Boss TU-3 Tuner Pedal

Tuners. Does it get any more exciting than this? Well, yes it does, but we all need one. Paul McCartney needed one for “Band on the Run”, and there must not have been one around. Meow.

For the longest time, the Boss TU-2 was the standard in tuner pedals for guitarists and bassists. It is a durable and easy to use pedal. Boss has finally updated the pedal a bit and re-named it the TU-3. It was introduced at the NAMM show this year.

I sold my TU-2 on eBay and ordered a TU-3 from Musician’s Friend. It was only about a $25 up charge if you consider what I sold the old one for versus what I paid for the new one. The TU-3 seems to be priced about the same as the TU-2. The list price is $160.50, and the street price is $99. Everywhere. Talk about price fixing.

It does everything the previous pedal did (such as tuning your instruments), and it still has a bypass so that your audience does not have to listen to you while you tune. The pedal is the same size, and has the same rugged construction and high production standards that everyone has come to expect from Boss (made in Taiwan, BTW). The battery is still located underneath the switch, which is accessed via a thumbscrew on the front. As before, the reference pitch is adjustable from 436-445Hz.

There are a few improvements, of course:

This pedal can help clean up your pedal board of pesky power adapters, as it is capable of powering up to 7 other Boss effects using the PCS-20A daisy chain. This requires that the TU-3 be plugged in with the Boss adapter, so you cannot use its battery to power-up everything else. Be sure to check the power ratings of the other pedals you are using, and do not exceed 200mA total draw.

The TU-3 uses 21-segment LED meter (10 more than the old one!). And there is a new high brightness mode to improve visibility in outdoor situations. This does raise current draw up from 55mA to 85mA, meaning the battery will not last quite as long.

The pedal now supports the drop tunings that all of the young folks use, up to 6 semi-tones lower.

There are guitar and bass modes, which visually provide a string reference for up to 7-string guitars and 6-string basses. A chromatic mode is still available, of course.

Boss says the TU-3’s accuracy is improved, and is now +/-1 cent over the range of the 21 LEDs. I have no way of verifying this, but it works for tuning my stuff. It is possibly a bit more sensitive (finicky?) than the previous model, which requires a bit more concentration on my part.

So, is the TU-3 really THAT much better than the TU-2? Probably not, but having the option to power additional pedals from it is enough to make the switchover worthwhile for some musicians.

Super Guitar Shop Big Boss, Nagoya Japan

While wandering the Osu Kannon temple and market, if you are lucky you may find the Super Guitar Shop Big Boss. This is surely an awkward name, but they got it right. There are plenty of crummy guitar shops in Japan that sell the lowest-grade crap on the planet, and you will find none of it at this Nagoya gem.

Name your favorite guitar or bass, and Big Boss probably has it in stock. They have all of the popular US-manufactured instruments from Fender, Gibson, Musicman, Paul Reed Smith, Rickenbacker and Lakland. Of course, you will take it in the shorts if you buy them in Japan instead of the US. The real finds are the Japan-only models from Fender Japan, Gibson/Orville, Tokai, Musicman EX, Sadowsky Tokyo and Jackson Japan. They have colors and options you will not find in the US, and the craftsmanship is first rate. There are no ugly surprises with these guitars.

Big Boss is THE place in Nagoya to special-order a guitar from ESP, the Godzilla of Japanese guitar companies. They have racks of body and neck blanks just waiting for you to pick them out and have them made into your dream guitar. If you are impatient, they have quite a few already built, but be prepared to spend anywhere from $1000 to $6000 to pick up one of these beauties.

This shop is comparable to the giant Ishibashi chain of stores in its selection of accessories, effect pedals and amplifiers.

There also is a full-service repair shop that can handle everything from simple set-ups to major repair jobs. I have never needed to use their services, but it looks like a first-class operation.

The only thing this shop is lacking is a healthy selection of used instruments. That is not too unusual for a higher-end shop.

As in all of the nicer Japanese guitar shops, do not just grab a guitar off the wall. They are attached by clear plastic tethers, and your reckless actions will surely damage something and cause great embarrassment to you and your country. Ask one of the employees for help, and they will remove the tether, and find a cord/amplifier for you to use. If someone is already trying out an instrument, they will have you wait your turn. There is no Guitar Center thwackity cacophony in Japan.

In the bigger Japanese cities many of the shop workers have very nice English skills. This gross generalization is proven untrue at every guitar shop I have ever been to there. Communication is reduced to pointing at things and poking at a calculator. Do not let this deter you from shopping. The guys at Big Boss are friendly and eager to help out. Do not be surprised if they let you pick out a set of strings or a strap on the house if you buy a guitar.

There are two good ways to get to the shop via subway:

1. Take the Tsurumai Line to the Osu Kannon Station, use exit 2, and head west though the temple and market about ½ kilometer to the shop.

2. Take the Meijo or Tsurumai Line to Kamimaezu station, use exit 10, and head north on Otsu-Dori for about 300 meters. Big Boss will be on your right.