This is a unique 7-string guitar tuning known as "Amajor9", famously used by Brock Benzel for most of their guitar parts in Good Game. This tuning creates a rich, open, and resonant sound, as the open strings themselves form a complete A Major 9th chord, providing a beautiful harmonic foundation without fretting a single note.

Technical Analysis

The tuning consists of the following notes from the lowest (7th) to the highest (1st) string:

• String 7: A1 (Sub-contra octave)
• String 6: E2 (Contra octave)
• String 5: A2 (Contra octave)
• String 4: C#4 (Small octave)
• String 3: G#4 (Small octave)
• String 2: B3 (Small octave)
• String 1: E4 (Small octave)

When played open, these notes collectively spell out A, B, C#, E, G#, which are the root, 9th, major 3rd, perfect 5th, and major 7th of an A Major 9th chord. This arrangement allows for complex harmonic textures and melodic lines to emerge from simply strumming the open strings. The wide voicings and presence of the 9th and major 7th lend themselves to jazz, fusion, ambient, and highly melodic styles of music. Chords such as A, A Major 7, and A Major 9 are inherently available in various inversions and voicings across the fretboard, making it easy to discover new chord shapes. The low A-E-A provides a solid power chord foundation, while the higher strings offer expressive harmonic possibilities.

How to Tune

To achieve the Amajor9 tuning from a standard 7-string guitar tuning (typically B-E-A-D-G-B-E), follow these string adjustments:

• String 7 (B): Tune down 2 semitones to A1.
• String 6 (E): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones), remains E2.
• String 5 (A): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones), remains A2.
• String 4 (D): Tune down 1 semitone to C#4.
• String 3 (G): Tune up 1 semitone to G#4.
• String 2 (B): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones), remains B3.
• String 1 (E): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones), remains E4.

All string adjustments are minor, with the largest movement being 2 semitones. Therefore, a different string gauge is not strictly necessary for this tuning, but always ensure your guitar's intonation is checked and adjusted after any tuning changes.

• String 7: Tuned to A1.
• String 6: Tuned to E2.
• String 5: Tuned to A2.
• String 4: Tuned to C#4.
• String 3: Tuned to G#4.
• String 2: Tuned to B3.
• String 1: Tuned to E4.