The 'Believer' tuning, as used by Eddie Van Der Meer for his arrangement of the Imagine Dragons song "Believer", is a highly distinctive and resonant guitar tuning. It is crafted to produce an open and expansive soundscape, centered around a unique harmonic structure, making it ideal for intricate fingerstyle playing.

Verbal Analysis

This tuning instantly captivates with its open string harmony. When strummed without fretting, the strings collectively produce a vibrant C# Augmented chord (C#, F, A#), beautifully spread across multiple octaves. This creates an ethereal, slightly dissonant yet harmonically symmetrical quality that can feel both mysterious and enchanting. The non-linear progression of notes between strings—featuring significant drops and leaps, particularly in the middle and higher registers—suggests a tuning meticulously designed to facilitate specific melodic patterns, arpeggios, and unique voicings rather than relying on conventional chord shapes.

The repetition of F3 (on String 4 and String 2) and A#4 (on String 3 and String 1) introduces rich, ringing overtones and drone possibilities, enhancing the tuning's sonic depth. This structure encourages the discovery of complex voicings with minimal finger movement, a characteristic often leveraged in sophisticated fingerstyle arrangements like those popularized by Eddie Van Der Meer. Players will find themselves exploring new harmonic territories and a refreshed perspective on the fretboard.

Owing to its open C# Augmented chord structure, simply barring across the neck at various frets will consistently yield transposed augmented chords (e.g., a barre at the 1st fret would produce a D Augmented chord), making the transposition of certain harmonic ideas remarkably intuitive.

Technical Analysis

The open string notes for this tuning, from the lowest (String 6) to the highest (String 1), are:

• String 6: C#3
• String 5: A#3
• String 4: F3
• String 3: A#4
• String 2: F3
• String 1: A#4

This configuration prominently features a C# Augmented triad (C#, F, A#) across the open strings. The intervals between adjacent strings are notably unconventional:

• String 6 (C#3) to String 5 (A#3): Major 6th (9 semitones up)
• String 5 (A#3) to String 4 (F3): Descending Tritone (6 semitones down)
• String 4 (F3) to String 3 (A#4): Octave + Perfect 4th (18 semitones up)
• String 3 (A#4) to String 2 (F3): Octave + Perfect 4th (18 semitones down)
• String 2 (F3) to String 1 (A#4): Octave + Perfect 4th (18 semitones up)

The substantial leaps, particularly between strings 3-4 and 1-2, create very wide voicings and necessitate significant tension adjustments. The overall pitch range of the tuning extends from C#3 to A#4, spanning approximately one octave and a major 6th.

How to Tune

To achieve the 'Believer' tuning from standard EADGBe, carefully follow these instructions. Please be mindful of the significant string tension changes involved, especially for strings requiring adjustments greater than 4 semitones up or down. For optimal performance, stability, and string longevity, using a different string gauge may be advised for these specific strings.

• String 6 (Low E): Tune down 3 semitones to C#3.
• String 5 (A): Tune up 1 semitones to A#3.
• String 4 (D): Tune up 3 semitones to F3.
• String 3 (G): Tune up 3 semitones to A#4.
• String 2 (B): Tune down 6 semitones to F3. (Caution: This is a substantial drop in pitch; consider using a heavier gauge string.)
• String 1 (High E): Tune down 6 semitones to A#4. (Caution: This is a substantial drop in pitch; consider using a heavier gauge string.)

String 6: C#3

String 5: A#3

String 4: F3

String 3: A#4

String 2: F3

String 1: A#4