The Amazing Alternate Tunings Thread

[hambungler]

Hey guys, just wanted to see what tunings you guys use, and perhaps a little on how they're used as well. I'll list off some of the ones I use

6 String Tunings:
Standard-Hardly even use this anymore, still fun from time to time.
Eb standard-Use more than standard, usually for the proggier sorta stuff like Sonata Arctica and some mathcore like Protest the Hero.
D standard-Possibly my replacement for standard tuning, really fun to jam around with, especially when I'm bored and just want to play Extreme Unction or older God Forbid, lots of fun.
C standard-Don't use this as much as I did last year, as I was big into melodic death metal and In Flames, so that's what I tuned to. Still, really fun and on the right string set the tension's fantastic.
Drop D-Kinda pointless to be honest
Drop Db-This is fun, its like drop C with a little more kick, Psalm of Lydia anyone?
Drop C-Fun, but after awhile this tuning feels kind of restricting.
Open C major-By far my favorite 6 string tuning, it makes song composition and scales a breeze to play, ideas flow really easy.
"SikTh" tuning (AbAbDbGbBbEb)-Kinda like tuning a 7 to drop Ab, but without the low Eb string, the octave chords are kinda fun and opens up a lot of ideas.
"Bulb" 6 string tuning (AGCFAD)-Similar to the Sikth tuning with less of a "dropped" feel, great for tapped licks on the lower strings.

7 String tunings
B standard-Use this fairly often, nothing super special though
Bb Standard-Awesome tuning, mostly use it to play along to Nevermore and Outworld.
C Standard- Occasionally I'll tune the 7 up a step with and extra high string, its fun but doesn't open things up that much.
Drop A#-same as above with the C dropped to A# (Bb)
Drop Ab-Bb dropped to Ab, don't use this too often really.
A standard - fun tuning, most don't need to tune lower than this.
Drop C+Dropped G- simply drop C with a low G on the bottom, makes for some interesting/groovy single note patterns and octave chords
Open C major (GCGCGCE)-Similar to above, but in Open C. very fun to experiment with, for sure.
Drop C +Dropped F-Drop C with a dropped F on bottom. To say the least, this tuning is ridiculous. Its somewhat of a double drop tuning as you can do one finger barre chords on the last 2 strings and the former 3 strings very easily, and makes Meshuggah style riff*ge fairly easy too.

That is what I use for the most part, how about you guys?

[Chris Cavera]

Great idea for a thread! I pretty much stay in E Standard with one exception...Megadroid works best in drop D. I'll have to try out some of those other tunings you mentioned.

-Chris

[hambungler]

Thanks man! Yeah, I've always liked experimenting, open C is by far my favorite though, as I'm a huge Devin Townsend nut. I recently found a bootleg Japanese guitar lesson he did, and once I figured out the scale shapes in that tuning were all pretty much linear, it made it sooo much easier, as I'm horrible with scales in standard tunings but can rip it up in Open C really easy. Sweep patterns are kind of weird with it though, so I have to figure that out yet.

[Chris Cavera]

Here's a couple I've been messing around with:

Eb A Eb G B F --- Makes it real easy to play whole-tone scales. I call it bizarre-o tuning because everything that sounds weird in standard sound awesome and vice versa.

D A D G A D --- Makes it real easy to play lots of stuff and sounds like a Nu-Metal ballad (not that there's anything wrong with that)

[hambungler]

I'll have to try out the bizarro tuning, sounds interesting.

I've messed with DADGAD on occasion, I don't like it as much as true open tunings but its fun when I used to dabble with slide guitar.

I've also started messing around with Open Bb as that's what Devin Townsend used on his new DTP stuff so I thought I'd give it a go-round and its pretty fun. Same easy scales of open C, just tuned lower.

[Chris Cavera]

Would you use a heavier gauge string on the "low e" if you were going to regularly use open c tuning? I use 9's and it seems like it would be flapping all over the place.

-Chris

[hambungler]

I normally use 10-52s for everything from E standard to C Standard, and switch the low E to a 68 for B and below, its kinda strange but its always worked for me. My Telecaster and 7 string both have the 68s and my V-blade has the standard 10-52s. I just scored a BC Rich Mockingbird ST and haven't bothered to change the strings yet, except for the high E that broke, as I don't feel like bothering with the floyd at the moment, but I think I'll get around to it eventually. I think that one will go into D-Standard.