| Author |
Topic: Clip on Chromatic Tuners |
Don Kona Woods
From:
Hawaiian Kama'aina
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 2:50 pm |
|
A simple question: Do clip on chromatic tuners work for the electric lap steel guitar or only for acoustic steel guitars?
Thanks! |
|
|
 |
Ron Victoria
From:
New Jersey, USA
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 2:53 pm
|
|
| I use a Meisel which picks up vibration rather than sound. It's works for the electic lap, just clip it on the wire near the guitar jack. If your playing in a noisy room, it's great. Not sure if this is considered a chromatic tuner. |
|
|
|
Kekoa Blanchet
From:
Kaua'i
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 3:58 pm
|
|
| The ones I've tried (Intellitouch PT1 and Intellii IMT-500 have worked just fine. Make sure you get one with a backlight so you can see it in a poorly lit room. The clip isn't big enough to fit on some instruments (like a Sierra lap steel), but fits fine on a Magnatone or a Rickenbacker. They sometimes pick up on an overtone (indicates a C as a G for example), but will still get you on pitch no problem. |
|
|
|
Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 3:59 pm
|
|
I use the Intelli MT 500 tuner on both my acoustic and electric lap steels (when it can fit on the headstock). It works fine picking up the vibrations from the electric lap steel's body.
I can't use it on my Fender as the body is too thick for the clip, but it fits on my National Dynamic with no problems.
_________________
Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
|
|
|
Don Kona Woods
From:
Hawaiian Kama'aina
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 4:10 pm
|
|
Hi to all,
Thanks for the info.
Ron says,
| Quote: |
| just clip it on the wire near the guitar jack. |
Could you give me a little more detail?
Aloha, 
Don |
|
|
|
David Eastwood
From:
Minnesota, USA
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 4:27 pm
|
|
I've had success with a Snark clip-on on a couple of lap steels - just clamp it to the headstock, and it works fine. FWIW, it also functions beautifully on everything from a 5-string electric bass to a ukulele, taking in several other 'regular' guitars along the way. It's fast, easy to read, and dead simple to use.
Elderly has them, as does Amazon:
http://elderly.com/accessories/items/SNARK-GT.htm
I just measured it - it looks as if 3/4" is about the maximum thickness it could cope with. These are readily available from many places for $12 or so - I've already bought 2, and will pick up a couple more before the price (inevitably) goes up. |
|
|
|
Tom Pettingill
From:
California, USA (deceased)
|
|
|
|
Don Kona Woods
From:
Hawaiian Kama'aina
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 4:50 pm
|
|
I have never used a clip on tuner so this is new territory for me.
I am hearing some feedback about the clip on's that there is distortion on the low C or E strings where your tuning may not be precise.
What can you tell me about this?
Thanks again.
You are all very helpful.
Aloha,
Don |
|
|
|
David Eastwood
From:
Minnesota, USA
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 5:02 pm
|
|
THe Snark is actually the first clip-on tuner I've ever owned - I've had a variety of plug-in ones over the years, but couldn't resist the Snark when it started getting a lot of discussion on other guitar forums. One of the things that caught my attention was how pleased everyone seemed to be with its low-end response, in contrast to many other clip-on tuners which seem to have problems with a regular guitar's low E.
The acid test for me was trying it on my son's 5-string solid body electric bass. It locked onto that low 'B' with no problems at all. Based on that, it should cope with just about everything. Obviously, the more resonant the instrument you clamp it to, the better.
And no, I don't have shares in the company I just like to spread the word about a little gizmo that works really well, at a very affordable price. |
|
|
|
Ron Victoria
From:
New Jersey, USA
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 6:56 pm
|
|
Don, I clip it on the cable right after the jack. I suppose it would clip onto the jack itself, never tried. I like it when playing out, I just lower my volume and tune up. It has a green lit dial, very easy to see. I just bought one for my friend on Ebay for $25 total.
ron |
|
|
|
G Strout
From:
Carabelle, Florida
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 8:13 pm
|
|
| I have been using a Crafter TG 2000 on my Rick for about a year and it works well. Changed the battery once a few weeks ago..... 15.00 at the local music store. |
|
|
|
William F. Powell
From:
Alabama, USA
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 10:03 pm
|
|
| I use the crafter as well as another brand. They both work well. They don't fit on the headstock of my dual 8 Magnatone but I clip them on a tuner button and they work fine there. Be aware that some of the tuners tune to pitch a little diff. After tuning with a crafter and checking with a Korg I find there is about a 2 cents diff in the two. I just swap it out when I play dobro. |
|
|
|
Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 10:14 pm
|
|
The picture below is about a year old. I now have an Oasis clip on vibration tuner... same kinda thing but with a lighted dial. There are a lot of brands now, about $25 each.
Here's a cool idea... Korg clip-on Contact Mic for all tuners. A clip-on mic on one end and a 1/4" phone plug on the other end. This comes in handy in some situations. The wire is about 5 ft. long. These sell for about $12. I tried this on my Emmons pedal steel into a Peterson StroboFlip and it didn't work very well with PSG. Works better for solid body lap steels and acoustic guitars.
_________________
My Site / My YouTube Channel
25 Songs C6 Lap Steel / 25 MORE Songs C6 Lap Steel / 16 Songs, C6, A6, B11 / 60 Popular Melodies E9 Pedal Steel
Last edited by Doug Beaumier on 14 Dec 2010 11:08 pm; edited 1 time in total |
|
|
|
Don Kona Woods
From:
Hawaiian Kama'aina
|
Posted 14 Dec 2010 10:20 pm
|
|
A picture is worth a 1,000 words. 
Thanks Doug.
It is amazing that the vibrations could be read at the jack in that manner.
Aloha,
Don |
|
|
|
