Tool talk - Guitar Tuner rants.

As it's known by most of my clientele, I am (to some extent) a talkative person. As straight and short I would like it to be in all my dealings, I always end up taking more of my customer’s time. Get me started on topics I know and the exaggeration will automatically kick in. Add a Nescafe and a pack of cigarette to the picture you'll regret that you had swung by.  I'm often reminded that I tell the same story again and again. I thought only old people does that? Hmm nevertheless God permits this flesh is gradually heading there too. I hope I don't repost/recycle everything here back from post number 1. Hehe. Hence consider the spillage over here as clearing my un contained flesh drive before its lost to posterity.

Who knows one day everything you read here might end up becoming a book. Though I don't see myself fitting that nature of character. Well enough said and on with it already.

Does anyone remember the planet wave SOS strobe tuner? I bought one from Doremi KL in 2001/02. It was an intrigue purchase but was cheap too. After two minutes my curiosity changed to buyer’s remorse. Here's how it works. You have to point the strobing rays at a fix spot on the string. You, your eyes and your guitar need to be still like a stone. Dimming the room does help too. Tuning every string is like trying to put a glow in the dark thread through a glow in the dark needle so six string on a guitar are like doing 6 pair of thread and needle. I stopped at 2.  I don’t think the SOS would be good for intonation work either. Well, I didn't put it to the test really. The bloody tuner is long gone now like most of my picks. Just look at the SOS tuner size. Good riddance.

My next real tuner was a BOSS TU-70. Bought it sometime in 2004.  There's two things on the TU-70 that attracted me. The digital needle and fretted note display ability. At first I thought it would display every fretted note but no. It only display first 3 fret notes (I think).

Anyway I didn't get to use it much as the shop that I work for has some tuner available for internal use like the Sabine ST1000 and Intellitouch Clip-on. I like the ST1000 old gadget boxy look, though cumbersome to use at times but the row of LEDS was fun to look at. The Intellitouch back then were revolutionary of course. My TU-70 displayed the string as numbers as opposed to note pitch. Yes, that's another reason it stayed in the box. To this day I can't remember what become of it. Good riddance again. Hehe

Along the way I got a few beat up and broken electronic tuners given by customers. A couple of A 440Hz Pitch fork too. As a matter of fact I was looking for a D note pitch fork but nobody makes them. For your information I tune any guitar from the D string going down then up to A and E. I picked up the habit from my brother. I like the D note especially the tempered tune D major/Sus2/Sus4 chord. In my hands a guitar is in tuned right when the mentioned are achieved.

The Korg PC1 was the first clip-on tuner I bought sometime in 2010 I think. Back then PC1 came only in black. It wasn't for myself but instead a present for my brother. Turned out he's a BOSS TU12 guy so he kept it in his drawer instead. I think the size didn't left a good impression to him. I bought another Korg GA40 in 2011 when I open my own workshop but to this day I don't know where it had gone too.

Not long after I bought another Korg PC1 for myself. Yellow version this time. I was actually gassing for the Samson CT20 but it was sold out. One time one of my x student bought some guitar stuff including a Samson CT20 from over sea. I proposed a trade. My korg PC1 +cash for his Samson CT20. Deal!

The Samson display was awesome, I never seen anything as colourful like it then.  Until I accidentally dropped it once while tuning. The Samson display came on and went. Mind you this fall was not 2 story high. It was at a sitting position. Say a mere 2 feet or less. I was definitely pissed off disappointed by this.

In that state of rage I went out and bought a green PC1 korg. I have only one purpose for this greeny. To throw and drop it around my workshop. The said lunacy was needed to prove myself a point. Bang! On cement floor or carpet it went. On partition and concrete wall it flew. The tuner managed to survive the early few torture until some segment of the display were KO. I dissect the greeny and saw some SMD LEDs had broken off the lead solder on the board. I guess in the end I threw it too hard but you know what, I felt satisfied after. I could’ve patch it back if I try but I put it aside instead. If a RM50 could hold itself together after such torture that then I say Korg deserve to take my money again.

Yes, I went out and bought a yellow one. By this time yellow was my workshop official colour. Also because it's easy to find when misplaced. Hehe.

Not long after I did misplaced it either on someone's guitar or it fell in someone's soft case. I ask my brother about the Korg I gave him years before. He was fine about giving it to me. He knows I need it for work. Yes I know it's not the right thing to do. He still waves the BOSS flag in my face as before. Hehe.

 Around the same time in 2015 I got a chance to buy a used TU-12. I got it cheap as you would’ve guess. Despite having it, I was still using my brother's black PC-1 Korg. I feel the PC-1 is user friendly, robust and small to chuck anywhere. Yes, I did drop it several times too. Not on purpose of course. Hehe.

My korg died in May2018 due to natural cause. The plastic hinge had broken making it unable to grip guitar headstock anymore. Mechanical fatigue I guess.

Looks like there's no avoiding the BOSS TU-12 now. One of the reason I drag my feet to using the TU-12 before was the needle. It's a real needle to begin with. I much prefer display over any real needle. I don't trust needle because over time or when mishandled, the needle will have left or right run-out. At first ignition it did have some. This drove me crazy. Not to mention hooking the thing up. It needs 2 TRS cables and an adapter line. Running the TU-12 with PP3/9V battery would be insanely expensive.

I reserve a spot for it on my small bench and it had to be permanently on or off with all its necessity hooked up. But still the needle run-out bothered me. My distrust factor got the better of me. I search for the TU-12 service manual online telling myself there has to be a way to solve the needle run-out. Yes there is but I have to buy a set of plastic trimmer adjustment tool to set it to micron accurate. What the hell, this now had cause more than I anticipate but I push myself positively to endure this. If the TU-12 going to be my shop tool might as well I buy the bloody hand tool itself. Furthermore it could prove useful for biasing tubes trim pot in future too. 

So pulled the trigger I did and the needle is now perfectly centred (well almost) matching both L/R LEDs (which I put my trust on). By the way, this version of TU-12 doesn't have a screw holding its enclosure. So I made a short video on how to disassemble it. May some of you find it helpful. Do forgive my manglish accent. Anyway It's a fair thing to do at softening my profound prejudice towards it. I guess some of the efforts put upon it made way for some appreciation towards the TU-12. 

It's been 3 month now and I think I have made some peace with this made in Philippines TU-12. It works as it supposed to without me having to think about it. However I still randomly look online for other deal breaker. Perhaps Korg's new PC-2 Clip-on in future? Hmmm..Well who knows?

In the end what is a good tuner? Personally I wish for a tuner that recognized tempered tuning and that would replace the default built-in tuning program/algorythm. A tuner that can display a very wide range of cent. I see something interesting in the Seiko STH50 but honestly I already have a metronome. Seiko, Please take that out and I'll reconsider.

Do share me your tuner stories down here. If you have any tuner suggestion please do, as long as its not Peterson of course. Hehe

Tuned to D

yustech