September 2020

Standard tuning, from the lowest string to high, is EADGBe. The guitar tab below shows the note each open string of the guitar should play.

e|--the 1st string (highest)--|
B|--the 2nd string------------|
G|--the 3rd string------------|
D|--the 4th string------------|
A|--the 5th string------------|
E|--the 6th string (lowest)---|

Electric Tuners

The most accurate way to tune a guitar is using an electric guitar tuner. There are a few types of electric tuners; some you can plug your guitar directly into, others use a mic to show which direction to tune the string you play, and others that clip onto the headstock of the guitar.

Tuning a Guitar by Ear

Learning to tune your guitar by ear is also important because it helps train your ear to notice when your guitar is slightly out of tune.

• ❶ Start by tuning the low E and high E strings from another source like a piano or tuning fork.
• ❷ When the low E string is in tune, fret the low E string at the 5th fret and play the open A string below it. As both notes are ringing out, adjust the tuning peg of the 5th, or A, string until sounds from both strings resonate the same.
• ❸ Once the 5th or A string is in tune, fret the A string at the 5th fret and play this string and the open 4th, or D, string below.
• ❹ Repeat these same steps for every string except when tuning the second or B string. To tune the second or B string, fret the 4th fret instead of the 5th fret of the G string (3rd string).

Alternate Guitar Tunings

The lowest line is the Low E string, or 6th string. The next line up represents the A string or 5th string, and so on.

e|--the 1st string (highest)--|
B|--the 2nd string------------|
G|--the 3rd string------------|
D|--the 4th string------------|
A|--the 5th string------------|
E|--the 6th string (lowest)---|

Guitar Tabs use numbers to tell you which fret to play. Below is a one octave F Major Scale in tablature form. A “0” (zero) means play the string open. The first note is the F note. This is shown as the number 1 on the low E string – fret the first fret of the low E string or 6th string.

e|--------------------------|
B|--------------------------|
G|--------------------------|
D|-----------------0--2--3--|
A|--------0--1--3-----------|
E|--1--3--------------------|

Guitar chords in a tab are shown by more than one note stacked on each other as shown below.

e|--0--0--2--|
B|--0--2--4--|
G|--1--2--4--|
D|--2--2--4--|
A|--2--0--2--|
E|--0--------|

Hammer Ons and Pull Offs in Guitar Tabs

There are a couple different ways guitar tabs show hammer ons and pull offs. Hammer ons and pull offs are a fret hand technique. A hammer on is where you play one note and then “hammer on” another note or fret without plucking the string again or removing your finger from the first note or fret played. A pull off is where you play a note and then pull off that note or fret to a lower note – the opposite of a hammer on. The tab below shows two common hammer on and pull off methods used in guitar tabs.

e|---------------------|
B|---------------------|
G|--------6-9p6--------|
D|---7h9---------9p7---|
A|---------------------|
E|---------------------|

Slides in Guitar Tabs

Slides are also shown a couple of different ways in guitar tabs. To play a slide, play the first note indicated, and without plucking the string again, slide that same finger up or down the neck to the next fret.

e|------------------|
B|------------------|
G|------------------|
D|------------------|
A|-----7s9s7--4--5--|
E|--5---------------|

String Bends in Guitar Tabs

Another common technique noted in tabs are string bends, shown sometimes by an upward arrow or a line curving upward.

String bends are also shown with the letters “b” for bend and “r” for release.

e|-------------------|
B|-------10----------|
G|---9b------r9--7---|
D|-------------------|
A|-------------------|
E|-------------------|

Other Guitar Tab Symbols

Here are some more symbols used in guitar tabs. Some symbols are different depending on the source of the guitar tab.

• P.M.   =   Palm Mute
• pb   =   Pre-Bend
• v or ~   =   Vibrato
• PH or  *   =   Pinch Harmonic
• NH   =   Natural Harmonic
• t   =   Tap
• X   =   Muted or Dead Note