Guitar tuning

Open A Minor 7 Tuning

E·A·E·G·C·E

Tonal centre A minor 7 — the open chord is already a minor seventh Also called Open Am7, EAEGCE Difficulty Very easy — two strings move

Open on the Canvas → Explore chords in the app

Open A minor 7 raises the 4th string a whole step from D to E and the 2nd string a semitone from B to C, and leaves the rest at standard pitch. The open strings then spell an A minor seventh — E, A, E, G, C, E — a full, mellow chord with nothing fretted.

It is Open A minor with the 3rd string left at G instead of raised to A, which turns the open Am into an Am7. Only two strings differ from standard, so it is one of the fastest alternate tunings to reach and leave, and a lot of standard shapes still read. Good for soft, modal, open-string writing centred on A minor.

How to tune to Open A Minor 7

From standard tuning:

6th (lowest) E — unchanged
5th A — unchanged
4th D → E (up a whole step)
3rd G — unchanged
2nd B → C (up a semitone)
1st (highest) E — unchanged

Open—Shape’s tuner listens for one string at a time and tells you which string it is and how far off — including in alternate tunings like this one.

What Open A Minor 7 does well

A minor seventh, open. Strum the open strings for Am7 — the full, mellow chord is there with nothing fretted.
A two-string retune. Only the 4th and 2nd strings move — a whole step and a semitone — so it is quick to set up and undo.
Much of standard still works. Four strings stay at standard pitch, so many familiar shapes carry over with small adjustments.
Soft, modal colour. The open Am7 leans toward Dorian and Aeolian writing without any fretting.

Common chords in Open A Minor 7

Open A minor 7 keeps four strings at standard pitch, so many shapes still read. The grid shows the easiest voicing the engine finds for each chord; tap to browse the rest.

Am7 x 0 0 0 0 0 1 of 808 → Am x 0 0 x 0 0 1 of 718 → Dm x 5 5 x 5 5 1 of 115 → Em 0 2 0 0 x 0 1 of 440 → C x 3 0 0 0 0 1 of 592 → F 1 0 1 x 0 1 1 of 277 → G 3 2 3 0 2 3 1 of 220 → E7 0 2 0 1 2 0 1 of 369 →

Numbers read low string to high; 0 is open, × is muted.

A progression to try

An Am7–Dm–Em loop over the open strings:

Am7→Dm→Em→Am7

Songs in Open A Minor 7

Soft, modal, open-string writing in A minor
A seventh-chord variant of Open A minor
Used when the open strings should carry a full minor seventh

Where you’ll hear it

Fingerstyle and singer-songwriter players who want a ready-made minor seventh under their hands, with the smallest possible retune. A niche tuning with a very low barrier to trying it.

Open a Open A Minor 7 canvas — a tuning module already set, wired to a starter progression, every shape recalculated for you.

Open on the Canvas → Explore chords in the app

Open A Minor 7 tuning FAQ

What are the notes in Open A minor 7 tuning?

From lowest to highest: E, A, E, G, C, E. From standard, the 4th string goes up a whole step from D to E and the 2nd string up a semitone from B to C. The 6th, 5th, 3rd and 1st strings do not change.

How is Open A minor 7 different from Open A minor?

Open A minor raises the 3rd string to A for a plain Am chord. Open A minor 7 leaves the 3rd string at G, so the open chord is an Am7 instead.

Is Open A minor 7 easy to tune to?

Yes — only two strings move, and neither by much, so it is one of the quickest alternate tunings to reach and to undo.

Do my normal chords work in Open A minor 7?

Many do. Four strings stay at standard pitch, so shapes that do not lean on the 4th or 2nd string transfer directly; others need a small adjustment.

Can I use a capo in Open A minor 7?

Yes — a capo raises the whole tuning to a higher key while keeping the open minor-seventh sound. Open—Shape recalculates every voicing for the capo position.

Related tunings

Open D Minor Open E Minor Open A Minor Open G Minor Open C Minor Open E Minor 7 Open E7 Open G Major 7