Who's back to G on top on C6th and why?

[Jim Hoke]

Any D-on-top players gone back to that G on top? One advantage I can see right off is the 6th chord w/ the 5th on top that you can get w/out having to jump up the neck or doing it with the 3 & 4 raise. What other chord or melody advantage has anybody found?

[Jack Stoner]

I'm not directly answering the question, but I never really left the G. I've tried the D but keep going back to the G.

[Lane Gray]

I raise 3 and 7 with P8, and have P5 on a knee.
Presto! A6 with a high 5 all the way down the neck (except for the bottom A)

[Ian Rae]

I play a Day setup uni, so my A pedal is next to P5. Those two with the vertical give that 6th chord 3 frets up. Buddy Emmons reckoned that that voicing is more solid than using a high G (just his opinion of course... ) I do have the equivalent of the high G on string 1, but it's a stretch and not attractive.

[Greg Cutshaw]

After watching Doug Jernigan effortlessly tuning the high C6 string between D and G on a stock Emmons floor model guitar I was wondering if it would make sense to put a toggle on the first string to switch between D and G.

This short tutorial shows another solution as mentioned above:


http://www.gregcutshaw.com/Tab/Tab13.html

[John Swain]

Jim, I've had D on top since I got my first D10 in 1975! I find having the ninth on top saves double-footing and makes scales and melodies easier to play,very much like the "chromatic" string on E9.

[Jerry Overstreet]

Great idea Greg! What gauge string would be best for dual tuning between G & D? Thoughts? Keeping in mind that my P5 also raises string 1, G up 1/2 tone.

[Ian Rae]

Doug Jernigan effortlessly tuning the high C6 string between D and G

When I acquired my D10 it had a high G on it. When I discovered that the tuition I bought was all for a D, I just tuned it down. It was probably a 0.012". I changed it eventually for a 0.015" but it made surprisingly little difference to the sound. So indeed why not just retune it as you go?

Or as Greg seems to be suggesting, use the same device that some uni players use to lock the E lowers.

[Bobby Snell]

Even though most of my heroes (like Herb Steiner) make convincing arguments for the D, I find having the G helps me to use the C6 neck for the music I play --mostly roots, honky tonk, a little TX swing. I also like it for rock.

As far as changing back and forth,there is more of a difference than merely tuning the 1st string up or down.

Having the G on top usually means pedal 5 raises it to G#. Very useful in combo with other pedals and the traditional C-B knee for harmonized scales, melodies, etc.

Having the D on top usually calls for a knee to raise 3d string a half-step. More than calls for, it demands it. I've tried D on a couple guitars, and really miss this lever if its not there.

But the simple me likes the high G. YMMV

[Greg Cutshaw]

Toggle the high string up to a G and have pedal 5 raise it. Toggle it back down to a D and there's still tremendous utility in having the C to C# change which works much like the E to F change on the E9th tuning. For some situations and songs, just back of off the G to G# change at the tuner when in high string = D mode as needed.

[chris ivey]

it made sense to change it to d per buddy years ago.
it still makes sense.

if you like g, use it! it should depend on how you like to play, not what everyone else thinks.

[Ian Rae]

+1 - it depends what music you play. The half-step raise is useful in both cases.

[Tony Prior]

When I got my first D10 Sho Bud in '75 it was tuned to G. Not long after I that I saw Buddy and he was tuned to D. So I naturally thought Sho Bud made a mistake.

I tuned to D as soon as I got home and have been there ever since.

I'm not changing and I'm not adding yet another PEDAL Pull to the C6th rack...

[Jerry Overstreet]

Back in the St. Louis days when you could actually get to the room stages to try a guitar, I spent a lot of time with Charlie in the Derby room. We were always changing busted 1st strings on the C neck from people tuning them up and down.

Seems to me, going one way or the other is the best decision

D to G or the reverse is 2 and 1/2 steps. That's a lot to ask of a string either way. Tuning a 12 down to D is floppy and tuning a 15 up to G is scary and something you just can't do in a hurry without a lot of tweaking in my experience. Choosing a gauge somewhere in between is a compromise.

Don't know of any toggle that is capable of that range on a plain string either, now that I think about it.

Sounds like a good idea, but I'll just stay with the G on top for now.

I have Buddy's "pockets" charts and they make a lot of sense...I have tried them with the D on top. I've just gotten too used to the things I do with the G and the 1/2 tone pull on that, so guess I'll keep it.

....but then there are D12's and Uni's where you can have both.

[Christopher Woitach]

On my Bb6 S12 I have both, plus the equivalent of another (higher) A string, G to me

[George Redmon]

I never abandoned the G string. I have both D & G on my 12 string Whitney, and my new 12 string Williams.

[b0b]

I tune to D6th, and have a lever that raises both D's to D#. This, along with P5, gives me a B6th with the 5th F# on top. The first string is E (like D on C6th).
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Using a C to C# lever on C6th does the same thing, but the chord is a step lower (A6th).

I've tried C6th with G on top, but didn't like it much.

[Richard Sinkler]

I was using D for years, but got ahold of a couple of sets that had the G. I've been using the and liking it. I didn't use the D much. I would love to have a D12 so I can have both a D and B in the 1 & 2 spot.

[Chris Bauer]

I find the D on top to simply be more versatile, especially when having the C to C# available. Part of the added ease of it is that some fingerings of single note work, lays out more like E9th so that's just a combination of muscle memory/habit and laziness on my part, I'll admit.

On C6th non-pedal, though, I find it hard to play without the G on top - it just somehow feels natural to me there. I only wish it didn't end up sounding 'thin' so often.

[Dustin Rhodes]

Has anyone ever considered giving up the low C in favor of having both? Like Billy Robinsons non-pedal C6? FACEGACEGD

[b0b]

Has anyone ever considered giving up the low C in favor of having both? Like Billy Robinsons non-pedal C6? FACEGACEGD

It's a good idea. My 8-string is basically the middle 8 of a C6th*, so I know what it's like to live without the low C. I use P5 to lower F to D instead of raising it to F#, so that I have that low root on the D9th chord when I need it. I don't miss the low C or P8's low A at all.

*actually it's a D6th but the same rules apply

[Bill Stafford]

Neat, I have been using that for years and have even added a high A on top of that....With my E9/B6 14 string, I use a high G# on top of my E9 tuning and that gives me both the high G and high A on the first fret when I use the B6 tuning with the C6 now on my first fret. Like that much better than the open C6 on the standard older tunings...

[chris ivey]

do you have any recordings?
i'd like to hear a 14 string in action.

[Olli Haavisto]

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=82392

[Kenneth Kotsay]

For me it's the D but I'll try the G just to see what I can do with it.