by Coby Cranman
One of the most common questions we get at Soma comes from practitioners who already have a healing practice and are drawn to sound. Reiki practitioners especially. It usually sounds something like this:
"What is the difference between the Solfeggio Body Tuning Forks and the Energy Tuning Forks? I'm a Reiki master and a naturopath and I'm drawn to sound healing. Where do I start?"
Both sets are tuned to the Solfeggio frequencies. The difference is in how each fork is built, and that decides how and where the sound is applied within the human body and surrounding energy field, also known by other names as the "aura, biofield, etheric or ketheric body". This short guide will help you understand the differences between the sets, and which tuning forks might make the best starting point for your Reiki or energy practice.
The short answer: weighted vs. unweighted
The Solfeggio Energy Tuners are unweighted. The Solfeggio Body Tuners are weighted. A weighted fork is usually a lower frequency band than the unweighted, and our Solfeggio Set is derived by dropping the original 6 solfeggio frequencies each by 2 octaves (which means dividing in half twice). That one difference changes how they sound, how they feel, and how you use them.
Unweighted Energy Tuners project a louder energy field out from the tines. That sound is what you hear, and it's what you use to sweep the energy field around the body. They're the forks you hold near the ears, move through the aura, and use to balance the chakras from a few inches to several feet or more off the body.
Weighted Body Tuners are tuned two octaves lower, so they emit a lower frequency. They're quieter to the ear, but the vibration travels down the stem into the body. These are the forks you place directly on acupressure points, meridians, and areas of tension.
The 80/20 rule
Here's the easiest way we've found to explain it.
With an unweighted Energy Tuner, roughly 80% of the sound comes out of the tines and about 20% travels down the stem.
With a weighted Body Tuner, the inverse is true. About 80% of the vibration goes down the stem and into the body, and about 20% comes out as sound you can hear.
Same frequencies, opposite direction of travel. One is built to be heard and felt in the field around you. The other is built to be felt in the body.
Why the two-octave drop?
The original Solfeggio tones (396 Hz through 852 Hz) are fairly high-pitched. Frequencies that high don't carry much physical vibration, and with weights the vibration will be short-lived. You can set the stem of a 528 Hz Energy Tuner on your sternum and feel a light hum — that's the 20% — but it's not specifically built for bodywork. To make forks that could really be felt on the body, we lowered each Solfeggio frequency by two octaves and added weights to the tines. The original tone is still there — you can hear it in the overtones — but now the fork is dense enough to work on the physical body.
Why Reiki practitioners use tuning forks
If you practice Reiki, you already work with the energy field. You scan it with your hands, you sense where energy is stuck, distorted or depleted, and you channel energy to those places. Tuning forks fit naturally into this modality because the vibrational field they create enhances the energetic transformation being created by the movement of your hands.
These tones give the client something to hear and feel, create nervous system calm, coherence, and grounding, and help the client enter a receptive state more quickly and deeply. At Soma we like to say the "downloads" and healing intentions facilitated by the practitioner seem to flow more freely through the sound waves. It is something hard to describe, but a phenomenon which practitioner after practitioner describes experiencing in their client sessions incorporating the tuning forks.
Reiki practitioners who add tuning forks to their sessions tend to report the same things:
- Clients relax faster and drop in deeper when the session opens with sound.
- The forks give the practitioner a tangible tool to sweep and clear the field before hands-on work.
- Clients who are new to energy work have an easier time trusting a session when there's a sensory anchor.
- The sound gives the practitioner feedback too — a fork that changes tone or "catches" over an area is useful information.
- The sense that the "information" or "healing energy" flows more freely between the client and practitioner when the forks help facilitate.
In the wider sound healing world, this pairing has become common enough that practitioners describe tuning forks as a way to amplify the energy flow in a Reiki session, used either by holding an activated fork near the body or placing it directly on the body. [1] Training schools now teach Reiki practitioners both on-body and off-body fork techniques for exactly this reason. [2]
There's early research behind the body side too. Sound healing pioneer Dr. John Beaulieu and neuroscientist Dr. George Stefano reported that specific tuning fork vibrations applied to cells triggered a release of nitric oxide, a molecule involved in circulation and the relaxation response. [3] The research is still early and the clinical trials are small, so we don't make medical claims. But it lines up with what practitioners have been reporting for decades: sound and vibration help the body let go.
Which set should you start with?
It depends on how you want to use sound in your sessions.
If you want to bring tuning forks into your Reiki sessions energetically — working off the body, sweeping the field, balancing the chakras — start with the Solfeggio Energy Tuners. This is the set most Reiki practitioners begin with, and it's the set used in our Phase One: Energy Vitality Technique training. Phase One teaches you how to use the Energy Tuners to balance the chakra system, clear blockages in the etheric field, and calm the nervous system. If you're already a Reiki practitioner, most of this will feel like a natural extension of what you do with your hands.
*Please note, a single OM Tuner or Otto Tuner with a glider boot can be paired with these unweighted Energy Tuners to allow for supplemental acupressure work, or for the full Solfeggio Body Tuner set read paragraph below:
If you're more interested in applying the Solfeggio frequencies directly to acupressure points and meridians, start with the Solfeggio Body Tuners. This is the set introduced in our Phase Two training, which covers Body Tuners on acupressure points, the Chakra Stone Relaxation Technique, and the Energy Scanning Technique. Phase Two assumes you've done Phase One, but the Body Tuner set itself comes with a quick start guide and Michael Reed Gach's Acupressure's Potent Points, so you can start using it on yourself or clients right away.
Generally speaking, for Reiki practitioners getting started, the unweighted Solfeggio Energy Tuners are the way to go. They match how you already work, and they set you up with the tools you'll need for Phase One. We highly recommend the Soma Swivels to allow for more pendulum-like movement in your sessions.
Start with whichever set matches the kind of session you want to give, and know the other one is waiting for you when you're ready.
Can you use them together?
Yes, and eventually most practitioners do. A common session flow looks like this: open with the Energy Tuners to sweep and balance the field, then move to the Body Tuners on specific points where you found tension or stuck energy, then close with Reiki or another Energy Tuner pass. Our Phase One and Phase Two trainings get into the nuances of how the two sets can be interchanged and combined. It's a lot to cover in a blog post, but that's the basic idea.
If you'd rather start with both, the Solfeggio Energy + Body Duo Bundle puts both sets in your hands at once.
And if you're ready to dive fully into the Soma system — all three fork sets plus the Phase One and Phase Two self-study courses — the Ultimate Sound Healing Bundle: Tools + Training is the complete path from your first session to certification.
Quick answers
Are Solfeggio Energy Tuners weighted or unweighted?
Unweighted. The Energy Tuners are the unweighted set, used off the body for the energy field and the auditory experience. The Body Tuners are the weighted set, used directly on the body.
Which tuning forks are best for Reiki?
For most Reiki practitioners, the unweighted Solfeggio Energy Tuners. They work in the same energy field you already work in with your hands, and they're the set used in Phase One training.
Can I use Body Tuners without taking a training?
Yes. The Body Tuner set comes with a quick start guide and Acupressure's Potent Points, so you can start on yourself or clients right away. Phase Two goes deeper when you're ready.
Do the Body Tuners still have the Solfeggio frequencies?
Yes. Each Body Tuner is the Solfeggio frequency lowered two octaves, and the original tone is audible in the overtones.
Not sure which is right for you?
Every practice is different. If you aren't sure which set fits, please reach out and tell us about your healing practice — what modalities you work in, who your clients are, and what you're hoping sound will add. We'll point you in the right direction.
References
- Dr. Tawni, "Tuning Forks improve Marma Therapy & Reiki," natural-paths.com. natural-paths.com
- Gaia School of Natural Health, "Gaia Tuning Fork Reiki" practitioner course. gaiaschool.org.uk
- Beaulieu, J. and Stefano, G., "Nitric Oxide and Tuning Forks," BioSonics. biosonics.com