Violin tuner
Tune your violin with the microphone on your phone or computer. Play one string at a time and the needle shows whether it is flat or sharp; nothing is recorded, the sound is analyzed in this page.
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Press Start, then play one string at a time.
The tuner listens through your microphone and needs JavaScript. The string notes and their frequencies are below, to tune by ear or with another tuner.
- G196.00 Hz
- D293.66 Hz
- A440.00 Hz
- E659.26 Hz
How to tune a violin with this tuner
- Press Start tuner and allow the microphone when your browser asks.
- Tune the A string first: play it on its own and watch the gauge.
- If the needle sits left of center, the string is flat: tighten it a little with the fine tuner, or the peg for bigger changes. Right of center is sharp: loosen it.
- Stop when the needle stays in the green zone at the top, within 5 cents, and the readout says In tune.
- Tune the D, G and E strings the same way, then check the first one again: changing one string's tension can nudge the others.
The violin strings
| String | Note | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | G3 | 196.00 Hz |
| 2 | D4 | 293.66 Hz |
| 3 | A4 | 440.00 Hz |
| 4 | E5 | 659.26 Hz |
Strings are numbered here in the order they sit across the violin. Between neighbors: D is a perfect 5th above G; A is a perfect 5th above D; E is a perfect 5th above A.
Pegs and fine tuners
The pegs in the scroll make big changes; the fine tuners on the tailpiece make small ones. Use the fine tuner when the needle is close, and the peg only when a string is far off. Turning a fine tuner clockwise raises the pitch.
When you turn a peg, push it gently into the peg box as you go, so it holds where you leave it. If a peg slips back, it is turning without enough inward pressure.
Some violins have a fine tuner on every string, others only on the thin E string. If a string has none, all its tuning is done at the peg, in very small turns.
Tune up to the note
If a string is sharp, loosen it until it is a little flat, then bring it up to the note. A string tuned up to pitch holds its tuning better than one let down to it.
Go slowly with the E string. It is the thinnest and the tightest, and a quick turn of its peg can take it far past the note.
Tuning by ear in fifths
Once the A string is in tune, play the A and D strings together and listen. When the 5th between them is right, the sound is still and steady; when it is off, it wavers, and the waver slows down as you get closer. Tune the D, then G against D, then E against A.
A 5th tuned by ear this way is a pure 5th, about 2 cents wider than the equal-tempered 5th a tuner measures. So strings tuned by ear can read a cent or two off on the gauge, and both are fine.
Every size, same tuning
Every violin size, from the full-size 4/4 down to the smallest student sizes, is tuned the same way: G, D, A, E. This tuner works for all of them.
Questions
What notes are the violin strings tuned to?
G3 (196.00 Hz), D4 (293.66 Hz), A4 (440.00 Hz) and E5 (659.26 Hz), from the lowest string to the highest. Each string is a perfect 5th above the one before.
Why tune the A string first?
A4 at 440 Hz is the note orchestras and most tuners take as their reference, and the other violin strings are a 5th apart from it, so A is the natural place to start.
Does the tuner record me?
No. Your browser passes the microphone signal to this page, which measures the pitch and throws the sound away. Nothing is saved or sent. Press Stop, or leave the page, and the microphone turns off.
What does cents mean?
A cent is one hundredth of a half step. Within 5 cents is in tune for practice; most listeners cannot hear a difference that small.
Can I tune a viola with this tuner?
Not all of it. A viola is tuned C, G, D, A: it shares the G, D and A strings with the violin, but this tuner does not listen for the viola’s low C string.
Why does my violin keep going out of tune?
Changes in temperature and humidity move the wood and the strings, and new strings keep stretching for their first days. Check the tuning each time you play, and more often with new strings.