12 String Tuning and Posting Images

[idealassets]

Sorry to ask, but I hope to sound slow here. I think I was smart to get a Guild 12-string without a clue to tuning. In reality almost every guitar store salesman doesn't really know either. On a 12-string E tuning I tune the large 6 string to E. In order for the the adjacent small string to be at E, but an octive higher, does it happen automatically, or do I tune the small E string to the large 6 string at the 12th fret, or something? And yes, I know that the 1 strings, and 2 strings are tuned identical.

In order to post an image with my emails what do I do?

You all are great, thus far you have all answered my concerns. I want my 2010 F512 to sound correct when I make my debut amidst my musical peers. I do intend to hand out "drooling rags" to all those Martin cowboy balladiers around here.

Happy Thanksgiving to all,
Craig

 

[Treem]

Hola Craig! and welcome to the LTG! :mrgreen:

Check this out:
http://www.folkofthewood.com/page4790.htm

Happy Thanksgiving! :mrgreen: 8)

 

[Bing k]

Use this procedure to save yourself a little time. Use a tuner
Tune the large strings first from low e to high e because they are going to pull the hardest and effect the neck the most. Tune it just like you would a six string. Then start over on the low e, then the octave e next to it, do the same with the a,d,g, then tune the b strings the same(no octave) then the same with the high e. Go over them again a couple of times and you should be there in standard tuning. Guilds will usually stay pretty darn close with out a lot of retuning. I've got a F412 that stays in week after week. reply with questions.

 

[Christopher Cozad]

Hello Craig.

Regarding posting images, this forum does not (yet) accommodate uploading imagery. Currently, it supports linking to imagery that is hosted elsewhere. Here is a link that describes an approach to displaying your images:

http://letstalkguild.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=5522

Bing lays out the process for tuning a 12-string. Let us know if this does not make sense to you or is not not working. Once you 'get it', you can introduce your audience to your guitar with the words of the late John Denver, who said, '...Once you find the one string that is out of tune...

[wait for it]

...you then tune all 11 others strings to it!



And Happy Thanksgiving to you, too.

Christopher

 

[devellis]

If ever there was a reason for a decent electronic tuner, a 12-string is it. I have a Sonic Research Turbo-Tuner that I consider the best music-related gadget I've ever gotten. As much as I liked it before, I appreciate it even more with a 12-string. These instruments really sound great when properly tuned and can sound considerably less great when out of tune. There are simpler, less expensive electronic tuners that also work well, although I'm very partial to the Turbo-Tuner.

 

[Bing k]

If ever there was a reason for a decent electronic tuner, a 12-string is it..

Ditto that!

 

[markus]

Tuning the regular strings first and then the octave … that's clever. :shock: Thanks! Living is learning!
Markus

 

[taabru45]

You could do what our friend Killdeer did, and turn it into a 6 string...problem solved... :lol: Steffan

 

[killdeer43]

You could do what our friend Killdeer did, and turn it into a 6 string...problem solved... :lol: Steffan

Steffan's right, but it's a long process just to make it easier to tune. :lol:

F-112 in transition

All done

The end result is sweet.
You have to start it before you can finish it! :wink:

Joe

 

[Bing k]

Tuning the regular strings first and then the octave … that's clever. :shock: Thanks! Living is learning!
Markus

It just speeds up the process a little pulling the heavy one first especially on a string change when you need to tune, then stretch, then tune, then tune , then tune....... :?

 

[idealassets]

Perhaps I answered my own question. I tune the large strings first, then the small. The small stings appear to "jump" into a tuning one octave higher, because they are smaller. And yes it takes about 3 series of tunings, then it stays right on. Viola! I must be thinking too much about this. I thought I was wrong, but maybe I was right all along...When I play "her" in public for the first time, I am certain that I will get lots of helpful advice.

You know I have met some of the nicest folks since I began playing in ernest last summer, or thereabouts.

-Craig

 

[john_kidder]

My first guitar was a 12-string, and it seems that I've been tuning them forever. Mostly badly. Bless the electronic tuner. I still have my Boss TU-12H from the mid-80s, and a few other new ones that are almost as good. A strobe is next.

I heard an ancient recording of Ian and Sylvia the other day, playing "You Were On My Mind". A 12-string and an autoharp, ringing in perfect tuning, from the days when the tuning tool was a fork. I guess folks in those old days must have had better ears, or at least better ear training.

 

[markus]

I guess folks in those old days must have had better ears, or at least better ear training.

I remember the conductor of a boys choir I was singing with (back in the 80s) perfectly tuning a complete harpsichord in a few minutes with a tuning fork … :shock: :shock: :shock:
For me it's different every day: One day it works perfectly within a minute without any technical help, and then there are days where I could try for hours and would not get it in tune without my Boss TU12EX … :?
And we all know: 12stringers use 50% of their time for tuning - and 50% playing out of tune …
Markus :mrgreen:

 

[shepke]

There's a trick from an old Roger McGuin instructional video that works pretty well for me. After I use the tuner, I fine tune the B strings against the octave open D string by fretting the B strings at the third fret. This usually involves slightly detuning the B strings. Then I recheck the tuning again to an open G chord to make sure that the G note and octave on the low E are correct. Again, this usually involves slightly detuning the low E strings. Once I've done this everything always sounds a little sweeter.

 

[Bing k]

The higher the action off the nut the more you have to hedge the tuning so things sound right. I know of players who actually tweek the tune depending on what key they are playing a particular song in.

 

[frettedstrings]

I tuned both my 6 and 12 string acoustics with an "A" (440) tuning fork, but recently I found that I had lost the talent. Maybe its old age (I'm only "46"). I bought a Pitch Pocket Headstock Tuner and I don't know what I was thinking....this is the ticket !

http://www.morganhillmusic.com/ppclipon.html

I've even tuned up my fiddle with it !

 

[markus]

I've even tuned up my fiddle with it !

Fiddles can be tuned? :shock:
Markus

 

[12 string]

I've even tuned up my fiddle with it !

Fiddles can be tuned? :shock:
Markus

Well, yeah, it's not like they're banjos or anything.

' Strang