Tuning a bass guitar?

Question

Does anyone know how to tune a new bass guitar WITHOUT using a pitch pipe or piano? I did actually try using a grand piano to tune it but it was SO confusing!
I need a quick and simple way so I can whack out some riffs!

Answer 1

I found these links for ya:

http://www.tunemybass.com/how_to_tune_a_bass_guitar_1.html
http://www.tunemybass.com/
http://www.guitartips.addr.com/tip140.html

Answer 2

There are a lot of helpful answers here, the simplest being "use an electronic tuner" but you may not have money or access to one. Also no-one has checked that its a 4-string bass you have, if it's a 5-string, most of these answers will be useless. They also seem to assume you have some kind of musical knowledge when clearly you're a total beginner with a brand new guitar. With that in mind, my answer would be to take the bass back to the store you bought it from and get someone there to show you how to tune it, whether to itself, to a tuner or pitchpipes. It's easy to do but without diagrams, pix etc, you might get even more confused! I've been a bassist for 25 years and was Staff Writer on the first 12 issues of Total Guitar magazine, so I know my stuff but even I was getting bamboozled by some of the replies! For the record, a standard 4-string bass guitar is tuned (from fattest string to thinnest) E A D G. A 5-string is tuned B E A D G, the B string being the fattest in that case. Until you get a tuner and someone to show you how to use it, try this. Hold the fattest string down just behind the 5th fret (the frets are the brass wires set into the neck, and they're counted from the headstock towards the body). Play that note. Now play the string next to the one you're making a note on. Both these notes should be the same. If not, you need to tune the open string to the note you're playing (fattest string, 5th fret). Got it? If you do, then all you have to do is repeat that for each string, that is, once those two notes are in tune, play the note at the 5th fret on the string you've just tuned (2nd fattest) and play the string next to that and so on.
Finally, as a bassist myself, I'd like to welcome you to our ranks and I'm pleased that you chose to play bass. It's a great and very cool instrument that can be as brutal (Lemmy, Motorhead) or as complex (Stuart Hamm) or as subtle (Jaco Pastorious) as you wish. Think of all the great basslines you know. Maybe you'll write some great basslines yourself one day? I hope so. Good luck!!!!

Answer 3

Okay, in standard tuning, the lowest string (on top if you're playing it right handed) is an E. Use the piano to get an E and match that. The E is the white key immediately to the right of the section of 2 black keys.

Then, hold the E down at the fifth fret and match the next string to it (B). Do the same for all the strings, holding down a string at the fifth fret and matching the next string to it. You should have E-B-G-D as your strings from lowest-pitched to highest-pitched when you're done.

Nonstandard tuning includes things like Dropped D (tune standard, then change the E down to a D) or lowering ALL the strings by a full note to get lower notes. If you do a nonstandard tuning, though, keep in mind that most bass tabs will NOT match your tuning! Good luck!

Answer 4

You can tune the bass to itself regardless of the correct pitch, or you can tune it to a song on a CD.

first, tune the "E" string (the thickest string) to where you think it should be. Next, put your finger down just behind the 5th fret (usually the first dot) of the "E"string. Play that note. The "A" string (next string up) should sound the same when played open (no fretting). Repeat this process for the next three strings and you're done!

A lot of rock songs are in "E" or "A". Listen to a song and play the "E" string on your bass. Turn the tuning key until the pitches seems to fit it well with the song, but be careful not to overtighten the string.

There are lots of websites that teach you how to play and tune a bass or a guitar. Just do a search for "bass tuning"

Answer 5

Tuning your bass guitar can be a difficult task for you if your just beginning bass guitar. The good news is, the more you do it, the easier it becomes. A nicely tuned bass guitar can make your music sound a lot better and help you greatly while you're are just beginning. Any bass guitar that is out of tune sounds bad no matter who is playing it. Tuning a bass guitar by ear is one of the most important skills a bassist needs to learn. Electronic tuning devices are useful but you never know when the batteries might go out, so know how to tune by ear just in case. Learn the sound of when the guitar is in and out of tune. When a bass is out of tune the frequencies of the notes clash. This causes a slight wha wha wha sound. When the bass is in tune you do not hear the wha sound. Step 2Loosen the string that is out of tune. Make a string that is in tune and one that is out of tune vibrate by playing a note on the 5th fret, such as an E. Listen for the wha sound. Step 3Tighten the string slowly with a tuning key while playing the base note and the out of tune string. The wha sound slows down as the string gets closer to the tuned pitch of the base note. Step 4Continue to tighten the string until you no longer hear the wha sound. When the wha sound disappears, the frequencies of the base note and the string you are tuning are matched up. Step 5Repeat until all of the strings are in tune with each other.

Answer 6

Any song you're playing to can be used to tune the guitar. Listen to a song you know how to play, get the first note tuned correctly, and tune from there.

4th string = E
3rd string = B
2nd string = G
1st string = D

4th string 5th fret = 3rd string open
3rd string 5th fret = 2nd string open
2nd string 5th fret = 1st string open

1st string is the thinner one on the bottom as you hold the guitar.

The easiest and most accurate way to tune a guitar is to buy a chromatic tuner, you can get them pretty cheap, or as part of a multi-fx unit (which is always a good thing to have). A tuner is also absolutely essential in a gig scenario, where you can't hear yourself, plus then you can mute the guitar while you tune, cos your audience doesn't want to hear it!

Answer 7

why not use an electronic tuner - thats the easiest and most accurate way why couldnt you tune it to the piano? i've done my bass and guitar to it and theyre fine. or f your really musically talented you could tune it to a certain song and play along.

Answer 8

you can download tuners online, or even stand alone ones online, as long as you have a mic on your comp you should be able to tune it.

If your good enough to just bust loose on some tunes, find a song you already know and tune it to that song and go from there, thats generally how i do it. Just tune to myself and if i play alone with some music i just tune to what i hear.

Answer 9

well, if you have a half decent ear, find a tone you like on the top string, then tune the rest to it. make sure they sound in order. thats how i tune my guitar. i don't know if its properly in tune, but i like it and nobody has a problem with it. thats also how i tuned my friends bass.

Answer 10

if you can get just your E string in tune then you can tune the rest of your strings from that using relative tuning. finger A on the E string then play that and tune your A string. then using your A string, finger a D and tune your D string to that and so on.. its super easy.. but still.. get a tuner..

Answer 11

get a tuner, that will save you alot of hassle!
if you have access to a piano, you should give it another go.
us play the E note on the piano and then on the bass, simple as basically.