Tuners

Any recommendations other than the D'Addario?
+1 on TC
TC again.

tc-electronic-polytune-clip-review.jpg
 



I can't hear 2 or even 5 cents off and that's with pure sine waves, so 0.1 accuracy means fuck all with an actual fretted instrument.
So choose the one that suits your pedalboard, tuning habits (live situations, etc.) and EYES.
I love my trusty old TU-3 even though it's like 2-3 cents off.
 
Last edited:
Having used an old Peterson strobe ( real strobe) for years I am super picky. The first thing I will say is the new Peterson pedals are no way a replacement and not particularly in tune to my ears. I find most tuners to sound a shade off with one exception. The Turbo Tuner, it sounds sweet and right. It also is 5x tighter tolerances than the Peterson pedal. The boss sounds like ass and the rest are in the middle. Live it doesn’t matter much but for intonation and setup the Turbo is the best option by a mile.
 
I go between the Turbo, Strobo Stomp and a Polytune (namely clip ons). The Turbo is a lifesaver for setups and recording, but the Strobo Stomp display is fantastic for gigging.
 
Bought a used Turbo Tuner ST-300 a few years ago and haven't looked for a tuner ever since.

I do sometimes use phone apps for tuning e.g in a guitar store or tuning my acoustic.
This is what I use and I would never use anything other than a strobe tuner again in my life.

The Peterson Strobo HD is also very good. In fact the looks and enclosure seems more appealing and perhaps "better" than the ST300 but I do prefer the ST300
 
Hey fellas… I tune my guitar to open D but half step down. Have no clue about the individual string notes, only that it was easy to tune with the Hx Stomp. Don’t even remember what notes came up on the stomp tuner.

So i need to get a tuner that works with alternate notes than standard, as I don’t own Stomp anymore.

Any tips?
Poly mini? I don’t care about the actually polytune thing.
 
It's funny. I have wanted to tune without plugging into a modeler a bit lately so I grab my kids clip on violin tuner and rest the guitar on it. Works great.
 
I tried a $h!+ load of tuners over the last 40 or so years. Snarks, D'Addarios, even a Peterson clip on, but wasn't a big fan of any of 'em. The Snarks are OK, however compared to a Polytune they're jittery. The TC clip-ons are stable and don't jump around or fluctuate. I have a couple Snarks and they're not bad, but I'm willing to pay the extra for a TC Polytune or Unitune. It's just faster and easier. I do have a TC Polytune pedal too, but rarely use it, the clip ons are easier.

When I got my 1st TC Electronic Polytune clip on 8 or 9 years ago I knew I'd found the tuner that I'd use from then on. They're accurate and so easy because they're more stable than the the other brands that waver and fluctuate. Since then I got another one and some Unitunes which are the little brother of the Polytune. Accurate, fast and easy. The battery seems to last forever. I was able to get 3 TC Unitune clipons when they were on sale for $10 bucks apiece at Sweetwater. TC clipons are the bomb 💣!

FullSizeR(4).jpg

20211129_184856.jpg
 
Last edited:
I tried a $h!+ load of tuners over the last 40 or so years. Snarks, D'Addarios, even a Peterson clip on, but wasn't a big fan of any of 'em. The Snarks are OK, however compared to a Polytune they're jittery. The TC clip-ons are stable and don't jump around or fluctuate. I have a couple Snarks and they're not bad, but I'm willing to pay the extra for a TC Polytune or Unitune. It's just faster and easier. I do have a TC Polytune pedal too, but rarely use it, the clip ons are easier.

When I got my 1st TC Electronic Polytune clip on 8 or 9 years ago I knew I'd found the tuner that I'd use from then on. They're accurate and so easy because they're more stable than the the other brands that waver and fluctuate. Since then I got another one and some Unitunes which are the little brother of the Polytune. Accurate, fast and easy. The battery seems to last forever. I was able to get 3 TC Unitune clipons when they were for sale for $10 bucks apiece at Sweetwater. TC clipons are the bomb 💣!

FullSizeR(4).jpg

20211129_184856.jpg
I never got around to test clipons.. guess it was always in my head that it’s better for acoustic guitars (a 20 year old thought maybe). They work better on electric today?
 
I never got around to test clipons.. guess it was always in my head that it’s better for acoustic guitars (a 20 year old thought maybe). They work better on electric today?
Yes, they work great on electrics. acoustics, basses, you name it, even lap steels
 
Yes, they work great on electrics. acoustics, basses, you name it, even lap steels
I wonder… they’re definitely cheaper than tuner pedals. On the other hand… the nerd inside me want to have something that uses the tuner input on my DVP.
:rofl
 
I wonder… they’re definitely cheaper than tuner pedals. On the other hand… the nerd inside me want to have something that uses the tuner input on my DVP.
:rofl
Hmm, I don't use the tuner in on the Dunlop. I got a tuner pedal on my pedalboard for the few rare times that I don't use the clip-on tuners. But it's hooked up in series with the other pedals on the pedalboard, and the volume pedal isn't part of the pedalboard, so there's only a single cable between the Dunlop and the board.

20240817_012936.jpg
 
Last edited:
This . Every other tuner and all clip on’s leave me tweaking and fine tuning the so called “in tune” .
You're probably not using them correctly.
Sounds crazy, but a lot over very experienced musicians struggle with cheap or mediocre tuners simply because they don't tune correctly. This is particularly true with players that never took formal lessons.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top