Attention all guitarists!!!

[tinkerbells]

Can anyone help me please? I have a 12yr old son who plays both acoustic and electric guitars - he has been learning for about a year. He would like an electronic tuner and there are loads of them on Ebay but I haven't a clue what features I need to look for? What is wrong with the old pipe things that I used to have as a child? What do these new things do? I want to get him one for his Xmas stocking (spending about �10) and there are lots on Ebay but I don't know which one to get. It seems that some plug into the guitar but why would they need to do that? If anyone could shed some light on this subject, I would be eternally grateful. THAAAANKS xxx

[jamesy boy]

I have a Korg GA-30 tuner. It has a LCD display that makes tuning very quick and simple. It is suitable for both electric (via the socket, as you say the guitar plugs into it), and acoustic guitars AND basses. If you whistle into it it also tells you what note you're whistling, and can be set to tune the strings to 'non' standard tuning (like all strings a semi tone down). It's very good, and was about �12.

[Hellion]

Asked Mr Hellion as he repairs guitars and plays. QuickTune is a good cheap one but Korg is better if you want to spend a bit more.

[saxy_jag]

Most shops that sell guitars sell electronic tuners, so you shouldn't need to go to eBay unless you're absolutely unable to get to a shop.

There are basically two types:

a) a chromatic tuner. This tells you which of twelve notes you're playing and whether it's sharp or flat. Wind players use them a lot. This sounds like the Korg that Jamesy mentions.

b) one that has six set pitches to tune to, which match those of the standard tuning of a six-string guitar (E B G D A E). I'm sorry, I can't remember the proper term for it. Used a lot by guitarists for obvious reasons. I think they're a little cheaper too. Only thing is, they're not that useful when the guitarist begins to wander off into alternative tunings.

I'll leave the 'proper' guitarists on here to advise you as to make and quality etc.

[naz_nomad]

Personally I use a Seiko ST-727.

Get one with a condenser microphone AND a �'' input jack, that way he can tune the leccy & the acoustic.

Any chromatic tuner with these inputs should do fine.


Mine was 19 quid, but it's a digital display, the analogue display ones are ok, but liable to getting knocked around and possibly damaged.

[Mortartube]

I also have a Korg GA-30. I have had no problems at all, a great little unit for the price.

BTW, the reason you plug your electric guitar into the tuner, is that it's more accurate. You don't pick up any background noise which may affect the inbuilt microphone and give a slightly off reading. Just plug it in, turn up the volume a little and tune.

Acoustics still use the inbuilt mic, so it's good if the tuner is fairly near to the guitar when using.

[johnizere]

http://www.guitarforbeginners.com/onlinetuner. html
you still have to turn the keys to tune it!.....good luck.

[tinkerbells]

Bless you all, thanks so much!! I did go to local guitar shop but the range was rubbish. The only thing I am not clear about now is whether the chromatic type tuner has the standard guitar stringsas a default setting to tune to (as well as all the other clever things it can do) - or whether I need to buy the second type of tuner that saxy-jag talks about? The chromatic one sounds the bizz but no good if he can't use it as a basic tuner as well?