Advanced Tuning

It is simple enough to tune each pair of strings by ear or each string via a tuner if we just want to get in the ballpark. Here I want to cover getting all the strings precisely in tune, which can be more daunting.

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Attack Pitch vs. Sustain Pitch

You may notice on a good tuner that tracks the pitch quickly and precisely, the initial attack seems to often have a sharper pitch than the sustained note. So, which one do you tune to? I like to tune to the attack pitch - since I play faster-paced music generally, it is more representative of what pitch I'll be at most of the time. Also, if I do sustain a note, adding vibrato gets it right back to being in-tune.

If you have a light attack and play slower, with longer sustained notes, you may want to tune to the sustain pitch instead. Or you can always just tune to between the two, which should minimize how out-of-tune you are at any moment. The difficulty there is getting each string equally in the same position between the two, so that all the strings are nicely tuned to each other.

Bending and Nut Issues

Sometimes, you'll notice that after you bend, your string's pitch is flat, even though you've thoroughly stretched out the string. The first thing to try is to draw in the nut with a graphite pencil, getting some of the graphite in there to lubricate the nut. What sometimes happens is the string won't easily move through the nut, but when you put the tension of a bend on it, it moves but doesn't return to its previous position. This more often happens if you are initially tuned sharp and try to loosen the string to reach the desired pitch. I find that tuning up to pitch works best.