Guitar Drop B Tuner — Tune to Drop B in Your Browser
Mic-based chromatic tuner pre-set to Drop B. No download, no sign-up, works in your browser.
Tuning summary
- Notes (low to high)
- B1 · F#2 · B2 · E3 · G#3 · C#4
- Instrument
- Guitar
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- About this tuning
- Heaviest of the common drop tunings on a 6-string. Use heavier gauge strings to keep tension playable.
Start tuning
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About Drop B on guitar
Drop B is the heaviest of the common drop tunings on a standard 6-string: B F# B E G# C#, low to high. It is C# Standard (every string a minor third below standard) with the lowest string dropped a further whole step. The result is a low B that competes directly with the low B of a 7-string guitar, on a six-string neck.
Modern metal and djent leaned heavily into Drop B in the 2010s. Bring Me the Horizon, Slipknot (parts of their catalogue), Periphery, and many breakdown-driven bands chose Drop B because the low B has a heavier, more menacing character than Drop C without requiring an extended-range guitar. The trade-off is that the rest of the tuning sits in C# Standard, which is unusual territory for chord shapes.
The challenge is mechanical. A standard 25.5-inch-scale guitar with 10s cannot hold a low B with any clarity — the string is too loose. Most Drop B players use 12-60 or even 13-65 string sets, and many go to baritone-scale guitars (26.5 or 27 inches) to keep tension reasonable. Without the right setup, Drop B is more buzz than note.
If you want to enter Drop B, get the gear question right first. Buy a heavy bottom string set, intonate the bridge for the new tension, and consider raising the action on the lowest string to prevent fret buzz. Then, like Drop D and Drop C, the riffing vocabulary is the same single-finger-power-chord economy, just at the lowest pitch most six-string guitars can produce playably.
Frequently asked questions
- Is Drop B the same as a 7-string guitar?
- It produces the same lowest pitch (B1) but on six strings. A 7-string in standard tuning has the same low B plus the standard tuning of a 6-string above it.
- What strings do I need for Drop B?
- 12-60 or 13-65 minimum on a 25.5-scale guitar. Baritone-scale guitars can use slightly lighter sets.
- What bands use Drop B?
- Bring Me the Horizon, Periphery, Slipknot (some songs), Bullet for My Valentine, and many modern metal acts seeking a low riff voice without going to seven strings.
- Will Drop B damage a normal guitar?
- No — total neck tension drops significantly from standard. The risk is fret buzz on a poorly-set-up instrument, not damage.
- Is Drop B harder to play than Drop C?
- Slightly. The lower fundamental is harder to keep clean and tight, and the C# Standard chord shapes above the dropped string are less familiar than Drop C's D Standard shapes.