Tuning down a 1/2 step

[Gin&Pentatonic]

I only have one guitar that's NOT tuned down a half-step. I also use 11's and even they feel a little too slinky sometimes. It's not for everybody, though. I started doing it because all the songs I loved to play were in Eb...a la SRV, Hendrix, you get the idea. When I'm in the mood to play more contemporary blues stuff like Robben Ford I'll grab my LP that's in standard tuning. I've never had problems going between the two.

I'm sure the jam was pretty awkward but it's healthy to play outside of your comfort zone every now and then, even if you have no clue what you're doing. Kinda makes your ears work instead of just relying on muscle memory to bang out the same licks and runs.

 

[Drew224]

I only ever really do it for my voice. Otherwise I stick to standard and dropped D.

 

[Penny Dreadful]

Les Pauls are standard tuning, Strats down to E flat.

My 12 string is tuned down half a step as well. It produces a richer tone in my opinion.
I can always use a capo if need to go up.

 

[broke_player]

I always tune down to Eb. When I first started learning I would play along to tapes. One of my favorites was Social D. They tune down half a step. When I played along to AC/DC I would have to tune back up. I was constantly tuning up and down. Today two Les Paul's and my acoustic are Eb. My Strat and one Les is in E. I'm comfortable with either. I also use Ernie Ball heavy bottoms on the Eb guitars.

 

[csplayer089]

Interesting. I can think of a similar situation with my guitars. My Agile plays perfectly fine and sounds decent in standard tuning, but when I tune it a full step down to D, it seems to just come alive. For some reason the tonality of the guitar tuned to D sounds much better to than in standard.

The opposite can be said for my Ibanez. Sounds great in standard tuning. I've had it set up for D before...didn't like it one bit.

 

[Engel]

Can't pick cleanly when the strings are flopping around. I like tight strings and real resistance when I'm bending.

I want the guitar to fight me a little bit, so I don't like floppy strings.

I like it, and because of the lack of resistance I can bend more freely. I'm not playing nowhere your speed though .

 

[80's Rocker]

Love down 1/2 a step! I play in that much more than standard.

 

[Dan]

I like Eb tuning, just a touch heavier without actually being heavy, lending a sort of gravitas it it.

Perfect example, Jerry Cantrell.

 

[Morkolo]

I like it when I can prepare for it but when going to a jam I always play bass and it's tuned to standard pitch with the action right on the verge of fretting out when plugged in. Tuning down half a step as a result kills my sound, no problem if I have a chance to set it up accordingly before playing.

 

[joshatatlasstands]

never got used to the Eb but I listen to a lot of bands that play that way. I'll do it if I'm outvoted, but I prefer the standard. Something about it just throws me a bit and it definitely effects my performance.

 

[Drew224]

I like what it does to the sound of a song, it's hard for me to describe. Plus I've found that playing Weezer and Mellon Collie-era Pumpkins songs and singing is a lot easier in the dropped tuning than standard. Sometimes you have to work with the voice you got.

 

[Emmitt Fitzhume]

I have a Morpheus Droptune pedal that electronically drops the tuning in 1/2 step increments to a full octave. I keep one guitar in drop D so I can use the pedal to play songs in drop Db and lower and my LP I keep in standard tuning and drop it with the pedal when I need to.

 

[MenaceMartin]

I have a Morpheus Droptune pedal that electronically drops the tuning in 1/2 step increments to a full octave. I keep one guitar in drop D so I can use the pedal to play songs in drop Db and lower and my LP I keep in standard tuning and drop it with the pedal when I need to.

I was looking at reviews of those kinds of pedals, and one guy on youtube reviewed that one along with a few others. He reviewed the Behringer US600 pedal, which is like a swiss army knife when it comes to whammy/drop tuned/harmony/pitch shifting effects, and that's the one which i went for. A very cool device, and can drop/up tune a full two octaves (if you would ever need to!).

The morpheus one is cool though. I only went for the Behringer as it's cheaper, and can do more stuff.

All of these devices do though, to some extent, result in a delay or loss of gain depending on how far you are up/down tuning. For most of the time though, they are ideal, but in the more extreme cases, i would just downtune the guitar itself a bit, and then further downtune it more using the pedal. It's all good fun!

 

[Guitarzandstuff]

I've tuned down 1/2 step most of my life. No problem playing in standard tuning though...

I played Kerry Kings guitar from Slayer a few years back ans DAMN!! WAY to slinky... could barely play it!

 

[Dark Helmet]

as others have mentioned, if you're using lighter strings, any down-tunings will be miserable for playability.

I keep my one guitar down to Eb and it has 10-52s on it. the other in standard E w/ 10-48s... works great and they actually feel/play about the same other than the 10 being softer on the Eb...