OneTaskBy Tim King · Updated
Guitar Tuner Reference Tones
Standard, Drop D, Bass, Ukulele, Free
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How the Guitar Tuner Tones works
These guitar tuner reference tones hold each string's pitch for you. Click a string and the page holds its pitch until you click again, so you can tune by ear without racing a fading note. Twelve tunings cover six-string guitar in standard, drop D, half step down, open G and DADGAD, four and five string bass, standard and baritone ukulele, mandolin and violin, five-string banjo and cello or viola. Each pad shows the string's note and exact frequency, Play all strings runs through them in order, and the A4 reference can be moved for orchestras that tune to 442 or period ensembles at 415.
Guitar tuner reference tones: tuning by ear against a reference
Sound the reference, play the same string on your instrument and listen to the two pitches together. When they are close but not identical you hear a slow pulsing called beating; the beat slows as the pitches approach and vanishes when they match. Tune from below, loosening the string past the note and tightening up to it, so the string settles against the tuning peg and holds. Work from the lowest string up, then check the whole set with Play all strings, which sounds each string for a second in order from low to high.
Why hold the tone
A guitar note decays in a few seconds, and if the reference does too you spend more time clicking than listening. Here a click starts the tone and it continues until you click the same pad again or choose another string, which leaves both hands free for the peg. The Plucked tone is a triangle wave that resembles a string's blend of fundamental and harmonics, the Rich tone adds more upper harmonics for cutting through a noisy room, and the Pure sine has none, which some people find easiest to hear beats against.
The tunings
Standard guitar is E2 A2 D3 G3 B3 E4 from the thickest string to the thinnest. Drop D lowers only the sixth string a whole tone. Half step down lowers everything one semitone, a common choice for singers and for matching many rock recordings. Open G and DADGAD retune several strings so an unfretted strum gives a chord; the pads show exactly which notes each string should be. Bass is an octave below the four low guitar strings, the five-string bass adds a low B0, and standard ukulele has its re-entrant high G on the fourth string, which is why its pads do not run low to high.
The A4 reference
Almost everything is tuned with A4 at 440 Hz, but many European orchestras use 442 or 443, baroque ensembles use 415, and some players prefer 432 for its own sake. Changing the field recalculates every string and shifts a tone that is already sounding, so you can hear the difference at once. The frequencies shown on the pads are equal temperament, the same tuning a chromatic tuner uses.
FAQ
Does this listen to my instrument?
No. It only produces reference pitches; there is no microphone input and nothing is recorded. Tuning by ear against a reference is how musicians tuned before electronic tuners and it trains your ear at the same time.
Which string is string 1?
By convention string 1 is the thinnest, highest string, and on a six-string guitar string 6 is the low E. The pads are numbered that way, with the lowest-pitched string on the left, except for re-entrant tunings like the ukulele where the order follows the instrument.
The tone sounds nothing like my guitar. Does that matter?
No. What matters is the pitch, and the beating you hear when two pitches are close is the same whatever the timbre. If the character of the sound is distracting, try Pure sine, which has no harmonics to confuse the ear.
Can I tune a seven-string or a twelve-string?
A seven-string adds a low B1 below standard tuning; use the five-string bass pad B0 an octave up, or the note frequency calculator for the exact pitch. A twelve-string uses the same six notes, with the lower four pairs having one string an octave higher.
Why does my string go flat again after tuning?
New strings stretch for the first day or two, and any string will slip if it was tuned downward onto the note rather than up to it. Tune from below, stretch new strings gently with your fingers, and retune; the tone will still be here.
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