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Just don't become too obsessed - remember to leave some practice time to actually play some guitar ;o)

What I do is use a few tuning methods, like the ones detailed above, because often you'll find you can reach a good compromise between the few methods to really get well-balanced tuning. By well-balanced, I mean that some chords (e.g. full barre chords vs floated chords that mix open strings and fretted strings) will need to be compromised to ensure any chord you play sounds acceptably harmonious.

3) Comparing note for note, string for string - this is basically where you find a note on your fretboard, and compare it with the same note, or its octave, on another string at another fret. E.g. comparing the G note on the E string at fret 3 with the octave G note on the D string at fret 5 - these two notes should sound the same (but of course, the octave will be higher in pitch). This is seen as a more practical method of "tweaking" your tuning because you're comparing notes on strings that will likely appear simultaneously within chords - therefore, if they're even slightly out of tune with each other, the chord will be ruined. More obviously...

There are several ways to tune your guitar, but it's important that you tweak after you've tuned up (or think you have anyway!)

There's an old and tired joke that "guitars are tuned at the factory" - unfortunately, wood bends and warps, strings lose tension and the forces of nature make sure your guitar needs tuning every time you pick it up. Read that last bit again, because the sooner you get into the habit of assessing your guitar's tuning, the more rewarding your playing will be.

4) Comparing double tones in chords - chords that use 4 or more strings often include double tones (e.g. the root note appears twice in the chord), and open position chords down at the first few frets (e..g E major, G major, C major etc.) double open tones with fretted tones. Try playing the E major open position chord, one of the first chords you will have learned - the A string at fret 2 should be almost perfectly harmonious with the open B string, because they are the same note, just an octave apart. You may find the notes are slightly off, so adjusting will give you a more practical compromise when it comes to tuning for chords.

It doesn't matter how dazzling you are on guitar, one strike of an unharmonious string will destroy any charisma you had.

The problem is, too many guitarists neglect tuning as though it is some 5 minute job to "get out the way" before you practice or noodle. Get out of this mindset immediately. You need to spend time tuning your guitar to make sure chords all over the neck sound in tune and harmonious.

1) 5th fret method - the classic tuning method which most beginners favour. This method simply involves fretting a string (at the 5th fret, except for the G string) and matching the note with the next open string. Your ear has to be well trained for this to be accurate, and there is an awkward exception involving the B string, which on most guitars needs to be manually adjusted to be in-tune on most chords.

Unfortunately, fretted instruments made of wood can never be tuned perfectly (sorry, I mislead you slightly with the title there!), but there are quick methods you can use to accurately tune your guitar to the human ear...these are just for introductory purposes...

At first, you don't notice, but as your ear becomes trained, you begin to pick up on nuances in the tuning of your guitar. The key thing to remember is you must spend time tweaking your tuning, no matter which method you use.

General good tuning practise

Guitar - Tuning to Perfection

2) Harmonics - tuning harmonics are a quick and accurate way to tune your guitar to itself. It involves creating a resonating harmonic on two strings at a time, and picking out what sounds like a vibrating effect between them. This "wobbling" effect is created when two naturally harmonious intervals are off-kilter, so all you need to do is tune up or down to resolve the vibration into one, straight resonating harmonic. This is a really accurate way to tune, because you're tuning an open string to another open string, rather than a fretted string to an open string which causes natural inaccuracies. You can learn more about creating the harmonic and this great tuning technique at the end of this article.

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If you try to sing a song that's way too high or low in pitch for your voice, things are not going to work out well. As a rule of thumb if you can sing along to it on the radio then it's an OK song for you.

Here are three tips that will ensure you get off to a good start and get over the difficulties of doing two things at the same time.

2. Choose a song you can play

3. Make sure you know the lyrics

Beginner Guitarists Impress By Singing While Playing Guitar

So you've started learning the guitar and you're just starting to strum through a few three chord songs. Then you find yourself in that embarrassing situation, someone says "You play guitar? Please play something for us...".

Unfortunately for you, the budding guitar player, getting to that point is a long road. It can take many years of practice to play solo guitar well. In the meantime, you can spice up your three chord strumming by learning to sing while you play.

Check these three simple conditions when preparing to sing along with your guitar. If you meet them all you'll find that you're already a long way to being able to sing and play the song. The rest, as usual, is really just a question of practice.

Do this simple exercise to check. Switch off your radio, CD, or whatever you listen on and sing the song to yourself. Can you get through the whole song - verses, choruses, bridge and all - without forgetting the words? If you did, great, you're ready.

If not you've just learned that singing along to a song on the radio and singing it all by yourself are not quite the same. Go back and learn the lyrics until you can sing the whole thing without going "La da de da, dum de da".

Learning to sing while you play the guitar is a great idea for beginners. You don't need a really good voice, it helps if you have one, of course, but if you can just stay reasonably in tune you'll be doing fine. You'll find it's not too hard to do, but it does take a little confidence to sing in front of people.

The cat doesn't leave the room when you sing along to your chosen song on the radio and you can play it through without getting lost. So far so good, but do you know the words? I mean really *know* them, by heart, without the help of the singer on the radio prompting you?

It's obvious enough that if you can't play the song then you won't be able to sing along. But if you can play it, but only just, or if you frequently mess up the start of the chorus or some other passage you'd be better off choosing another song.

1. Choose a song you can sing