Dusty Turtle is right. (And if you have never tried playing in DAG, it is interesting!)

I think we hear both Aeolian and Dorian modes as "minor" because in both, the 3rd note of the scale (the third scale degree, in theory talk) is a minor third (3 semitones) above the key note (root). (This is the F natural at the 3rd fret in DAc.)

Aeolian is the "natural" minor scale. Dorian is a little "brighter" because it has a raised 6th note. If your instrument has a 6+ (6 1/2) fret, you can hear the difference. Here's how:

If you play in DAc using the 6 fret, the melody string(s) give D Aeolian. Starting with the open string (C) and going up to the 8th fret (skipping 6+) you get: C D E F G A Bb C D

DAc using the 6+ fret gives D Dorian: C D E F G A B C D

In arrangements of Dorian melodies in D, you often hear the B natural harmonized with a G major chord (ex.: 7-6-6+ or 3-3-6+), which can be a nice contrast to the minor harmony implied by the F natural.

Hope that illuminates - TomR

Thanks DT & KH. That helps tremendously!!

Jimmy -- you're sorta writing that tuning 'backwards'.  Most people today write a tuning starting with the Bass string, not the melody strings.   That helps you know what key the tuning is in.  Also, most folks today do not write the doubled melody strings as 2 letters unless the string are tuned to different notes.    What you have is Aeolian Mode, DAC; the key of Dminor.

DAC is in the key of D minor.  Your "home" or "tonic" is the first fret on the melody string, which is a D.

Jimmy, let me add that if you are playing in a drone style, the drones themselves tell you what the key is.  Drones can only be the 1st and 5th notes of the scale, so DAA is D ionian.  DAd is D mixolydian.  DAC is D aeolian.  And DAG is D Dorian.

--
Dusty T., Northern California
Site Moderator

As a musician, you have to keep one foot back in the past and one foot forward into the future.
-- Dizzy Gillespie
updated by @dusty: 02/10/19 07:15:09PM

I know it’s Aeolian mode, but what key is it?