WEBVTT 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Hi, how you doin' ? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Justin here. Today we're gonna be talking about how to tune your guitar using reference pitches. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Now by reference pitches I mean that you're going to be getting the sound source from somewhere else, i.e. not a tuner kind of thing. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Now this could be for loads of different reasons, for a lot of people it's the first way they learn to tune their guitar, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 you know that, got a web site where you get a pitch pipe, like a little harmonica thing 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 where you blow into and it plays the one note which should be one of the notes you oughta 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 tune your strings to, that's what I had when I was growing up before I could afford an electronic tuner. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 And, but there are the times too like when you're playing with a piano and the piano is not in tune. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 And you can't expect the piano player to retune themselves to your guitar 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 even if you're in tune with the tune or whatever, so you need to learn how to tune from another source. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Now, really the only thing you need for that 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 is to be able to know the names, the note names of your strings. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Maybe many of you know that already, but those of you who don't, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 starting from the thickest string, it's an E, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 A, a D, a G, a B, and an E. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Now it's really important that you remember those note names of course, there's a whole lesson 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 on that using funny little rhymes and stuff. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So go and check out the web site if you're not familiar with the names of the notes 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 of the strings. But what you need normally, you need to ask someone to give you a note 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 so you'd say "Hey man, can you give me an E so I can tune up, please ?" 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 And they're gonna play a note E. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 But, on the guitar there are lots of different Es, what we call different octaves. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So, this is an E, this in an E. And even though they're both Es, and you could 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 in theory tune one off of the other, if somebody gives you an E and it's way 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 different to the one you're expecting, you could always ask that they give you 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 a lower E, or a higher E. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Sometimes it might not be possible, sometimes it will be, OK ? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 If you're using a pitch pipe, you have two Es on them. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 One will be the lower one, one will be the higher one. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So if you play one and it's really high, then it will be the one used for your thinner string, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 and if it's kinda low, it will be the one used for your thicker string. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Now you can also use this reference pitching like on my web site, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 I've got little sound files for you, so if you wanna tune up you just hit the one that says E 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 and it'll play the E note a few times. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 But there's also a little bit of technique involved with this 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 that I want to mention to you, so, one thing you wanna do 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 is not try and play at the same time as the reference pitch. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Like it always gets a little confusing. So what you wanna do is you go : 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 "Hey, man, give me an E" or you play an E if you're using my web site or whatever you 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 hit to play on the E button, you listen to the note 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 and then you play your note. And you try and listen to whether your note needs to go up or down. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Right ? Sometimes it can help to sing it. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So, say, if I'm tuning the pitch A, I'll just detune this a little bit, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 you say, "Give me an A", and I've heard that and then I play mine, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 A bit low ! 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Oh it's lower ! 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 One trick that I use all the time is I sing the note, so 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Is that on tune ? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So learning to sing one pitch and hold it kinda steady while you tune up is 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 not a bad little trick for it either. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 You don't have to ! Right, I didn't do the singing part for many years actually to tell you the truth. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 I was just kinda, you know, struggling along with my kazoo pitch pipe things 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 and I play a note and fiddle about. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Now it takes practice. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Lot of guys kinda get a bit disappointed that they couldn't tune up straight away 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 but tuning the guitar takes practice, just like everything else, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 like getting chords, and learning scales, and getting your picking grip, and that sort of stuff 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 takes practice, so don't be disappointed if you can't tune your guitar straight away. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Now if you're a beguinner, which I suspect 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 many of you will be watching this video, I strongly recommend that you get a guitar tuner. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 It's relatively inexpensive these days, and it means that when you play your guitar, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 when you're practicing then it's gonna sound nice. Right ? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So if you can afford to, get yourself an electronic tuner, any electric tuner, right ? 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 It's a lot better idea than trying to do it by reference pitches. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 Reference pitches, great idea, useful skill to learn as is a couple of the other techniques 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 that I'm gonna show you later on in this series, but really, if you're a beginner, 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 get yourself a tuner, it's a really good idea. 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 So, I hope that helps you, in your quest to get your guitar in tune, and I'll see you in plenty more 99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999 guitar lessons very soon. Take care of yourselves, bye bye.