help! is my tenor tuning too high? too low?

soojeng · May 16, 2008

hello hello.
so i've got my new tenor kala ukulele

!! i attempted tuning this low g instrument for the first time and the sound in the linked video below is what i got. i'm wondering if its too high.. ? because it actually sounds a lot like my soprano, only louder ? is the low g strung too high atm? i'm worried, because i know there are effects to these kinds of things.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Q1OcKZ_Rmsw

thank you so much.. and please reply asap, because as you can see it is simply a matter of such urgency haha

oh also.. the strings do feel tight as well.

seeso · May 16, 2008

Hi soojeng. Your uke is actually about a half step too low, believe it or not. What method are you using to tune it?

UkeNinja · May 16, 2008

Have you actually tuned it with a tuner of some sort? If yes, and the notes are GCEA from low to high, then it should be good. Maybe you do not have a tuner yet, then try an online tuner for reference. In the video you ask about the low G, press the 5th fret and you should get the C-string sound. If they don't match, retune your G-string. But again, no use doing anything without a tuner or another instrument to match it with. Google "ukulele tuner" for a bunch of links.
Your impression that the sound is similar to your soprano is correct (the tones are the same), except for the high G-string on the soprano.

soojeng · May 16, 2008

oh.. so i need to push it up a semitone?
at the moment.. i'm tuning using my piano and ears (was quite tricky at the start when all the notes were unbelievably low/flat), but i can hear that it's a little bit flat.
good to know that it's in the right octave, however. the strings just seem a bit tight, do they loosen?

thanks to both ukeninja and seeso. has anyone ever tried putting the strings down on a tenor one octave, by the way?

---- edit

wow, upon inspection of my ukulele case it seems that musicguymic has given me pitch pipes. yay! the piano is so frustrating sometimes....

Aldrine Guerrero · May 16, 2008

My first guess was that the strings were for soprano, but then again the low G was a giveaway that it wasn't. Still, did you check the pack that it was for a tenor?

Maybe stretch the strings out first. Like when you're tightening it to tune, pull on them a little. Either way, that ukulele sounds pretty nice and warm actually. Just gotta tune it up a bit more.

Ian Boys · May 16, 2008

Yep... I've tried tuning a tenor down an octave... and it doesn't work all too well. The strings become way too loose and, even if they make sound, are completely impossible to keep in tune when you start using the frets...

However, if you have higher tension strings, it might work.... though I doubt it. Wouldn't hurt to try, though.

UkuleleAddiction · May 16, 2008

I actually keep most of my ukes tuned down a half step. In stead of g-C-E-A they are f#-B-D#-G#. I originally started doing this because I have a low voice and that little bit of tuning down helped me out quite a bit for singing. As an bonus, I've found that a lot of ukes actually sound better tuned down a half step -- it can give them a richer, more resonant tone. It's not very helpful if you're trying to learn a song by playing along to a recording of a uke tuned gCEA though... :music:

tad · May 16, 2008

No feedback on the strings or the uke-- I just wanted to say that you really don't sound Australian! You sound like an American, if anything, to me... Are you not originally from AU?

soojeng · May 17, 2008

hahaha!! well my accent changes all the time, when i speak to australians at my school etc i have a 3/4 australian 1/4 i have no idea what accent. my family speaks in an american accent... so who knows. i've lived in too many countries.. when i first came here i actually had a new zealand accent.

and i think i might try tuning it to the f# etc down a bit.. the strings just feel a little tooooo tight

MGM · May 17, 2008

Soojeng that is a Tenor aquila low g set. If it sounds to muh tuned like a soprano thats because all the notes are the same just the g is an octive lower. You can take that set down to baritone tuning but it may be a little loose but should work if you want a lower sound they also make special sets for tenor tuned to baritone tuning.

help! is my tenor tuning too high? too low?

soojeng

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