Tenor Guitar (cbg)

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Comment by Bad Wolf on March 29, 2013 at 12:02pm

ive built a few CBGs now and my favorite is still my tenor. tuned CGDA it sounds awesome. i love the 5ths tuning. ive redid the bridge since this picture was taken and ithe box has some wear on it from playing but i still love it!

im really surprised how many people i show it to have no idea what a tenor guitar is.

Comment by Ben on July 21, 2012 at 11:01pm

This is my most recent tenor guitar. It has a 21 1/2" scale length and is tuned CGDA.

Comment by Ben on June 4, 2012 at 5:13am

Hi Alice,
Welcome! First, I have so many CBGs because of what you mentioned. No two I have are tuned the same way and I build them to suit my singing range as well as playing style, etc. Now to your tuning question: I won't ask you why you chose that since it actually sounds pretty nice. I will ask, however, if you have considered tuning DGBd like the 4 long strings of a banjo? This will put you in Gmajor and give you "chord access" to every banjo chord chart out there. It just seems a little more straight forward for a novice who plays a lot of bluegrass. You may also consider joining the group "The Grass is Bluer...". I know that didn't really answer your initial question so hopefully someone else can weigh in. Good luck!

Comment by Alice Saxe on June 3, 2012 at 9:56am

Greetings,

I'm building my first and only CBG.  Decided to tune it in open G (G,D,G,B) -- don't ask me why.  Most songs I play on my regular guitar are in G, and I like Bluegrass.  I was glad to read that G. B. Miller also tunes his CBG in G,D,G,B.  There seems to be so many ways to tune a CBG, that I get confused.  Do you tune it based on your voice or the type of music you like or something else.  The chord sheet posted by Bryan was great, but quite small  --  don't know if I can print it.  Is there a way to enlarge it?  If I sound like a novice, I am.  All info is greatly appreciated.

 

Comment by bouydog 8-9-8 on September 2, 2011 at 6:34pm

Hi Lou

I think I will try a tenor set and see how they work out. A bit more rescue work needed before I am ready to string, thanks for your help.

Comment by Lou Carreras on September 2, 2011 at 2:07pm

Hi David.  My latest guitar is a 4 string 22.5" scale which I guess qualifies it as a tenor.  I used the ADGB strings from a light acoustic set, but I tune it to GDGB.

If you want to use the traditional CGDA tuning, they actually sell tenor string sets online.  They are much cheaper than a set of six strings at around $3 and I think they will stand up to the increased tension of that tuning.

Comment by bouydog 8-9-8 on August 29, 2011 at 9:27am

Hi folks I have a reso that I have built that does not really work [ I tried to be a bit to clever with the headstock] I am going to re work the neck and would like it to be a tenor reso. Advice on strings please.

Comment by Mountain Voodoo (G B Miller) on August 15, 2011 at 4:55pm

Hi Lou,

 

I don't have audio's or videos yet. But I do have a basic chord sheet. The chords are real simple and most require on a couple of fingers and span 3 frets or less. Let me try to post a pdf link for the basic chords. I am working on a full chord book for that tuning.

 

OK, I just uploaded a jpg of the GDGB Basic Chords to my photo section. http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/gdgb-basic-chords?context=user

 

Bryan

Comment by Lou Carreras on August 15, 2011 at 3:17pm

Hi GB.  I'm so glad you posted about that tuning.  I've built 5 3-stringers and tune them to DGB.  I want to build a four-string and keep a familiar tuning.  As interesting as it is, the traditional tenor CGDA throws me off.

I'm going to try it out.  Do you have any videos or audio of that tuning being used?

Comment by Mountain Voodoo (G B Miller) on August 15, 2011 at 2:21pm

Howdy Ya'll!

Well, I haven't heard anyone mention GDGB. This is what I usually tune my 4-String CBGs to. I also use a full 25" or 25.5" scale length. I string them up using the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th strings from a standard Acoustic Light or Medium Light set. My 4-strings have a very blluegrassy sound to them and depending on how you play it they can sound like an acoustic guitar, a banjo, a mandolin or a uke all from one guitar. Here is a link to a photo of one that I have set up like this.

http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/cbg004andcbg005-1?context=user

 

Bryan

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