TUNELIT

Slayer · 2001 · Studio album

God Hates Us All tuning.

C♯ Standard at concert pitch (A 440), measured on the CD. 7 of 13 songs are tuned differently.

God Hates Us All album cover

Album tuning

C♯ Standard

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

MeasuredWidely reported

Tune like thisPlay alongAll 13 songs

Measured by TuneLit

At concert pitch

SourceOffsetEquivalent ASongsSpreadConfidence
CD, American/Victor UICL-1012 (2001, Japan)+3.3 ¢A 440.813−0.5 to +5.7 ¢Medium
 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: C♯ Standard, with no pitch given (widely reported).

Recorded in Vancouver with producer Matt Hyde. Kerry King described it as two 7-string songs, four songs dropped to B and the rest in one tuning: C♯ Standard on the tabs and on the record. Two of the Drop B songs are tabbed wrongly on Songsterr (Seven Faces in C Standard, War Zone in Drop D). The CD sits at concert pitch, with a few songs 5 to 11 ¢ flat. The Japanese CD adds Scarstruck, the second 7-string song, and Addict.

13 songs · 7 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. Darkness of Christ

    C♯ StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  2. 2. Disciple

    C♯ StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  3. 3. God Send Death

    C♯ StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  4. 4. New Faith

    C♯ StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  5. 5. Cast Down

    Different tuning

    Drop B −8 ¢Measured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

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

    String 6 sits 5 half steps below its standard E2. On a normal set (.046) it keeps only about 55 % of its usual tension and feels loose. For the usual feel use about a .062 string, or a baritone guitar.

    Drop B: the album's C♯ Standard with the low string lowered a whole step to B. Measured about 8 ¢ flat.

    Tabbed in Drop B (B F♯ B E G♯ C♯). One tab says King played it on a 7-string and Hanneman on a 6-string tuned down to B; the low note is B either way.

  6. 6. Threshold

    C♯ StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  7. 7. Exile

    Different pitch

    C♯ Standard −10 ¢Measured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    Measured about 10 ¢ flat, below the rest of the album.

    Kerry King counted two 7-string songs and four songs dropped to B in 2001. Tabs put the rest in C♯ Standard; the interview text says "D sharp", but the low notes on the record are C♯.

  8. 8. Seven Faces

    Different tuning

    Drop B −11 ¢Measured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

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

    String 6 sits 5 half steps below its standard E2. On a normal set (.046) it keeps only about 55 % of its usual tension and feels loose. For the usual feel use about a .062 string, or a baritone guitar.

    Songsterr has it in C Standard, but the record sits on a low B: one of the four songs King said were dropped to B. Measured about 11 ¢ flat.

    Songsterr writes it in C Standard. Kerry King said four songs on the album are dropped to B; Cast Down and Payback are tabbed that way, and TuneLit's check from the audio hears B, not C, as the lowest open string here, and B on War Zone too.

  9. 9. Bloodline

    C♯ StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    The single. Tabs disagree: C♯ Standard on Songsterr, Drop C♯ on the most-voted Ultimate Guitar tab. The low string is C♯ either way.

  10. 10. Deviance

    Different tuning

    Drop C♯Measured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    How to get there from the album's C♯ Standard: String 5 up a whole step (F♯ → G♯), String 4 up a whole step (B → C♯), String 3 up a whole step (E → F♯), String 2 up a whole step (G♯ → A♯), String 1 up a whole step (C♯ → D♯); the other strings stay.

    Listed in Drop C♯: the low string on C♯, like the rest of the album, with the other five strings in E♭.

    Both tabs drop only the low string: Songsterr writes Drop D, Ultimate Guitar Drop C♯ (C♯ G♯ C♯ F♯ A♯ D♯), the E♭ tuning with the low string lowered to C♯.

    TuneLit's semitone check from the audio hears C♯ as the lowest open string: C♯ is by far the song's most common low note, and the C under it never sounds. The Ultimate Guitar tab says Drop C♯ too, so the song is listed in Drop C♯ rather than Songsterr's Drop D.

  11. 11. War Zone

    Different tuning

    Drop BMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

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

    String 6 sits 5 half steps below its standard E2. On a normal set (.046) it keeps only about 55 % of its usual tension and feels loose. For the usual feel use about a .061 string, or a baritone guitar.

    Songsterr has it in Drop D at concert pitch, but the record sits on a low B: one of the four songs King said were dropped to B.

    Songsterr writes it in Drop D at concert pitch, an Ultimate Guitar tab in a B tuning. Kerry King said four songs on the album are dropped to B, and TuneLit's check from the audio hears B as the lowest open string.

  12. 12. Here Comes the Pain

    Different tuning

    B♭ StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    How to get there from B Standard: Every string down a half step.

    A 7-string song: low B♭, then the usual E♭ tuning above it. On a 6-string, B♭ Standard (B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ F B♭) reaches the same low notes.

    One of the album's two 7-string songs (Wikipedia, and King in 2001), written for a wrestling compilation on a 7-string borrowed from B.C. Rich. An Ultimate Guitar tab tunes the 7-string half a step down (B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ B♭ E♭); the current Songsterr tab uses a 6-string in B♭ Standard. The low note is B♭ either way.

  13. 13. Payback

    Different tuning

    Drop B −5 ¢Measured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

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

    String 6 sits 5 half steps below its standard E2. On a normal set (.046) it keeps only about 55 % of its usual tension and feels loose. For the usual feel use about a .062 string, or a baritone guitar.

    A fast hardcore closer. Drop B as tabbed, or B Standard as a newer edit says: the riffs rarely use the open low string, so TuneLit's audio check cannot tell. Measured about 5 ¢ flat.

    Tabbed in Drop B. A 2026 Songsterr edit argues for B Standard instead; the low note is B either way.

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.
Community
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 God Hates Us All in?

Slayer recorded God Hates Us All (2001) in C♯ Standard at concert pitch (A 440), measured by TuneLit on the CD. 7 songs use other tunings or pitches, listed song by song on this page.

Why does God Hates Us All sound out of tune with my guitar?

Exile sits about 11 cents flat (A ≈ 437), so a guitar tuned to A 440 clashes with it. The Tune buttons on this page set the tuner's reference to match the record, song by song, so you only tune the strings.