Strings and Tuning

STRINGS AND TUNING of GUITARS:

Six String Electric guitars usually have plain steel strings with Low E, A and D wound in a steel material usually nickel. The higher strings are not would and are just various gauges of plain steel. Occasionally a guitarist feels it necessary to have a wound G. This is consistent with the usual set up of an acoustic guitar but not generally applied to the electric variety. Bass Guitars can have any number of strings. I have a couple 4 string and a Five, I've seen John Myong from Dream Theater competently shred on a six string. A Bass Guitar's strings are incredibly thick in comparison to the normal six string guitar. All strings are also of wound type and are usually a nickel type composite. It is possible to get stainless steel strings but they lack tone, although they'll out live any other string variety. Bass tuning is EADG same as for standard electric guitar tuning on the low sounding strings. More interestingly is that when a bass is a 5-string variety like the SD405 Ibanez I have, a lower string is added being a B. The B sting can have a very 'heavy' gauge and because of how low the string must vibrate it will be extremely slack, and must vibrate very widely.

SUMMARY OF TUNNING:

6 String Electric - EADGBE
7 String Electric - BEADGBE

4 String Bass (including Double Bass) - EADG
5 String Bass - BEADG

INTONATION:

Intonation is the note a string rings at a given point of the neck. When your intonation is out it means that notes are not sounding at certain frets as they should (either sharper or flatter). There are factors that effect an instruments intonation, some are - string gauge, string composite and the age of the strings. Tired old strings will not vibrate as they should. It is possible to stretch a string unevenly this will cause the vibration of the string to differ from that of a new string and will force intonation to ‘go-out’. It is advised for that reason to never set an instruments intonation with old strings. That’s true for any stringed instrument. Remember when setting intonation on a guitar that by lengthening the strings ability to ring will lower the note value at any given point of the neck.