One of the sine waves that is added to the base frequency of the note by many instruments is a wave with twice the frequency of the base note, the same frequency as the octave note. Each instrument has a signature pattern of sine waves that add up to make a note on that instrument that is how we can tell different instruments apart. On a typical instrument, the note, when graphed (incidentally, these oscilloscope graphs represent voltage versus time, and the voltage varies directly with the pressure of the sound wave), isn't a single sine wave it is in fact the sum of a number of different sine waves. In an octave, the main frequency of the lower note is exactly half of the frequency of the higher note in the case of the two Gs on this guitar, the lower one's frequency, when in tune, is 96 Hertz, or cycles per second the upper one, therefore, is 192 Hz. They arranged notes into 'octaves', a note that is an octave above another note sounds a great deal like that other note, but not exactly the same. So what does this mean? Musicians developed a system of letters to denote assorted pitches long before sound was fully understood. Also, as mentioned above, we're tuning the strings to a low G, D, G (an octave up), and B. The amplitude of the pressure wave formed is directly related to how loud we perceive the sound as being (see the Sound section) the frequency of the wave determines the 'pitch' of the note, how 'high' or 'low' the note sounds.ДЄs mentioned before, the tightness (and the length and composition, but we use tightness for tuning on guitars) of a string determines its frequency, and thus the pitch of the note it produces. In an acoustic string instrument, this vibration causes a resonating effect in a large wooden pocket, thus amplifying the sound in an electric guitar, a magnetic pickup 'picks up' these vibrations and transfers them to an electric circuit, where they are amplified and played back through a speaker. As you no doubt know if you have read the rest of this website, guitar strings make sound by vibrating. If you're not a musician, or you aren't great at tuning by ear effectively, here is a more detailed explanation of tuning. We're tuning the strings to low G, D, G (an octave up), and B you can tune them to whatever you want, as long as you know that tightening the strings too much can snap either them or your guitar. It only takes a tiny fraction of a rotation of the tuning knobs (you did realize that they are how you tighten the strings, didn't you?) to change the pitch significantly, so go slowly. If you're already a musician, here's the quick guide to tuning: Tightening a string makes its pitch go up loosening it makes the pitch go down. Clearly, you're not quite done, you still need to tune your guitar. The only thing is, when you play the strings, you hear not a nice chord but a muddle of wrong, out-of-tune notes. All the strings are in place all the electronic parts are wired together.

In tune guitar