GuitarTuner.online

6-String Guitar tuner – Drop E

E-B-E-A-C#-F# · Drop

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Microphone off
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Press “Start tuner” – the browser will ask for microphone access. Sound is analysed on this device and never uploaded.

This free online tuner listens through your microphone and shows how close each string of your 6-String Guitar is to Drop E tuning (E-B-E-A-C#-F#). Play a string, watch the needle, and turn the peg until the meter glows green. If you prefer tuning by ear, tap any string card to hear its reference tone.

About Drop E tuning

Compared with Standard E, Drop E moves 6 strings. Every change is downward, the largest by 12 semitones, so the instrument sits at lower tension than in Standard E.

How Drop E differs from Standard E, string by string.
StringStandard EDrop EChange
1E2E1down 12 semitones
2A2B1down 10 semitones
3D3E2down 10 semitones
4G3A2down 10 semitones
5B3C#3down 10 semitones
6E4F#3down 10 semitones

Played open, the strings sound E-B-E-A-C#-F# – from E1 at the bottom to F#3 at the top, a span of 2 octaves and 2 semitones. Step by step across the neck the intervals are a fifth, a fourth, a fourth, a major third, a fourth, and that is what decides how chord shapes fall under the hand.

One string drops a full octave, which a normal string cannot do and stay at pitch. It needs a thicker, usually wound, replacement.

History

Where the Drop E tuning comes from

Drop E on a six-string guitar puts the low string a full octave below the normal E – the pitch of the bass guitar's E string. It is the extreme end of the downtuning movement of the 2010s and is used almost only on baritones and specially strung guitars. There is no documented origin beyond that scene.

History of the instrument: 6-String Guitar →

Other 6-String Guitar tunings

Standard

Standard E E-A-D-G-B-EHalf Step Down (Eb) D#-G#-C#-F#-A#-D#Whole Step Down (D) D-G-C-F-A-DB Standard B-E-A-D-F#-BPlus 1 (F) F-A#-D#-G#-C-FPlus 2 (F#) F#-B-E-A-C#-F#

Drop

Drop D D-A-D-G-B-EDouble Drop D D-A-D-G-B-DDrop C# C#-G#-C#-F#-A#-D#Drop C C-G-C-F-A-DDrop B B-F#-B-E-G#-C#Drop A A-E-A-D-F#-BDrop G# G#-D#-G#-C#-F-A#Drop G G-D-G-C-E-ADrop F# F#-C#-F#-B-D#-G#Drop E E-B-E-A-C#-F#

Open

Open C C-G-C-G-C-EOpen D D-A-D-F#-A-DOpen Dm D-A-D-F-A-DOpen E E-B-E-G#-B-EOpen Em E-B-E-G-B-EOpen F C-F-C-F-A-FOpen G D-G-D-G-B-DOpen Gm D-G-D-G-A#-DOpen A E-A-C#-E-A-EOpen A 2 E-A-E-A-C#-EOpen Am E-A-E-A-C-EOpen B B-F#-B-F#-B-D#CGDGBD (Open G Low C) C-G-D-G-B-DFACGCE (Fmaj7) F-A-C-G-C-EWahine (G) D-G-D-F#-B-D

Modal

DADGAD (D Modal) D-A-D-G-A-DG Modal D-G-D-G-C-DOrkney C-G-D-G-C-D

Alternative

Double Daddy D-A-D-D-A-DAll Fourths E-A-D-G-C-FNew Standard (NST) C-G-D-A-E-GNashville (High Strung) E-A-D-G-B-EEADF#BE E-A-D-F#-B-EOstrich D-D-D-D-D-D

Chords for this tuning

CGDAEFAll 6-String Guitar chords →
How do I tune my 6-String Guitar to Drop E?

Allow microphone access, pluck a string, and the tuner will detect it automatically. The needle shows whether the string is flat or sharp – adjust until the reading is within ±5 cents (E-B-E-A-C#-F#).

Which notes are used in Drop E tuning?

Drop E tuning for 6-String Guitar uses the notes E-B-E-A-C#-F#, listed from the lowest string to the highest.

Can I tune without a microphone?

Yes. Every string card plays a reference tone – tap it and match your string to the sound by ear.