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C standard tuner: C F Bb Eb G C, free, with your mic

This is a free online guitar tuner, already set to C standard. The strings become C F Bb Eb G C: standard tuning with every string two whole steps lower. Press Start, play one string on its own, let the note settle, then aim for 0 cents. On this preset the tuner names notes with flats, like the strings themselves, and widens its analysis window for the low C. No account, no download. It sits alongside the rest of our free guitar tools.

What C standard tuning is

C standard reads C F Bb Eb G C, from the thickest string to the thinnest. Every string of standard tuning goes down by the same amount, two whole steps, so the spacing between strings stays exactly what it was. Every chord shape, scale pattern and tab you know still works. It simply sounds lower: the shape you call E now sounds C.

That regular spacing is the whole point. Plenty of heavy bands choose C standard to stay readable while tuned down: arpeggios stay defined, extended chords stay familiar under the fingers, and solos stay precise. For two reference points in C standard: Queens of the Stone Age, No One Knows, and Alter Bridge, Blackbird.

Tuning Notes What it means
Standard E A D G B E Where you start from.
Drop C C G C F A D Same low C, but the sixth string sits a whole step below the regular spacing: one finger power chords.
C standard C F Bb Eb G C Every string two whole steps down, spacing unchanged: every shape you know still works.

The near neighbor that gets confused with it is Drop C, C G C F A D, which has its own Drop C tuner. Same low C, different job: Drop C is the riff tuning, C standard the one that keeps the whole neck laid out the way you learned it. And not to be confused with Open C either, C G C G C E, where the open strings ring a C major chord: the Open C tuner opens on that one.

How to tune to C standard

Every string goes down two whole steps, four frets' worth. Take each one to its target and let the tuner read it.

String Standard C standard Target, at A 440
Sixth, the thickest E C C2, 65.41 Hz
Fifth A F F2, 87.31 Hz
Fourth D Bb Bb2, 116.54 Hz
Third G Eb Eb3, 155.56 Hz
Second B G G3, 196.00 Hz
First, the thinnest E C C4, 261.63 Hz

Reference tones, A4 = 440 Hz

One button per string in C standard, from the low C up to the C on top. Play the string on the guitar and bring it to the same pitch.

Each tone is synthesized by your browser at the exact frequency, with A4 at 440 Hz as the reference, so it stands in for a tuning fork. No audio file is downloaded.

  1. Lower each string two whole steps from standard: C F Bb Eb G C.
  2. Go round a second time, aiming for 0 cents. Six strings losing that much tension pull the neck back, and the first pass drifts.
  3. Check the intonation at the twelfth fret, harmonic against fretted note, then read every string on the tuner once more.
The low C is 65.41 Hz at A 440, the same note as in Drop C, so this preset opens the same wider analysis window. Measured on a synthetic signal, the usual window left that note 17 cents off its target, and the wider one brings it to about 2.5. The reading arrives a moment later: let the string ring.

Strings and setup for C standard

Every string loses a lot of tension in C standard, and the top five sit a whole step lower than they do in Drop C. So take at least the set you would use for Drop C: 12-56 is the usual pick. Then adjust the action, check the neck relief with the truss rod, and recheck the intonation, because the pull on the neck has changed.

If you switch between Drop C and C standard, keep a second set of strings gauged for the job, and plan on checking the intonation every time.

The string gauge chart for drop and low tunings explains why a lower tuning wants a heavier string, with the numbers behind it.

One handy fact: in C standard, a capo at the fourth fret puts the open strings back on E A D G B E. Useful to check a song against the original key, but a capo that high also shortens the vibrating length, so it is no substitute for retuning.

Frequently asked questions

Is C standard the same as Drop C?
No. Both have a low C on the sixth string, and that is where the resemblance ends. Drop C is C G C F A D: the sixth string sits a whole step below where regular spacing would put it, for one finger power chords. C standard is C F Bb Eb G C: every string goes down two whole steps from standard, so the spacing between strings stays exactly as it was. The Drop C tuner opens on the other one.
Do my chord shapes still work in C standard?
Yes, all of them. The intervals between the strings are those of standard tuning, so every chord shape, scale pattern and tab still works. Everything simply sounds two whole steps lower: an E shape sounds C.
Why does the tuner show Bb and Eb rather than A# and D#?
Because that is how the strings of C standard are written, and the preset follows them. On this preset, and on Eb standard, the tuner names the notes with flats. On the other presets it names them with sharps. Bb and A# are the same pitch under two names.
Which strings for C standard?
At least as heavy as for Drop C, because your top five strings sit a whole step lower than in Drop C. 12-56 is the usual pick. Then adjust the action, check the neck relief and recheck the intonation. The string gauge chart for drop tunings puts C standard next to its neighbors.
How do I get back to standard tuning?
Pick Standard in the menu above the tuner, then bring each string back up two whole steps. Tighten up to the pitch rather than loosening down to it, and go round at least twice: six strings regaining tension pull the neck back, and the first pass drifts while you work.
Yohann Abbou, guitar teacher and founder of Guitar Social Club

Who made this

Guitar Social Club is the work of Yohann Abbou, a guitar teacher in Paris. He teaches adults: people with jobs, limited practice time and a clear idea of the songs they want to play. The tools come out of his lessons, which is why none of them asks you to sign up before it works, and why this one shows you cents rather than a green light. The rest of our free guitar tools work the same way.

More about Yohann on his page, and about why Guitar Social Club exists.