Tuner pitch

[musicallydeclined]

Is there a clip-on tuner that will allow you to set default pitch away from 440hz?

[Cogs]

Pretty sure the Peterson Stroboclip can do that. I have one but I've never tried that particular function, so I can't say for certain

[Bill Moore]

They also have "sweetened" tunings that may be what you're looking for when playing with pianos and such.

[Laker]

I have a question about tuners.

Each year I play in a “pit band” for a two week show that raises money for a local charity, and one of the musicians in the band is a violinist in the local symphony orchestra. We were tuning before beginning dress rehearsals and he tells me that he tunes to A-440 and every time he plays with us “rock players” he has to change his tuning to match us. Now, I use an old Boss TU-12 tuner that is built into my rack and our guitar player uses a clip-on tuner. The guitar and my bass are in tune to each other and my Boss tuner says we are at 440. The violinist shows me on his digital tuner he is at 440 and I believe his tuner because the whole symphony orchestra can’t be playing out of tune to each other.

Any ideas what the he** is going on?

[blackonblack]

Have a thought, but curious. When he tunes to you, his A is what Hz?

[Offshore Angler]

I have a question about tuners.

Each year I play in a “pit band” for a two week show that raises money for a local charity, and one of the musicians in the band is a violinist in the local symphony orchestra. We were tuning before beginning dress rehearsals and he tells me that he tunes to A-440 and every time he plays with us “rock players” he has to change his tuning to match us. Now, I use an old Boss TU-12 tuner that is built into my rack and our guitar player uses a clip-on tuner. The guitar and my bass are in tune to each other and my Boss tuner says we are at 440. The violinist shows me on his digital tuner he is at 440 and I believe his tuner because the whole symphony orchestra can’t be playing out of tune to each other.

Any ideas what the he** is going on?

Orchestra's are tuned to "Concert Pitch" since the scores for individual instruments are in different keys. generally, concert pitch is the middle C on the piano. Tuning the piano takes a long time so it's easier for everyone to tune to it. You CAN tune a piano, but you can't tune a fish. So you reference the piano which may be a few cents off due to the environment or being moved or just use.

The reason different instruments are scored in different keys is so that the fingerings remain the same relative to the staff between similar instruments, particularly woodwinds, so that a musician doesn't have to re-learn fingerings when changing from different instruments.

Chuck

[Laker]

Orchestra's are tuned to "Concert Pitch" since the scores for individual instruments are in different keys. generally, concert pitch is the middle C on the piano. Tuning the piano takes a long time so it's easier for everyone to tune to it. You CAN tune a piano, but you can't tune a fish. So you reference the piano which may be a few cents off due to the environment or being moved or just use.

The reason different instruments are scored in different keys is so that the fingerings remain the same relative to the staff between similar instruments, particularly woodwinds, so that a musician doesn't have to re-learn fingerings when changing from different instruments.

Chuck

I understand what everyone is saying as I was a sax player and I know some are C instruments while some are Bb and some are Eb, etc. But, what is the difference between the A-440 that he tunes to and the 440 that my Boss tuner uses to tell me I’m in tune. If I tap a 440 tuning fork as a reference shouldn’t all be to the same pitch?

[blackonblack]

Yes. So why I asked when he retunes to you, what HZ is his A?

[Offshore Angler]

A440 is the definition of the frequency, so there is no ambiguity. 440Hz is always the same unless you are in different inertial reference frames, so either your tuner, his tuner, or both are off. The only way you'll solve this conundrum is by some fun experiments that science guys like me geek out over. Or use a frequency analyzer.

You could attach a string of known mass per unit length to the speaker cab, put a known tension on it and measure the distance between nodes, or you can do some fun stuff with water too. Or you could put a mirror on the cab and use a pulsed laser, but I digress. :)

Chuck

[Laker]

A440 is the definition of the frequency, so there is no ambiguity. 440Hz is always the same unless you are in different inertial reference frames, so either your tuner, his tuner, or both are off. The only way you'll solve this conundrum is by some fun experiments that science guys like me geek out over. Or use a frequency analyzer.

You could attach a string of known mass per unit length to the speaker cab, put a known tension on it and measure the distance between nodes, or you can do some fun stuff with water too. Or you could put a mirror on the cab and use a pulsed laser, but I digress. :)

Chuck

Chuck, she’s some good herb you’re into, correct?

[Offshore Angler]

Chuck, she’s some good herb you’re into, correct?

I wish! Maybe later though. Nah, resonance and spectral analysis is a huge part of rocket science. Vibrations abound and they can cause serious combustion instabilities and stresses on the airframe. Rockets are long, slender and built out of elastic materials so they can get pretty wiggly.

You know, since you have a stretched string of known unit mass on the guitar you could simply measure the string tension and calculate the open A string frequency. Ridiculously easy. Any second-year engineering student would make quick work of that.

Chuck

[musicallydeclined]

Wow! That Stroboclip will do some stuff, Huh? looks complicated. I may have to give it a try though.

Thanks.

[OldStrummer]

I have a clip-on tuner that lets me adjust the tuning frequency from 440 to 442 (I think). If I were at home, I'd post info on it. Stand by for another day of so, and I'll have data (and perhaps a photo).

[OldStrummer]

OK, I'm back home now and can follow up on my earlier post.

The clip-on tuner I have is a Korg AW-LT100B.


The newer model is the AW-LT100G. Here are the basic specs for the "B" model:

Scale12 note equal temperament
Range (sine wave)E0 (20.60 Hz)─C5 (523.3 Hz)
Precision± 0.1 cent (Strobe mode)
Reference PitchA4 = 436─445 Hz (1 Hz steps)
Display ModesRegular, Strobe, Half-strobe
Power SupplyAAA battery x 1
Battery LifeApproximately 100 hours (tuner continuously operating, A4 input, when using alkaline battery)

[Cogs]

It doesn't drop to 432 Hz? How do you align your chakras?

[Offshore Angler]

Excuse my ignorance but what is a half-strobe? Not familiar with that. I guess I need to use the Google.

[blackonblack]

Excuse my ignorance but what is a half-strobe? Not familiar with that. I guess I need to use the Google.

It’s not probably displaying tuning to all 4 octaves (that’s the majority of strobe tuners). That’s what all the bars are displaying. Quite helpful at times.

[OldStrummer]

Excuse my ignorance but what is a half-strobe? Not familiar with that. I guess I need to use the Google.

There is a manual offered at the link I provided in my post. Here is what it says, although I can't paste directly from the PDF:

1.REGULAR METER: Tune your instrument until the meter segments up to the center (downward pointing indicator) light up. If the pitch is sharp, meter segments to the right of the center light up. If the pitch is flat, meter segments to the left of the center light up.

2. STROBE METER: Tune your instrument until the meter segments stop running.

3. HALF STROBE METER: Tune your instrument until the meter segment at the center (downward pointing arrow) lights up. If the pitch is sharp, meter segments to the right of the center light up. If the pitch is flat, meter segments to the left of the center light up.

The description is less useful without the images. From my experience, after powering the tuner on, I slight twist cycles through the modes. The strobe always has a "moving" display. The others are quickly identified when you first start them. Perhaps the best way to understand is to view the manual here:

https://cdn.korg.com/us/support/down...4b9fbda060.pdf