Bass guitar tuning
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bass guitar tuning refers to the pitch adjustments carried out on the individual strings of a bass guitar in order to achieve a prescribed arrangement of notes on the open (unfretted) strings.
The electric bass guitar (or "electric bass") is a bass string instrument played with the fingers by plucking, slapping, popping or using a pick. The bass is typically similar in appearance and construction to an electric guitar, but with a larger body, a longer neck and scale length, and four strings tuned one octave lower in pitch than the bass strings of a guitar. The bass guitar is an equal temperament musical instrument, in which the octave is divided into a series of equal steps.
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[edit] Standard tuning
Standard tuning is the most popular tuning of the bass guitar. Most bass guitars have four strings, tuned one octave lower than those of a regular guitar.
| String | Note | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (thinnest) | G | 97.999 Hz |
| 2 | D | 73.416 Hz |
| 3 | Aˌ | 55 Hz |
| 4 (thickest) | Eˌ | 41.204 Hz |
[edit] Alternate tunings
This alternate tuning lowers the low "E" string by a tone, which gives the performer a low "D" as their lowest note. When this alternate tuning is used, the lowest string is a perfect fifth below the "A" string rather than a perfect fourth, which may require a performer to relearn some passages.
| String | Note | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (thinnest) | G | 97.999 Hz |
| 2 | D | 73.416 Hz |
| 3 | Aˌ | 55 Hz |
| 4 (thickest) | Dˌ | 36.708 Hz |
As is more common in extreme metal than other genres (though exceptions exist), bass players may tune the low string to even lower pitches, such as "C#" or a low "C." Bands such as death metal band Nile detune their bass to a low "A". Detuning a standard bass to these notes using a low string designed to be tuned to a low "E" makes a string very slack. This makes the tone and response of the string very different from that of a regular low "E" tuning, which may limit the usability of these lower pitches for some playing styles.
[edit] Five-string bass guitar
| String | Note | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (thinnest) | G | 97.999 Hz |
| 2 | D | 73.416 Hz |
| 3 | Aˌ | 55 Hz |
| 4 | Eˌ | 41.204 Hz |
| 5 (thickest) | Bˌˌ | 30.868 Hz |
A variant, less-commonly used tuning for a five-string electric bass is to add a high "C" string as the fifth string, making the tuning "E, A, D, G, c" (from lowest to highest pitch).
[edit] Six-string bass guitar
| String | Note | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (thinnest) | c | 130.813 Hz |
| 2 | G | 97.999 Hz |
| 3 | D | 73.416 Hz |
| 4 | Aˌ | 55 Hz |
| 5 | Eˌ | 41.204 Hz |
| 6 (thickest) | Bˌˌ | 30.868 Hz |
[edit] Tuning issues
Changes in temperature and humidity can make an electric bass go out of tune. As well, when fresh strings have been put on a bass, they will go out of tune very easily, because there is usually some slack in newly-installed strings. To remove this slack, bass players often tug gently on the strings and then adjust the pitch of a string upwards by twisting the tuning peg. The bass can be tuned "by ear" to a reference pitch such as a piano or organ. In this method, the performer compares the sound of the reference pitch to the pitch of the bass, and adjusts the bass' tuning pegs until one of the bass' open strings is in tune with the reference pitch. Then the performer adjusts the remaining bass strings so that they are in tune with the first string. As well, a number of tuning aids are available to assist musicians with tuning, such as tuning forks, pitch pipes and electric tuners.
