New tuner on the board

[d1dsj]

Just got back from a gig supporting a top UK tribute band "Kings Ov Leon" which turned out real good. They deserve the good reputation they have and put on a great, professional show.

Anyway, I swapped my long term Strobostomp tuner for a nice new TC Polytune because I wanted to free up a little space and although the Strobo is very accurate the only issue I've had is a noisy footswitch that gives a pop. So the Polytune is easier in that it's quicker to tune up, either strumming all the strings or individually. The display is nice and clear and the switch is silent.... and you can still power other pedals off it too. I don't know if it's as accurate as the Strobo but for gigging it's more than good enough. All in all I'm really happy with it and as long as it's reliable it'll be a keeper.... highly recommended

 

[Nightburst]

Re: New tuner on the board

Good one! Live you need practical gear, the real accurate stuff is for at home or in the studio. Normal tuners have always served me well. For intonation it is great to have a highly accurate tuner but in a band situation where you are in perfect pitch and the rest is often not... there's no benefit! Imagine the horror of that situation when the solo time comes!

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: New tuner on the board

I've been wanting to replace my old Boss TU-12 with something easier to see.

I've been contemplating the TC, but I think I'll probably go with the new Planet Waves Tru Strobe. I like the big display and spinning strobe.

 

[J Moose]

Re: New tuner on the board

I hate my planet waves tuner. "Hate" is a pretty strong word but it fits in this case.

Don't get me wrong, its accurate and everything... easy to read but there's a couple glitches. One is that, if its powered off a daisy-chain or other 'common ground' power supply there's a gnarly hum that comes through the amp as the meter spins.

Annoying but not a deal breaker.

What IS a major deal breaker is that the battery latch broke and I never ONCE put a battery in there. The busted latch turned this thing into a problem child since the latch is on the footswitch.

What happens is when I hit the switch, or sometimes other pedals on the board... the footpad on the tuner bounces on the contact switch, which is like a boss momentary switch, and the signal cuts in & out.

No good. No good at all.

I spent a long time one day chasing down what I thought was a bad cable... it wasn't a cable... it was the tuner!!!

As soon as I get through the record I'm on now, when I get back to the shop the PW tuner is coming off and I'm putting on my old dod AB box and sticking a regular old Korg to the top of the pedal power II.

 

[d1dsj]

Re: New tuner on the board

There's not much difference in price over here between the Polytune, Planet waves, Boss TU3, and the Pitch black. I haven't played with the settings yet but after tonights gig I doubt I'll bother as it was just bang on. I don't think it has a strobe mode but it does have stream. The display is quite big and adjusts for different lighting conditions.

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: New tuner on the board

I hate my planet waves tuner. "Hate" is a pretty strong word but it fits in this case.

Was the one you had trouble with the exact model I pictured above, or was it the previous model? Just wondering, because I think Planet Waves addressed all it's prior issues with the brand new Tru Strobe.

In any case, if I do buy one, I'll avoid Ebay dealers and get one from GC, just so I can return it if I have any immediate issues. If so, I'll go right back and get the TC. I just like the display/strobe on the PW Tru Strobe.....and it's $20 cheaper.

 

[greatbob6]

Re: New tuner on the board

Anybody tried one of these?

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

Supposedly they are super accurate and easy to use...$30 more than the Polytune though.

 

[That90'sGuy]

Re: New tuner on the board

Anybody tried one of these?

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

Supposedly they are super accurate and easy to use...$30 more than the Polytune though.

It's gotten rave reviews. When my Strobostomp 2 goes I'll be getting one.

 

[J Moose]

Re: New tuner on the board

Was the one you had trouble with the exact model I pictured above, or was it the previous model? Just wondering, because I think Planet Waves addressed all it's prior issues with the brand new Tru Strobe.

In any case, if I do buy one, I'll avoid Ebay dealers and get one from GC, just so I can return it if I have any immediate issues.

Its the previous version but when I saw the new PW at one of the shops it seemed to have the same crappy plastic battery latch. Its amazing how one 4 cent piece of plastic has rendered the thing close to useless... especially since its lived most of its life in a foam lined ATA case!!!

 

[That90'sGuy]

Re: New tuner on the board

Its the previous version but when I saw the new PW at one of the shops it seemed to have the same crappy plastic battery latch. Its amazing how one 4 cent piece of plastic has rendered the thing close to useless... especially since its lived most of its life in a foam lined ATA case!!!

Planet Waves don't always use common sense when they design things. I had the Tabletop Strobe Tuner and it was better made, but it auto-shut off as a battery saving feature, which meant it was useless to use in a tuner out on a pedal board (it's tough enough trying to tune inbetween songs, never mind having to hit one of the awkward buttons each time to turn it on to last long enough for one tuning set). I'm assuming that's why they came out with the less accurate pedal formatted one, but it would have been nice to disclose that feature to potential buyers.

 

[sstanfield]

Re: New tuner on the board

Does anybody have this one? Bright blue LED and no noise. I've been using one for about two months, and I like it.


http://www.guitarfetish.com/IN-STOCK-GFS-Electronics-Digital-Tuner-single-Footpedal-Space-SUPER-BRIGHT_p_1084.html#
GFS Electronics Digital Tuner single Footpedal Space- SUPER BRIGHT!
Item ID: GFT-90

 

[GuitarGuy503]

Re: New tuner on the board

I recently sold a Boss TU-2 because I found it difficult to use. I went to GC yesterday to see if they had any Pitchblacks but they were soldout. I ended up picking up a TC as the saleman had highly recommended them and said he owned 2 himself. I have yet to test it out but it looks rather promising.....

 

[J Moose]

Re: New tuner on the board

Planet Waves don't always use common sense when they design things. I had the Tabletop Strobe Tuner and it was better made, but it auto-shut off as a battery saving feature, which meant it was useless to use in a tuner out on a pedal board

Well, I don't know if that's a "flaw" really. I've killed a ton of batteries by forgetting to shut off the tuner or some other gizmo!

But I dunno man. The footswitch/battery latch design on the PW isn't all that much different then a boss pedal with the thumbscrew. Except the boss isn't useless if you loose a thumbscrew... in the rare times I HAVE lost a thumbscrew I can use an allen key & piece of tape to get by.

Short of putting a zip-tie around the tuners footswitch I'm not sure it can be fixed. The plastic piece that broke is on the inside of the pedal! There's nothing to drill into where I can bring the switch back firm against the body of the pedal.

To be fair, I know a bass player who has the same tuner and has used it for years without any sort of issue... he really loves it which is part of the reason I got one. And mine still works aside from that cutting out thing...

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: New tuner on the board

Does anybody have this one? Bright blue LED and no noise. I've been using one for about two months, and I like it.


http://www.guitarfetish.com/IN-STOCK-GFS-Electronics-Digital-Tuner-single-Footpedal-Space-SUPER-BRIGHT_p_1084.html#
GFS Electronics Digital Tuner single Footpedal Space- SUPER BRIGHT!
Item ID: GFT-90

Thanks for posting that. That might be a good consideration, because of it's big LED and nice $40 price tag. hmmm.