Dark Tunings That Rule Metal Music
If you are listening to today's new Metal music and think you hear a difference from the old school Metal bands like Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Metallica you are right. One of the big differences in the new Metal sound is the more frequent use of dropped alternate tunings and the emergence of the 7 string guitar. These new tunings give the music a big dark sound that helps them create massive heavy songs. I'm going to go through a bunch of common alternate tunings and give you some chords that work well with some too.

Drop "D" Tuning
Let's start with Drop "D" Tuning, with this tuning the first 5 strings stay in standard A-440 tuning but you lower the "E" 6th string to a "D" note which is one whole step down. Since you already have a "D" string, the 4th string open, I find an easy way to tune your guitar this way is to hit the 4th string open, then the 6th string open and slowly tune your 6th string down until you reach the matching "D" note one octave lower. With this tuning there comes a whole new group of chord inversions that were birthed, I'll be going through these later in this lesson. Below is the tuning outlined for Drop "D" from 1st to 6th strings.

E - B - G - D - A - D

"D" Tuning
In this tuning you have to alter all 6 strings from A-440. Every string is dropped down one whole step. In "D" tuning all your chords and scales are played exactly the same as standard tuning because all the strings were lowered equally. Many bands use this tuning because it gives an extra heavy edge to their sound. Many of the songs written using this tuning are in the key of "D" to effectively use the low "D" string in the chords. Check out the "D" tuning below from 1st to 6th strings.

D - G - C - F - A - D

Drop "C" Tuning
Drop "C" tuning is exactly like "D" tuning above except you lower the 6th string down to "C" a whole step down. This can be done in the same fashion as you did in drop "D" tuning by hitting the 4th string open and then the 6th string and slowly lowering the 6th string until it matches an octave lower "C" note. The same chords that you use in drop "D" tuning can be used for drop "C" tuning and I will outline the most common "Drop Chords" for you. Below is drop "C" tuning from 1st to 6th strings.

C - G - C - F - A - D

"C" Tuning
This tuning simply lowers all 6 strings down equally two full steps. Again with this tuning all the chords and scales you learned in standard tuning will be played exactly the same. This tuning is common for the heaviest bands. One warning I want to give you is this tuning can require that you have your guitar set up differently by a professional. Because you are lessening the tension on the strings the neck can move drastically and I have even heard of necks being damaged from low tension for long periods of time. Below is "C" tuning laid out for you 1st to 6th strings.

C - F - Bb - Eb - G - C

Drop Chords
Below find the most common drop chords that can be used with drop "D" and drop "C" tunings above. After getting these chords under your fingers try to put them together and make some heavy sounding rhythms.

The most accurate way to tune your guitar is using an electronic tuner.

This lesson comes from John McCarthy's Rock House Method Metal Guitar program. Check out all John McCarthy's complete Rock House programs and download a free tuner at www.rockhousemethod.com.

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