The Steel Guitar Forum

If you lower the 6th string G#, what do you lower it to and what hz do you tune it to.

Some folks lower to G for an open position minor, and, combined with pedal A down, the IV Dom7th. Some lower to F# which has a lot of possibilities adding the 9th open, and with pedals down can be split with the B pedal to get the G for the IV Dom7th. In the open position, lowering G# to F# and using the lever that lowers your Es gives you a V chord.... etc.

How and if you decide to temper the tuning depends on what you are doing with the rest of your tuning approach on your particular guitar.

I lower it to G and I tune it a notch sharp of where I tune the E's.

I lower it to F#. I tune it by ear as close as I can to the 7th string open. Nice change, although I don't know much about it. It is a great 'lick change' as I call it.

Thanks guys for the info. What a great place to hang out and learn.

I lower the 6th string to F#, and have for almost my whole career. I tune it the same as string 7. This is not just a "lick" lever. The chord that you get when you use the lever with the lever that lowers your E's to D# is very useful. If you have your A&B pedals activated and play the 12th fret (strings 4,5,6,8,and 10) you have an A chord, and when you slide back 2 frets (fret 10) and let off the A&B pedals, activate the 2 levers, you end up with an A chord also. Letting off the lever gives you the 6th tone, press the B pedal and you get the flatted 7th tone. Lots of nice melody (and chord) movements in all that string movement.

If I was forced to have only 3 knee levers, it would be the 2 that raise and lower the E's, and the 6th string lower to F#. I could do without the second string lowers more than this one(and I don't like them on the same lever like some do).

Thanks Richard, good stuff .

If you're going to Lower #6 from (G#) to (F#) on a KL, you should also have a split/tuner-rod or the split/tuner set-screw behind the changer to get full and accurate use of the change. It's a very useful change that I wouldn't want to be without!

Richard S. Thanks for that great piece of info! I called it a lick lever, but after learning this, I realize of course that it is much more.

Bent, thanks. It is also a great lick pedal too.