ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Whereas the most common guitar has six strings, the most common BASS guitar has four strings, representing the notes E A D and G. The E string is the top string, followed next by the A string, then the D string, with the G string being at the bottom.

Many new bass guitar players expect the string at the top to be the highest note and the string on the bottom to be the lowest note. It’s actually the opposite. The E string is the top string and the lowest note of the four open notes on the bass guitar. Bass players may also refer to each string by a number. The E string is 4, A string is 3, D string is 2 and G string is 1.

Tuning A Bass Guitar

In order to tune the bass guitar, simply turn the tuning key on the head of the guitar. Turning one way loosens the string and lowers the pitch. Turning the other way tightens the string and raises the pitch.

The bigger question is knowing when each string is in tune. People with “perfect pitch” - the ability to identify or recreate a musical note without needing to first hear it- have no problem with this. However, only 1 in 10,000 people are born with “perfect pitch” so the rest of us have to learn.

The next natural ability to tune is called “relative pitch” which is the ability to hear a note and match it accurately or harmoniously. This skill can either be an inherent skill or a learned skill. However it is an advanced method that is learned over time.

You likely didn’t decide to play the bass guitar so that you could first train your ear. Rather, you want to play the bass guitar and you want it to sound good/sound “right.”

Tune A Bass Guitar The Easy Way

The easiest way to tune your bass guitar is with a clip on guitar tuner. The clip on guitar tuner is a relatively inexpensive accessory that clips on to the headstock of the bass guitar and “reads” the pitch through vibration. One such tuner is the MAC Music Accessories SpeedPro. (available at http://www.amazon.com/SpeedPro-Chromatic-Acoustic-Electri... ) It tunes a bass guitar as well as an acoustic guitar, electric guitar and other stringed instruments.

Once affixed to the bass guitar headstock, select the bass setting on the guitar tuner. Strum a string and watch the LED display. When the string is out of tune the display is blue. When the string is in tune, the display is green. The display also indicates both the string’s note name and the string number so that no matter how you refer to the strings, the SpeedPro is legible for you. It can't be easier than this and with a clip on bass guitar tuner, you'll be playing music sooner....which is why you bought your bass guitar in the first place.

To learn how to use the SpeedPro bass guitar tuner, watch a customer demonstrate it at http://youtu.be/uspKa70yCKg


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Stacey Marmolejo