4-string bass guitar Tuning Chart
4 tunings for the 4-string bass guitar, all measured against standard EADG, with the target note and the exact frequency in hertz for every string.
| Tuning | Notation | Category | Notes | Frequencies (Hz) | Strings changed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | EADG | standard | E1 A1 D2 G2 | 41.20 · 55.00 · 73.42 · 98.00 | reference |
| Drop D | DADG | drop | D1 A1 D2 G2 | 36.71 · 55.00 · 73.42 · 98.00 | 1 of 4 |
| Half step down | EbAbDbGb | lowered | D#1 G#1 C#2 F#2 | 38.89 · 51.91 · 69.30 · 92.50 | 4 of 4 |
| Drop C | CGCF | drop | C1 G1 C2 F2 | 32.70 · 49.00 · 65.41 · 87.31 | 4 of 4 |
The last column is the number of strings that move relative to standard tuning, which is the fastest way to judge how disruptive a tuning is to reach and to undo.
What each 4-string bass guitar tuning is for
Standard (EADG)
The reference tuning for a 4-string bass: the same letter names as the bottom four guitar strings, one octave lower. All four strings are a perfect fourth apart with no exceptions, so unlike a guitar the fretboard is completely regular and one shape works on any string pair. The instrument inherited the layout from the double bass.
Common in almost all bass repertoire. Tune to Standard
Drop D (DADG)
Lower the 4th string a whole step, from E1 to D1. The other three do not move. It matches a guitarist playing in Drop D, and it puts D1 under the open string so a root note in D needs no fretting hand at all. D1 is low enough that many small speakers reproduce only its harmonics rather than the fundamental.
Common in rock, metal, punk. Tune to Drop D
Half step down (EbAbDbGb)
All four strings down one semitone. Intervals are unchanged, so every fingering stays exactly the same. It exists to match a guitarist tuned a semitone down rather than for any tonal reason of its own, which is the usual way bass tunings spread.
Common in rock, blues, metal. Tune to Half step down
Drop C (CGCF)
Drop D with everything lowered another whole step: the 4th string sits on C1 and the other three drop a whole step each. C1 at the bottom of the instrument is close to the practical limit for a standard 34 inch scale with ordinary gauges, so this is where bass players usually switch to a 5-string rather than tune further down.
Common in metalcore, modern metal. Tune to Drop C
Use the data
These tunings are part of the open TuneStand dataset: /api/tunings.json, CC BY 4.0, no key required. See the dataset page for the schema and licence terms.
More tuning references
Frequencies on this page are computed at build time from twelve tone equal temperament with A4 = 440 Hz, using the twelfth root of two (about 1.059463) per semitone. Nothing is typed in by hand. See the full method and sources. Maintained by FusionStudios. Last reviewed: .