Fret the fifth string of your low E and match the open 5th string of your guitar to the fretted note. Continue this process up each new string. The only exception to this rule in standard tuning is the B string. To tune the B string, you fret the fourth string of the prior string instead of the fifth.

4. Check your tuning again. Tuning your guitar down a half step will require more than one pass of tuning for your guitar to completely set in. Tune 2 or 3 times until your guitar is accustomed to the new tuning. That's it! You now know two different ways to tune your guitar down a half step!

Tips & Warnings

• Don't be confused when reading sheet music for songs that are written using the half step down method. Music that is notated for half step down tuning is still notated as if it is in standard tuning. This is done simply to make note reading easier. Otherwise, you would be reading a ton of flats and sharps, making sight reading and analysis much more difficult.
• If you are planning on using the half step down tuning for long periods of time, you may need to adjust the action on your guitar. The different tension may require a different setup than standard tuning. Take your guitar to an experienced guitar repair technician if you are not comfortable adjusting the action on the guitar yourself.