Added: 3 years ago
From: JustinSandercoe
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  • I was tuning my guitar to drop c, and I couldn't really get it just right on my high E. So I tried to get back up standard, which worked out well on the low E, the A, the D, the G, and the B...but then I get to the high E... For some reason I can't get that string up to much more than B (it even plays like the 2nd string) without it feeling like it's about to snap. Any suggestions?

  • is it normal for a guy that's been playing guitar for only 1 year and a half to be able to tune the guitar by just listening to the strings? without tuners or harmonics.

  • @VoremGuitar Ye.

  • that a RARE guitar man it's a telecaster with a BLACK pickguard.

  • Do you have a facebook page ? :S

  • yeah this is the best methon to turn it

  • yeah this is the best methon to turn it up

  • woble *engengengeng*

  • can any one clear things up for me when tuning a guitar i play the 6 and 5 strings to get the 6 one in tune i then play the 5 and 4 to get the 5 one in tune and the the 4 and 3 to get the 4 one in tune next i move onto the 6 and open b and 6 and open high e but what about the g string its still out of tune ehgg hope that made sense to any one

  • A=440hz was first "standardized" as the official tuning standard in Nazi Germany by Joeseph Goebells because it is an agitating, military pitch. Why is everyone still using this as a standard??? Tune to A=444hz if you want your guitar to come to life!

  • He sounded like a bee in his second warbling demo =D

    Good lesson.

  • Watched all your vids online, now going to start at the beginning and learn to play my electric guitar. Justin you are a legend, and if i might say cool too. All your vid appear to be well structured and informative, will have to pace myself as I tend to rush ahead which you say you shouldn't do.I'm 45 and always wanted to play guitar but never got around to it, so wish me luck and i'm guessing that I shall do well using these vids. Justun you ROCK!!!

  • can anyone point out where are there scientific arguments against this method?

  • To be honest I prefer just fretting an a note on the E string to tune my next string down to an A, and so on. I suppose this is the "cool" way of doing it lol.

  • First off... this isn't an advanced technique... it's beginer to intermediate. Second... if the science tells you that there's flaws in that method... then why not just use fretted notes instead.

    It's a way to tune that looks and sounds cooler... that's the only benefit. If you're clever enough you can still hold the fretted note while tuning the next note and get the "warbly" effect as you call it.

  • LOL @ "I hate saying sixth." I do too. lmao

  • 2:06 LOL

  • @Vrokelf keep pressing it xD

  • This guy kinda looks like "Sid" in the movie "I love you, man".

  • stop at 4:54 hahahaha dbag na im kidden i appreciate your vids Justin

  • @rhcp4565 you're "kidden"? 

  • lololololololololhahahhahhaha stop it at 2:07

  • it really depends on your playing style I think. Certain chord voicings will sound better if you tune certain strings sharp or flat while others will sound more out of tune. because of how frequencies work it is impossible to tune the instrument perfectly for all keys, you can tune it perfectly for a specific key, or have it balanced for all 12 keys.

  • you could tune the B string using the G, just play a harmonic on the 4th fret on the G youll find that its also the same as the 7the fret on the e.

  • If anyone knows where to learn more about those scientific calculations justin mentioned please let me know

    Thanks!

  • fuck science

  • Dig your vids Justin. Sometimes a little basic for me, but always good to review the foundation techniques. I really appreciate this video in particular, as so many people get the frets either completely wrong for this method, or they avoid showing you how to deal w/ the pesky B string. You were pretty thorough, good stuff. Cheers.

  • wait till i show this to slash

  • /snigger

  • uhhh....what's a harmonic?

  • i think its easier:D

  • does this work for tuning acoustic guitar? kinda hard to see if there's wobbling or not

  • Try 6 string(5 Fret) and 5 string(open) pluck those two togehter BUt 6 string in Tune and pluck tose 2 u here wabbling if out

  • yes works on acoustic but not as easy. but still effective

  • The "wobbling" is called "destructive" interference and when they are on the same frequency it is "constructive" interference

  • hahah no not at all, go back to physics and study your superpostion and beat frequency

  • Maybe my terminology isn't correct but when the frequencies match up the "wobbling" goes away and when they don't quite match "up ever so often' there's a "pulse". Is that what superposition and beat frequency describes?

  • how can i tune a dropped d guitar with the harmonics??

  • You can use the 5th fret armonic in the 6th string with the 12th fret armonic in the 4th.

  • nice tip

  • the wobbling could also be called ressonating

  • anyone who doesnt believe in harmonic tuning is an ass

    guitar is supposed to be about music, not science

  • if you pluck 5th fret of the low E and an open A u can tune this way with (i believe its these vibrations justin spoke about) by listening.. i heard that the volume i guess increased and decreased in different tempoes which allowed me to make the strings even. pluck those strings hard enough and try

  • Why doesnt the harmonic at the 5th fret on the 6th string give you an A? i mean how can it tune the 5th string and the high E?

  • As long as your guitar's intonation is set correctly and accurately, there shouldn't be any reason that this method shouldn't work, science or not.

  • Well, you can actually tune 2nd string with 3rd string with the harmonics method. Try 4th fret 3rd string with 5th fret 2nd string... With distortion you can use this pretty well, although I can do it in my cheap acoustic. Very low volume though with this last one, but it works ;)

    You can also tune 1st string with 7th fret 5 string.

    Sorry for the removed comments.

  • this guy is reallu funny!!!

  • Justin is becoming a legend, even the great Brian May likes his website.

  • you look a bit like owen wilson haha

  • the wobbling by the way is called a beat frequency, and the frequency of the wobble is equal to the frequency difference between the two strings notes.

  • dude thats awesome, ive herd of tuning by harmonics but i never knew how that would work but thats awesome....thank you so much

  • Awesome lesson justin what i do here 6:40 is just adding a few distortion so i can hear the harmonic , also you may want to tip the string exact the moment you block it (do NOT keep your finger just previous strings)

    but  that just my way so i don't recommend it

    5/5

  • i totally agree with you,i have used this method for years now, and also i do always add distortion because it emphasises the harmonic.

  • um can i ask? whenever i play my guitar there is always an "eeeehhhhhh" sound. and it is very out of tune. I dont know how to tune it coz i dont have an electric guitar. can u help me sir? :(

  • you can buy a decent tuner at guitar center that would work

    but honestly...im pretty sure that its the same thing, tuning them

  • nice hair....lol

  • Thanks man.. thats a lot of help

  • Not only can the string bind in the nut, but 'backlash' in the tuning gears can cause slippage. By tuning up, rather than down, any wear in the gearheads will be taken up. By tuning down, the wear (or backlash) will be on the wrong side on the gear interface, allowing the gear to slip.

  • you hear the warbling because the sound waves vibrate out of time with each other because one has a higher frequency. when they vibrate within 7 Hz of each other you will not be able to hear any warbling because the waves are in phase. ...in case anyone cared haha

  • justin, do u ave a video for the buzzing on a guitar??

  • ooooh i think i peed

  • 2:26 lol, good stuff though.

  • LoL thats funny at 2:07 Great Video

  • hahahaha taht wiiwiwiii

  • i love how this guy teaches really easy to understand. Did you guys notice he never even get's 4.5 stars? ALWAYS from what I've seen 5 STARS

  • parla troppo

  • 2:07 rofl.

    Thanks for the lesson.

  • Very useful method to know - Thanks Justin :)

  • what model is you fender tele??

  • Yikes...this is a seriously flawed method. While this will work good if you are only playing power chords or a chord with a Major 3rd on the 2nd string....being you are tuning perfect 5th's pure and major 3rds pure on the 2nd string pure. Try playing a G Major barre chord on the 6th string....you will have an very sharp major 3rd on the 3rd string and two different D notes..20 cents apart. You are tuning pure intervals to a tempered fretting system..not gonna work!

  • Justin,

    In re: your video TB-002 on tuning via harmonics- There is indeed a fancy technical term for the "warbling" sound you hear. It is called Phase Cancellation. As for the internet critics of harmonic tuning, if you have your reference string tuned properly in the first place, then tuning by harmonics ought to work perfectly well.

    Of course, given the opportunity to tune with a Peterson Strobe, I would not even bother fussing with harmonics. The higher end Korg rack tuners are also nice.

  • Very good guitar, please visit me.

  • Hey Justin,

    First of all great video! I discovered harmonic tuning by happenstance early in my playing, and I wanted to give you a little addendum that has worked for me: when tuning the G and B strings, you can hit the harmonic in the 9th fret for the G, and the 5th fret for the B. And, if you'd like, you could even go further by hitting the harmonic on the 7th fret for the E string. They all resonate at the same frequency.

    Anyway, I hope you have some luck with that.

    Have a great day.

  • awsome work your the best!!! really love your demo reviews with gadgets!!!! super how you explain all aspects and show the sounds.!! by the way i have a peavy blazer 158 amp just im kind of cofused with the pre,post,low,mid,high knobs? i did watch your amp demos just confused. hope you can help me with this amp. with clean and distorted tones.

  • Thanks, J., very valuable information as always.

  • left i should say

  • looks like a "broken arrow"

  • whats on your right arm? is it wire or tatoo?

  • its a mic

  • lol @ 2:26 wewewewe

  • hey justin,

    great video but i have a question,

    if your guitar is tuned 6th string= d# and 5th sring is G# do the harmonics sound the same or is does is onley sound the same if you tune it in 6th = E and 5th = A ?

  • Yep, because the intervals between the strings are still the same. E to A and D# to G# are both perfect fourths. So this will work for any standard tuning, but not dropped or open tunings.

  • Hey I'm grateful for u sharing all your knowledge with us youtubers but can i ask does this work with all tunings? And where in London were u to make it 'Hot London' lol cos its never that hot :P

  • Hey James Blunt!! These videos are helpfull! Thanks!!

  • hey man, i just think you need to shorten your vids, but otherwise good job :D

  • I dont get it, how does he make that crazy sound and when he lets his hand go, it keeps going -,-' please help me :D I Searched his site but he doesnt explain how he plays the guitar -,- i asume this is an 'harmonic'. Grtzz

  • Yes, its a harmonic. The 2 harmonics you mostly see our pinch harmonics and regular harmonics. There are also false harmonics as well. Look those up on youtube and enjoy the learning experience.

  • haha eeeaaaeaaeaeaeaaeaa when he was making the warbling sound

  • This works on acoustic.

  • LOL, I also get tongue-tied from the word "sixth".

  • FYI, the "warbling" is called beating.

    Also, you're right about the harmonics being close enough. The harmonics are only a few cents off from the "proper" tuning. Most people can't hear the difference.

  • i think he said wobbling

  • Actually its called sonic oscillation

  • there's just a little problem with this...

    YOU CAN'T FREAKIN DO THIS ON A FREAKIN ACOUSTIC GUITAR!!!

  • you can..

  • yeah but not with bavkground noise...

  • oh right sorry yeah

  • nice telecaster

  • No, its a telecaster.

  • For the 3rd and 2nd string, I use the 4th harmonic on the 3rd, and the 5th harmonic on the 2nd, then you can also use the 5th harmonic from the 2nd string to tune the 1st string.

  • ive known all this for 30 years but i could never get it across with the clarity that you do.ive never been a very good teacher.you are good,the beginners will understand because you dont try to be technical,great job!

  • thnx Justin

  • If your strings are sticking in the nut (and you have a dark colored nut - or don't care about the look of it) a quick tip - you can grind a small amount of pencil graphite into the slots and it'll clear the problem right up, unless there's a more serious underlying issue.

  • this is amazing! way better than the other way

  • Awesome stuff dude

  • "can you hear it wobbling IEIEIEIEE"

    206-209

  • lol tat was funny. this helped tho.

  • LOL, good call

  • Got an idea Justin. Is there any way to put a credit card payment option on your youtube page for tips? I am novice player and I have used your lessons successful. If there were an option to give you some money then I would. I know we could go to your site but if it were right here then more people would use it. Check in to it man, cuz you deserve it...

  • that sound is called "beating"

  • wow this really helped me a lot i always used th 5th fret way this is much easier and doesnt take as long

  • thats a cool way to tune! :-]

  • The "wobble" is actually called a beat frequency, the lower the beat frequency (i.e less "wobble") the more in tune it is

  • hahahaha i liked it when u doing that sound when u were doing the harmonics lol

  • does this work for acoustic guitar too???

  • definitely!

    It works on any stringed instrument.

    It just may be a bit quiet on acoustic

  • yea

  • THAT work for all guitar :) i use for classic guitar for examaple but with elettric is more easy beacuse there's the ampli

  • lol? nice ending :l Every1 that does tune lessons like him should atleast play the e string or (6th string) on the piano so we could try to tune with him from home but I guess we can do from guitar to guitar but the audio qualty isn't that great for us to do that so proabbly a bad idea

  • thnx this helped alot

    and ur right london is hot as hell rite now

  • DUDE!!! i do the exact same thing when goin to standard to drop D or back

  • it also depends on how your guitar is internated

  • good stuff ..

  • Most commonly it depends on the guitar and the way it was constructed to determine whether or not harmonic tuning actually works, and to what extent it does work.

  • ehm, pretty crazy, but useful. I use a normal tuner or make it just by ear though...

  • LOL 2:08. ngengengengeeeeee.....

    haha. ur face is so funny.

    love ur technique by the way. never noticed the wobbling before this. the wobbling. ngengengengengeeeeeeeeee...

    haha.

  • hilarious, bear-like thing at the end lol!

    I've subscribed! I love your vids!

  • Who's this guy? Where's the guy with the hat....Thanks for the lesson

  • i love telecasters i cant wait to get one. i want your guitar.

  • i walked past a guitar shop on my way home today and i saw one exactly like his. i stood there for like 5 mins just staring at it.

    haha the shop owners kept staring at me like i was crazy.

    :P

  • Your videos are really helpful. I'm surprised more people don't watch your videos. Thanks for the great advice.

  • I always used that "wobble" to tune, no idea about the backgrounds, though.

  • fender telecasters are very cool

    nice guitar!

  • lol never noticed that

  • good instructor for those new to guitar. wish when i started playing 8 years ago I had an instructor that could properly communicate new techniques to the beginner like this guy.

  • The best. most efficient method. in my opinion.

  • Haha, you sound so much like Gil from the Simpsons! He's the dude with the Gray hair who always has money problems.. Lol, anybody agree with me?

  • Never use the guitar itself as a reference for tuning. Use an external source for every string. Or use a tuner.

  • ure just not good im looking for difernt ways to tune ofer than e

  • Why would you not want to use the guitar for a reference if the base note (or high E string)is in tune? I have been using this tuning technique since i was a beginner.

  • Please search yourtube for "How to Not Tune Your Guitar" it is a four part lesson about tuning and explains eeeeeverything.

    In the meanwhile, let's repeat the first law of tuning

    First Law Of Tuning: "Never use anything on the guitar as a reference for tuning the guitar itself"

  • if you know for a fact that one string is on perfectly then why does it matter

  • second law of tuning: "your an idiot."

    i get my D string in tune(well. E string i play drop D) and relative tune the rest to them

  • why that? I mean you can tune your guitar extremely good and correct using this method so why not? if you have tuned the high e-string right, what could happen? I can even tune my guitar just by using my ear as a reference and you won`t hear I didn`t use a tuner.

  • If you have perfect pitch, then your ear IS an external reference. Have a look at watch?v=Agd19ez8rWs you really don't want to miss it: The ultimate tunning lesson

  • hehe, you are right man:) I`m gonna check it out.

  • But you'd still need your base note tuned correctly.

    Very good learned this in guitar class last year, it makes it easier.

  • Wow this just made my tuning SOOO much easier to do, since i use my ear, but i probably will be deaf with that kind of noise O.o

  • "you can hear it warbling NEEEEeeeeEEEEEeeeeEEEeeeEEEEee­eeeEEEeeeee"

  • XD lol

  • The waves came out REALLY well on this video.

    Awesome video Justin.

  • gday..wats that skip!!? timmy fell down the well!??

    :D

  • Topdog teaching by one of the worlds best...Justin!

    5 star as usual.

  • sick video i never new how to properly harmonic tune and by the way you could make a sick character on monty python ahha

  • This is how I first learned to tune (twenty some years ago..lol) I never knew another way for a long time. Good video.

  • I absolutely swear by harmonic tuning. When you go to someplace to play guitar with a piano, they have you tune to the piano, strings in tune with strings. When you harmonically tune a guitar to itself, regardless of if you are in actual tune, the guitar will still sound ok with itself. I cant even imagine why someone would refute harmonic tuning. Its very basic, if string 1 is in tune and you tune everything perfectly to it the guitar will sound amazing. Good lesson, just had to chime in.

  • awesome teaching dude simply great, and love that technique with the harmonics :)

  • actually scientifically this method of tuning is accurate. The "wobbling" is caused by what are called beats. When two sources emit similar but different frequencies they interfere in such a way as to create beats, which is heard as the "wobbling" sound. If you make the sources the same frequency the beats go away, and your guitar is tuned beautifully.

  • Treyman, you're right about the beats. Adding two sine waves with slightly different frequencies produces a low frequency envelope which we perceive as the "wobbling" change in volume.

    However, about the scientific accuracy: The ability to transpose music into any key (and make it sound equally good/bad) requires "equal temperament" tuning, which yields slightly different results than the "ratio-based" tuning you get by tuning with harmonics.

    No problem though, as long as it sounds good. :)

  • or* lol

  • someone posted the comment John Mayer of Justin and i go lol, justin

  • thanks so much for posting. you explain it so clearly.

    5Starz

  • Very cool video!

  • On an acoustic guitar (and also an electric I guess) can't you just do the same but without the "wobbeling"?

  • oh nooooo - now it is POURING with rain here too :( and I have to ride my bike home... fek... so much for London "summer"... :(

  • Nice video mate.

    Since i moved to the uk i learned that there is no summer here so i always though that it would be obvious for the natives ;)

  • 10th comment - i am so cool i comment twice... oh the excitement.... HA HA HA or is that excrement...