clip on tuners

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spookelele

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So.. I've always used snark's because the local music store had them on sale when I started. But I notice in alot of videos, the pro's seem to never use snark, and instead use other brands.

Has anyone done an accuracy comparison of the clip on's?
 
I personally go for 'cheap', also known as 'inexpensive' or 'economical' as in under $5 on eBay :)

to me, the most important thing is to make sure it is set to A=440. Then... i just trust it :)

keep uke'in',
 
You're probably right Rod, and I shouldn't worry about it.
Just thought I'd throw it out there, cuz I leave them on, and I'm waiting for a new uke.. and was wondering if I should be sticking with what I know, or if I should be getting something better.

I bought the mahogany rebel tenor from NAMM, and I'm probably just antsy waiting for it.
 
They are all extremely reliable and accurate. The only thing that makes some problematic is difficulty in reading them. If you can see and interpret the info your tuner gives you, you'll be in tune.
 
The Black Snark is better built than the Red Snark. The red one has these little tabs that snap off too easily then you're headless and it's garbage then. I've had two reds do this; no problems yet on the black one
 
I'm pretty content with my snark tuners (black and red). These headstock mounted tuners are fairly accurate, and it would seem to me that they work best in situations where there might be a lot of external noise. Even my next door neighbor, who's a professional guitarist, uses it.
 
tuning fork? just found one in a box. kind of like a rotary phone, but more versitile, and the battery lasts forever.
 
My two ears work just fine. I keep a tuning fork handy (A440) and use my ears. If a keyboard is available I use that. I've never quite understood why anyone would need a clip on tuner.
I am also a trumpeter, (mostly jazz) and noticed years ago that most of the major jazz artists I would go to hear never seemed to tune. I was a big fan of Count Basie's Band and I saw them many times and never saw anyone tune up except for the bassist. I had a professor in college who played lead trombone with Thad Jones, Woody Herman and Clark Terry's Big Bands. The tuning slide on his bone was stuck and had not moved in years. He said he used his ears.
I realize that string players have to stop and retune from time to time. All the ear training courses I took as an under grad helped wonderfully. Sometimes I think we rely on technology too often. Give me one note and I'm good on my own. Sorry if this seems like a rant, I worked hard to develop my ears. I have many friends who use them but I don't think they are an essential tool for a four or six string string instrument. A harp or a koto maybe.
 
"I've never quite understood why anyone would need a clip on tuner. "

Lucky you. Not all of us were blessed with 'perfect pitch' or years of ear training.
 
peanuts56 said:
Sorry if this seems like a rant, I worked hard to develop my ears. I have many friends who use them but I don't think they are an essential tool for a four or six string string instrument. /QUOTE]

I hope your friends return your ears clean. ;-)
Click to expand...
 
igorthebarbarian said:
The Black Snark is better built than the Red Snark. The red one has these little tabs that snap off too easily then you're headless and it's garbage then. I've had two reds do this; no problems yet on the black one
Click to expand...
Is there really a difference in the actual construction? I had a red one break as well.

kmac66 said:
These tuners from Reverb.com are on $3.99 with free shipping. They work fine!

https://reverb.com/item/204704-reverb-clip-on-tuner
Click to expand...
I was thinking about posting that, too! They seem to be as accurate as my red Snark. BTW, they used to be $3 shipped, but they're still a bargain. :)
 
I have many Snarks ... never an issue. I prefer the standard over the "totally tight" or whatever the heck they call it. I find the one with the narrow tune indicator more accurate. But, I've used others too and like 'em. As long as you're close to being in tune, it's all good ;)
 
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I've used others in the past, but have been using just Snarks for about three years on my guitars and ukes. They seem to work as well as the other clip-ons that I've tried.
 
I've used the Intelli IMT500 for several years. I've tried others, and their displays don't seem to be quite as precise or steady. The Snark, in particular, seems rather jumpy. The Intelli's display is LCD, but it's a needle-style meter with very precise marks, and its needle is steadier than the blocks or arrows of the others I've tried.

http://www.amazon.com/Intelli-IMT500-Chromatic-Digital-Strings/dp/B002Q0WSO8

I still have a Korg AT-2 that I bought for my hammered dulcimer about 23 years ago. It's relatively large and blocky, but it still works.
 
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I had two red snarks lose their heads relatively quickly. Have an older blue one that is fine. I like the LCD tuners better because you can see them in the sun (I play outside a lot). My favorite is the imt500.
 
KMAC , I don't have perfect pitch. Ear training is not a blessing but an essential tool for any serious musician. You might want to give it a try. A little practice goes a long way.
 
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