The 'New Northside Air Tuning', also known as FACFAC, transforms your guitar into a vibrant and resonant open F major chord. This tuning is designed to evoke a bright, airy, and expansive sound, making it ideal for atmospheric pieces, fingerstyle, or slide guitar.

Technical Breakdown:

• The open strings are tuned to F2-A2-C3-F3-A3-C4, creating a full F major triad across three octaves (F-A-C).
• The intervals between strings are primarily Major 3rd (F-A, F-A), Minor 3rd (A-C, A-C), and a Perfect 4th (C-F). This structure provides rich harmonic possibilities with open string drones.
• Playing with a slide or simply barring across any fret will immediately yield a major chord, making songwriting and improvisation in various keys very intuitive. For example, a barre at the 1st fret produces an F# Major chord, the 3rd fret a G Major, and so on.
• The repetition of F, A, and C across the strings creates a strong harmonic foundation, allowing for melodic exploration without losing the underlying chordal richness.
• Compared to standard tuning, this FACFAC tuning involves significant string tension changes, particularly on the first string which is lowered by four semitones, and the sixth string which is raised by one semitone.

How to Tune Your Guitar to New Northside Air Tuning (FACFAC)

To achieve the FACFAC tuning, you will adjust your strings from standard E-A-D-G-B-E tuning as follows:

• 6th String (Low E): Tune up 1 semitones from E2 to F2. (Note: Tuning up may increase string tension, but 1 semitone is generally safe).
• 5th String (A): Keep as is; no change (0 semitones) from A2 to A2.
• 4th String (D): Tune down 2 semitones from D3 to C3.
• 3rd String (G): Tune down 2 semitones from G3 to F3.
• 2nd String (B): Tune down 2 semitones from B3 to A3.
• 1st String (High E): Tune down 4 semitones from E4 to C4. Caution: Tuning down 4 semitones significantly reduces string tension. For optimal playability and intonation, especially if you plan to stay in this tuning for extended periods, consider using a heavier gauge string for the 1st string.

Here are the notes for each string in New Northside Air Tuning:

• 6th String (Low E): F2
• 5th String (A): A2
• 4th String (D): C3
• 3rd String (G): F3
• 2nd String (B): A3
• 1st String (High E): C4