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Guitar Vocabulary

Body- The main structural piece of a guitar, usually made of wood and hollow on an acoustic guitar. It contains the bridge, pickups, volume and tone controls, tremolo bar, and the sound hole of an acoustic guitar.
Headstock- the end piece connected to the neck that contains the tuning pegs and the ends of the strings
Neck- the long, narrow board that connects the headstock to the body where the fingers are placed to fret the guitar
Fretboard- another name for the front face of the neck that contains the frets
Fret- a metal ridge on the fretboard that the string vibrates against when the fingers are placed behind it
Strings- usually metal (sometimes nylon) strings that are plucked or strummed to produce sound. Guitars usually have six strings of variable thickness, with thicker strings producing lower sounds.
Tuning pegs- metal pegs that hold the end of the string to the headstock and are turned to create or reduce tension in the string in order to tune it
Nut- the ridge at the head end of the fretboard that the strings pass over to get to the tuning pegs
Bridge- a strip of wood, plastic or metal that holds the strings in place above the body of the guitar
Bridge pins- round-headed pins that hold the strings in place in the body of the guitar
Saddle- plastic or ivory bar that holds the strings in place above the bridge
Pickguard- a piece of plastic on the body underneath the strings to protect the guitar from being scratched by the pick

Pickups- electronic devices that detect the vibration of the strings and send the information to an amplifier, located on the body underneath the strings
Tone/volume knobs- on an electric guitar, the knobs that control the volume and tone located on the body
Note- a sound with a distinct pitch, usually produced by a single vibrating string on a guitar
Chord- many notes played at the same time, produced by a particular combination of fretted strings

Introduction to Stringing and Tuning

The standard guitar has six strings, though seven-string and twelve-string models exist as well. These strings are labeled from 1-6 starting with the highest-pitched string, or from bottom to top when the guitar is viewed from the front. Each string is tuned to a specific pitch, and different guitar “tunings” are different combinations of string pitches. The most common tuning is called “standard” tuning, which a vast majority of popular songs use. Tunings are often stated from lowest pitch to highest pitch (strings 6-1), so standard tuning is EADGBe. Other popular tunings include:
-“Drop D” in which the low E string is lowered to a D, making it DADGBe.
-“Open” tuning, in which the strings are tuned up so that a particular chord is formed when the strings are strummed openly. Open E and open G are popular open tunings.

Helpful tools for stringing and tuning include:
-Restringing tools, which combine a string cutter, bridge pin remover and tuning peg winder all in one. These tools are very helpful and combine everything you will need into one tool.
-Electronic tuners are the easiest way to tune your guitar. They pick up the sound from a vibrating string and will usually have an LCD screen display with a needle


How to String the Guitar

1. Beginning with the low E string, pull the bridge pin out of the bridge and place the end of the string down into the hole.
2. Place the bridge pin down into the hole with the notch in the bridge pin facing the headstock so that the string can pass through the notch. Press it in place.
3. Place the string through its proper slits in the saddle and the nut and pass it through the hole in the tuning peg. The string should pass to the inside of the peg’s vertical post.
4. Pull the string sharply counterclockwise around the post and hold it in place. Then begin turning the tuning peg counterclockwise, tightening the string and wrapping it around the post until it has wrapped around 3 times.
5. Gently stretch the string upward away from the fretboard to ensure that it is tightly in place.
6. Turn the tuning peg counterclockwise until it is in tune. (Refer to “How to Tune the Guitar” for help with tuning.)
7. Cut the excess off the end of the string near the tuning peg post, leaving about a centimeter of string passing through the posthole.
8. Repeat this process for the A string and D string.
9. For the G, B, and high E strings, the same procedure will be followed with some minor differences. The string will still pass to the inside of the post, meaning it will be wrapping clockwise around the post when viewed from above. The tuning pegs will be turned clockwise to tighten the string when viewed from the traditional playing position (same view as when tuning the low E, A, and D strings). Finally, since these strings are thinner they may be wrapped 5-6 times around the post of the tuning peg.