Posted in: Guitar by ron citrus on January 5th, 2009 | 0 Comments
An introduction to digital guitar tuners. what to buy, depending on how you’re going to be playing.
Tuning your guitar is a relatively simple affair. Choosing the right gadget to do it is a bit more complicated. There are a few different kinds available on the market, varying greatly in function and price – it pays well to work out which one is best for you.
if you’re tuning an acoustic guitar, there are a 3 ways to tune up. The oldest and most reliable method is to play a note on another instrument which is already in tune. Pitch pipes are the cheapest way to do this, unless you have a keyboard plugged in nearby. Modern pitch pipes have six pipes relating to the six string of the guitar. Blow “em and tune your strings to match.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/isingbass/357369310/
Then we get in to the modern digital world. A standard guitar tuner has a small microphone built into it which detects the pitch of the string and displays it on a readout (usually an LCD needle on a meter). These days the tuner will find the nearest note to the one being played and tell you how flat or sharp you are. They will usually light up green to tell you when the note is bang-on. These tend to be the cheapest on the market.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/raster/2234738240/
Piezo tuners are a recent development that rely on the vibration transmitted through the instrument rather than sound waves passing through the air. They clip onto the headstock of the guitar and display the note being played. These give you the advantage of being able to tune up while everyone else does too. – They wont be confused by other sounds, unless it”s really loud bass which will shake everything it touches.
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If you’re plugged into an amplifier or a PA, then you can plug into a tuner. This will allow you to tune up without interference from other sounds, as the microphone on the tuner will be bypassed. Also you can tune up without being heard. This is where it starts to get complicated. Some tuners will allow you to plug in, and then output to your amp. – This means that the guitar signal will always be heard, whether the tuner is switched on or not. – You will need to unplug your guitar and plug straight into the input of the tuner in order to tune in silence. If your main concern is that you definitely don’t want to be heard while tuning up (i.e. you’re on stage and the lead vocalist is telling an amusing story between songs) then you’ll need a pedal tuner.
If you’re serious about playing live and being able to stay in tune, you’ll need a pedal tuner, such as the Boss TU-2
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jason_burmeister/3114247579/
Stomp on the pedal to silently tune up. The display is also large and bright enough so that you don’t need to crouch down and squint at it on a dark stage. Stomp the pedal again, and you’re ready to rock n roll. These are the most expensive kind. they need to be rugged to withstand all that stomping.
