NAMM 2017: Cling On Magnetic Series Tuner Review

Aloha!

There is no shortage of mountable guitar tuners on the market, and for the most part they are clip-on units. This is usually an ok arrangement, but a clip across the headstock does not look very nice, and those clips do break (especially if you leave it on the guitar and close a case on it). Also, the clips are usually pretty huge, making the tuner almost twice the size that it needs to be. Cling On Magnetic Series tuners are a great alternative to regular clip-on tuners. I was pretty stoked when I saw them demonstrated at the 2017 NAMM show.

The idea with the Magnetic Series tuner is that it is equipped with a very strong neodymium magnet so the user can stick it to a tuning peg or even a screw. Boom – out of the way, unobtrusive, and no big ugly clip. I have tried it out on my guitars and basses and in the real world this set-up actually world really well.

There might be cases where there is nothing magnetic to stick the tuner to, so there is also a small (0.7-inch) magnetic puck that can be stuck anywhere on the instrument that has a flat surface. The puck’s 3M adhesive sticker also holds very strongly (good thing, because the magnets are so strong). The manufacturer says that the sticker will not harm finishes, and comes off easily if you work a piece of string or dental floss underneath it. But the really hot ticket is to not have to use the puck at all.

This Cling On tuner is attractive, with rubberized trim and a sleek Lava Red finish (Titanium Gray is also available). There are only three buttons to deal with: Power, Hz, and Mode. It takes a single CR2032 battery (included), and this common size is available at most every drugstore or supermarket.

The tuner has a dual-swivel base, and an LCD screen that is big enough for me to read without glasses, and bright enough that I can see it in daylight. Concert A can be adjusted from 440Hz to anywhere between 430 and 450Hz, and there are five different preset tuning modes: Chromatic, Guitar, Ukulele, Violin and Bass. It is easy to use, and seems to be accurate enough for any stage musician.

The Cling On Magnetic Series tuners are right there with the rest of the market as far as pricing, with a list price of $19.99 (they also have a clip-on model for a dollar less). This includes the tuner, a magnetic puck, and a really nice box. Not to mention a 1-year limited manufacturers warranty and a 3-year replacement guarantee, including accidental damage. If you need extra magnetic bases, they have them available for $4.99 for a 3-pack. I think this is a pretty cool product, and the magnetic base is a real selling point. For more details, head over to the Cling On website.

Mahalo!

NAMM 2017: Peterson StroboClip HD Tuner Preview

Aloha!

Everybody and their brother makes some sort of clip-on tuner these days, with some of them that are so cheap that you can get one thrown in for free when you buy a new guitar. So, if you are going to charge 60 bucks for one of these things, it had better be a good product from an established company. This is where the Peterson StroboClip HD tuner comes into the story. From the name, you have probably figured out that this is a strobotuner, but what exactly is this things?

You have probably seen the old Conn ST-11 strobotuners before – I remember the day our school orchestra got one back in 1980 or so, and it transformed my ideas about tuning. The Conn tuner uses a wheel that shows different octaves and the strobe effect of the tuner will make one row of the wheel appear to stop for the octave that is being played, while the overtones for other octaves will move about depending on how far they are out of whack. The advantages of this are incredible accuracy (within 0.1 cent), along with an intangible coolness factor. The Peterson Stroboclip HD simulates this effect with a nice bright LCD display that is a little simpler to look at and easier to use. I was fortunate enough to have Sue from Peterson walk me through the function of this tuner at NAMM 2017, and I was impressed with what they put together.

The StroboClip HD is fairly normal sized, 1.75 by 2.4 by 1.2 inches, and it weighs under two ounces. It has nice rubber jaws and it is adjustable to all kinds of angles. The tuner is powered up by a single CR2032 battery, which you can find at your local drugstore or supermarket.

The big story for me is the HD LCD display with its very clean bar segments.. It is very attractive, and is big enough that I can see it well without my reading glasses. It is bright enough to see outdoors while not causing blindness on dark stages. Also, it is viewable from a pretty wide angle, so the display does not necessarily have to be pointed right at you.

Other than its appearance and form function, the StroboClip HD works similarly to other Peterson Tuners, which is a very good thing. In this case, there is no microphone, and a Piezo element is used to pick up sound vibrations. The specifications are solid with accuracy that is guaranteed to be within 0.1 cents(like all Peterson tuners) and a tuning range of 16Hz -1975Hz. Concert A is adjustable from 390Hz to 490Hz. I believe that this tuner delivers on all of this, and it is certainly easy enough to use.

As an added bonus there are 50 available “Sweetened Tunings” that include programming for specific instruments such guitars with Buzz Feitan tuning, 7-string guitars, 12-string guitars, bass, violin, viola, cello, sitar, mandolin, and many more. These tunings take into account string deflection and unique harmonics to make tuning as accurate as possible. They are pretty cool, and this feature makes the StroboClip attractive to a wide range of musicians.

And finally, a USB port is provided to download new presets from Peterson, if you find that the preloaded ones are not sufficient for your wants and needs.

When the Peterson StroboClip HD tuner is released (soon!) it will retais for $59.99, which includes a one year warranty; I think is a heck of a deal! For more details, go to www.petersontuners.com

Mahalo!

TC Electronic PolyTune Clip Tuner Review

Howdy!

It seems like I write a review for a new tuner every month, and this month is no exception! Today we are looking at the TC Electronic PolyTune Clip tuner, which takes their time-tested technology and packs it into one of those slick little clip-on tuners that everybody and their brother seems to want. I really loved the PolyTune pedal and hated the PolyTune app, so this will be interesting!

I have used plenty of TC Electronic equipment over the years, and it has been universally good stuff. They have been around since 1976, and I really like the tone of their amplifiers and effect pedals. Their products are solid and reliable, and are a definitely a good value when you consider what they can do and what they cost.

The PolyTune Clip is no exception. This thing is bigger than some clip-on tuners, but it is tiny and light for what it can do, measuring 1 by 1 by 2 ½ inches (most of this is the stainless steel clip), and it weighs in at 0.07 ounces. It seems sturdy, and it survived drop test nicely. It runs on a CR 3032 battery (available at drug stores everywhere), and the battery is supposed to last for 18 hours of use. I have not verified that. Yet.

The display has oodles of tiny multi-colored LEDs with the standard utilization of red for out of tune and green for in tune. It is super easy to see in all light conditions because TC Electronic included an ambient light sensor so it can adjust to how much light is available. This is nice as it is not too blinding on dark stages, and you can still see it in daylight. Of course, the glare direct sunlight is still kind of a pain, but what are you going to do?

The specs of this unit look very on paper, with chromatic tuner accuracy of about 0.5 cent (like the full-size pedal) and strobe tuner accuracy of an astounding 0.02 cent. As far as I can tell, the Polytune delivers on these promises.

The Polytune has a logic called “MonoPoly” that allows the tuner to discern if you played one string or all of them. If you play one string it will go into the usual chromatic mode, but if you play all of the strings it will go into polyphonic mode and you can check the intonation of all of your strings at the same time. Really – it will display all six and tell you which ones are in tune, flat, or sharp. Really!

Initially this might seem like a gimmick, but it is truly awesome and a huge time saver, particularly if you are on stage getting ready for the next song in your acoustic coffee house set. By the way, this feature works great on their pedal and is where the TC Electronic app fell flat.

Does this polyphonic feature work on all guitars and basses? I do not know, but it works on all of mine. Electric guitars (ESP, Stratocaster, Telecaster, Les Paul, Explorer), active basses (Sadowsky, Stingray), passive basses (Precision and Jazz), and my acoustic with pickups (Takemine and Martin). All of them worked fine, though I must add in the disclaimer that I use normal tunings. If you use alternate or drop tunings (from E-flat down to B) the Polytune is supposed to work, but I cannot personally vouch for it. The same goes for 5-string basses – I just do not have one lying around right now.

The polyphonic modes is a great tool for quickly checking to see where the guitar is, tuning wise, but I still prefer to fine tune each string individually in the regular chromatic mode. Since it automatically switches modes based on what the user is doing, this is not a big deal. By the way, the polyphonic mode seems to work better when using a pick on both guitars and basses. See what you think…

You do not have to set it up every time you use it. When you select different modes or reference tones, this unit will memorize you settings after it powers off.

In actual day-today usage, and the Clip is very good; if I needed a new high-end clip-on tuner, it would be one of my first choices. But this is a moot point as I love my Peterson strobotuner, so it is not going to be replaced.

The TC Electronic PolyTune Clip is priced competitively with the rest of the higher-end clip-on tuner market, carrying an MSRP of $75, and a street price of $50. Give it a try and see what you think!

Mahalo!

D’Addario Planet Waves NS Micro Headstock Tuner

Aloha!

It has been awhile since I have reviewed one of the thousands of cheap little guitar headstock tuners that are on the market, so today we are going to take a look at the D’Addario Planet Waves NC Micro.

The NS Micro is the slightly smaller version of the NS Mini, which is a pretty good tuner. True to its name, it is small, measuring about 1 1.4 inches across. It is unobtrusive, and its padded clamp fit well on my Martins, Gibsons, and Fenders. So, pretty much it will fit anything.

It is easy to use, and there is no set-up needed unless you wish to change the reference pitch. There are only 5 buttons: power, mode (metronome or tuner), flip (in case you installed it upside down), and two cursor switches that will change pitch while in the tuner. That is it. If you cannot figure out how to use it then playing guitar will probably be too hard for you, so maybe you will need to find a new hobby.

The display is colorful and easy to read, and there should be no doubt as to whether notes are sharp or flat. I compared it to my Boss TU and my Peterson Strobostomp, and it appears to be accurate. The metronome function also works fine, though I am not sure it is the best idea to be staring at the headstock while practicing. I guess you could clip it to a music stand, though.

The NS Micro seems to be well built, and the flip switch along with the 360-degree swivel mean that you can pretty much stick it anywhere on the instrument and still be able to see the display. The CR2032 battery has not died on me yet, and fortunately this is a fairly common battery, as I know as I had to pick

The D’Addario Planet Waves NS Micro tuner is also a smoking deal, probably to keep pace with all of the cool tuner apps that are available now. You can pick one up for $10 (list price $34.70), and if you want a budget headstock tuner, this is probably the pick of the litter.

Mahalo!

Tascam TG-7 Guitar and Bass Tuner / Metronome Review

Aloha!

Well, the endless succession of tuner reviews continues. Someday I will get caught up on these, I promise…

Today we are looking at the Tascam TG-7 guitar and bass tuner with a built-in metronome. This little tuner tries to do it all, so let’s see how it works in the real world.

For starters, this is a fairly small tuner, about 6 x 2 x 1 inches, or the size of a glasses case. It has a built-in tripod mount as well as two flip-out mounts that help it stand up on a table better. These mounts have slots in them so you can clip it onto a music stand, if you want.

There are ¼-inch jacks for input and output on either end so you can put it in-line and use it live. It has a built-in speaker with a volume wheel for the metronome and tone functions, and an internal microphone for acoustic instruments. Switches on top turn the unit on or off, turn on the backlight for the 5-inch wide LCD display, and change the mode from mute to thru-put. The tuner, metronome and tone select switches are on the front, as well as the setup and up and down select switches.

The TG-7 runs on two AAA batteries (included), with no provision for an AC adaptor. Tascam says that it will go for about 300 hours on a set. I find that kind of hard to believe.

The tuner has 12 different modes that include guitar, bass, chromatic, drop-D, drop-G, open-D, open-G and five user-definable scales. It has a full range from A0 to C8, and it is supposed to be accurate to within 1 cent. The tuner can be calibrated from 349.0 to 499.0 Hz, in 1 Hz intervals. There are plenty of tuner display modes: meter (bar graph, animated strobe, fine, and needle.

Should you wish to use a reference tone to tune to, there is a built-in tone generator that will play notes from B1 to B6. The volume of this function is controlled by the aforementioned volume wheel on the side of the tuner.

And lastly there is a metronome that will count at between 30 and 300 beats per minute. There are 16 pre-programmed time signatures, so you will probably find what you need in there. There is a tap mode where you can match an existing beat and the metronome will continue on for you.

This stuff all sounds really good, but there is quite a list of stuff that I do not care for with this tuner.

For starters, it feels like a toy. The switches on the top are small and cheap feeling and since one of these is the ON/OFF switch I am reminded of it every time I use it. The display is wide, but it is narrow and it is dim so it is hard to see in most lighting conditions, even with the backlight on.

The menu structure is not terribly intuitive, and the manual is lame at best. There are quite a few mysteries every time I start monkeying around with the presets. It is almost best to leave alone and use it the way it came from the factory.

The metronome tone is harsh, but it is still not loud enough to hear over most normal playing. They strident sound of it cannot be customized, so you either have to put up with it or turn the volume down and stare at the tiny display screen.

On the plus side it seems to be accurate, but the rest of the stuff that is wrong with is overwhelming so it is not a very good value.

The Tascam TG-7 tuner has an MSRP of $79.99 and a street price of $49.99, but I see them on sale for under twenty bucks on occasion. But even at that low price, I will have to say pass on this one. It tries to do everything, but does none of it well. There are a lot better tuners out there for the money.

Mahalo!

TC Electronic Polytune Chromatic Tuner Review

Aloha!

It seems like I write about a new electronic tuner every month, and it is no surprise as there are metric ton of these things out there nowadays, and you know what? They are all pretty good! It took a long time, but my trusty Boss tuner pedal was finally supplanted by the mighty Peterson Stomp Classic. Today we are looking at the latest challenger that was plugged into my board: the TC Electronic Polytune. This thing brings a lot to the table…

I have used plenty of TC Electronic equipment over the years, and it has been universally good stuff. They have been around since 1976, and I really like the tone of their amplifiers and effect pedals. Their products are solid and reliable, and are a definitely a good value. The Polytune is no exception.

The tuner is compact, measuring 3 by 5 by 1¾ inches, and it weighs in at a solid 10 ounces -- it is certainly a compact package. It seems sturdy, and I think it will survive drop test nicely. It runs on a 9-volt battery (that requires a screwdriver to access) or an AC adapter that is not included. It draws around 50mA. If you run it on the AC adapter there is a 9-volt out so you can use it to power other pedals. Do people use stuff like this? I don’t…

The Polytune has a ¼-inch input and output jack on either side and NO built-in microphone. Boo! On the back are the power jacks, and a small USB port that is apparently something they use at the factory. So it is not some kind of cool output or portal for installing new presets. Interesting.

The only control is the bypass stomp switch, and this unit is equipped with true bypass, which is a godsend. I would not consider a tuner pedal without this feature. The display has oodles of tiny mutli-colored LEDs with the standard configuration of red for out of tune and green for in tune. It is super easy to see in all light conditions because TC Electronic included an ambient light sensor so it can adjust to how much light is available. This is nice as it is not too blinding on dark stages, and you can still see it in daylight. Of course, the glare direct sunlight is still kind of a pain.

The specs of this unit look ok on paper, with accuracy of about 0.5 cent, and A 440Hz is adjustable from 335Hz to 4550Hz. As far as I can tell, the Polytune delivers on these promises.

So far, none of this stuff is terribly unusual, but TC Electronic has provided a neat twist. The Polytune has a logic called “MonoPoly” that allows the tuner to discern if you played one string or all of them. If you played one string it will go into the usual chromatic mode, but if you play all of the strings it will go into polyphonic mode and you check the intonation of all of your strings at the same time. Really – it will display all six and tell you which ones are in tune, flat, or sharp.

Initially this might seem like a gimmick, but it is truly awesome and a huge time saver, particularly if you are on stage getting ready for the next song in your acoustic coffee house set.

Does this polyphonic feature work on all guitars and basses? I do not know, but it works on all of mine. Electric guitars (Stratocaster, Telecaster, Les Paul, Explorer), active basses (Sadowsky, Marcus Miller, Stingray), passive basses (Precision and Jazz), and my acoustics with pickups (Takemine and Martin). All of them worked fine, though I must add in the disclaimer that I use normal tunings. If you use alternate or drop tunings (from E-flat down to B) the Polytune is supposed to work, but I cannot personally vouch for it. The same goes for 5-string basses – I just do not have one lying around right now.

By the way, the polyphonic mode seems to work better when using a pick on both guitars and basses. See what you think…

So, the polyphonic modes is a great tool for quickly checking to see where the guitar is, tuning wise, but I still prefer to fine tune each string individually in the regular chromatic mode. Since it automatically switches modes based on what the user is doing, this is not a big deal.

There are two different display options, too. There is a conventional needle style, or a streaming mode which kind of replicates a strobotuner effect. I have tried both and each works fine, and both will hold notes for a good length of time. I have no preference for one display mode over the other, strangely enough.

By the way, when you select different modes or reference tones, this unit will memorize you settings after it powers off, so you do not have to set it up again every time you use it.

In actual day-today usage, the tuner works just fine, and It did not add noise to my signal chain when put in my effects loop. The Polytone will run for about 6 to 8 hours of continuous use on a good quality battery, which is in line with other tuner pedals I have tested.

The Polytune is very good, and if I needed a new tuner pedal in its price range, it would be one of my first choices, if only it had an internal microphone. But this is a moot point as I like the operation and features of my Peterson strobotuner better, so it is not going anywhere in the near future.

The TC Electronic Polytune pedal is priced competitively with the rest of the chromatic tuner market, carrying an MSRP of $149, and a street price of $99. This includes the tuner, a 9V battery and some 3M Velcro so you can attach it to your pedal board (a nice touch).

By the way, TC Electronic also has a Polytune app for the iPhone. I will have to give it a try and report back to you…

Mahalo!

Peterson Istrobosoft iPhone Electronic Tuner App Review

Aloha!

I travel a bit for work, and sometimes carry along a ukulele or my U Bass so I have something to kill time with in hotel rooms, and have until recently carried along some sort of clip-on electronic tuner. Well, I can leave those at home now because I have been using a kick-butt tuner app on my iPhone – the Peterson Istrobosoft app.

There are tons of guitar tuner apps out there and I have experimented with many of them, in general they do a pretty good job. But, I am a big fan of Peterson strobotuners; in fact the Peterson VSS-C Stomp Classic has replaced the trusty Boss TU-3 in my studio. So, when I heard there was an app version of the tuners I had to give it a shot. It is well-reviewed, and for only $9.99 it was a no-brainer.

Old-school mechanical strobotuners (which Peterson has been making since 1948) use a spinning wheel that shows different octaves and the strobe effect of the tuner will make one row of the wheel appear to stop for the octave that is being played, while the overtones for other octaves will move about depending on how far they are out of whack. The advantages of this are incredible accuracy (within 0.1 cent), along with an intangible coolness factor. This app simulates the effect with a nice bright display that is a little simpler to look at.

After downloading the app, if you are using an iPhone you should pretty much be ready to go. If you are using an iPod Touch you will need to plug in a microphone (also available from Peterson) so it can hear what you are doing. It can be hard for the microphone to pick up unplugged electric guitars, but there is also a $12.99 guitar cable adapter that you can purchase.

When the app is opened, it goes directly to the main screen. As soon as it hears sound the strobe will start moving, and the display will tell you what note(and octave) it hears and whether it is sharp or flat, and by how much (in cents). As the note gets closer to in tune the strobe display will slow down and then stop when the note is in tune. This tuner is supposed to be insanely accurate, to within 1/10 cent. I do not have any way to verify this, but when using it at the same time as my Peterson pedal, they react the same when hearing notes, so it does pretty well.

There are a few icons on the main screen that might make life easier for you. There is a noise filter that can be used when you are not plugging an instrument directly into your iPhone that will help isolate your sound and not pick up so much background noise. There is also an input boost that will boost all frequencies by 24 dB (in case your sound source is too quiet).

If you press the “I” icon you will find a menu that allows you to select tuner settings, calibration, and customization. In tuner settings, you can adjust your concert A from 440 to whatever you please. There is also a drop/capo feature that will transpose your notes by up to an octave (up or down). The calibration mode allows the tuner to be calibrated to an external source, and the customize screen allows you to change the colors of the various parts of the main display.

Like other iPhone apps, this will zoom to a full screen mode, so with a swipe of the finger you can make the main part of the display bigger so you can set the phone on the floor or music stand and still be able to see what is going on.

I have used the iStrobosoft app and have come away very impressed. With a touch screen, this is really easy to use and customize, and in this respect it is even better than my regular Peterson tuner pedal. I think they have a real winner here!

As I said earlier, the Peterson iStrobosoft app is only $9.99, and will work on most iPhones. It can also work on some iPod Touch models if you plug in the $11.99 accessory microphone. See the App Store for application details, and the Peterson website at www.petersontuners.com to order the optional microphone or guitar cable adaptor.

Mahalo!

Peterson VS-F Stroboflip Tuner Review

Sugoi!

I have tried oodles of electronic tuners over the years, and have settled down to mostly using my Boss tuners. But I have been impressed with Peterson’s products before, so I decided to try their VS-F Stroboflip. When I saw that they were selling for $235, I figured I had better check one out to see if they could possibly be worth that much money.

Old-school mechanical strobotuners use a spinning wheel that shows different octaves and the strobe effect of the tuner will make one row of the wheel appear to stop for the octave that is being played, while the overtones for other octaves will move about depending on how far they are out of whack. The advantages of this are incredible accuracy (within 0.1 cent), along with an intangible coolness factor. The Peterson VS-F Stroboflip simulates this effect with a nice bright LCD display that is a little simpler to look at and more complicated to use.

The tuner is compact, measuring 3½ by 3½ by 1½ inches, and it weighs in at a little more than ½ pound -- it is certainly a compact package. The plastic chassis is disappointing at this price point, but it does include a mount so you can attach it to a mic stand or music stand, a clip-on tuning pickup, batteries (3xAA), an AC adapter and a 40-page owner’s manual. Though it is plastic, it has a somewhat sturdy feel and Peterson backs it with a 1-year warranty, which surprises me because their other products have a 3-year warranty.

This tuner has ¼-inch input and output jacks, as well as a built-in microphone on the face. Unlike their newer tuners, there is no USB port for installing new presets.

Peterson has made this tuner much more complicated by adding 34 preset temperaments and sweeteners. These are specific profiles for specific on instruments such as guitar, violin and viola, as well as for instruments fitted with the Buzz Feiten Tuning System. These take into account the string deflection and unique harmonics of the instrument to make tuning as accurate as possible. I have no use for these presets and thinks Sweetened Tunings is a terrible name, but guys who have OCD about tuning probably love this stuff.

The specs of this unit look ok on paper, with a tuning range of 16Hz to 3600Hz. Accuracy is guaranteed to be within 0.1 cent, and A 440Hz is adjustable from 390Hz to 490Hz. As far as I can tell, the Stroboflip delivers on these promises, and it was easy for me to use for conventional tunings. It did not add noise to my signal chain when put in my effects loop, and when I tried the tuner pickup it worked well too. The display is bright enough for most any environment, and it was able to pick up and hold notes better than any conventional needle-type digital tuner I have used. It is a nice tuner, though guitarist may want something beefier and simpler for stage use.

the downsides of plastic construction, a short warranty and oodles of programs that I do not need are enough to make me not want to buy this tuner. Many guitar players would agree, though it might the extra features might be a bonus for other musicians. So, if you are a guitar player that really wants to buy a strobotuner, skip the Stroboflip and go straight to the Peterson VSS-C Stomp Classic Strobotuner. It is cheaper ( around $200), is much more durable, has a three-year warranty and can also be used as an active DI box.

Mahalo!

Boss TU-10 Clip On Chromatic Tuner Review

Sugoi!

Over the past couple of years I have tried out and reviewed oodles of clip on electronic tuners over the past few years, and they all worked well. Clip on tuners are accurate, tiny and do not need to be plugged in, so they are pretty much the best thing since caned beer. All the ones I have used are nice tuners, but none of them were made by Boss, and Boss makes some of the most bad-ass portable tuners on the planet. Well, we are going to fix that oversight and take a look at the Boss TU-10 clip on tuner today.

On paper the TU-10 has great specifications. It has an 8 octave range (C0 to C8) and it is accurate to within +/- 1 cent. It is capable of flat tuning of up to 5 semitones, in case you swing that way. Also, it has two different display modes, cent display and stream display as well as the Boss Accu-Pitch function. And the display is nice and clear and is full color. not to mention bigger than any of the other clip on tuners I have seen.

It is powered by a single CR2032 lithium battery, which should last around 12 hours in color mode, and around 24 hours in black and white mode. This does not sound like very long, but how long do you really spend tuning? The tuner is well-built with a hefty clip that would hold it to most any headstock without falling off. There are minimal controls, which include a power switch on the top and a select switch and adjustment switch on the back. It is available in a few different stylish colors (red, silver, black), in the event that this is important to you.

In the real world this Boss TU works very well, with very quick reactions and a nicely readable display, and it is certainly more accurate than I will ever need. I like the operation of the controls and this thing would be awesome for other instruments too so do not pigeonhole it just for guitar use. Which is understandable as it seems like this thing was designed by a guitar player. It does not have a swivel head, and it is quite a bit bigger than other clip on tuners (2-7/8 x 1-5/16 x 2-1/2 inches), so guitarists are probably their target market.

Neatest of all is that the Boss TU-10 has a street price of $34.99 (list price $43.25), which makes it cheaper than any Boss tuner I have ever tested. It is pretty cool, so check one out if you get a chance.

Mahalo!

Peterson VSS-C Stomp Classic Strobotuner Review

Howdy!

Everybody and their brother makes a tuner pedal these days, and you can pick up most of them for under a hundred bucks, and clip-on tuners are so cheap that you can usually get one thrown in for free when you buy a new guitar. So when I saw the price of the Peterson VSS-C Stomp Classic Strobotuner, I was taken aback. It has a list price of $299 and a street price of $205. That is a lot of simoleons for a man of simple means, but it is one gnarly tuner.

You have probably seen the old Conn ST-11 strobotuners before – I remember the day our school orchestra got one back in 1980 or so, and it transformed my ideas about tuning. The Conn tuner uses a wheel that shows different octaves and the strobe effect of the tuner will make one row of the wheel appear to stop for the octave that is being played, while the overtones for other octaves will move about depending on how far they are out of whack. The advantages of this are incredible accuracy (within 0.1 cent), along with an intangible coolness factor. The Peterson VSS-C Stomp simulates all of this with a nice bright LCD display that is a little simpler to look at and use.

The pedal itself is normal sized, measuring 5 ¼ by 3 ¼ by 2 ¼ inches, but it is a brick, weighing in at around a pound. The die-cast chassis had built-in lugs for secure pedal board mounting, which is good as a strip of Velcro might not hold it in place. There is also a built-in cable guard to keep them from getting damaged. It has a very sturdy feel and Peterson backs it with a 3-year warranty, which I would expect at this price point. It uses one 9-volt battery, or you can use an AC adaptor (it draws 80mA).

This tuner has the usual Switchcraft ¼-inch in and outputs, but there is also a balanced XLR output, so the pedal can be used as a mutable active DI with user-selectable 3-stage attenuation. A USB port is provided to download new presets, if you find that the 23 preloaded ones are not sufficient.

The specs look really good on paper, with 100% true-bypass circuitry and a tuning range of 8Hz (go III-X!) to 8000Hz. The accuracy is guaranteed to be within 0.1 cent, and A 440Hz is adjustable from 390Hz to 490Hz. The Stomp Classic delivers on all of this, and it is easy to use for conventional tunings. It adds no noise to my signal chain, and there is no pop when the switch is pressed. Not to mention that the display is plenty bright for most any environment, and it will hold notes for longer than any other tuner I have tried. It is the best tuner pedal I have ever used. No doubt.

As an added bonus they include the 23 preset “Sweetened Tunings” (terrible name, by the way) that include specific programming for less common instruments such as the electric violin, 7 string guitars and mandolins, that take into account string deflection and unique harmonics to make tuning as accurate as possible. I use almost none of these presets, by the way.

So, I guess I am saying that the Peterson VSS-C Stomp Classic Strobotuner is worth every penny of the $205, but I would happily give up the programmability and the DI to get a tuner that was this accurate and well-built, for a few less bucks. Even in its current configuration you will not go wrong if you purchase this tuner – it is the best one on the market, and they guarantee it.

Mahalo!

Korg Pitchblack Chromatic Tuner Pedal Review

Como estas?

Everybody and their brother is making tuner pedals nowadays, and they are amazingly cheap for the performance you can get from them. So why buy one instead of another? It comes down to features, not catchy names, so Korg wasted their time naming their latest pedal the “Pitchblack” (get it?), when they could have spent their energy making a little more usable tuner.

The Pitchblack is a compact-sized pedal with a modern-looking sturdy cast aluminum case that is finished in stylish black. There is not much in the way of controls – just one beefy stomp switch on the front, and calibration and display switches on the back. It runs on a 9-volt battery or you can attach an AC adapter to power it up. There is an extra power output jack on the back that allows you to use this pedal as a power supply to support up the 200mA of other pedals. None of these cables are included, of course.

This Korg unit will tune between E0 (20.60Hz) and C8 (4,186 Hz), and the calibration can be adjusted easily with the switch on the back to change A440 between 436Hz and 445Hz. People might actually use that feature, but I don’t think I ever have. The accuracy is certainly good enough for me – I compared its reading to my Peterson and my Boss and it was the same. It’s rock and roll anyway, so how accurate does it need to be?

This stuff is all pretty standard, and about what I would expect any nice tuner pedal to do, but Korg tosses four different display mode into the mix, which really caught my interest. These modes can be selected by pressing the “DISPLAY” switch on the back of the unit. Here is a quick summary of each:

Meter: Almost like an analog meter tuner. The goal here is to get the green LED in the middle and both of the amber arrow LEDs lit up. If you cannot figure out how to use this mode, maybe you should be a singer instead.

Full Strobe: This kind of simulates my Peterson, and it immediately seemed familiar to me when I tried it. With this mode when you are in tune the eleven LED meters stop streaming and both of the amber LEDs illuminate. The LEDs stream from left to right if sharp, and right to left if flat. Steve Perry’s meter always streams from left to right…

Half Strobe: This is a hybrid of the Meter and Full Strobe modes, and I do not get how it is any better than either of those modes. The idea is to tune so that the LED meter no longer stream and so that the green LED in the middle and both of the amber arrow LEDs are lit up. Meh.

Mirror: This mode is the worst of the bunch. I am not going to waste brain cells trying to explain it.

The Korg tuner works well. It has true bypass, and in monkeying around with it I did not notice any change in tone with it plugged wither directly in line or in my pedal board. The LEDs and note indicator displays are bright enough to use outside, and they were viewable at all kind of angles. As I said earlier, it is plenty accurate as well.

I mostly used the Meter and Full Strobe modes, and liked the Full Strobe mode best of all. It reacted very quickly and it was quite intuitive and functional for me.

But, as always, there are a few things that I do not like. The Pitchblack mutes the signal when tuning, and the display turns off when the switch is pressed. So there is no provision for the tuner to work while you are playing. I like being able to watch my tuning sometimes as I am playing (especially on fretless) so this is a deal-breaker for me. My guess is that they designed the pedal this way to save battery life, but they should have checked with some end users before finalizing their design.

The list price for the Korg Pitchblack Chromatic Tuner pedal is a ridiculous $150, with a very sensible street price of $69.99. It comes in about $30 cheaper than my trusty Boss TU-3, so this could be a great deal for someone who does not mind that it mutes the signal when it is in use. But not me.

Mahalo!

Boss TU-12EX Tuner Review

Howdy!

I am sure that you all read Rex and The Bass every day and are still agog over my legendary review of Boss TU-12H tuner. Perhaps you wake up every day waiting for me to review its new brother, the Boss TU-12EX. Well, you wildest dreams are about to come true.

Boss introduced the TU-12 back in the 1980s, and it was the first and most popular of the new breed of reasonably-priced compact automatic tuners. There have been continuous updates and improvements over the years, and the TU-12EX has finally taken care of my biggest dislikes of the TU tuners, and has given me motivation to retire my trusty TU-12H.

The TU-12EX is still a little plastic box, although it is now a more fashionable black and gray, and it is thinner than before. This will make it easier to fit into gig bag pockets and hard case guitar cubbies.

The input and output jacks are still on the right side of the case, along with an AC adapter port. It is nice that “INPUT” and “OUTPUT” are identified in easy to read script on the front of the unit, instead impossible to see embossed letters on the side. This was a beef of mine with the TU-12H.

My other big problem with the TU-12H was that I would forget to turn it off, and the battery would die (which happened more often than I would like to admit). The TU-12EX has a battery-saving Auto-off, thank god. By the way, this tuner does not use the expected 9-volt battery; instead it uses two AA batteries. Hmm.

There is still no LCD screen on the TU-12EX, as it uses the traditional (and easy to read) orange-faced needle gauge with the arrow LEDs on either side. It now will beep at you when you are in tune (Accu-Pitch!), which is not something I care for but some folks might like it. You can turn this feature off.

The control switches are different tahn before. The slider switch is gone, having been replaced with a power switch and selections for chromatic/guitar tuning and pitch adjustment switches. They were really easy to figure out, so there was not much of an adjustment period for me.

It is set-up to automatically tune 5-string basses and 7-string guitars, and also has a flat-tuning mode so you can tune in half steps. It has a built-in piezo microphone for tuning acoustic instruments and has an 8 ½ octave range that accurate to 1 cent.

Surprisingly, Boss also included 5 octaves of reference pitches (in half steps), in case you want to tune by ear. The tuner is adjustable ( A438 to A445) for tuning to another instrument (or Steve Perry) that may not be perfectly in tune.

I have used this one for the past few months and have been very happy with it. It is accurate, and it discerns what string is being tuned very quickly, and does not switch randomly between notes. It is a peach.

The price for the Boss TU-12EX is still reasonable, considering its accuracy and features. It has a list price of $137.50 and a street price of $99.00. If you need a new tuner, you ought to check one out.

Mahalo!

Tascam TC-1S Tuner Review

Hiya!

I hate having to buy and replace batteries, so I was intrigued when I heard about the Tascam TC-1S tuner. You see, this is a solar-powered tuner, so you would never have to worry about it crapping out on you during a gig or having to go to Radio Shack to find a bizarre-sized replacement battery at the last minute.

At first I thought “What a dumb idea, it is always dark at gigs, so how is it going to get power?” Well, it turns out that the TC-1S is solar rechargeable, and can also be recharged from with its micro USB port. When fully charged, it will work for about 6 hours of continual use, and has a standby charge life of seven years. There must be some Lithium Ion in there somewhere.

The TC-1S is attractive and compact. It has a silicone cover that comes in six different colors, and includes a clip so you can clip it to something. Actually, I have not figured out what I would want to clip it to, but maybe something will come up. It measures about 3 ¾” by ¾“ by 1 ½”, and weighs just a couple of ounces.

There is a ¼-inch input jack as well as a microphone, but there is no output jack. The controls are simple, with a power, mode and calibration switches. The mode switch provides four options: a bar tuning, fine tuning, strobe animation and needle animation. The calibration switch allows tuning to a different pitch (a piano that is slightly off, for example).

The tuner is accurate to one cent, and the fine tuning mode is in one cent intervals. It responds very quickly, and works well on my guitars and basses. I have used it a fair bit and have never had the charge crap out on me, so the solar charging works well.

But…the LCD display sucks. It is hard to read unless you are looking directly at it, and there is no backlight so forget about using it in the dark. I guess it would be ok for around the house, but I really cannot recommend it with all of the better choices that are out there. You can buy a Snark Tuner that is easy to read and works in the dark for about 15 bucks, and you will get a lot more features, including a metronome.

The Tascam TC-1S solar tuner has a list price of $39.99, and a street price of $20 to $25. Buyer beware...

Mahalo!

Snark SN-1 Tuner Review

Hiya!

I promised last month to do a review of the Snark SN-1 guitar tuner, which is my favorite of the new crop of clip-on instrument tuners. This tuner is designed to be used primarily for guitar or bass, but Snark has other tuners that can be used for other instruments.

The Snark has the same features of the other tuners I have tried; it has a nice clamp with padded jaws to hold it in place, and uses the instrument’s vibrations to determine the state of tune. Like the others out there It is also simple to use and has an easy to read display.

The SN-1 has more to offer, though. Instead of a simple swivel, it uses a ball joint so you can adjust the head to whatever angle is best. The display is also more colorful (and useful) than its competitors, and is quite a bit larger because they put most of the buttons on the back and side. These switches are for pitch calibration, the metronome and two arrow keys for adjustment.

Metronome and pitch calibration? I’m sold! The metronome is pretty basic, but works great for me to provide a basic visual beat for practice. The calibration is adjustable from 415 to 466 Hz; accuracy is tight at +/- 1 cent. And lastly this Snark tuner has is the ability to either flat tune or transpose. That is a lot of features for a small (and inexpensive) package.

The SN-1 uses a 3V lithium battery, which is accessed through the bottom of the case. I have not killed this one yet, but it is a common size and they are
inexpensive.

Inexpensive is a good word for this tuner, too. The list price on the SN-1 is $29, and I easily found them online for under $15, which is a good price for what you get.

So, I plunked down my hard-earned cash and bought one. Unfortunately, the first Snark I bought was dead on arrival, which was a bad way to start our relationship. I returned it for one that did work, and it works very well.

The tuner responds quickly when a string is plucked, and the color display makes easy to tell quickly whether a string is sharp or flat and by how much. There is no external microphone, so it has to be attached to the instrument to work, but at this price point I am ok with that. I do not have a high-zoot tuner to compare it to, so I cannot vouch for their accuracy claims.

The metronome works fine and is not too hard to adjust. The markings for the buttons are pretty small, and as I get older it gets harder to see stuff like that, but that is not the tuner’s fault.

So, the Snark SN-1 is easy to use and has plenty of features that you will not find in the other clip-on tuners that are available today. It is a winner and well worth the $15.

Mahalo!

Kala KC-02 Clip-on Ukulele Tuner

Hiya!

I got my Kala KC-02 clip-on ukulele tuner for free when I bought a ukulele, and it is not a bad product. But, after working with it awhile I would not purchase another because it is not very versatile nor is it the best value for the money.

It is a basic tuner that works like many other products on the market (they are probably all made by the same company). It clips to the headstock and uses vibrations from the instrument to display whether the instrument is in tune. Unlike some other tuners out there it does not have a built-in microphone, so it has to be clipped to the instrument to work.

Operation is very simple – there is one button on the front that is pressed to turn the unit ON or OFF, and if the button is held it can be switched between C tuning, D tuning or Chromatic (meaning you can tune other instruments besides ukes).

The notes is displayed on the LCD screen along with a needle showing how close the string is to being in tune. When the pitch is correct, the needle swings to the 12 o’clock position, and the display tunes from blue to green. Simple, huh?

It is well-enough made. The clip is rubber-coated so it will not scratch the finish on your ukulele, and the case is rubberized plastic so it does not feel too cheap. It uses some sort of large flat battery, and I shudder to think how much it will cost when it comes time to replace it.

I compared it to another cheap-ass tuner that I got for free (O’ahu brand – it looks almost identical), and they both seemed to provide the same readings. So the thing is consistent, at least.

But I am not sure that it is very accurate. There are other tuners in this price range that are adjustable, and that moves them ahead of the Kala on my list. And to take it a step further, there are $15 tuners (like the Snark) that are adjustable AND have a built-in microphone AND a metronome.

The Kala KC-02 tuner has a suggested retail price of $24.99, and a street price of about $16.00. Due to its Spartan array of features I would be hard-pressed to recommend it, especially when you consider the better options out there.

Stay tuned for my review of the Snark SN-1 tuner.

Mahalo!

Boss TU-12H Chromatic Tuner

How’s it going?

What do I really expect from a chromatic tuner? Not much, really: accuracy, simplicity and a reasonable price. Boss (part of the Roland Corporation) has been doing this for years with their effects pedals and with their venerable tuners.

I use a Boss TU-3 on my bass pedalboard, but in my practice space I exclusively use a Boss TU-12H tuner. I choose the TU-12H because I play the acoustic guitar quite a bit, and there is no microphone built into the TU-3.

In addition to the condenser microphone, on the TU-12H there is also a ¼-inch input jack located on the right side of the case. A ¼-output jack is included so the TU-12H can be used in-line.

This tuner uses a standard 9-volt battery, and it does not suck through batteries very quickly (unless you forget to turn it off, like I do). If you want to invest in an adapter, there is a power jack located on the right side of the case. Boss recommends the PSA-120 adapter, which is the same one for almost all of their effect pedals. If you are going to run the tuner in line and leave it on the whole time you are playing, you should go buy an adapter.

The controls are simple, with an ON/OFF switch that allows you to choose a low or high frequency range, and “PITCH”, “UP”, and “DOWN” switches. The “UP” and “DOWN” switches are used to hold a specific tone, or when used with the “PITCH” switch allow the user to change the reference pitch (A) from 440 to 445 Hz in 1Hz increments. There are corresponding LEDs that let you know what you are doing when you are messing with the switches.

But, I NEVER use those extra switches. I just turn it on go. It automatically detects and displays the note being played, and shows how close it is to being in tune. And, unlike cheaper tuners, it does not the spastically jump around all over the place and frustrate the crap out of me. The TU-12H is able to latch onto the strongest tone and hold it while I am tuning.

I can see what I am doing with high-visibility sharp/flat arrow LED indicators, as well as a really smooth analog meter for final fine tuning. All this and I never have to take my hands off my guitar. Handy!

But it is able to work with more than just guitars. It has a very wide range (from C1 to B6), and will also work with most all string, brass and woodwind instruments.

The TU-12H tuner is a handy size. It measures about 6 inches wide by 2 inches deep by 1 ½ inches tall. It is pretty light, coming in at around 6 ounces. It is small and light enough that I needed to put some Velcro on it so it does not slide around too much when I have it plugged in. Oh yeah, and it comes in a nice vinyl case, too.

I was going to give the Boss TU-12H a hearty thumbs-up until I went online to check out the current price and found out it had been discontinued. It has been replaced by the Boss TU-12EX, which is also reasonably priced.

So, I guess you will have to stay tuned for a review of their newest model.

Mahalo!