# Scales and Tunings



## Jags (Dec 19, 2013)

I've been thinking for a little while now, with the way I approach writing a new song, about how I pick the scale I'll use or, with guitar and bass, which tuning I will set it in first. It can be based on a feel (knowing a song will be heavy, and putting it low, and minor key for instance), or through multiple different tests to see which fits best. But,I find myself generally sticking to C# for my guitar, and playing in C# minor or B minor. 

What I want to ask it, though, how do you guys decide these things? Are there particular scales you favour, and more likely to write in, or are you completely flexible? Are your guitars always in one tuning, or do you flicker?


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## Vukasin (Dec 19, 2013)

for tunings I'll go in C-Standard or drop-C for metal stuff and D-Standard or regular E-Standard for punk or rock stuff.

For scales, well, I don't really follow any scales or anything like that. I just play and If it sounds good I'll keep it, otherwise I'll try something else. My old guitar teacher told me that music theory is for explaining what you wrote, not for the actual process of writing, and that's helped me a lot.


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## Namba (Dec 20, 2013)

I have a knack for detuning my guitars. Right now mine is in C standard, and for a bit more flexibility I play in drop A#, although most of the time I can alternate between barre-chords fast enough in standard to where I don't necessarily have to do that.


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## RedSavage (Dec 20, 2013)

Damn I feel out of the water. I only know a handful of these chords. I finger-pick and fuck around with riffs too much. 

That said, I'm growing fond of the Drop-D tuning, which I actually heard mentioned in another thread isn't too common anymore? I can see why, though. It's a weird tuning and a lot of the normal chords using the bottom string don't work. I tend to work the three bottom strings together in some workable rhythms, but drop the D string and hit the other five strings for most other chords. 

In the end drop-D just gives a heavy sound that can be warped and twisted with some decent amperage, so to speak. I'm looking to get a Mako bass amp soon--which I'll be plugging my electric acoustic into. That thrumming effect really gives it an edge that I can dig. 

That said, anyone  know of any good low-scale tunings? I'm talking garage/trash punk level tunings and the likes.


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## Jags (Dec 25, 2013)

Namba said:


> I have a knack for detuning my guitars. Right now mine is in C standard, and for a bit more flexibility I play in drop A#, although most of the time I can alternate between barre-chords fast enough in standard to where I don't necessarily have to do that.



Drop A#. That must sound grimy as fuck (for want of a better adjective). 

I love Drop D, it sounds pretty deep without losing much tone, I find anything lower tends to murk fast notes a little. I like my guitar crisp, especially in tricky bits, where high notes will sound more prominent in higher tunings (To me anyways).


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## Matt Conner (Dec 25, 2013)

I mostly play blues guitar, so nearly all my stuff is in standard E. I find half step tuning pointless unless I'm trying to play along with a song that's already in it, and I toy with drop D from time to time if I wanna indulge myself with some heavier riffs. I also have a brass slide, so once in a blue moon I'll jump over to open A, open G, or DADGAD depending on the song I'm covering (I can't improvise in open tunings worth a damn x3)


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## Seekrit (Dec 25, 2013)

E standard for everything but Irish music, then I go DADGAD all up in this shit. I mostly play blues and classic rock type things, so this works well enough. The DADGAD tuning sounds amazing with my telecaster through my Orange Crush :3

I'm not sure if I put any thought into tunings to be honest, E standard is flexible enough to write around. And with DADGAD you can just hit anything and it sounds pretty, so you can't lose.


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## Ji-Ji (Dec 25, 2013)

Drop d, standard or standard half detuned on electrics and anything on acoustic.
I've had some odd tunings lately just to experiment and write some nice acoustic arpeggios.


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## Demensa (Dec 25, 2013)

I write most of my stuff in standard E, though I have done stuff in drop D, as well as on a seven string tuned in standard B-E-A-D-G-B-E. 
Damn, I need to start downtuning...
I've never written anything in open chord tunings and other alternative tunings, but I'd like to at least try them out sometime.

With scales and keys, it really depends on what I want to write. 
Typically I'll use a whole bunch of scales, though by default it's easiest for me to write pieces in major and minor scales. I don't tend to use pentatonic scales too much, but it's easy to compose with them.
 Sometimes I'll throw in modal stuff, whole tones, diminished arpeggios and other combinations of notes where I don't really know what I'm doing.
I'm not yet knowledgeable enough about music theory to really utilise the vast majority of scales to their full potential.

How do I choose? I guess it's just the feel of the song really. 
In addition to that, the more accessible I want the song to be, the more I'll stick to common scales and basic diatonic stuff.  If I want it to be a little more progressive or avant-garde, I'll try to make things a little more unexpected and I'll be a little more conscious of my note choices.


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## Kitsune Cross (Dec 25, 2013)

I tone my bass A standard (A D G F C), As for scales I like to use C mainly because it's easy and it gives a cool sound for hardcore and alt metal, I also use A and D and occasionally E

It's most likely like this:

A for NÃ¼ Metal
C for hardcore, death metal, alt metal, heavy metal
D industrial, punk and some metals
E Thrash metal, heavy metal, punk and everything else

Mainly, but not religiously


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## Kellan Meig'h (Dec 26, 2013)

E Standard, Eb or sometimes Open G (?) DGDGBD for something Stones-sounding.


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