Have you ever finished tuning your guitar with an electric tuner, played for a minute, and then said “Hey, why is my guitar out of tune already?” or “Why doesn’t this sound right; I just tuned!” If so, you will find these tips for tuning your guitar very useful. There are tuning methods that will not only get your strings to sound more in tune across the neck but they will also stay in tune even if you are strumming heavily, using vibrato, or bending strings.
Tip #1: Only tune up to the pitch. This means that if your string is too high, you should lower it to below the target pitch and then raise it slowly until it is right. Do not lower the string to pitch, meaning do not tune down to the right note. This way, you are only tightening the string to make it reach the goal and that will ensure a stable tuning. When you tighten it to the pitch, the string is pulled into tune, which means that on the peg and across the nut it will be firmly held where you want it to be without any chance of slipping. If you lower (loosen) the string to pitch, it will get slightly stuck on the nut so that at first it will be in tune but after playing or especially bending it will become unstuck and slip a bit and then your string will be flat.
Tip #2: Make sure only one string is ringing at a time. For example, if you start with string six, when you finish tuning the low E and you are about to tune the A string, make sure to stop the E from continuing to ring. If any other string is ringing along with the one you are tuning, it will confuse your tuner and give you a false reading. I intentionally mute all the strings that I am not tuning at that moment to make sure that my tuner is clearly hearing only the one string. You can accomplish this with your right hand fingers or palm the same way you might mute strings when playing.
Tip #3: Tune using the 12th Fret harmonics. Have you ever noticed the pitch changing on your tuner after you play the string? This is truly happening because when you pluck a string it resonates intensely at first and then slowly dies out. The initial resonance is often a little sharp compared to the resonance a few seconds later. This occurs more with the lower strings but will affect your tuning on all of them. However, if you play the 12th Fret harmonic you get the same note as the open string and it will resonate without going sharp at first because touching the harmonic holds the string in place.
Tip #4: What do you do when you hear that high creaking sound? Sometimes you will be tuning up, and up, and up, and nothing happens, and then suddenly your string makes a weird sound and jumps up past your target pitch. This is because your string is getting stuck in the nut and perhaps has dirt or something on it making it stay in one place until it is pulled hard enough to pop through. To fix this, tighten and loosen the string (not a lot) a few times going past the sticky spot every time. This will rub free whatever is on the string or nut and then it should behave.
Tip #5: Make sure your guitar is properly intonated and the neck bow is the correct amount. This may not be something you can remedy yourself but you can check your guitar for these faults. If this stuff is off, your guitar is incapable of truly being in tune in first place! To check the intonation, compare the pitch of the 12th Fret harmonic with the pitch of the fretted 12th Fret note on each string. For example, plug in to your tuner and play the low E string 12th Fret harmonic and get it perfectly in tune. Then, play the 12th Fret on the low E (actually play it, meaning hold it down) and see if it is also perfectly in tune. If it is not in tune like the harmonic was, that means your string is out of intonation and even if you get the open string in tune the fretted notes will be out. To fix this, the position of the saddle must be adjusted (forward or backward). However, if the neck bow is off, intonating will be pointless. The neck of a guitar should have a slight forward bow but actually be almost straight. There should be no perceptible “dips” in the neck, meaning spots where it is clearly bowed more than others. You can check this by looking down the side of the neck: point the head of the guitar at your face with the top up and you will be able to see all along the side of the neck. Notice the amount of bow it has. To fix the neck bow a truss rod adjustment must be done. You can learn how to do these adjustments yourself or you can of course take it to a professional.
I hope these tuning tips will help you get your guitar in tune and stay that way!