Guitar tuning

Double Drop D Tuning (D-A-D-G-B-D)

Double Drop D is D-A-D-G-B-D. It is Drop D with one more change: the first string also comes down from E to D. The four middle strings stay exactly as they are in standard tuning. The result is a low D and a high D ringing open, framing everything you play in between.

🎸 Open the tuner in this tuning

The tuner opens already preconfigured; you only need to allow microphone access.

Strings and frequencies

String Note Hz
String 1 D4 293.66 Hz
String 2 B3 246.94 Hz
String 3 G3 196.00 Hz
String 4 D3 146.83 Hz
String 5 A2 110.00 Hz
String 6 D2 73.42 Hz

How to tune to Double Drop D

Two strings, the two outer ones, both a whole step down.

Sixth: E to D. Slacken it until it matches the open fourth string an octave below.

First: E to D. Slacken it until it matches the open fourth string an octave above.

If you already know how to get into Drop D, this is Drop D plus one more string. And to go back to Drop D from here, you only have to raise the first string again.

Check the result by sounding the open sixth and the open first together: they should be the same note two octaves apart, with no beating between them.

What changes compared with Drop D

Drop D gives you the one-finger power chord on the low strings. Double Drop D keeps that advantage untouched — the three low strings do not move — and adds something different at the top.

With the first string on D, shapes that used to end on a high E now end on the root. Chords in D are closed off above and below by the same note, which gives a full, resonant quality that Drop D does not have.

The price is that chord shapes using the first string stop working. In Drop D you could carry on playing almost everything you knew; here, not quite.

Double Drop D tuning songs and chords

The tuning is closely tied to folk-rock, and above all to Neil Young, who uses it often enough that many players know it through him.1

It works well in anything in the key of D or G, where the two open D strings reinforce the key with no effort. In acoustic fingerstyle it lets you play melodies on the top strings with the first ringing as a drone, exactly as the sixth does underneath.

How it sounds

It combines the punchy low end of Drop D with an open high D ringing over the melody. It is much loved in folk-rock and in the Neil Young style for that full, drone-rich sound.

Styles and genres

Folk rock Rock Folk Country

Example songs

Recommended string gauges

Only two strings come down a whole step, so the change in tension is small and a standard set responds well. The sixth sits a little loose, as in Drop D; so does the first, though being so thin it shows less.

If you play heavy low riffs and the sixth starts buzzing, an 0.011-0.049 set adds firmness underneath without dulling the brightness of the first string.

Because the change affects two strings in the same direction, leaving the guitar permanently in Double Drop D is no problem for the neck.

Tuning tip

Try playing a D major or mixolydian scale while letting both open D strings ring: almost any note fits over those drones, which makes it very rewarding to improvise on.

Frequently asked questions

What is Double Drop D tuning?

It is D-A-D-G-B-D. The sixth and the first strings are both lowered to D, a whole step each. The four middle strings stay exactly as they are in standard tuning.

How do you tune to Double Drop D?

Lower the sixth until it matches the open fourth string an octave below, and the first until it matches the open fourth string an octave above. Nothing else moves.

What songs are played in Double Drop D tuning?

It is closely tied to folk-rock and in particular to Neil Young. Cinnamon Girl and The Loner are two well-known examples.

What chords work in Double Drop D tuning?

Anything in D or G sits well, because the two open D strings reinforce the key. Shapes that use the first string need rethinking, since it now sounds D rather than E.

Is Double Drop D bad for your guitar?

No. Only two strings come down a whole step, so tension on the neck decreases slightly. You can leave the guitar in this tuning permanently with no problem.

Related tunings

Sources

  1. HyperRust, "Neil's Tunings", a documentary archive of Neil Young's work, for the tunings of Cinnamon Girl and The Loner.

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