Most seem to tune their CBG to 1-5-1 (for example GDG, EBE, DAD). As I have understood this tuning fits well for blues and slide.
I am not really into blues, slides, rock, pop nor any rhythmic strumming, I would mostly play the melody of folk songs and hymns with some fitting tones added here and there from the rest of the strings. I am wondering if a 1-3-1 tuning (for example CGC) would fit my music style better? What are your thoughts? Or is there any other tuning that would fit my use case better?
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That’s the higher side of a low C tuning, exactly the same as the 4 string major tuning? The reason why we tune them in open chords is pretty elementary? Ease of play? One or two finger chords are easier to play than conventional three or four fingered chords? The more you play in open tunings, the more you will understand, build your guitar & give it some time?
The more I learn, the more my previous choices seem to be wrong. I have a normal 6 strings guitar and I have been "emulating" a CBG by leaving out some strings. While I was sure I was going to use CGC tuning, and having 3 strings, I now lean towards adding a fourth string and tuning it to CEGC. The way I play this tuning seems to make most sense.
Now I have an additional question: why does 1-5-8-3 seems to be more popular than 1-3-5-8? Is there something I miss out when I think that 1-3-5-8 would be good?
I like DGB a lot for playing melody. It makes an open G, finger chorded two fingered C and and D chords and a one fingered Em. Just like 3 strings off a six string in standard tuning, so if you play that way, DGB will be quick and natural, good for melody picking and versatile - even works for slide.
This sounds interesting, especially as it got the middle G string, which would fit my voice well if I alter between singing and melody picking.
Those chord shapes & can be used for any 1-5-8 tuning, gitty did some charts back years ago when the cigarboxguitar.com site was still in swing, he did them for all the chords just like the one you posted above?
https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.156/73d.ecb.myftpupload.com/...
http://chordgen.rattree.co.uk/?instrument=mandolin&tuning=D,G,B...
This is a link to Theo's chord generator. i set it up with CGC . this is a fun site and you can set it up for any tuning and number of strings. i think 6 may be the upper limit. also there is the option to pick left or right handed.
EDIT: it seeme to revert to DGB tuning for some reason, in the top left box just delete the d,g,b and replace with c,g,c ans press enter. it will generate chord patterns ... just cant remember how i got it to do 3 strings....
Quite funny, I had this site up and testing while you mentioned it here! I happened to stumble upon it myself. Here is a chart I generated for C,G,C tuning: chords.pdf.
Some chords will be mostly impossible to form. Sometimes I added two alternatives: one slightly easier and one with the chord root on the lowest string.
My singing range is from about G2 to A3. After some experimentation on a full 6 strings guitar I have concluded that CGC is better than any 1-3-8 tuning (for me) and that the middle G string is perfect as it is at my lower limit. This means I can use the two higher strings for melody and the lowest one for chord root.
I think I will tune my guitar to C2-G3-C4.
Actually it’s 1-5-8 because the high string is an octave higher, but CGC is still a 1-5-8 tuning like GDG?
example: 1/C 2/D 3/E 4/F 5/G 6/A 7/B 8/C
Maybe a major tuning like GBD or DF#A would work for what you’re describing? You can use both GBE strings as well as ADG strings for a good acoustic sound?
I can no longer edit the first post but of course I meant CEC as an example of 1-3-1 tuning. Another example would be DF#D.