Drop C Tuning for Guitar

Drop C runs C2, G2, C3, F3, A3, D4, in playing order. The lowest-pitched string is C2 (65.41 Hz) and the highest is D4 (293.66 Hz), measured against A4 = 440 Hz. Those are the exact target frequencies the tuner on this page listens for.

6 of the 6 strings move: E2 down 4 semitone(s) to C2; A2 down 2 semitone(s) to G2; D3 down 2 semitone(s) to C3; G3 down 2 semitone(s) to F3; B3 down 2 semitone(s) to A3; E4 down 2 semitone(s) to D4. Work through them in order, then go back and re-check the first string — retuning shifts the neck tension slightly, so the earlier strings drift as you go.

Standard tuned down a whole step, then the sixth dropped another whole step. Keeps the Drop D one-finger power chord while sitting two semitones lower overall — the default for metalcore and a large slice of 2000s heavy rock.

C2 is 65.41 Hz at concert pitch (A4 = 440 Hz). That's the fundamental — the string also produces harmonics above it, which is why a tuner reading the wrong octave usually means it locked onto a harmonic rather than the fundamental. This is the lowest string in this guitar tuning.

Structurally this is Drop D transposed down two semitones, so the interval map is identical and every shape learned in Drop D transfers without adjustment. What changes is physics rather than theory. Two whole steps of released tension on the low string shortens its effective stiffness, which lowers the pitch at which its fundamental stays clearly defined and raises how much it moves under a pick — the other five strings only carry the one whole step every string shares. Palm muting becomes noticeably more forgiving because the strings damp faster, while sustained clean chords lose focus and can sound flabby without a compressor. Intonation drifts more too, since a slacker string is bent further out of tune by the same fretting pressure.

Two full steps of slack on the low string. Heavier gauges (11-54 or thicker) keep it from flapping against the frets.