GCEA tuned... lower?

kissing

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I've just been thinking whether it's possible get a Uke sound lower, with more bass - kinda like a guitar.

Except the fingerings is still exactly like a Uke with GCEA.
I just saw in the other topic that GCEA tuning is possible on a Baritone Uke - would this have the kind of deep, lower Uke sound I'm thinking of?

I know that the highlight of a Uke is its bright, high sound.
But there are just some times when I'd prefer a lower pitched accompaniment (yes.. that's what a guitar's for... but I really don't wanna learn how to play guitar... I love Uke).

I would love to hear what a GCEA Baritone Uke sounds like (sound samples :anyone: ). Otherwise, I wonder whether a Ukulele that takes strings which are GCEA one octave below could be developed (is it even practical?)

Just a thought... :confused:
 
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Here is a sound sample of a lanikai lu21t a few steps down gcea

close to you (old version)

here
 
hmm.. so going GCEA an entire octave down is too low?

I know one can go a few steps down on the tuning, but this would obviously place you in a different key.
This is not what I'm interested in.
I am wondering about actual GCEA tuned an octave lower than Soprano's GCEA (I believe a Baritone GCEA is in the same octave as the Soprano's) with fat strings.

Is taking the entire GCEA an octave down too low to be practical?

I mean... we already have low G, so a low A shouldn't be too low.
And I'm sure the E string on a guitar is lower than the E string on a Uke... so why not :anyone:
 
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sure if you like floppy strings, just try it out and see for yourself.
 
Here's a tenor
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_ejnbJk2Ns
and here's a the same song on what i believe to be a concert
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9KsAURTlr8&feature=related
Getting a deeper and darker tone will usually be the result of moving up in uke size, and the opposite applies too.

Tuning down will do a little to change that, but you have to remember that if you're singing you need to adjust your singing pitch accordingly or it won't fit. A good example of a song that's sung at a lower tuning is here
http://ukulelehunt.com/2008/06/15/tonight-you-belong-to-me-the-jerk-version/
it's brought down to B tuning, it gives the uke a lower sound but not by as much as having a larger instrument.
 
I suppose you could try buying a set of classical guitar strings and using the 6, 5, 4, and 3 strings to tune to G C E A an octave lower.

If your bridge pops off when you try it, I'm not responsible.
 
Why hasn't anyone mentioned low G? Too obvious? That would be the way to go, wouldn't it?
 
Why hasn't anyone mentioned low G? Too obvious? That would be the way to go, wouldn't it?

Good point, is that what he's asking? If so, MGM has Aquila baritone strings with low G cea.
 
but why not "low G" [even lower C], [low E], [low A] ~~ ?

Perhaps this isn't something with enough demand to warrant being devloped :(
I'll have to look for a Baritone uke next and put low G strings on it so see what it's like.
 
bleh, its just that the Uke seems to be mostly High-rangey and Mid-rangey.
It's a beautiful sound... but it lacks Bass.

And today I was wondering - Why is this so??
Why does the Baritone have to be re-tuned like a guitar to have that low pitch... why not just simply a lower GCEA?
 
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Why don't you try my suggestion? Use the bottom four classical strings and tune them an octave lower.
 
first i'll need a baritone uke :D

Well.. I guess I could experiment on some cheap Mahalo Soprano's.. though their small bodies may not be so fitting for those fat strings
And I did read your fine print.... D:
 
I've thought about that before, too. Essentially what you're talking about is an octave uke, if we can make the comparison to the mandolin family of instruments. Here's a guy who made one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tl7FRdJhJUU

Beyond that, Seeso's recommendation is the only one so far that addresses what you're after. If you try it out please report back.
 
but why not "low G" [even lower C], [low E], [low A] ~~ ?

Perhaps this isn't something with enough demand to warrant being devloped :(
I'll have to look for a Baritone uke next and put low G strings on it so see what it's like.

I can't help but thing that even if you found strings fat enough (have you seen the honkers on the bass uke?), you would still have floppy strings by tuning down an entire octave. Heck, standard guitar tuning isn't even down that far. I don't know a lot about this - but what is the tuning on a bass? I appreciate the sound you're looking for - but I just don't think this is the instrument for that sound!
 
I can't help but thing that even if you found strings fat enough (have you seen the honkers on the bass uke?), you would still have floppy strings by tuning down an entire octave. Heck, standard guitar tuning isn't even down that far. I don't know a lot about this - but what is the tuning on a bass? I appreciate the sound you're looking for - but I just don't think this is the instrument for that sound!

Standard guitar tuning is lower than an octave down from standard ukulele. The low E on a guitar is still 3 semitones down from what the low G would be in the tuning that the OP is looking for.
 
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