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Guitar Tuning
Harmonics
It's useful to know guitar tuning harmonics if you want accurate
tuning and you don't have an electronic tuner lying around. This method
isn't used as much as the 5th fret method because it takes a
little
longer to master. But hopefully by the end of this lesson you'll be
ready to use it for life.
Just like the 5th fret method,
harmonic tuning tunes the guitar to itself almost
perfectly (and tuning can never be perfect on an instrument made of
wood with frets!)
Harmonic tuning uses the
natural, open string harmonics of your guitar (also known as "natural
harmonics"). You can tell a harmonic from its high
pitched resonance. Take a listen...
Click
to hear >
We're going to be using these
harmonics to tune our
guitars, but first, if you don't already know, here's how to get the
harmonic...
Getting
the harmonic
So, let's try this at fret 5 on the G string - what
we will get is in fact a G note harmonic...
Position your finger as though
you're about to fret the string, but instead of positioning it over the
fret space you need to position it over the fret
wire.
Now, instead of pressing down
to fret the string/note, hold your finger over the string barely
touching it. the top part of your finger should just brush
over the top of the string.
Remember to keep your finger
in line with the fret wire! The yellow spot in the diagram is the spot
you want here.
Now strike the string as usual
with your pick hand, towards the bridge,
and as soon as you hit the string, pull your fretting finger away.
You should hear something like
this ring out...
Click the diagram to
hear
BUT...
If you're hearing this Click
to hear >
...then your finger is not
quite touching the string enough.
If you're hearing this Click
to hear >
...then your finger is not releasing
quick enough after you've struck the string. Also, check it's
positioned on the fret wire not the space between
the fret wires.
Tip: try
and hit the string with the very end of your plectrum
to get the sharpest strike possible - this will enhance the harmonic's
presence.
I know it's easy to say, but
"practise makes
perfect". Seriously, the more you train your finger to position
accurately as outlined above, the quicker you'll be able to throw up a
harmonic when you need it.
Let's look at how to use
tuning harmonics to accurately tune our guitar...
Tuning
up the guitar using harmonics
Starting with the low E
string, this will be our base,
as this method of tuning is about "tuning the guitar to itself", also
known as relative tuning.
It's useful, however, to know roughly what a low E should sound like
(honestly, your
ear will be able to recognise commonly used notes over time).
So, at the 5th fret
wire we're going to
use the harmonic technique outlined above for the low E string. Once
the harmonic is ringing out from the E string, play the A
string harmonic at the 7th fret.
They should both be ringing
out together, like this (click diagram to hear)...
Now, when you've struck the harmonic for both these strings and it's
ringing out for both at the same time, you will hear a kind of "wobble"
effect, as if the note is oscillating. If it's already tuned perfectly,
however, you won't hear this effect.
What you need to do is listen
for this vibrating sound
between the two harmonics and tune up or down until the vibration
becomes
slower and slower... until it stops.
Listen really closely to this
next clip and hear the wobble!
Click
to hear >
Did you hear it? Turn your
volume up and you'll hear me tuning the A string up
until the harmonic vibration is straightened out.
If the A string is tuned too
high, it will have a
similar wobbling effect, but you'll need to tune down and then back up
(this is because tuning up helps to lock the
string's tension, keeping it in tune longer).
Again, listen closely for the
pitch and vibration effect...
Click
to hear >
So, once you get the harmonics
of 5th fret E string and 7th fret A string nice and constant, the two
strings should be tuned to each other perfectly, or
at least almost perfectly!
What about the other strings?
Well, follow the same
procedure with the A and D strings (tuning the D
string up or down), and then the D and G string (tuning the G string up
or down)...
The green square indicates the
string you need to tune up or down to straighten out the harmonic
vibration effect...
A and D string tuning
harmonics
- A string @ 5th
- D string @ 7th
D and G string tuning harmonics
- D string @ 5th
- G string @ 7th
OK, stop here, because when you get to the B string
the tuning intervals change. All we need to do is change the position
of the harmonic. See the diagram below, then it's just a case of
following the same harmonic procedure...
G and B
string tuning harmonics
- G string @ 9th
- B string @ 5th
---------Side note-------------
The B string is an awkward one
for most guitars. You
may find you need to do a touch of fine-tuning on the B string, because
it will sound slightly out of tune on some chords if you tune it
harmonically and absolutely to the G string below.
Try just tuning it slightly
higher, so you will actually leave the harmonics between the G and B
string vibrating slightly. Every guitar I have
picked up has this little B string tuning quirk - you will get used to
it.
--------------------------------
And finally, back to the same
as before with the high E string...
- B string @ 5th
- G string @ 7th
Practise makes perfect...
obviously
You should now have a well tuned guitar! Strum a few chords and tweak
as necessary.
Using tuning harmonics can be
a very quick 'n' accurate way to tune up your guitar, but it's not
known by many guitarists.
Learning to play harmonics
also comes in handy with lead guitar, so it's a good technique to
master anyway.
Thanks for your time and
hopefully see you soon!
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