Guitar tuning
Open G Major 7 Tuning
D·G·D·F#·B·D
Open G major 7 is Open G with the 3rd string lowered a semitone from G to F#. The open strings then spell a G major seventh chord — D, G, D, F#, B, D — the leading tone rubbing gently against the root for a soft, unresolved sound.
Where Open G gives you a plain major chord to strum and slide around, this keeps that bright open-G ring and adds the wistful colour of the major seventh with nothing fretted. Fingerstyle players use it for dreamy, suspended textures; it is a small change from Open G, so most of that vocabulary carries straight over.
How to tune to Open G Major 7
From standard tuning:
- 6th (lowest) E → D (down a whole step)
- 5th A → G (down a whole step)
- 4th D — unchanged
- 3rd G → F# (down a semitone)
- 2nd B — unchanged
- 1st (highest) E → D (down a whole step)
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 G Major 7 does well
- A major seventh, open. Strum the open strings for Gmaj7 — the soft, jazzy colour is there before you fret anything.
- The Open G drone, sweetened. Two D strings and a G ring as pedal tones, now under a major seventh rather than a plain triad.
- One string from Open G. Only the 3rd string moves — down a semitone — so anything you play in Open G still works, with a gentler top.
- Suspended, unresolved textures. The major seventh never quite settles, which suits ambient and fingerstyle writing.
Common chords in Open G Major 7
Open G major 7 is Open G with the 3rd string lowered a semitone. The grid shows the easiest voicing the engine finds for each chord; tap to browse the rest.
Numbers read low string to high; 0 is open, × is muted.
A progression to try
A G–Em–C–D loop, ringing over the open strings:
Songs in Open G Major 7
- Ambient and fingerstyle writing in G
- A softer variant of the Open G slide repertoire
- Used for suspended, major-seventh textures
Where you’ll hear it
Fingerstyle and ambient players who want Open G’s ring with a gentler, jazzier top. A niche variant, but an easy one to try for anyone already in Open G.
Open a Open G Major 7 canvas — a tuning module already set, wired to a starter progression, every shape recalculated for you.