Glad my suggestion worked out. Enjoy your new to you dulcimer.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thanks Ken.  I took your suggestion.  I added a groove in the nut and and made a double melody string.  I moved the middle string to the center and tuned to DAd.  Sounds great!

Ken is right.  It looks like the bridge has a groove for a double melody string, so you could make one in the nut and string the dulcimer as a three-course instrument with a double melody string.  Or you could just string it as a three string instrument with no double melody.  Lots of folks take off that extra string anyway.

You might consider putting on new strings if those on the instrument seem old. I try to change strings every few months.

By the way, this Forum on Site Questions is intended for questions about how the website works.  So I've moved this discussion to the Forum for questions on specific instruments and luthiers. It will be easier for others to find that way.

--
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: 02/17/19 05:31:17PM

Is the lower string also tuned to D an octave lower than the others? That is certainly a valid dulcimer tuning. It looks like you can easily add a groove in the nut to make it a double melody string. You would then move the other string to the center slot which is already on the nut. Using the proper strings for the vibrating string length of the dulcimer you could certainly tune to DAA or DAd.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Hi.  So I have been interested in getting a mountain dulcimer and found one at a pawn shop yesterday that looked to be decent so I nabbed it.  Upon getting it home and looking at some youtube videos I see the set up is different that most of the ones I see.  Rather than 2 strings close together for the melody, it has 4 equidistant strings.  Right now the 3 top strings are tuned in unison to D.  The bottom string is higher gauge and tuned lower.  Can anyone tell me how this should be tuned?  I ordered another nut that has the 2 melody strings together(haven't received yet) but not sure if I should change it out or get it tuned properly the way it is and play around with it.  Any comments/suggestions are welcome.

updated by @kgrant67: 10/27/19 12:02:25PM