GuitarTuner.online

6-String Guitar tuner – G Modal

D-G-D-G-C-D · Modal

Also known as Gsus

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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 G Modal tuning (D-G-D-G-C-D). 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 G Modal tuning

Compared with Standard E, G Modal moves 4 strings. Some strings go up and others go down, so the total tension stays close to Standard E while the shape of the fretboard changes completely.2 strings stay exactly where they were.

How G Modal differs from Standard E, string by string.
StringStandard EG ModalChange
1E2D2down 2 semitones
2A2G2down 2 semitones
5B3C4up 1 semitone
6E4D4down 2 semitones

Played open, the strings sound D-G-D-G-C-D – from D2 at the bottom to D4 at the top, a span of 2 octaves. Step by step across the neck the intervals are a fourth, a fifth, a fourth, a fourth, a whole tone, and that is what decides how chord shapes fall under the hand.

Strummed open, with nothing fretted, the strings spell Gsus4. That is what makes a tuning like this useful for slide playing and drones – a full chord is one straight barre away at any fret. See Gsus4 shapes in this tuning →

G Modal – DGDGCD, sometimes written Gsus – is the modal cousin of Open G: same D and G skeleton, but the third is replaced by a C, so the open strings spell a suspended chord instead of a major one.

It belongs to old-time and Celtic playing, where a fixed drone under a moving melody matters more than clean major chords. The high C gives it a slightly unresolved ring that Open G does not have.

The drop is small enough that a standard set handles it. If the lowest string starts to rattle against the frets, one step up in gauge fixes it.

History

Where the G Modal tuning comes from

G modal (D-G-D-G-C-D) replaces the B of open G with a C, leaving a suspended chord with no third, so it works for major and minor melodies alike. It is the guitar equivalent of the “sawmill” tuning of the Appalachian five-string banjo and is used in Celtic and old-time music. No individual originator is known.

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 G Modal?

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 (D-G-D-G-C-D).

Which notes are used in G Modal tuning?

G Modal tuning for 6-String Guitar uses the notes D-G-D-G-C-D, 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.