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nasville tunning

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(@rdwsr64)
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Joined: 19 years ago
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To whoever,what is nasville tunning,and how is it attained?Thanks.


   
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(@steinar-gregertsen)
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Joined: 19 years ago
Posts: 503
 

I've seen several tunings refered to as the "Nashville tuning" -

1 - also called "high string" tuning; Use the octave strings from a 12-string set and tune it in standard tuning, gives a nice shimmering sound when mixed with other acoustic guitars.

2 - the 151351 tuning tuned all the way up to A, giving this tuning; AEAC#EA

3 - regular high-bass dobro tuning in A; AC#EAC#E

Don't know which is the 'correct' Nashville tuning........

Steinar

"Play to express, not to impress"
Website - YouTube


   
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(@ricochet)
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Joined: 21 years ago
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#1 is the one I've usually seen referenced.

"A cheerful heart is good medicine."


   
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(@english-one)
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Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 153
 

Keith Richards tended to use one version of "Nashville Tunning" in a lot of the Rolling Stones stuff when they were doing the whole country thing. Check out unplugged versions of "Angie".

I think the way he did it was to tune the bottom three strings (EAD) up an octave (I'm guessing he used light strings rather than tuning a 10 set up that high, otherwise his guitar neck wouldn't have survived)

Peter


   
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(@ricochet)
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Yeah, that's what Steinar is referring to by using the octave strings of a 12-string set. For what would be the lower strings of the guitar, sounding an octave higher, so you've got to have lighter strings. I'm guessing someone discovered it by the common practice of stringing a 12 string with only 6 strings, they decided to see what it'd sound like if they used the high strings instead of the "normal" ones.

"A cheerful heart is good medicine."


   
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(@dsparling)
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Joined: 19 years ago
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I've seen two variants of #1...

1) E,A,D,G all tuned up an octave (with the high strings from the 12-string set), while the B and high E stay the same.

2) Only tune the G string up an octave with a light string like a .008. The other five stay the same.

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(@demoetc)
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Joined: 21 years ago
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I originally heard it referred to as "Nashville Stringing" rather than tuning. It's where you, as already mentioned, take a 12 string set and pretty much use just the high strings - one each of the 1st and 2nd strings, and then the high octave strings of the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th courses. It gives a six string guitar the 'sound' of a 12 string without the added finger pressure. The Nashville studio guys were ace for getting great workarounds and...playing a regular 12 string all day long can get a little grueling I suppose.

Plus I guess they figured that lots of times the 12 string tracks get sorta mixed and eq-ed down to the point where you're not hearing the low part of the thicker bass strings. I've had that happen too. You record the part and in the final mix I wind up eq-ing the low freqs out of the track so it won't clash with other instruments/voices. You wind up with just the high part of the sound so in effect, it's as if you didn't have the big wound strings on the guitar at all.

I experimented with 'Double Nashville' on my 12 string once - all unisons without any octave strings - but it was sorta useless - sounded like a HUGE mandolin.

I think GHS has Nashville sets. Wait:

http://search.store.yahoo.com/cgi-bin/nsearch?catalog=juststrings&query=nashville&.autodone=http%3A%2F%2Fstore.juststrings.net%2Fnsearch.html

Oh, D'Addario has them now too, and SIT. They're already gauged for Nashville stringing so it takes the guesswork out of it.

And they call it 'Tuning' too, I see, so I guess that's the standard way of referring to it now.

Best


   
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(@dsparling)
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Also called "high strung." Did a quick Google, but I didn't see any mention of just raising the G string. Not sure what that's called...I always heard it called Nashville, before ever hearing about raising the top four strings...

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(@mattypretends116)
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Joined: 21 years ago
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thats cool, never even knew about that. Can't wait to try it.

"Contrary to popular belief, Clapton is NOT God. The prospect that he is God probably had a large hand in driving him to drugs and booze. Thanks everyone."

-Guitar World :lol:


   
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(@ricochet)
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Joined: 21 years ago
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I didn't see any mention of just raising the G string. Not sure what that's called...Depends on who's raising their G string. :lol:

"A cheerful heart is good medicine."


   
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(@planetalk)
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Joined: 20 years ago
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Yes, I know it as standard, but with the EADG strings up an octave. BEAUTIFUL as a second picking guitar when recording ...

I also used it once on a Telecaster, playing slide, on a track off my CD 'No Apostrophe' called Come a Long Way ... downloadable here http://www.thatllteachyou.com/mp3s/ComeALongWay.mp3 if anyone is interested. It's the background slide guitar that sort of answers the vocal in each verse.

I also like to think that I played the highest ever recorded slide note at the end of the solo in this tune.

Kirk


   
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