AC/DC · Back in Black · song 1
Hells Bells tuning.
Hells Bells (AC/DC, 1980) is in E Standard, about 6 cents sharp (A ≈ 442), measured by TuneLit from the record.
Measured by TuneLit
6 ¢ sharp
Measured on this song itself: Tune moves every string +6 ¢.
AC/DC · Back in Black · 1980
About Hells Bells
The opening track of Back in Black (1980), the first album after Bon Scott's death, starting with a tolling bell. It is in A minor in plain E Standard: the guitar intro picks through open-string chords before the band comes in.
Measured from a compilation copy (an unofficial Russian Greatest Hits CD) that runs as long as the official track, the song sits about 6 ¢ sharp (A ≈ 441.4), as good as concert pitch. Fans call Back in Black the first AC/DC album at A 440, and the four songs TuneLit measured from it all land within 7 ¢. Tune sets E Standard 6 ¢ up; at plain A 440 most ears will not hear the difference.
The bell is a poor tuning reference: its overtones do not line up the way a string's do, so it can make a well-tuned guitar seem off. Judge your tuning against the guitar intro instead.
Tip: Tune before you press play, then check against the picked guitar intro that follows the bell, not against the bell itself.
Step by step
Tune your guitar like the record
- Tap Tune like this: the tuner switches to E Standard, every string +6 ¢, the notes Hells Bells was recorded in.
- Turn String 6 to String 1 until each shows ✓ in tune. Hells Bells sits 6 cents sharp on the record: at A 440 your guitar would sound that much flat against it, which Tune already corrects.
- Then play Hells Bells along with the record: its lowest open note and your String 6 should ring together without a wobble.
Or the other way round
Move the record into your tuning
Rather keep your guitar as it is? Let Play along move Hells Bells instead. Add your own copy, for example from your CD (it never leaves your device); the link already says the song is in E Standard +6 ¢. Choose E Standard at A 440 and Hells Bells moves down 5 cents, at its own speed. Slow it down or loop a few bars to learn it, and save the result as a WAV file.
Questions
What tuning is Hells Bells in?
E Standard +6 ¢: E A D G B E, low to high, at the pitch TuneLit measured on the record.