The CSNY "EEEEBE" Tuning

This unique tuning, popularized by legendary artists like Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, transforms the guitar into a deeply resonant instrument, centered around the powerful E note. The EEEEBE tuning is characterized by an abundance of unison and octave E notes, creating a rich, drone-like foundation perfect for acoustic folk, rock, and ambient styles.

Verbal Analysis:

When strummed open, this tuning produces a massive, full-bodied E Power Chord (E5). The multiple E strings at different octaves, combined with the B (the perfect fifth) on the second string, create an incredibly resonant and harmonically rich sound. It's an ideal tuning for slide guitar due to the consistent E root across most strings, allowing for easy gliding melodies and chords. For fingerstyle players, it offers a strong sonic canvas, enabling the creation of intricate arpeggios and melodies that sit comfortably over the dominant E drone. The presence of the B on the second string keeps it from being just a single note drone, providing the essential fifth of an E chord, which can easily be altered to create E major (by fretting a G# on an E string) or E minor voicings.

Technical Analysis:

The tuning consists of the notes E2-E2-E3-E3-B3-E4 (low to high). This arrangement means:

• The 6th, 5th, 4th, and 3rd strings are all tuned to E, providing a tremendous amount of fundamental resonance across multiple octaves.
• The 2nd string is tuned to B, which is the perfect fifth of E.
• The 1st string is tuned to E, completing the chord voicing at a high octave.

As an open tuning, it naturally forms an E5 Power Chord (E and B). To achieve a full E Major chord (E, G#, B), one would typically fret a G# on one of the E strings (e.g., 4th fret on the 4th, 3rd, or 1st string). The close proximity of E notes across the lower strings also makes it easy to create suspended chords or other voicings by simply fretting a single string to introduce a new interval, while the other E strings continue to drone.

Chords Within Reach:

Beyond the open E5, this tuning facilitates:

• E Major: Fret any E string at the 4th fret to add a G# (e.g., 4th string, 4th fret).
• E Minor: Fret any E string at the 3rd fret to add a G (e.g., 4th string, 3rd fret).
• Parallel Power Chords: By barring all strings at any fret, you can easily play other power chords (e.g., 2nd fret for F#5, 7th fret for B5).
• Drone-based Melody: The consistent E across several strings allows for melodic lines to be played on the higher strings while maintaining a rich, open drone.

The notes for the EEEEBE tuning are as follows (from low to high string):

• String 6: E2
• String 5: E2
• String 4: E3
• String 3: E3
• String 2: B3
• String 1: E4

How to Tune:

To achieve the EEEEBE tuning from standard E Standard tuning (E-A-D-G-B-E):

• String 6 (Low E): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones). The target note is E2.
• String 5 (A): Tune down 5 semitones to E2. (Caution: Tuning down 5 semitones is a significant change. A different string gauge is advised to maintain optimal tension and tone.)
• String 4 (D): Tune up 2 semitones to E3.
• String 3 (G): Tune down 3 semitones to E3.
• String 2 (B): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones). The target note is B3.
• String 1 (High E): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones). The target note is E4.