This unique guitar tuning, famously used by My Bloody Valentine in their track 'Who Sees You,' creates a rich, atmospheric, and often melancholic soundscape. It's a prime example of how alternative tunings can unlock entirely new sonic possibilities, moving beyond conventional chord shapes to produce ethereal textures and resonant drones.

Verbal Analysis

The 'MBV Who Sees You' tuning immediately evokes a sense of introspection and dreaminess, characteristic of the shoegaze genre. With its deeply altered string pitches, it moves away from traditional major or minor harmonies, instead offering a complex, shimmering palette. The open strings, when strummed, create a dense cluster of notes that can be both dissonant and incredibly beautiful, providing a rich bed for melodic lines and washes of sound. The presence of repeated Fs and Cs across different octaves lends a strong, resonant drone quality, allowing notes to hang and decay, contributing to a vast, open feel.

Technical Analysis

From the lowest to highest pitched string, the notes are: F2 (string 5), C3 (string 4), D#3 (string 6), F3 (string 3), G3 (string 2), and C4 (string 1). This is a highly unconventional tuning where the 6th string (D#3) is actually higher in pitch than the 5th string (F2), which serves as the lowest fundamental note. The tuning effectively stacks intervals that create complex harmonies rather than simple triads.

The core notes present are F, C, D# (enharmonically Eb), and G, with F and C appearing in multiple octaves. This collection of notes, F-C-Eb-G, strongly suggests an F minor 9th chord (missing its minor third, Ab, but featuring the root, fifth, minor seventh, and ninth). The repeated Fs and Cs provide a strong sense of tonal anchoring, while the D# (Eb) adds a melancholic or bluesy tension. The G acts as a higher extension, contributing to the tuning's rich harmonic depth.

Open String Harmonies & Chords

• Full Open Strum: Playing all open strings (D#3-F2-C3-F3-G3-C4) yields a complex, resonant sound akin to an F minor 9th chord (F-C-Eb-G with additional F and C octaves). This voicing is not a simple major or minor, but a rich, layered harmony perfect for creating ethereal textures.
• Middle Strings Focus: The middle four strings (C3-F3-G3-C4) form a C-F-G-C voicing, which can be interpreted as a C suspended 4th chord (Csus4) with an open fifth, or an F suspended 2nd chord (Fsus2) over a C bass. This section of the tuning is inherently open and ringing.
• Rootless Chords & Drones: The nature of this tuning encourages exploration of rootless voicings and drone patterns. Melodies played over the open strings will interact with its unique harmonic structure, producing unexpected and beautiful results.
• Reach for Minor & Suspended Chords: Players will find that minor-based chord shapes and suspended harmonies are easily accessible and sound particularly resonant within this tuning. The D#/Eb interval provides a natural pivot for minor tonalities.

How to Tune Your Guitar

To achieve the 'MBV Who Sees You' tuning from standard EADGBe, carefully adjust each string as follows:

• String 6 (Low E): Tune down 1 semitone to D#3.
• String 5 (A): Tune down 4 semitones to F2. This is a significant drop; caution is advised, and a heavier gauge string may be beneficial.
• String 4 (D): Tune down 2 semitones to C3.
• String 3 (G): Tune down 2 semitones to F3.
• String 2 (B): Tune down 4 semitones to G3. This is a significant drop; caution is advised, and a heavier gauge string may be beneficial.
• String 1 (High E): Tune down 4 semitones to C4. This is a significant drop; caution is advised, and a heavier gauge string may be beneficial.

Important Gauge Advisory: For strings tuned down 4 semitones or more (specifically the 5th, 2nd, and 1st strings in this tuning), consider using a heavier gauge string set. This helps maintain optimal string tension, improves tone, and can prevent strings from feeling too 'floppy'. Tuning significantly beyond these ranges can also put unusual stress on your instrument's neck and bridge.

String 6 (Low E originally): Tuned to D#3. This string is tuned down 1 semitone from standard E2.

String 5 (A originally): Tuned to F2. This string is tuned down 4 semitones from standard A2. A heavier gauge string may be advisable for optimal tension and tone.

String 4 (D originally): Tuned to C3. This string is tuned down 2 semitones from standard D3.

String 3 (G originally): Tuned to F3. This string is tuned down 2 semitones from standard G3.

String 2 (B originally): Tuned to G3. This string is tuned down 4 semitones from standard B3. A heavier gauge string may be advisable for optimal tension and tone.

String 1 (High E originally): Tuned to C4. This string is tuned down 4 semitones from standard E4. A heavier gauge string may be advisable for optimal tension and tone.