Chord books for non-standard tunings

[Steve with the black dog]

I have been experimenting with a few tunings such as DADGAD and could do with a chord book (or a webste with chords shapes).  Any ideas?

[Ollie]

This site is brilliant. http://sniff.numachi.com/~rickheit/pm/chord/chord You can change it to any tuning, type in any chord and it will give you lots of voicings for that chord. If you like DADGAD, try C modal (CGCGCD).

[Steve with the black dog]

This site is brilliant. http://sniff.numachi.com/~rickheit/pm/chord/chord You can change it to any tuning, type in any chord and it will give you lots of voicings for that chord. If you like DADGAD, try C modal (CGCGCD).

What a great site Ollie - I like the warning "Not all the chords it finds may be playable; its knowledge of the anatomy of the hand is limited to the number of fingers"

[Nuthouse]

Try the Dead Good DADGAD Book ...ISBN 0-9546937-0-1

[Pete Standing]

I use CGCGCD nearly all the time, especially good for accompanying tunes and great for playing a suggested melody of a song with all the drone notes going. The only drawback with a tuning like that is that to change the key you sometimes have to have the capo in a ridiculous position. I use quite heavy strings otherwise some of the strings would be a bit on the slack side but the second  string seems to cope with being tuned up a semi tone.

[Steve with the black dog]

Do you have to reset the guitar's action? I would have thought a two tone drop of a string's intended tension would put the intonation out.

[Dr Clive]

Sorry to harp on about it, but with a Variax you can programme any tuning you like without altering the string tension at all - simples! Of course you do need an amp to play it through, and a computer to programme it, so you can't just put the guit in the gig-bag and wander off to a gig.  

[Pete Standing]

Do you have to reset the guitar's action? I would have thought a two tone drop of a string's intended tension would put the intonation out.

My guitar has a rock solid neck and strong thingy bar inside. If you use a string tension calculator, you can work out the overall pull on the neck and choose strings to match. With some guitars it will be a problem, with mine it isn't.

Martin Simpson changes his tunings in a gig several times and he is known to be something of a perfectionist.

[Dr Clive]

Sorry to harp on about it, but with a Variax you can programme any tuning you like without altering the string tension at all - simples! Of course you do need an amp to play it through, and a computer to programme it, so you can't just put the guit in the gig-bag and wander off to a gig.  

Slight correction - the new James Tyler Variax models (just announced: http://www.vettaville.nl/page.php?id=141#1065) have the option to store several alt tunings on-board which are applicable to all of the models, and the built-in mag p/u's too. Edit - not sure that last statement is correct, btw.

They will be built in the USA and Korea, the US ones expected to retail at around $4,500US - ouch! Expected to be available later in the year. Definitely expecting a severe attack of GAS any time soon. 

[Steve with the black dog]

Definitely expecting a severe attack of GAS any time soon. 

GAS??
Giggling Acid Survivors?
Girls Against Sausages?
Gong Appreciation Society?

[Ollie]

Guitar Acquisition Syndrome. I thought I suffered from it, but I've moved onto a more serious condition; MAD - Melodeon Acquisition Disorder.

[Anji]

Definitely expecting a severe attack of GAS any time soon. 

GAS??
Giggling Acid Survivors?
Girls Against Sausages?
Gong Appreciation Society?

That's wrong, but (sigh) strangely exhilarating....