Instrument guides

Tuning charts, per-instrument how-tos and troubleshooting.

Guitar tuning chart One table listing every string of 20 common guitar tunings (standard, Drop D, DADGAD, the Open family and more), with notes on what each tuning is used for. Read → Guzheng 21-string tuning guide The 21-string guzheng in D runs from D2 on string 21 up to D6 on string 1. This guide covers every string, the best tuning order, and how moving the bridges gives you G and C tuning. Read → Guqin tuning guide The five common guqin tunings with every string spelled out, plus the two rules behind guqin retuning (tighten the 3rd degree, slacken the 1st) and how to use the online guqin tuner. Read → Why does my guitar keep going out of tune? New strings still stretching, loose tuners, humidity swings, stringing technique, neck and bridge problems, and heavy picking — what each one looks like and how to fix it, plus a three-minute pre-practice check. Read →