Fastest Tuner

[Earl Gamage]

I got the Planet Waves mini headstock tuner and it's very handy, but it is slow. It got me to wondering what is the quickest or fastest tuner.

[reddykillowatt]

I also got the planet waves mini tuner. I was not satisfied with it and ordered the new Snark SN8 black tuner. It is quick with super tight tuning. I have tried 5 different tuners and this is the best.

[yankees1]

Snark is a great tuner!

[if6was9]

Peterson stroboclip is the fastest that I know of. It is essentially instant because of its methodology.

[Mike Bunting]

Peterson stroboclip is the fastest that I know of. It is essentially instant because of its methodology.

And the most accurate.

[Markus]

If you asked me, a plug-in tuner is fastest. My ST-200 responds faster and more stable readings than any of my clipons.

I have grown to prefer it over the Peterson or my others by a.long shot.

[yankees1]

And the most accurate.

Boy, I looked this tuner up and it sure is expensive! Around seventy bucks! Is it really that much faster and accurate than a thirteen dollar snark?

[Folkmusician.com]

You will find a Peterson tuner on a good portion of Professional workbenches. They are the standard. The Snark is the current value leader.

[ColdBeerGoCubs]

I bought the new Snark and the Plante Waves Mini the same day.

One thing I used to dislike about the snark I now appreciate and thats the oddball design. The new screen is also better and it does lock on faster. And while the design does make it easier to see around your hand while tuning, I still hate having that thing hanging off the headstock, not for visual reasons, but with its death grip I can see a knock doing some headstock damage.

The new mini is nice in that it tucks away and can be left on, but that also means it can be blocked when your hand is on a tuning button. It doesn't lock quite as fast as the Snark, but pretty quick in its own right. Both have shown pretty much the same reading so I cant say if one is more accurate or not.

[foldedpath]

Boy, I looked this tuner up and it sure is expensive! Around seventy bucks! Is it really that much faster and accurate than a thirteen dollar snark?

It's not that the internal accuracy is so much faster and accurate, because all electronic tuners have high internal accuracy. It's how the information is displayed. The Peterson StroboClip has a display that is more sensitive than a simple needle-type or single "you're on!" LED display, because it shows upper harmonics as well as the fundamental note.

Tuners that have a single LCD needle, or a step LED display, may appear to lock quickly, but there are always questions about how much leeway there is for lighting up that last LED or needle pixel that says you're "in tune." In other words the display resolution (and method) may be much coarser than the internal accuracy of the digital tuner chip. The StroboClip display may look more fussy, or jittery as you're tuning, but it's actually showing more information to work with. For those who are comfortable reading that display -- and not everyone likes it, to be sure -- it can allow very accurate tuning.

I don't know about "faster".... depending on your instrument and personal tolerance for being just a wee bit out, it might actually be a little slower to tune with a StroboClip because, again, it's showing you more info to work with.

The StroboClip is also part of a family of tuners that work the same way, including the StroboStomp pedal tuner, the StroboFlip that clamps to a stand or sits on a table, the older brick-style tuners, and then up to the pro bench tuners. So it's a natural choice for anyone who is already in that "tuner ecosystem," and is familiar with how the display works.

Speaking of which, I'd agree with the other post above about how inline tuners (running off pickup or mic signals) are almost always easier to use. They're getting a stronger signal to work with, where the fundamental pitch isn't obscured by additional resonances when traveling through wood before reaching the vibration pickup. I like my StroboClip, but it only gets used when it's not practical to use my StroboFlip (with a clip-on pickup on the bridge) or my StroboStomp tuner with an inline signal.

We do have a Snark in the house. My S.O. bought it for her fiddle, out of curiosity. She ended up not using it, and prefers a larger Turbo Tuner ST-122 (a different way of displaying "strobe" information). So the Snark is now part of a small collection of spare tuners available to lend out for house jams. The Snark is a good bang for the buck, but it isn't going to replace my StroboClip.

[mandroid]

still gotta turn the knobs, that is the slow part.. the operator.

[journeybear]

Puny humans! Exterminate! Exterminate!

[Markus]

We do have a Snark in the house. My S.O. bought it for her fiddle, out of curiosity. She ended up not using it, and prefers a larger Turbo Tuner ST-122 (a different way of displaying "strobe" information).

Yep, I have the plug-only version of that one, it made me realize I'm one of those `strobe people'.

I prefer my string pairs well matched, and find the strobe tuners to leave me remarkably close to dead-on. Non-strobe tuners can leave me dead on, but often require quite a bit more ear-tuning to match.

On stage, at a jam, or in a loud environment that's hard to do and is an additional step to the process. I find the strobe tuners [whether ST-200 or Stroboclip] seriously cut down on the `post-tuner matching' phase of tune-up. To me, that's the fiddly part of mandolin playing that I do not need when I'm trying to perform, chat between songs, or appear entertaining while on stage.

I have learned to never turn your tuner off until that post-tuner by-ear refining is done - people playing other instruments see that and launch into song, not realizing many mandolinners want a little ear tuning too.

I'll deal with whatever tuner is available, but find myself fiddling less and liking the sound more with my strobes. For me, money well spent as it deals with the major hassle to double-string instruments.

[journeybear]

I've used an IntelliTouch ever since they came out - what, 20 years ago? - and found them very easy to use, and also good on batteries. The last few years have seen a flood of similar tuners, much cheaper (mine cost $50) and smaller. My concern is more about battery drain than speed, as the brands I have tried out seem comparable in operation otherwise. (No, I haven't encountered a Peterson yet.) This is something that would only show up after owning one for a while, as different from testing one in a store, and I have seen complaints about this. I have to replace mine, so I would appreciate input. Thanks!

[Cheryl Watson]

I'm trying another new battery in my black Snark, but has anyone else noticed their battery dying rather quickly?

[llg]

I have to agree with Journeybear...My Intellitouch units are both 10+ years old. The black one with the bells and whistles had one battery change when I sent it back to factory while still under warrany 9 years ago. The white cheaper one has never had a battery change. both work well. I have never tried any others because quite frankly, why do I need anything else. I keep the black one in the mandolin case, the white one in the guitar case. They always work...period...nuff said. I guess I would now try a snark or something cheaper if I needed another one, but I'm betting they won't be as durable. (by the way, the only reason I had to send the black one back in the first place is because I somehow hit the wrong button and entered a diff. mode and I lost the instructions so I thought it was torn up...it wasn't, I was just an idiot, yet they fixed it for me and replaced the battery for free. Can't beat that.)

[Ivan Kelsall]

I carry an Intelli IMT 500 clip on in both my Mandolin cases.They're inexpensive at £15 UK ($24 US) & they seem pretty good despite sometimes not easily distinguishing between the G & D notes.They use a CR2032 Lithium battery & they're lasting well over 2 years. In fact i write the dates of the new battery replacements on the inside of the boxes. I put a new battery in one of them on the 28th May 2007 & the next replacement was 18th March 2010.That one's still going.The 2nd tuner which i bought on 24th Nov. 2011 hasn't needed a new battery yet,
Ivan

[lukmanohnz]

The Peterson strobe tuner is also available as an iPhone app. Since I always have my phone with me, I always have a tuner with me. It's costlier than other apps ($10) but I've seen it go on sale occasionally. I have a few other app-based tuners and the Peterson is my favorite. If you want to use it with a pickup-equipped mandolin, there are several companies that sell an accessory for the iPhone to provide a standard 1/4 inch phone plug input - or you can roll your own. This is the most economical way to get a Peterson strobe tuner - assuming you already own an iPhone, of course.

[stonefingers]

I have been using the Intellitouch PT10 for the last couple of years and been very happy. Last week I ordered a Snark SN8, and must admit that so far I love it.

[G7MOF]

Accuracy rather than speed is what I look for, I've tried a few but love my Crafter TG-200H chromatic tuner!!!

[Ivan Kelsall]

It's not the sort that you could realistically carry around in a case,but the Peterson Bench Tuner ( a now discontinued model) that my luthier used after he'd set up my Guitar recently, was incredibly fast & accurate.I think that the Peterson 'StroboFlip' has replaced it,
Ivan

[Douglas McMullin]

Instant and accurate: ST-122 Strobe Tuner.

http://www.turbo-tuner.com/

[Duccy]

It's not the sort that you could realistically carry around in a case,but the Peterson Bench Tuner ( a now discontinued model) that my luthier used after he'd set up my Guitar recently, was incredibly fast & accurate.I think that the Peterson 'StroboFlip' has replaced it,
Ivan

I think the StroboFlip has been discontinued as well, there may still be some available at shops though.

[Kagey]

I've got several diffrent ones , for the money the Snark is tough to beat, I use it on my mandolins, make My son use one of the others on his guitar

[TheMandoKit]

I think the StroboFlip has been discontinued as well, there may still be some available at shops though.

Peterson's website shows it as still available. I have one, and it is pretty hard to beat for accuracy and speed, although as Ivan pointed out, it is not exactly something you tuck away in a case.

I like the Snarks as well, and have a few of them strewn about and in cases. The Planet Waves NS is nice, although I am not sure it is as accurate as others, at least not that I have seen. I like the original Intellitouch as well, but it has trouble with some instruments (classical guitar) and some pitches.

I have two tuners on my phone: gStrings, which is a nice basic "needle on a meter" tuner, and DaTuner, which has a virtual strobe display as well as other options. Both are pretty good, fairly fast, and seem to be accurate. They are both for the Android platform; don't know if they are available for others.

I guess I am a bit of a tuner junkie.