Low G Tuning for Ukulele

Low G runs G3, C4, E4, A4, in playing order. The lowest-pitched string is G3 (196.00 Hz) and the highest is A4 (440.00 Hz), measured against A4 = 440 Hz. Those are the exact target frequencies the tuner on this page listens for.

1 of the 4 strings move: G4 down 12 semitone(s) to G3. 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.

The fourth string dropped an octave so the strings run genuinely low to high. Adds five semitones of range at the bottom and makes fingerpicked bass lines possible, at the cost of the reentrant jangle that defines the standard sound.

G3 is 196.00 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 ukulele tuning.

Dropping the fourth string an octave makes the instrument non-reentrant, so the strings finally run low to high like every other fretted instrument. That adds five semitones at the bottom and makes independent bass lines possible under a melody, which is why fingerstyle and solo arrangers prefer it. What it removes is the cluster voicing that gives standard tuning its character — chords spread out and start to sound like a small guitar. Campanella passages that relied on the high fourth string simply stop working, since the note now sounds below its neighbours rather than above.

Needs a dedicated low G string — a standard set tuned down will be far too floppy.