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Guitar Tuners ?
I have 2 software guitar tuners, the one in Tonestack Pro and Nembrini's free one.
In addition, I have a hardware clip-on tuner.
The clip-on tuner always registers at ~5 cents sharp. The 2 software tuners show identical readings.
Anyone know why the clip-on is always sharp? (It analyzes pitch using vibration instead of from the pickups like the software tuners.)
Comments
What happens when you run the software tuners at different sample rates (44.1kHz, 48kHz, 96kHz)?
What’s the clip-on tuner?
I tried different sample rates and the results are the same.
Here's the clip-on tuner i ordered from Amazon -
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BB7D77RV?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
Have you tried the tuner on a variety of guitars?
Unfortunately no, I only have the one guitar.
Any ideas? (why the clip-on always registers at ~5 cents sharp. The 2 software tuners show identical readings.)
I'm thinking the clip-on is inaccurate.
Go to a guitar store and test it on other guitars
Is it possible that the clip-on tuner has a setting to keep the unwound strings a little flat (although 5c seems more than I would imagine to be good)? Quite a few guitarists I know (myself included) tune the unwound strings slightly flat when tuning by ear as it sounds more correct. When checking with a tuner the slightly flat strings become obvious.
Guitar tuning is an odd thing as a perfectly tuned guitar doesn’t sound quite right when strumming chords.
Good idea, wish I could.
The clip-on tuner just has the basic modes - chromatic, guitar, bass, violin, etc. - no special settings. It was only $13 and included a good capo and some picks, so if the tuner is bad, it's no big loss. I'll get a namebrand clip-on tuner later.
Mooer usually does good stuff.
Go to a guitar store and compare your tuner to other clip-ons to see if they agree. If your tuner is always 5 cts flat, see if tuning to be be 5 cts sharp per the tuner results in being in tune. if reads reliably 5 cts flatter than the true pitch, you should be ok.
This tuner is excellent: https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/UniTuneClip--tc-electronic-unitune-clip-clip-on-chromatic-tuner
On the iPad, the Peterson can’t be beat. Unfortunately, it isn’t available as a plugin: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/istrobosoft/id308296029
Thanks for the recommendation, I saved that one to my wishlist.
Thanks, I'll try to do that. Strange that the clip-on tuner has a 4.4 star rating out of 5 on Amazon. I'm thinking my guitar has some kind of 'sympathetic resonance' that tricks the clip-on tuner.
I've seen their pedals, will check out their tuners. The Boss TU-5 and TU-2 look got for the money too.
If you are looking to get a new clip-on I highly recommend getting a stroboscopic one (similar tech to the app Schmotown recommended). I have this one and it's really accurate and also comes with sweetener settings for a better result when strumming chords:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Peterson-SC-HD-Clip-Tuner-Black/dp/B06ZZX99G8
I'm thinking you're right.
Depending on your experience, five cents is enough that you can hear the difference. If you want to follow up without spending more money, you could search YouTube for reference pitch recordings and compare those with your guitar when it's tuned with the clip-on. Whether that will give satisfaction I don't know.
I don't recognize the brand of the clip-on you've had. I'm guessing that expensive tuners are more accurate than cheap ones. There's probably a sweet spot where you can maximize accuracy and minimize cost, but I haven't looked into it. My own favorite clip-ons are the Polytune and Unitune made by TC Electronics. (The Unitune is distributed exclusively by Sweetwater, which had them on a very good sale last year.) I also have a couple of Korg tuners, and I've seen nothing to make me distrust them. For setting intonation, I prefer a pedal: my favorite, by far, is a Peterson, which also makes clip-ons. Like everything, these things seem to have gone up in price.
Thanks! I didn't realize stroboscopic tuners could be miniaturized to fit into a clip-on case.
Thank you for the recommendations. The TC and Peterson are in my wishlist.
My guitar is very resonant (it's a semi-hollowbody like an ES-335) so maybe that's throwing off the clip-on tuner. I'll see if I can test it against the more expensive tuners.
There’s tons of great tuners on the App Store.
I’ve never had a clip on but I wonder if it has something to do with…
I’ve found several apps to be very effective, there’s about 500 of them out there. Here’s a few I like.
Tunable
Tuner T1 Pro
LH Tuner - I think this one is still free
Custom Tuner
DropD
LunaTuna
Guitar Tuna
Ultimate Guitar Tabs has a tuner inside as well.
I suggest not drawing any conclusions based on one experience with one particular instance of one brand clip-on tuner.
I'm thinking something similiar since the clip-on uses vibrarion to tune, instead of the pickups. I'm going to buy a more expensisve, namebrand clip-on and see.
I'm using the same strings as stock - D'Addario EXL110 (10-46).
Thanks for the list. The Nembrini AUv3 tuner is useful. I have the 4pockets one too, but haven't used it with my guitar. You asked if the guitar has the right size strings - it does, 10-46.
I've discovered that this particular guitar has a manufacturing defect - the tune-o-matic bridge leans back towards the stoptail piece, so properly intonating the D and High E string is impossible - there's not enough travel left for the saddles. Basically whomever drilled the holes for the bridges didn't drill them 90 degrees (perpendicular) to the body.
To nerd out for a moment....
I'd guess that most software based tuning apps are doing a discrete Fast Fourier Transform of the incoming signal, to pick out the resonant frequencies. The FFT is more accurate on higher frequency signals, so my app (MIDImorphosis), and many others, likely utilize multiple frequencies to get an average "base frequency." The clock rates and sampling rates of modern electronics like an iPad are really really accurate.
Clip-on tuners are usually picking up the strongest (and lowest) frequency; they need a longer sample time to get an accurate measure, and the strength of different harmonics can cause glitches (for example, you might see a clip-on toggle between detecting an E or a B, when plucking the low E). In the inexpensive electronics, you're going to have more variation in clock rate, so I'd trust a clip on tuner a bit less. I've been pretty happy with Snark clip-on tuners (and the company that makes them is the one that resurrected the Danelectro brand, so I've got a lot of love for them).
From the photo, the first thing I'd check is the neck -- if it's bolt-on, you may be able to realign it slightly. It looks like the high E string does not go directly over the pickup screw, which suggests to me that the side-to-side angle is off. Also, if the neck has a bow to it, or the action is high, you're going to struggle with intonation. Fret heights, and how much finger pressure you play with, also impacts the intonation.
To get intonation close-to-right across the entire fretboard, I usually tune most of my guitars very slightly below pitch on open strings, so that when I'm fretting on the neck, the pressure brings things to just a hair above pitch. Every player is different, so it may take some work to find the "sweet spot."
WRT the bridge itself -- you can take the saddle off the D and flip it around (same orientation as the top three strings), and get a little more room for intonation.
Probably just a cheap tuner. At the bottom of this article there is a review of an identical tuner (different brand) with equally poor results. I've been using the polytune clip for years. It's as accurate as you need it to be: regular or polyphonic tuning for gigs, strobe tuning for the studio.
Thank you for the tips. Lots of good information there. I like your idea about flipping a saddle.
It's a set-neck. The bridge pickup ring is crooked and not centered. That's another defect. And I set the action low - very good playable neck. I'm sending it back.
Thanks, I read the article and, yup, that's the same crappy clip-on tuner. The one he tested was consistently off, just like mine, I guess.
@SecretBaseDesign Are those all your guitars? Wow. What's the beauty facing the camera?
It's most of the collection. Over the pandemic, I started building guitars from kits; these are inexpensive, somewhere between $100 and $250 for most kits. A bit of time, a few bucks in paint, and you can wind up with a nice guitar at the end of things.
The guitar in front is a Jaguar/Jazzmaster-style kit from a company called Fretwire (now out of business, unfortunately). You'll note the Secret Base logo on the headstock (and that's showing up on most of the other kit guitars as well). My plan for tomorrow is to do the final buff and polish on two more kits (one PRS-style, one LP), with those being guitars 15 and 16 on the build list. Building is addictive; I have far too many guitars, but I'm constantly thinking of what I should get next.
Very nice. Your logo looks great - it's your own guitar! I'd love to see 15 and 16. That sounds like a great hobby. How are the quality of the kits? I guess it depends on the price?
Thanks for everyone's input.
I think I am going to buy the D'Addario Micro Tuner.
btw, I had to send that D'Angelico guitar back since the bridge was mounted incorrectly. There was no room left for the saddles to intonate the D and High E string. They're shipping me another one that checks out.
Mooer produces crap and backs that up with the worst support ever, stay clear