Tenor Tuned dGBE -- Can I Tune Higher to A?

BigMamaJ40

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I bought a Lyle Ritz songbook which notes that Lyle plays a tenor tuned dGBE. I thought it might be a fun tuning for my acacia/spruce Kala tenor.

So I ordered some strings per Kawika's suggested brands/sizes of classical guitar strings:
http://www.ukuleles.com/SetupnCare/TenorTune.html

The strings sound nice, but the action is a bit high. I kinda expected this, because I figure the tension must be higher with heavier strings than with regular gCEA strings.

But before I lower the saddle, I was wondering if it would be OK to tune up from G to A? That would suit my voice better, but I don't want to put too much tension on the uke. I know the total pounds of string tension listed for these guitar strings, but would that be the same tension on the smaller uke?
 
Hmm, I don't know about that particular string set but Southcoast has 3 different sets for A tuning on tenor
http://www.southcoastukes.com/ukulele.htm
depending on what tension you want and whether or not you want wound strings.
 
I tune regular tenor strings down to E, A, C#, F# and it works just fine although the tension is getting a little low. Generally you want just a fraction more string height at the saddle then you would have for regular tuning to take account of the fact that the strings under lower tension will have a greater amplitude to their vibrations. If your being picky then a fraction more saddle compensation is desirable. Assuming your going to stick with this setup. I also have one tenor ukulele with regular D, G, B, E baritone strings on it tuned E, A, C#, F# and this seems to work out well tension wise although the sound is VERY mellow. I think detuning tenor strings on a tenor has a better balanced sound but it depends on what your after.

Anthony
 
I have my tenor tuned FBbDG and subjectively, the tension feels similar to a soprano tuned GCEA. I have thought about lowering it to EAC#F# and I don't think dropping another semitone would have all that big an effect on tension. I know someone who has a tenor tuned DGBE. She uses baritone strings with wound D & G strings and to me the tension feels too low - and it is very quiet. If you want to tune a tenor to A, I think you will be better off with regular tenor strings.

Edit to add that maybe consider a higher tension set to compensate for the fact you are tuning down a minor third.
 
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Good food for thought, guys!

I wonder if there is way to know what the tension is with my current set-up. The total string tension adds up to 49.5 lbs, if it were a guitar. But it's must be lower with the shorter scale, right? This is getting dangerously close to math -- think I'll go play a tune!
 
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