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6-String Guitar tuner – CGDGBD (Open G Low C)

C-G-D-G-B-D · Open

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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 CGDGBD (Open G Low C) tuning (C-G-D-G-B-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 CGDGBD (Open G Low C) tuning

Compared with Standard E, CGDGBD (Open G Low C) moves 3 strings. Every change is downward, the largest by 4 semitones, so the instrument sits at lower tension than in Standard E.3 strings stay exactly where they were.

How CGDGBD (Open G Low C) differs from Standard E, string by string.
StringStandard ECGDGBD (Open G Low C)Change
1E2C2down 4 semitones
2A2G2down 2 semitones
6E4D4down 2 semitones

Played open, the strings sound C-G-D-G-B-D – from C2 at the bottom to D4 at the top, a span of 2 octaves and 2 semitones. Step by step across the neck the intervals are a fifth, a fifth, a fourth, a major third, a minor third, and that is what decides how chord shapes fall under the hand.

CGDGBD keeps the Open G chord but puts a low C underneath it instead of the usual D. The guitar can now play a G chord and a C chord as open drones, which covers most of what a folk accompaniment needs in that key.

It is popular with fingerstyle and old-time players for its bass flexibility: alternating between the low C and the G a fifth above gives a moving bass line without fretting anything.

Dropping 4 semitones takes the tension down noticeably. A heavier set – or at least a heavier bottom string – keeps the intonation honest and stops the low string buzzing.

History

Where the CGDGBD (Open G Low C) tuning comes from

C-G-D-G-B-D is open G with the sixth string lowered to C instead of D, adding a low fourth below the root; the result spells a Gsus4/C-style drone. It is a modern fingerstyle tuning of the kind explored by acoustic players since the 1970s, and no specific inventor 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 CGDGBD (Open G Low C)?

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

Which notes are used in CGDGBD (Open G Low C) tuning?

CGDGBD (Open G Low C) tuning for 6-String Guitar uses the notes C-G-D-G-B-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.