This unique and heavy guitar tuning, which we'll call G# Minor Eleventh Deep Drop, plunges your instrument into a world of rich, resonant soundscapes ideal for modern metal, progressive rock, and experimental music. It combines elements of very deep drop tunings with a distinctive set of intervals that redefine traditional guitar voicings.

Verbal Analysis:

The foundation of this tuning is a powerful and guttural low G# on the 6th string, providing an immense depth. The open strings, G#2 D#3 G#3 C#4 F#4 B3, astonishingly form an open G# Minor Eleventh chord. This creates an immediate, moody, and harmonically rich resonance without fretting a single note. The presence of the B3 on the first string, tuned lower than the F#4 on the second string, is a highly unusual and defining characteristic, setting this tuning apart from most conventional or even alternative tunings. It shifts the sonic focus and offers unexpected voicings.

Due to the significant downward tuning across all strings, the overall tension will be much lower than standard tuning, resulting in a looser feel and allowing for aggressive bends and expressive vibrato. The low G# is perfect for chugging riffs and earth-shattering power chords. The subsequent perfect fourths (D#3-G#3, G#3-C#4, C#4-F#4) create a familiar and intuitive framework for riffing and single-note lines, akin to playing on the upper strings of a standard perfect-fourths tuning (like an all-fourths tuning). However, the unique low B3 on the first string will require a complete re-thinking of common chord shapes and scale patterns.

Technical Analysis:

• Instrument Type: Guitar
• Open Notes: G#2 D#3 G#3 C#4 F#4 B3 (from thickest to thinnest string)
• Interval Structure:
  • 6th to 5th String (G#2 to D#3): Perfect 5th (7 semitones up)
  • 5th to 4th String (D#3 to G#3): Perfect 4th (5 semitones up)
  • 4th to 3rd String (G#3 to C#4): Perfect 4th (5 semitones up)
  • 3rd to 2nd String (C#4 to F#4): Perfect 4th (5 semitones up)
  • 2nd to 1st String (F#4 to B3): Descending Perfect 5th (7 semitones down). This means the 1st string is tuned lower in pitch than the 2nd string.
• Open Chord: The open strings G#2-D#3-G#3-C#4-F#4-B3 form a G# Minor Eleventh chord (G#m11). This provides a rich, complex harmonic starting point.
• Accessible Chords & Voicings:
  • Power Chords: The G#2-D#3 interval on the lowest two strings makes for an immediate and powerful G#5. On the strings with perfect fourth intervals (5th through 2nd), a two-finger power chord shape (root-fourth) can be easily moved around, though a traditional root-fifth shape will require skipping a string.
  • Open Chords: Beyond the G#m11, other complex open voicings can be found by adding a single finger.
  • Barre Chords: Traditional CAGED system barre chords will not transfer directly due to the altered intervals, especially the inverted interval on the top two strings. New shapes will need to be developed, offering fresh harmonic possibilities.
  • Melodic Playing: The consistent perfect fourths on the middle four strings make scale and arpeggio patterns relatively predictable within that range, but the lowest and highest strings demand unique fingerings.

How to Tune:

This tuning requires significant downward adjustments from standard E Standard tuning (E-A-D-G-B-E). Due to the extreme drop in pitch, it is highly recommended to use a heavier gauge string set to maintain proper tension, intonation, and playability. Tuning more than 4 semitones up or down often warrants a change in string gauge.

• 6th String (Low E): Tune down 8 semitones to G2#. (Extreme drop, consider heavier gauge)
• 5th String (A): Tune down 6 semitones to D3#. (Significant drop, consider heavier gauge)
• 4th String (D): Tune down 6 semitones to G3#. (Significant drop, consider heavier gauge)
• 3rd String (G): Tune down 6 semitones to C4#. (Significant drop, consider heavier gauge)
• 2nd String (B): Tune down 5 semitones to F4#. (Significant drop, consider heavier gauge)
• 1st String (High E): Tune down 5 semitones to B3. (Significant drop, consider heavier gauge and note this string is lower than the 2nd string)

Here are the specific notes for each string, from the thickest (6th) to the thinnest (1st):

• String 6: G2#
• String 5: D3#
• String 4: G3#
• String 3: C4#
• String 2: F4#
• String 1: B3

Note the unusual tuning of the 1st string (B3), which is lower in pitch than the 2nd string (F4#).