Meshuggah · Nothing · song 1
Stengah tuning.
Stengah (Meshuggah, 2002) is in E1 B♭1 E♭2 A♭2 D♭3 G♭3 B♭3 E♭4, about 10 cents sharp (A ≈ 443), measured by TuneLit from the record.
Song tuning
E1 B♭1 E♭2 A♭2 D♭3 G♭3 B♭3 E♭4 +10 ¢
About 10 cents sharp (A ≈ 443).
Measured by TuneLit
10 ¢ sharp
Measured on this song itself: Tune moves every string +10 ¢.
Meshuggah · Nothing · 2002
About Stengah
The opener of Nothing (2002), the album that took Meshuggah into eight-string range. On the original 2002 release the guitars were actually seven-strings tuned down, because the band's eight-strings were not ready; the 2006 reissue re-recorded them on real eight-strings. Stengah drops the bottom string a half step below the album's F, giving E B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ B♭ E♭, so its riff is built around a low E with the next string a tritone above it.
TuneLit measured the original CD about 10 ¢ sharp (A ≈ 443) as an album. Stengah itself reads a little higher, about 17 ¢, which is close enough that the button keeps the album value. The semitone check from the audio confirms the dropped string: it hears E under this song, not F and not E♭.
Coming from the plain F tuning, only String 8 moves, down a half step. Remember to bring it back up for Rational Gaze, which follows. On a seven-string, tune the lowest string to E and the rest to B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ B♭, which is close to what the band did in 2002, and use a much heavier bottom string to keep the E from flapping.
Tip: Lower String 8 from F to E, then check it against the lowest notes of the main riff before tuning anything else.
Step by step
Tune your guitar like the record
- Tap Tune like this: the tuner switches to E1 B♭1 E♭2 A♭2 D♭3 G♭3 B♭3 E♭4, every string +10 ¢, the notes Stengah was recorded in.
- From the album's F Standard: String 8 down a half step (F → E); the other strings stay.
- Turn String 8 to String 1 until each shows ✓ in tune. Stengah sits 10 cents sharp on the record: at A 440 your guitar would sound that much flat against it, which Tune already corrects.
- Then play Stengah along with the record: its lowest open note and your String 8 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 Stengah instead. Add your own copy, for example from your CD (it never leaves your device); the link already says the song is in E1 B♭1 E♭2 A♭2 D♭3 G♭3 B♭3 E♭4 +10 ¢. Choose E1 B♭1 E♭2 A♭2 D♭3 G♭3 B♭3 E♭4 at A 440 and Stengah moves down 10 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 Stengah in?
E1 B♭1 E♭2 A♭2 D♭3 G♭3 B♭3 E♭4 +10 ¢: E A♯ D♯ G♯ C♯ F♯ A♯ D♯, low to high, at the pitch TuneLit measured on the record.