TuneHaven How to tune a 12-string guitar
Twelve strings, six pairs, ten different notes. The exact pitch of every string, which pairs are octaves and which are unisons, and the order that keeps the neck from fighting you.
A 12-string guitar is a 6-string with every string doubled. The pairs are called courses, and you play each course as if it were one string. The tuning is standard E A D G B E, with a twist in the lower four courses.
The pitches
The thicker string of each low pair is the main string, and it sits in the usual 6-string place. Its partner is thinner and sounds an octave higher. On most guitars the octave string is the one your pick hits first on a downstroke.
| Course | Main string | Partner string | Partner is |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6th | E2, 82.41 Hz | E3, 164.81 Hz | an octave up |
| 5th | A2, 110.00 Hz | A3, 220.00 Hz | an octave up |
| 4th | D3, 146.83 Hz | D4, 293.66 Hz | an octave up |
| 3rd | G3, 196.00 Hz | G4, 392.00 Hz | an octave up |
| 2nd | B3, 246.94 Hz | B3, 246.94 Hz | the same note |
| 1st | E4, 329.63 Hz | E4, 329.63 Hz | the same note |
That is twelve strings and ten different pitches. The octave pairs are what give the instrument its shimmer; the unison pairs give the top end a slight chorus.
The order to tune in
- Tune the six main strings first, low to high, exactly as you would a 6-string (standard tuning guide).
- Check the main strings again. Doubling the strings roughly doubles the pull on the neck, so the first strings drift more than on a 6-string.
- Tune each partner to its main string, course by course from low to high. For an octave pair, fret the main string at the twelfth fret and match the partner, open, to it. For a unison pair, play both open and tune until the wobble between them stops.
- One last pass over everything.
Two things that go wrong
An octave too far. It is easy to tune an octave string to the wrong octave, especially with a tuner that only reads the note name. If the partner is meant to be G4 and you tighten it toward G5, it will break long before it gets there. If a string feels far tighter than its neighbours, stop and check which octave you are reading.
The G4 string snaps. Even at the right pitch, the octave G is the most stressed string on the guitar. Bring it up slowly, from below, and if it keeps breaking at the nut, a little graphite from a pencil in the nut slot helps it slide instead of catching.
Why a regular tuner struggles
Strum a 12-string course and the tuner hears two notes at once, an octave apart. Many tuners lock onto whichever is louder and jump between them, which is the same confusion behind most octave errors. Mute one string of the pair with a finger while tuning the other, or use a tuner that knows the 12-string layout. TuneHaven and Guitar both show it as ten targets rather than twelve, because a unison pair cannot be tuned apart.