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Vintage threads from the first ten years

Re: tuning method advice needed.

10/10/1999 2:53 AM
Steve A.	Re: tuning method advice needed. Earl: I'd assume that nic has a chromatic digital tuner and a capo so your idea is great. And maybe we all ought to adopt that idea for our recordings (if you'll be playing a lot of chords at the 5th fret then capo it there to double-check the tuning). As for intonation, be sure to check the pitch at the other frets, too. (Sometimes the 12th fret might be off a bit compared to the rest of the fretboard so it'd be better to set the intonation on a different fret.) Steve Ahola P.S. The kids these days have it easy with digital tuners selling so cheaply! Any other old timers out there who remember when tuning used to be a matter of opinion, and the whole band would vote on whether the lead guitarist was in tune?

10/10/1999 2:53 AM

Steve A.

Re: tuning method advice needed.

Earl:

I'd assume that nic has a chromatic digital tuner and a capo so your idea is great. And maybe we all ought to adopt that idea for our recordings (if you'll be playing a lot of chords at the 5th fret then capo it there to double-check the tuning).

As for intonation, be sure to check the pitch at the other frets, too. (Sometimes the 12th fret might be off a bit compared to the rest of the fretboard so it'd be better to set the intonation on a different fret.)

Steve Ahola

P.S. The kids these days have it easy with digital tuners selling so cheaply! Any other old timers out there who remember when tuning used to be a matter of opinion, and the whole band would vote on whether the lead guitarist was in tune?

10/10/1999 3:02 PM
nic	P.S. The kids these days have it easy with digital tuners selling so cheaply! Any other old timers out there who remember when tuning used to be a matter of opinion, and the whole band would vote on whether the lead guitarist was in tune? Maybe thats why there are so many bad bands these days... They don't need to argue over the details, so they don't crush eachothers' egos too much. nic

10/11/1999 5:17 AM
Hi	I just started using a tuner regularly about two years ago, and I still prefer a tuning fork for acoustic guitar. There's just so much variation to every guitar, the whole nature of tuning is inherently a set of compromises between the "pure" note and the way the human ear hears relative sounds. Yeah, I think tuners are great and easy, but I don't always tune exactly to them. I think it's great for you to have to struggle to tell with your ears when this string or that or the same note on any two strings anywhere is "close enough" to where the guitar sounds pretty good everywhere, and the "waver" of slightly-out-of-tune notes adds a little spice to the mix... Of course, tuners ARE nice and convenient... Hi

10/11/1999 5:17 AM

I just started using a tuner regularly about two years ago, and I still prefer a tuning fork for acoustic guitar. There's just so much variation to every guitar, the whole nature of tuning is inherently a set of compromises between the "pure" note and the way the human ear hears relative sounds. Yeah, I think tuners are great and easy, but I don't always tune exactly to them. I think it's great for you to have to struggle to tell with your ears when this string or that or the same note on any two strings anywhere is "close enough" to where the guitar sounds pretty good everywhere, and the "waver" of slightly-out-of-tune notes adds a little spice to the mix... Of course, tuners ARE nice and convenient...
Hi

10/13/1999 5:44 PM
Jim S.	I find that I can intonate my guitars better using my ears rather than using my Boss TU12. Here's how I do it: 1) Make sure all the open strings are perfectly in tune (I do use the TU12 to do this.) 2) For each string, I play notes from a major scale whose root is an adjacent open string. I play these notes all along the string, paying special attention to how they sound at frets 12 and above, compared to the root note I'm continuously playing on the adjacent open string. (In other words, I'm listening to the various intervals between the root and other notes of a major scale.) I repeatedly adjust the bridge saddle and retune the string until all the intervals sound in tune (or as close to in-tune as I can get). 3) I repeat steps 1 and 2 for all 6 strings. Try it -- it works (for me, anyway)! I've never been able to intonate a guitar to my satisfaction using the usual method of comparing the open (or 2nd harmonic) string to the 12th-fret note. Out of frustration, I decided to start really trusting my ears and so I came up with this method. I've really started to enjoy playing my guitars more since I intonated them this way.

10/13/1999 5:44 PM

Jim S.

I find that I can intonate my guitars better using my ears rather than using my Boss TU12. Here's how I do it:

1) Make sure all the open strings are perfectly in tune (I do use the TU12 to do this.)

2) For each string, I play notes from a major scale whose root is an adjacent open string. I play these notes all along the string, paying special attention to how they sound at frets 12 and above, compared to the root note I'm continuously playing on the adjacent open string. (In other words, I'm listening to the various intervals between the root and other notes of a major scale.) I repeatedly adjust the bridge saddle and retune the string until all the intervals sound in tune (or as close to in-tune as I can get).

3) I repeat steps 1 and 2 for all 6 strings.

Try it -- it works (for me, anyway)! I've never been able to intonate a guitar to my satisfaction using the usual method of comparing the open (or 2nd harmonic) string to the 12th-fret note. Out of frustration, I decided to start really trusting my ears and so I came up with this method. I've really started to enjoy playing my guitars more since I intonated them this way.

11/18/1999 4:48 PM
Bryan James	P.S. The kids these days have it easy with digital tuners selling so cheaply! Any other old timers out there who remember when tuning used to be a matter of opinion, and the whole band would vote on whether the lead guitarist was in tune? Hey what's a matter with the old tunning fork i still some times use them...... or what about if the lead guitarist has a brain laps and plays the solo in the wrong key while recording.....and better yet when you go for another take in the right key the other solo was much better so they kept that one..... The guys still won't let me for get that one..... Of course i've been wanting the selftuneing system that Jimmy page has been useing of lately... but wife won't let me spend the money on it.. http://www.selftuning.com/index1.html

11/18/1999 4:48 PM

Bryan James

P.S. The kids these days have it easy with digital tuners selling so cheaply! Any other old timers out there who remember when tuning used to be a matter of opinion, and the whole band would vote on whether the lead guitarist was in tune?

Hey what's a matter with the old tunning fork

i still some times use them......

or what about if the lead guitarist has a brain laps and plays the solo in the wrong key while recording.....and better yet when you go for another take in the right key the other solo was much better so they kept that one..... The guys still won't let me for get that one.....

Of course i've been wanting the selftuneing system that Jimmy page has been useing of lately... but wife won't let me spend the money on it.. http://www.selftuning.com/index1.html

12/12/1999 10:20 AM
Bob Predaina	the self-tuning system sounds like a great idea. i'd like to hear how well the servo controlled motors do in tuning a guitar. . one note of caution though - the link that you provided noted that the accuracy of the system is +/- 2 CENTS!!! that is a very wide range of tolerance. i honestly don't know how it could sound any good with such a wide range of frequencies being considered as "in-tune". in comparison, a strobe tuner is accurate to less than 0.3 cents.

12/12/1999 10:20 AM

Bob Predaina

the self-tuning system sounds like a great idea. i'd like to hear how well the servo controlled motors do in tuning a guitar.
.
one note of caution though - the link that you provided noted that the accuracy of the system is +/- 2 CENTS!!! that is a very wide range of tolerance. i honestly don't know how it could sound any good with such a wide range of frequencies being considered as "in-tune". in comparison, a strobe tuner is accurate to less than 0.3 cents.

12/15/1999 9:05 PM
Bryan James	i would have to agree with you though i never tried one. of course i never cared about cents untill college. before that we just tuned up the instrament then tuned off all tuned off of that. even in college jazz band we did it that way. wasn't till i started playing double bass and takeing that college till i worried about cents. accually it still didn;t bother me i though i hit the note and the prof. would say play that note again ok you x amount of cents of rotate your finger down. there that's the note. my reaction was ok sure and continue you playing...... so if your playing live does it really matter? i've never had anyone come up to me and complain that i was out of tune. though with the bigsby i tune the thing alot

12/15/1999 9:05 PM

Bryan James

i would have to agree with you though i never tried one.
of course i never cared about cents untill college. before that we just tuned up the instrament then tuned off all tuned off of that. even in college jazz band we did it that way. wasn't till i started playing double bass and takeing that college till i worried about cents. accually it still didn;t bother me i though i hit the note and the prof. would say play that note again ok you x amount of cents of rotate your finger down. there that's the note. my reaction was ok sure and continue you playing......
so if your playing live does it really matter? i've never had anyone come up to me and complain that i was out of tune. though with the bigsby i tune the thing alot

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