TUNELIT

Megadeth · 1999 · Studio album

Risk tuning.

E Standard at concert pitch (A 440), measured on the CD. 2 of 12 songs are tuned differently.

Risk album cover

Album tuning

E Standard

At concert pitch (A 440), measured on the CD.

MeasuredFrom tabs

Tune like thisPlay alongAll 12 songs

Measured by TuneLit

At concert pitch

SourceOffsetEquivalent ASongsSpreadConfidence
CD, Capitol/Toshiba-EMI TOCP-65272 (1999, Japan)+1.5 ¢A 440.412−1.8 to +2.2 ¢High
 Offset from concert pitch (A 440). Spread: the middle half of the songs, when four or more share the album's pitch. Confidence: how well the notes agree with one grid.

Before we measured, sources said: E Standard, with no pitch given (community).

E Standard at concert pitch, with three songs in other tunings: Prince of Darkness a whole step down, Wanderlust in Drop D, and Crush 'Em in E Standard although its main tab says E♭ (the audio check and two other tabs agree on E).

12 songs · 2 tuned differently

Every song, ready to tune

Tune opens the tuner in that song's tuning, pitch included. Play along opens the song player set to that tuning, so the track plays in yours. What the labels mean

  1. 1. Insomnia

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  2. 2. Prince of Darkness

    Different tuning

    D StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    How to get there from the album's E Standard: Every string down a whole step.

    A whole step down (D G C F A D), guitars and bass, years before D Standard became the band's tuning. The audio check hears D.

    The Songsterr tab has guitars and bass a whole step down (D G C F A D).

  3. 3. Enter the Arena

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    Tabbed in E Standard, but the audio check hears E♭ as the lowest note; its measurement is weak. Check by ear.

  4. 4. Crush 'Em

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    Listed in E Standard: the audio check hears E, as two Songsterr versions do. The most-viewed tab is half a step down.

    The most-viewed Songsterr tab is half a step down (E♭); two other Songsterr versions are in E Standard, like the rest of the album.

    TuneLit's semitone check from the audio hears E as the lowest open string: in the bass octave E is heard about six times as often as the E♭ under it. Two of the three Songsterr tabs say E too, so the song is listed in E Standard; the most-viewed tab is in E♭.

  5. 5. Breadline

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  6. 6. The Doctor Is Calling

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  7. 7. I'll Be There

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  8. 8. Wanderlust

    Different tuning

    Drop DMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    How to get there from the album's E Standard: String 6 down a whole step (E → D); the other strings stay.

    Mustaine's low string drops to D; Friedman's part stays in E Standard. The audio check hears the low D.

    The only tab drops Mustaine's low string to D; Friedman's part stays in E Standard.

  9. 9. Ecstasy

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  10. 10. Seven

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  11. 11. Time: The Beginning

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  12. 12. Time: The End

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

What the labels mean

Measured
TuneLit measured the pitch on an original CD or LP. The tuning name still comes from the sources.
Official
The band, a member, their producer or their guitar tech said it.
Widely reported
Trusted outlets, guides and tabs agree, but the band did not say it directly.
From tabs
From community tabs, or from players who tune along with the record.
Disputed
Sources disagree. The likeliest setting is shown; the notes name the other one.

Each song shows one label, the strongest it has, in this order. How we measure recordings →

Questions

What tuning is Risk in?

Megadeth recorded Risk (1999) in E Standard at concert pitch (A 440), measured by TuneLit on the CD. Prince of Darkness uses D Standard; Wanderlust uses Drop D.