'Red Snark' Tuners.

[Ivan Kelsall]

I've used a Red Snark tuner for around 3 years or so & it's the best tuner i own. I also have 2 Intelli IMT 500 clip ons as well. A couple of weeks ago,one of them got permanently 'stuck' on the G note for some reason. I tried everything i could think of to get it back working to no avail. So - i bought a second Red Snark. The first one i bought,has the 'corrugated' rubber clamp on it,the one which some folks have found to leave a 'footprint' on the finish of their mandolin headstock. This new one has a completely flat,smooth clamp, similar to the Intelli clamp,with nothing to cause damage.
I only mention this incase anybody's been put off buying a Snark tuner because of any potential damage.
It seems as though the manufactures have heeded the complaints that folk have had,
Ivan

[mandotim1955]

Good info, Ivan. I have lots of Snarks, and I've never had a problem with marking. However, I now don't use any of them. The TC Electronics Polytune clip-on is simply the best tuner I've ever seen or used. The search is over for me!

[Ivan Kelsall]

Hi Tim - I just checked out the Polytune clip-on & over here,it's more than twice the cost of a Red Snark ($49.0 US) The info. doesn't give any size dimensions. My Snarks are slim enough to go inside the compartments of any of my mando.cases with no problems,although i get the impression that the Polytune isn't exactly 'large'. I'll buy a 3rd clip-on tuner & sideline my other Intelli,so i might just go for a Polytune as a change,
Ivan

[AlanN]

+1 for Polytune. Easier all around. I was a Snark guy, have a few around here, compared to this one, they seem clunky and oversized.

[Astro]

I have a new black Snark and an old red one. I like the black one better.

[Ron McMillan]

More than one problem with my red Snark, so it's a goner and there are no more Snarks in this buyer's future

[fatt-dad]

Ivan gets an amen from me! I love my red Snark!

f-d

[pops1]

I like the planet waves, about the same size as the polytune, very compact.

[CelticDude]

I'm also a fan of the Snarks, although they do eat batteries pretty quickly. I've been trying to talk myself into the Petersen strobe clip-on. Anyone know how that compares to the TC Electronics?

One can usually find the Snarks very cheap, so it's hard to not just get another of those if it dies (I have 2 that no longer work). For the price of the the TC I can get 3 Snarks, and have.

[Zach Wilson]

I love my red and black Snark tuners. Both work great! However, the red can switch between a mic and vibration which is very helpful in loud circle jams. I've never seen any 'footprint' residue from it. I don't leave it clipped on all the time either though.

Eventually they will get lost or break and I might try something else. But for now I'm satisfied with the Snark.

[renoyd]

The Polytune is far more accurate than the Snarks, with more resolution. When you use both at the same time, the Snark will give that OK center indication while the Polytune goes in much farther so notes can be nailed on the head, and it is an audible difference. NFI, just personal comparing.

[Mandobart]

I still have some old battered red Snarks - most of them the socket part of the joint at the tuner end has broken and I've used a variety of repairs, mostly a rebuild with two part plumbing epoxy putty that maintains joint functionality. I've also lost the rubber foot on the clip end on more than one of these. Just superglue cork gasket material in place. Its easier on the finish than the rubber anyway. I like the black "super tight" Snarks the best. The black cheap Snarks aren't as good as the red. By "good" I mean they don't always work in a noisy environment.

The great thing about Snark is they work equally well on fiddle, mando, OM, guitar, 'cello and bass. Many tuners can't pick up the lower register. Also the snark clip fits a fiddle scroll. My old intellitune is great for mando but won't fit where I want it on my fiddles and won't hear my guitars or mandocellos.

[allenhopkins]

Second the red Snark's microphone feature as a selling point. Tuning Autoharps when there's no decent place to attach a clip-on, I'm really thankful for the ability to switch to "mic."

Snarks aren't ideal, but I've gotten lotsa mileage out of mine. Some of the extended discussions of this tuner vs. that tuner, seem to be expositions of personal preference, or of extending an individual good or bad experience, into a general evaluation.

Of course, Consumer Reports does the same thing, in aggregate, so shouldn't quibble. I'm content to say I like red Snarks, will continue to use 'em, but respect others' differing opinions. I just think back to my first electronic chromatic tuner, which cost $79 or so, was half the size of a brick, and was state of the art back then. Lotsa progress since then, right?

[Ron McMillan]

Allen is of course correct that everyone is perfectly entitled to decide upon their own favourites. I liked the easy-to-read display of my Red Snark, but nothing else about it. It always struck me as oversized and pot-ugly.

I now have Planet Waves NS Micros on three mandolins, and wouldn't swap them for any other model. Small, so unobtrusive that they can stay on the mandolin at all times, and plenty accurate enough for my needs. I know, I know - some people cringe at the idea of a tuner staying in place, but I figure it does less damage than hundreds of clamp-on-unclamp manoeuvres otherwise required; the Micro is also affixed just above the nut, meaning zero damage to headstock logo areas.

[almeriastrings]

The TC Polytune is the nicest, most accurate, clip-on tuner I have ever used. I have also owned the Petersen clip (and also the Strobo HD 'bench' tuner). The TC is deadly accurate, very easy to read even in bad/bright light, and is smaller and lighter than the Snarks.... would not want to go back to anything else. Worth every penny, and cheap at the price.

[Ivan Kelsall]

From Celticdude - "...they do eat batteries pretty quickly". I suppose that's down to how much you use them. The last time i replaced the battery in my first Snark,was 3 years ago. I print the replacement date on a piece of paper which i keep in my 'bits & pieces' compartment.I also do that after re-stringing ie. ''when & what brand''.
Re. ''accuracy'' - just how more accurate do you need to be except ''in tune'' ?. I have a 'G' tuning fork (Guitar 3rd string), & both my Intelli & Snark register a perfect G note if tested with the tuning fork. The big benefit of the Snark is that after re-stringing,as long as the strings aren't flapping around,the Snark will pick up on any note. The Intelli doesn't register anything until there's a fair bit of string tension,& when tuning the G & D strings,sometimes it gets 'confused'.
Thanks for the size info. Almeria - I might just go for a Polytune for my Weber case,
Ivan

[Jess L.]

... Polytune... The info. doesn't give any size dimensions. My Snarks are slim enough to go inside the compartments of any of my mando.cases with no problems,although i get the impression that the Polytune isn't exactly 'large'.

Quick pics of my Polytune next to a stainless-steel ruler, inches at top:





(If for some reason the above pics aren't viewable, here are the approximate dimensions: The tuner's face is about 2 5/16" (approx 5.9cm) by about almost 1" (approx 2.4cm). The total thickness *including* the clip and extremely-sturdy-looking metal hinge, is about 1" or approx 2.5cm.)

I used to use a Korg AW-2 which I thought was noticeably better than my previous Snark (can't remember which model of Snark), but the Polytune is even easier to use than the Korg. A few months ago I made a quick video comparison of Polytune to Korg AW-2. I also like the durable hinge/clip on the Polytune, although it doesn't swivel which can be inconvenient, but the Polytune will also work upside-down (on the back of the peg-head) and the display rotates automatically to keep up with how it's positioned, kinda nifty feature. I've had good luck so far with the battery life.

[Bigtuna]

I've used a Red Snark tuner for around 3 years or so & it's the best tuner i own. I also have 2 Intelli IMT 500 clip ons as well. A couple of weeks ago,one of them got permanently 'stuck' on the G note for some reason. I tried everything i could think of to get it back working to no avail. So - i bought a second Red Snark. The first one i bought,has the 'corrugated' rubber clamp on it,the one which some folks have found to leave a 'footprint' on the finish of their mandolin headstock. This new one has a completely flat,smooth clamp, similar to the Intelli clamp,with nothing to cause damage.
I only mention this incase anybody's been put off buying a Snark tuner because of any potential damage.
It seems as though the manufactures have heeded the complaints that folk have had,
Ivan

Do you have a picture of the new clamp on the red snark? I still love mine, but the Polytune did look Pretty cool. I was reading some Amazon reviews of the Polytune and one reviewer had pictures of where it damaged the head stock of his guitar. So far the snark has been pretty good about leaving no marks.

A question for all the Polytune uses, has it left marks on any of your head stocks? That spring looks pretty strong.

[almeriastrings]

For comparison with picks and 'other stuff' as it lives in my Pegasus case....

[Barry Wilson]

I have both red and black snarks but am getting a tc next time. I find batteries last forever in the snarks and I don't change them every year. my red snark is so beat up, shoe goo'd together and you have to twist and fiddle with it to tune now and then.

I had an apex clip on and it didn't last a year.

[darylcrisp]

the Polytune looks excellent.

i have a couple snarks i dont use much any more due to a couple reasons-i have been using a really small(no mic setting, just on/off, standard 440)tuner a local shop carries($12)-these are easy to use and pick up notes easier than the snarks i own, along with long battery life.

the Polytune looks even better, and more solid-i plan to buy one to try out after reading this thread.
here's a couple video so you can see size, and function



this next video shows the buttons and use a little better

[WW52]

My first black Snark worked fine for a several years until I started constantly having to reset it back to 440A and the readout screen was getting dimmer despite battery changes, but then I lost it after leaving it behind at a session last year. So I bought a new black Snark with supposedly tighter tuning capabilities and it has worked perfectly so far. At a cost of $11 or $12 dollars I don't really have any complaints and it meets all my current tuner needs.

[Bob Visentin]

When I'm at home practicing I tune with my iphone and PanoTuner. A free app. Very tight and accurate. Just another option.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Hi Bigtuna - No,i don't have a pic.of the new Red Snark clamp,but the rubber feet on both parts,are soft & 'smooth'. They're a soft spongey rubber,quite different than the ones having a 'tread' on them,& i can't imagine them causing any damage,unless they're left on a mandolin which has a reactive finish on it.
I have a tuner in each of my mandolin cases as i can't rely on my memory to ensure that a 'single tuner' would be placed in my 'playing out' case,my Travelite, each time i took it out. I've ordered a Polytune tuner which hopefully, should arrive in a day or so. I'll replace my other Intelli tuner with that. It'll be nice to have a bit of 'difference'.
Here's a link to a website selling the Red Snark. Hover over the pic.& you'll see the 'new,smooth feet' :-
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SnarkClip2,
Ivan

[fatt-dad]

I got a red Snark about 1-1/2 years ago and it has the smooth feet. So, I gather it's not a new, new feature.

f-d