The pedal steel guitar is usually tuned to either E9 or C6 - or both in the case of a double neck, but there are other tunings. The most common pedal steel guitars have 10 strings, followed by Universal 12 string instruments which purport to offer the same versatility as a double 10 string instrument, 8 stringed instruments were very popular in the 1950s and 1960s, they are less popular nowadays. Central to the pedal steel guitar is its ability to change tunings mid song with the help of foot pedals and knee levers which change the tension on the open strings thereby altering the tuning.
Emmons Guitar - Serial # 1: These pictures were taken by Bob Knight at Billy Cooper Music: Emmons Guitar Number 1: The Stereo pick-up controls were in the neck. To replace them you had to remove the neck. Serial Number: Thanks to Bob Knight and The Cooper's, (Billy and Wanda), for the pictures!
Setting up and tuning a pedal steel can be a daunting task without a special tuner designed for pedal steel guitar tuning. Many seasoned professional steel players “tweak” their tuning to improve their sound; we call this “Sweetened Tuning”. Because the steel guitar is a fretless instrument, it does not need to conform to the same compromises as regular fretted guitar is subjected to. The flaws of Equal temperament reveal themselves primarilly when major or minor thirds are played, and the long sustained tones produced by the pedal steel guitar show up these flaws more than pretty much any other instrument, many players aim and strive to eliminate these flaws by tuning their steels using special cent offsets for each string.
Some players tune “straight up” meaning that the major thirds are sharp and the minor thirds are flat, but most prefer not to forego the sweetness of these intervals and tune them so that they are totally beat-less and consonant. No matter what method you use, an accurate tuner is a necessity. Peterson Tuners have been used for many decades to tune the open strings, pedals and levers on pedal steel guitars, they are programmable and already feature several preset tuning settings for steel guitars using accepted systems like those originally devised by Jeff Newman and Emmons for E9, C6 and Universal tuning. There is no need to note any settings or use any charts. Begin with E9 tuning. The first string, if you’re right-handed, is located furthest away from you when sitting behind the steel in the normal playing position, plug your tuner into the steel and select the S-E9 preset.
Pluck to sound the 1st string and observe the tuner display, check that the note “F#” is displayed. With your left hand, adjust the tuning peg to stop the strobe pattern image from moving continuously in any one direction, continue to adjust until the strobe pattern is motionless. Repeat the above for the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th & 10th strings until all strings are tuned. Use a hex wrench to tune the pedal and lever adjustment hex nuts at the other end of the guitar (changer end). Pedals A,B & C (or 1, 2 & 3) should be tuned as follows. Engage the Left knee lever to the left and tune strings 4 & 8 to F, engage the lever to the right and tune the same strings to D#.
Engage Right knee lever to the left and tune strings 1 & 7 to G, engage the lever to the right and tune strings 2 & 9 to C# & D. Press pedal #1 and tune strings 5 & 10 to C#, press pedal #2 and tune strings 3 & 6 to A, press pedal 3 and tune strings 4 & 5 to F# & C#.
![Emmons pedal steel guitar dealers Emmons pedal steel guitar dealers](/uploads/1/2/5/6/125601179/205251455.jpg)
Make sure to keep strings in good condition, wipe them down with a cloth after playing and replace them with new strings when they become old or worn. If you break a string while playing or tuning, it often means the strings are at the end of their useful life. Old strings will never hold a tuning.
Replace all strings at the same time. Tune UP - not down – when tuning to the pitch of a note. Use the correct hex wrench to tune the raises and lowers. Check screws and bolts on changer, tuners, bellcranks and undercarriage for tightness regularly.
![Steel Steel](http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/userpix0912/400_emmons1_2.jpg)
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