Guitar String Gauges for Downtuning

Do you like the sound of downtuned guitars? Do you feel like trying it out yourself? There’s no reason why you can't: downtuning is loads of fun and can inspire a whole new vocabulary of riffs, arpeggios and even full songs. So many modern rock, hard rock and metal bands down tune their guitars, that it almost feels like you're missing a trick by not at least investigating the joys of drop-tuning!

That’s what today’s short article is about, really. I’ll tell you which gauge if strings you’ll need for a particular tuning, and I’ve got some tips for you ahead of that, to help you to choose wisely.

When choosing string gauges for tunings, I took a ‘happy medium’ approach based on my own trial and error, the preferences of lots of players (well known and local) and basic common sense. I’m using 10-46 as ‘normal’ for E standard here, so please adjust if you prefer 9-42.

One thing that you’ll need to consider though, is the question of scale length. The difference between the two standard electric guitar scale lengths - 24.75” and 25.5” - does make a noticeable difference to the feel of a guitar at any tuning. Even in regular E standard tuning, a set of normal 10-46 strings on a guitar with a 24.75” scale length will feel looser and easier to bend than tha same strings on a 25.5” scale length guitar. 

Those differences in feel will only exaggerate more when thicker strings and lower tunings are employed, so I’d give that some consideration prior to restringing any of your guitars. Do you want a tighter or a looser feel? Thai may influence you to choose a slightly lighter or heavier set of strings, depending on your own preferences.

So, take my advice here as a set of useful starting points, more than a ‘right and wrong’ way to approach this. And don’t feel like you need to slavishly stick to my recommendations, as informed as they may be by numerous players. Go with what works for you!

I don’t think you need to worry too much about your setup at the beginning of your droptune experiment. Just get the strings on neatly and efficiently, and tune them to pitch. Hopefully the lack of tension required by the low tuning will offset the extra tension brought in by the heavier strings. This means you may not need to do much setting up at all (to begin with), and at any rate, leave the guitar overnight before assessing how the woods of the neck etc may or may not have moved thanks to the new strings.

Give it a day and then see if you need to tweak the action, truss rod, intonation or anything else. In the longer term, you are likely to need to recut the nut (or replace it altogether) to allow room for the thicker strings, but right at the start, I’d say that you can leave the nut. It’s not ideal, but it means you can do a 180 if you don’t like the drop tuning, without having made irreversible alterations.

As always, take your guitar to your trusted tech if you aren’t confident doing any of this, and remember that if it’s a new guitar, certain modifications will invalidate the warranty. If in doubt, check!

Alright then, here’s the info you came here to get! Bear the above advice in mind as you go about this, and choose your own favourite string brand. I use most of them!

Guitar playing is about fun and expression, right? I think you’ll find plenty of both available to you once you indulge in a bit of drop tuning. Find your filthiest fuzz sound, add a cosmic delay and reverb once in a while, and have a blast as you stomp through the seven circles of sonic hell like some Lovecraftian riffbeast!

Have fun, and if you need some further inspiration, check out this article on 10 Bands Who Play in C# Tuning.