As you get into twisting your guitar pegs, you'll discover that the perfect setup for playing in standard tuning doesn't always work when the strings go slack. If you tune down to open C, for example, that great low-action setup with light-gauge strings will probably cause your bass strings to flop around and buzz. To fix this problem, you might raise the action of your bass strings slightly and use heavier fifth and sixth strings. But then, when you tune back up to standard, they're going to feel stiff. If you want to use the same instrument to play in standard and a variety of alternate tunings, your setup will have to reflect a compromise that suits the potentially wide range of string tensions. The right compromise is a matter of personal preference, and finding it will require some experimentation.
I recently got a lesson in setting up for alternate tunings when I took my main steel-string, a Taylor 712-C, to Bay Area guitar tech Larry Cragg. After I told him about my needs, he set the guitar's action just a little higher than what I'd ideally keep it at for standard tuning. He made me a new saddle whose radius is slightly smaller than that of my fingerboard, resulting in a slightly higher action on the bass and treble strings than on the center strings, keeping them from buzzing when they're tuned down. Cragg also made sure that my nut was cut perfectly for the string gauges I use, so that the strings don't get caught in the slots when I retune. He also smoothed out the holes in my Grover tuning pegs with a file and some very fine sandpaper so I'll be less likely to break strings when retuning.
Another thing to consider if you'll be leaving standard tuning a lot is investing in alternate tuningfriendly strings. Several companies offer sets that combine light-gauge top strings with medium-gauge bottoms. D'Addario's EJ19 Bluegrass set, for instance, goes from a .012 first string to a .056 bass string. They're perfect for tunings that drop the bass pitches and keep the trebles close to standard, such as dropped-D (D A D G B E) and open C (C G C G C E). Other sets, like GHS' True Mediums and Kevin Ryan's Custom Fingerstyle Gauge (Kevin Ryan Guitars, [714] 894-0590, ryanguitar@aol.com), use the first, second, and sixth strings of a medium set and the third, fourth, and fifth of a light-gauge set. These string sets are ideal for D A D G A D and related tunings.
How about facilitating a kind of alternate tuning with a partial capo? Partial capos hold down only some of your strings and let others ring open. The Shubb partial capo, for example, can be used to cover three inside strings, such as the third, fourth, and fifth. Clamping it on at the second fret results in a D A D G A Dlike Esus4 chord (E B E A B E). The Third Hand capo (Third Hand Capo Co., [207] 363-7263, www.woodpecker.com/THCwebsite/ThirdHandCapoPage), a take-off on the old-style elastic capo, was designed to allow all possible capoing combinations. If you're not ready to go out and buy a new capo, you can use your standard spring-action capo (such as the Kyser) so that it covers only strings one through five. Clamping it on in this manner at the second fret results in a kind of a fake dropped-D tuning (E B E A C# F#).
If, on the other hand, you're looking for funkier gizmos to help you experiment, you should check out Hipshot's Guitar Extender (Hipshot Products, [800] 262-5630, www.hipshotproducts.com), a great little tool that allows the sixth string to be lowered as far as two whole steps with the flick of a lever. The device actually replaces the sixth string's tuning peg and is available in Grover and Schaller versions. Once it has been adjusted properly and the string has been stretched, the Extender works beautifully, allowing accurate midsong retuning. Keith tuning pegs (Beacon Banjo Co., PO Box 597, Woodstock, NY 12498) work similarly, except that they can be installed in place of any or all of the guitar's tuning pegs, making possible a mind-boggling number of instant tuning combinations. These tuners were originally designed for use with the banjo and were popularized among guitarists by fingerstylist Adrian Legg (see "Against the Grain," March/April 1995).
But the ultimate retuning gadget has to be the L-CAT (TransPerformance, [970] 482-9132), which currently works only in Les Paulstyle electric guitars. Originally designed for Jimmy Page, the system uses a set of computer-controlled electric motors to regulate the tension of each string and change tunings with the touch of a button. The touch pad gives virtually instant access to 144 preset tunings. A version for acoustic guitars may be on the horizon. Last but not least, there is the option of "virtually" retuning the guitar electronically via Roland's VG-8 (see Shoptalk, February 1998). Used successfully by Joni Mitchell among others, the unit employs a guitar synth pickup combined with a high-tech effects processor to enable any tuning and a mind-boggling number of sounds at the touch of a footswitch.
-Teja Gerken