Steel Guitar String Gauges & Tuning Guide | Pedal Steel, Lap Steel & Dobro
Steel Guitar String Gauges & Tuning Guide
Choosing the right strings for your steel guitar depends on your instrument, tuning, and playing style. This guide shows the most common tunings used on lap steel, pedal steel, resonator (Dobro), and Weissenborn guitars.
If you're unsure which strings are right for your instrument, the community at The Steel Guitar Forum is a great place to ask experienced players.
E9 Pedal Steel (10-String)
| String | Note | Typical Gauge |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | F# | .011 – .013 |
| 2 | D# | .014 – .015 |
| 3 | G# | .010 – .011 |
| 4 | E | .013 – .014 |
| 5 | B | .016 – .018 |
| 6 | G# | .020 – .022 |
| 7 | F# | .024 – .026 |
| 8 | E | .028 – .030 |
| 9 | D | .032 – .034 |
| 10 | B | .036 – .038 |
C6 Pedal Steel (10-String)
| String | Note | Typical Gauge |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | G | .011 – .012 |
| 2 | E | .014 |
| 3 | C | .017 |
| 4 | A | .020 |
| 5 | G | .024w |
| 6 | E | .030w |
| 7 | C | .036w |
| 8 | A | .042w |
| 9 | F | .054w |
| 10 | C | .070w |
Open G Dobro / Resonator
D-B-G-D-B-G (high → low)
| String | Note | Typical Gauge |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | D | .016 |
| 2 | B | .018 |
| 3 | G | .026 – .028 |
| 4 | D | .036 – .039 |
| 5 | B | .046 – .049 |
| 6 | G | .056 – .059 |
Open D Slide Guitar
D-A-F#-D-A-D (high → low)
| String | Note | Typical Gauge |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | D | .016 – .017 |
| 2 | A | .020 – .022 |
| 3 | F# | .026 – .027 |
| 4 | D | .036 – .039 |
| 5 | A | .046 – .049 |
| 6 | D | .056 – .060 |
Lap Steel Tunings
Lap steel guitars are used with many tunings including:
- C6
- A6
- E7
- Open D
- Open G
Different tunings may require different gauges depending on your guitar’s scale length.