Mike Auldridge's C6th tuning

Bill McCloskey · Posted 8 Jan 2007 7:06 pm

Ever since I got the Beard MA8, I've been wondering what to do with the Benoit 8 string. I figured I would put Pete Grant's D tuning on it since I play with a lot of irish musicians from time to time. But it meant a string order to pick up the guages I didn't have lying around.

In the meantime, I thought I would give Mike Auldridge's C6 dobro tuning a whirl. After all I had the guages and Mike's wonderful DVD on 8 string dobro with the tuning on it. So I changed the strings this morning.

After playing with it for most of the afternoon, I can honestly say I'm in love. The C6 tuning stays and it sounds really nice on the Benoit. It was great for blues, for jazzy stuff and for big beautiful lush chords.

If you want to know what pure heaven is, give it a try on any old 8 string dobro you have laying around.

tuning is

D (lower than 2nd string)
E
C
A
G
E
C
A

Over the past few months, I've been drifting away from the electric stuff and getting back in touch with my acoustic side. It sure feels really good.

Pete Grant · From: Auburn, CA, USA

Bill, you might want to modify my D tuning so the last three strings are D, F#, E. That way, it will be like your C6 tuning and like strings 4, 1, and 3 of the PSG. Or just keep the D E F# the way it is, since it's just like strings 8,7, and 6 of the PSG. There is a whole lot you can do with three strings tuned apart in whole steps, whatever way you arrange them.

Bill McCloskey · Posted 9 Jan 2007 10:53 am **thanks for the tip**

Thanks for the tip Pete.

I was actually emailing Mike today and talking about the fact that while Lap steel players are endlessly fascinated with new tunings, dobro players do not seem to share that fascination. Just playing around for one day on the C6th tuning, I was exposed to all sorts of new ideas and sounds that give the dobro a very unique sound and open up the possibilities of the instrument. I wonder why more people besides you and Mike have not explored this territory more. It is fertile ground.

Pete Grant · From: Auburn, CA, USA

Gary Morse, too. Maybe it takes a pedal steel-exposed brain.

I developed my 8-string D tuning because I needed scale steps in a tuning and also wanted to be able to strum major chords. So, maybe it takes a particular need. That's why, decades ago, I changed my G tuning from G B D G B D to G D G B D G. I really needed the root on top. Later, I went to D A D F# A D, which is the same relation between strings, but so much deeper and quite perfect for Irish traditional.

Mark Eaton · Posted 9 Jan 2007 11:39 am

Bill wrote: "give it a try on any old 8 string dobro you have laying around."

Yeah, I'll head out to the garage to my dobro pile and see if I can rustle up up an 8-string in that mess. Laughing

_________________
Mark

Earnest Bovine · From: Los Angeles CA USA

That is my usual dobro tuning, except I use low C# instead of C.
I tried B (Joachin) instead of D as the first string. It is great for chords but I found that I actually use the D more.

Carroll Hale · From: EastTexas, USA

Bill McCloskey · Posted 11 Jan 2007 11:09 am

Carroll,

Are you putting this on a six string dobro?

I have the guages at home. I'll try and post them tonight.

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