To do this easily and accurately, acquire an electronic tuner. Clip the gadget onto the headstock of your banjo, twist the display where you can easily see it and find a suitable sitting position for the procedure.

Remember that the 6-string version is tuned in a similar fashion as the guitar i. E., E-A-D-G-B-E notes, and the same tuner can be applied. If you can easily pluck the strings and at the same time watch the tuner display then you are good to go.

The first chord to tune is the lowest and the thickest of the six which is tuned to E. Pluck it repeatedly and note if it is tuned properly. If it tends towards D then it is too low and you need to tighten the peg to increase the pitch. If the dial indicates a pitch towards F then the string needs to be loosened a little at the peg for that is higher than required. At the right tension the display will read E when the string is plucked and at that point the string is tuned.

The next one in line is the second lowest which is to be tuned to A. Repeat the same procedure as with the E chord and be careful to first of all loosen the peg a little bit before any tightening it in order to allow the chord to stretch uniformly without forming nodes.

When the A chord is okay, move on to the third one and tune it to D. Do this up to the last chord which you are to set to the high E note. All this time take care not to form nodes on the strings for these becomes the future breakage points. Always be keen on the tuner so as to ascertain when to remove your fingers on the peg.

If you have a microphone set connected to your PC and a good Internet connection you can tune your banjo online nowadays. Follow the instructions provided in the tuning websites and you are good to go. You can also purchase tuners that come preloaded with easy to use instructions and with time you will be tuning your instrument easily as you play.