I seem to recall that you can set up BIAB, so that if you typically play with your guitar downed a half step, you can still input normal chords, etc. and the program will play them a half step lower to match your guitar.

Is this something BIAB can do, or did I just imagine it?

Thanks.

You can set the Master Tuning, at least on some sound cards. Find it in Options, GM Settings, Master Tuning.

I assume from your question you want to take a guitar where the top and bottom strings are E, and tune the whole thing down so the top and bottom strings now sound an Eb, but you want to read chords normally as if your guitar was still tuned to concert pitch.

Note: I'm answering this from the Help file, without a computer to try it, so I have no idea what this setting does to RealTracks.

Matt,

Like with brass instruments, would it be possible to set BIAB to play lower but visually transpose one semitone higher? Because I don't play transposing instruments, I'm not sure of this.

For example, does it work as Frank would like, if the 'Transpose' option in "Chord Display" is set to +1. This will take the visual display up a semitone so that the chords should sound/play down a semitone from what's typed. (See 1, 2, 3 on the image below.)

Would this match his guitar?

Regards,
Noel

P.S. Frank, if you display is not the same as mine, press CTRL+T to switch views.

You just click the Chord Display button, place your mouse over Guitar Tuned Down... and select the option for tuning down. I do this all the time to use with my baritone guitar so I can play regular open chord forms like C and they will show on the BIAB chordsheet as C.

Noel,
It never ceases to amaze me how much useful info can appear in these forums.
On your screenshot of the Chord Display Dropdown, I spotted "Guitar Capo (Visual Transpose). How did I prevously miss that?

Co-incidentally, today I am working on a song in F but because I want to fingerpick guitar the chord shapes in D with capo on 3 are more suitable, problem solved.

I only wish that this and some other settings could be made song specific and not global, since unless I reset, it messes up the display for subsequent songs.

Regards
Vintage

There’s Guitar Capo in that screen shot by Noel, which I think means guitar tuned upward. But there’s also a setting for Guitar Tuned Down. Is that it? However, they also give you minus numbers as a choice in the Capo setting; not sure why...

The Chord Display button and Guitar Tuned Down did the trick.

It's also good to know about the Guitar Capo (Visual Transpose).

Thanks all for your response!

Frank

They said it couldn't be done but this old dog just learned a new trick!

And this one too, although I just can't think why you would want to tune your guitar a half step down at all anyway, especially as the chords "on screen" would NOT be the ones that you would be hearing.
Cheers
Ian

I have a guitarist friend whom can't play in the key of Eb. So for every Eb song he tunes his guitar down a half step. Now I can print a Eb song with the chords that he does know, like E, A, B7. etc.

In the early 1970's I played in a horn band so I had to learn to play in horn keys like Eb, Ab, etc. It was a great learning experience!

if i remember correctly hendrix reputedly tuned down a semitone sometimes - string bending is easier and the sound a little 'thicker'

You and me both! Till '75 I played in Showbands with a big brass section. It was good grounding. I HAD to play in their keys. So Eb, Bb etc hold no fears even now when reading off the page or using BB to arrange material.

The reason I tune down a half step is that I play slide guitar in Open D and Open G tunings. However, I find that my voice fits those tunings better if I'm tuned down a half step.

Frank, I won't even begin to get my head around tuning that. But your problem is solved here, right?