Hard Copy Specials
This month's special book deal is A Guide to Blues Progressions for Ukulele from A to Z. Get it for $11.97, 40% off the normal price. This is the hard copy price for not much more than the price of the PDF download. Checkout other ukulele and guitar specials at www.curtsheller.com/books/SPECIAL.php
FREE Ukulele Chords book or Midnight at the Jazz Cafe CD with all orders for February.
eBook/PDF Specials
All eBook/PDF books are 50% off for a limited time. See the eBook section of the site for all available titles.
QuickStart Scale Series: Pick and choose the individual scales you want to learn. eBook downloads for $4.95 ea. For Ukulele, Guitar and Bass Guitar.
Tuners
Other then learning to tune by ear quickly. An electronic tuner or clip-on tuners is a valuable asset to have around.
As a private guitar and ukulele teacher. I use a tuner to tune beginner students' out of tune instruments quickly in a lesson. Until they learn to do it their self or come in with the instrument in tune. You would be surprised as to the number of out of tunes instruments students try and start their lesson with.
So any tuner that I have, and I have a few, gets a lot of real world use.
Manufactures
- Boss
- Intellitouch Tuner
The Intellitouch Tuner was one of the first clip on tuners.
The battery compartment will not stay attached after several battery replacements. Was using a rubber band to hold on. It has long ago been replaced with different brands of clip on tuners and relegated to the drawer of under achievers
- Kala
clip-on not tested. Look promising.
- Korg
clip-on not durable for professional use. Attachment point weakens over extended use. I retired mine to the drawer of under achievers afer a few months of uset.
- Meisel
I've had several of these. They come in under various brand names. It rattles when kept clipped on to a guitar or ukulele. And the do tent to stay on your instrument for quick adjustments.
- Peterson
- Planet Waves
Looks promising. And, might be more durable and with stand some abuse vs. other tuners mentions here.
- Pono
The clip-on is an improved Meisel with no rattles. Mine is in everyday use on one of my ukes and has not broken yet.
- Seiko
I have this clip-on and it is a little too bulky to be lugging around on my tenor ukes. Another one for the drawer of under achievers.
- Sonic Research
Makes an LED Strobe tuner.
Types of Electronic Tuners
Metronomes
![]()
Expand ALL Sections
![]()
Collapse ALL Sections
( from WidipediA: ) An electronic tuner is a device used by musicians to detect and display the pitch of notes played
on musical instruments. The simplest tuners use LED lights or a needle to indicate approximately
whether the pitch of the note played is lower, higher, or approximately equal to the desired
pitch. More complex and expensive tuners indicate more precisely the difference between offered
note and desired pitch. Tuners vary in size from units that can fit in a pocket to table-top
models or 19" rack-mount units. The more complex and expensive units are used by instrument
technicians, piano tuners and luthiers.
LED Tuner
A needle, LCD or regular LED type tuner uses a microprocessor to measure the average period of the waveform. It uses this to then drive the needle or array of lights. The array of lights from LED that appears to move to left or right seems better than the meter needle of the early meter tuners. When the musician plays a single note, the tuner senses the input from the microphone or input jack (from an electric instrument). The tuner then displays the input frequency in relation to the desired pitch and indicates whether the pitch of that note is lower, higher, or approximately equal to the desired pitch. With needle displays, the note is in tune when the needle is in a 90o vertical position, with leftward or rightward deviations indicating that the note is flat or sharp, respectively. Tuners with a needle are often supplied with a backlight, so that the display can be read on a darkened stage. An early (1970s) meter needle tuner seemed inferior (more difficult to use) than the more expensiver light emitting diodes (LED) type.
Strobe Tuner
Strobe tuners (the popular term for stroboscopic tuners) are the most accurate type of tuner. There are three types of strobe tuners: The mechanical rotating disk strobe tuner, an LED array strobe in place of the rotating disk, and "virtual strobe" tuners with LCD displays or ones that work on personal computers. A strobe tuner shows the difference between a reference frequency and the musical note. Even the slightest difference between the two will show up as a rotating motion in the strobe display. The accuracy of the tuner is only limited by the internal frequency generator. The strobe tuner detects the pitch either from an TRS input jack or a built-in or external microphone connected to the tuner.
Strobe Tuner Manufactures
I have accumulated several electronic tuning devices over the years from the pitch pipe I got with my first guitar 40 plus years ago, to a tuning fork and several electronic tuners that live in my guitar case and on on my ukuleles today.
I don't even have my students learn to tune by ear until well into playing the guitar. I have them get an electronic tuner and ALWAYS play in tune. This trains their ear and they learn what an in-tune guitar sounds like and can then learn to tune the guitar by ear.
Here is a review the current crop of clip-on tuners that I have and still use today.
Here is a page of reviews on the tuners that I have used in the past and still use and reccommend.
Pono Ukuleles
Kitakis Stringed Instrument Repair
52 Mango Place, Suite 2
Wahiawa, Hawaii 96786
808-622-1064
Fax: 808-622-1646
Click for a Google Map
Links
Ukuleles
Pono instruments are professionally designed and
handcrafted by the Ko’olau Guitar and ‘Ukulele Company on the
Island of Java, with final adjustments and set-up on the Island of Oahu, Hawaii.
Ponos are available in all four ukulele size (Soprano, Concert, Tenor and Baritone).
- Solid Mahogany wood for top, back, and sides
- Solid Curly Koa top, back, and sides
- Solid Cedar Top, solid Mahogany back and sides
- Plus a lot more combinations to offer. Check the Ko’olau site for
the latest information and offerings.
Most available with “under saddle” Pickup
Pono instruments are professionally designed and handcrafted by the Ko’olau Guitar and ‘Ukulele Company on the Island of Java, with final adjustments and set-up on the Island of Oahu, Hawaii.
Editor's NOTE:: (UPDATED JUN-2008) I'm working on my fourth Pono. People that I show and play my Pono uke to are so impressed that I sell it to them. The Pono brand by the Kitakis family of Ko'olau Guitar and Ukulele company has raised the bar on quality mass produce ukuleles. These ARE really nice ukes and the brand I recommend the most. I'm on my fourth & fifth Pono, a pai of Rosewood-Cedar tenor cutaway ukuleles. These are the ukuleles that I'm now using in concert and have one with e at all times.
Here is a review that I did in 2006 on the first Pono I had.
Pono P-5 Chromatic Clip-On Tuner
A revision of the Intelli Tuner, not a cheap imitation. Accurate and easy to use. And now re-designed to eliminate the annoying vibration. Made in Korea, where, due to advanced electronics techinology, Korea has become nicknamed the "Germany of Asia"
More information available on listing's web site.
click on image to play in
While My Guitar Gently Weeps - Ukulele
Here is my (Curt Sheller) performance of this arrangement. I used a Pono
PTRC-CE Tenor cutaway, solid rosewood back and sides, solid cedar top, maple binding.
I have a dedicated page for this song on my UkuleleLessons pages with a TAB of this arrangement.
Boss
Roland Corporation U.S.
5100 S. Eastern Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90040-2938
Phone: 323.890.3700
Fax: 323.890.3701
P.O. Box 910921
Los Angeles, CA 90091-0921
Links
Wuhan Eleca Electronics CO., LTD
No. 12, the 5th Jiang Jun Road
Dong-Xi Lake District
Wuhan, China
430023
Tel: 027-59508018
USA: Eleca Amplification
Eleca International Inc.
21088 Commerce Pointe Dr.
Walnut, CA 91789
TEL: 909-468-1382
Links
Tuner can be found under different brand names.
(from their site) Wuhan Eleca Electronics CO., LTD was established in December 1995. It’s a Sino-US joint venture, as well as export-oriented enterprise and high-tech enterpris e. The company focuses on international trade at the beginning of establishment. Business administration is in line with international standards.
From 1996 to 2006, we earned 50,000,000 dollars from exports, of which earned 8.09 million dollars in 2006. The company implements famous brand strategy, make t he high quality product with all effort. In September of 2005, the ELECA musical instrument was awarded the title of “Hubei’ Famous Exports Brand” by the Departme nt of Commerce, Hubei Province; In October of 2005, af ter the verification of Hubei Entry-Exit Inspection an d Quarantine Bureau, “Wuhan Eleca electronics CO., LTD (guitar amplifier)” conforms to “the First-class Condi tion to Classify Manages of Exportation Industry Produ ct in Production Enterprise”; In December of 2005, the company was evaluated by Wuhan Foreign Economics and T rade Bureau as the Wuhan foreign merchant investment “Enterprises of 100 Tops”; In December of 2006, the co mpany was awarded by the Wuhan government as “Ten Tops Wuhan Investments Enterprises to Create Famous Brand”. The company was evaluated by Chinese Foreign Merchant Investment Association of Enterprise “the National For eign Merchant to Invest the Pair of Superior Enterpris e” in the consecutive eight years, from 1999 to 2006.
More information available on listings's web site.
Kala Brand Music Company
(pronounced Kah’ la )
P.O. Box 751149
Petaluma, CA 94975-1149
1 877 Uke Duke
- Over 40 Ukulele Models
- Tuners
- Cases
- Strings
- Accessories
Links
The Kala KC02 Black Clip On Tuner is extremely simple to use. Cycle the single button to: power on and then chose between chromatic, ukulele C, and ukulele D modes. Backlit screen indicates quickly and clearly when instrument is accurately tuned. There are a lot of tuners on the market, this is one of the best we have seen. Comes with battery and instruction manual.
More information available on listing's web site.
Korg USA
316 South Service Rd
Melville, NY 11747
Links
.png)
Tuner, Metronomes and more...
(from their site) -
In the early 1960s, Korg founder Tsutomu Katoh was a nightclub proprietor. A popular Japanese accordionist and engineer named Tadashi Osanai performed regularly at Mr. Katoh’s club, and one evening, Mr. Katoh told Osanai it would be nice to have a rhythm machine to keep the beat. Mr. Osanai was sure he could build a rhythm machine himself, and convinced Mr. Katoh to finance his efforts.
In 1962, Mr. Katoh rented a small workshop alongside the Keio (pronounced Kayo) railway line so he and Mr. Osanai could develop a mechanical rhythm machine. Mr. Katoh named the fledgling enterprise Keio Electronic Laboratories, which later became Korg — a derivation of the words “Keio” and “ORGan.” Their first rhythm machine was ready in 1963. It was called the Disc Rotary Electric Auto Rhythm machine, but its more popular (and easy to say!) name was the DoncaMatic DA-20. Korg went on to release many models of “Drum Machines,” as they came to be known.
More information available on listings's web site.
Meisel Stringed Instruments
P.O. Box 90
Springfield, New Jersey 07081-0090
Tel:1- 973 379-5000, Fax:1- 973 379-5020
Dealers: 1-800 MEISEL M (634-7356)
Links
(from company's site) -
Meisel traces its roots back centuries. In 1659, before there was a Beethoven or a Paganini, the Meisel name first appeared on a handcrafted European violin. Although much has changed since then, Meisel still symbolizes quality, craftsmanship and unsurpassed value for students and professional musicians alike.
The Meisel Tuner can be found under different brand names.
More information available on company's web site.
OnBoard Research Corp.
Dallas, TX
Links
Makers of the The Intellitouch Tuner.
Peterson Electro-Musical Products, Inc.
11601 Mayfield Avenue
Alsip, IL 60803
(708) 388-3311
Links
These are the leading high end strobe tuners. Can be found in every guitar
repair shop.
Peterson History
In 1948, 10 years after the invention of the strobe tuner, Chicago-based Peterson Electro-Musical Products began building instrument tuners under the direction of Dick Peterson, a pioneer of solid state electronics. The first Peterson tuner was the Model 150 in 1952. This was updated to become the Model 200 in 1959 and the design was advanced to solid state with the Model 300 in 1966.
Planet Waves
D'Addario & Company
Links
Editor's Note: (August 2009)
I have this Chromatic Headstock Tuner and it appears to be pretty durable.
I would reccommend this clip-on tuner over some of the others. No rattles, no weak attachment point and
pretty quick in recognizing the notes.
Company History
In 1994, Howard and Robert Silagy started a small guitar strap company in Hicksville, N.Y. Their approach to business was simple: make attractive, durable straps using high-quality materials and people will buy them. Over the next four years, the company grew, with sales skyrocketing because of the growing popularity of Planet Waves colorful, attractive designs and the line's thick, heavy-duty leather tabs.
In 1998, D'Addario & Company, Inc. acquired the Planet Waves line and it joined D'Addario's world-renowned family of musical instrument accessory brands. D'Addario envisioned the line as more than just accessories for guitarists, but for musicians as a whole.
Chromatic Headstock Tuner precisely tunes guitars, basses and many other stringed instruments utilizing the instrument's vibrations rather than sound - no direct sound or electronic signal is required. Using an optimally positioned, highly sensitive piezo transducer and backlit LCD display, the Headstock Tuner allows you to tune quickly and accurately in noisy or dimly-lit environments where many tuners fail. The compact, lightweight design doesn't add cumbersome mass to your instrument and delivers clear viewing from any angle. Simply clip on and tune up!
The Tru-Strobe Tuner is an extremely accurate pitch measurement device, perfect for settling intonation, recording and live performances where being in tune is of the utmost importance. The tuner’s heavy-duty construction includes a built-in microphone and input jacks for tuning acoustic, as well as electronic instruments. The slightest difference between input frequency and the ideal frequency accumulates over time, and appears as movement on the circular LED interface. Once the movement stops, you are perfectly in tune.
More information available on listings's web site.
Sabine, Inc.
Alachau, FL
904 418 2000
904 418 2001 (Fax)
Links
Editor's Note: (Feb 2007) The MT9000 is the tuner and metronome that I use and reccommend to all my students.
Editor's Note: (JUne 2009)
The ZOID Clip-on Tuner has some nice features but durabality is not one of them. It looks
sturdy but the my uke fell over on the tuner and it broke where the post connects to the tune. I
would not reccommend this for anyone but the most careful person. And, we can be careful but not have
control over others around our instruments. These clip-on design should have not made it
out of design and testing.
A graduate of the University of Florida's School of Engineering, Sabine founder and CEO Doran Oster built the company based on innovation and quality. "Some people go into business distributing other people's products, or making products that are similar to everyone else's product, but cheaper," Oster said. "That's what I call a 'me too' product. We don't have the resources to do things cheaper than our international competitors. A Sabine product has to be something new or something substantially better than what's on the market."
ZOID Clip-on Tuners
More information available on listings's web site.
Seiko
Seiko Holdings Corporation
SEAVANS North
1-2-1, Shibaura, Minato-ku
Tokyo, Japan 105-8459
TEL +81-3-6401-2111
Links
( from their site ) -
Since its founding in 1881, Seiko Holdings Corporation has introduced one revolutionary product after another, including the first wrist watch in Japan in 1913 and the first quartz watch in the world in 1969. We now operate in a broad range of fields, from watches, clocks, shutters for cameras and electronic devices, and eyeglasses to sports products.
Editor's Note: (July 2008) The Seiko STX1 Vibration-Sensing Clip-on Chromatic Tuner is a new tuner that I'm using on my ukuleles. I've used the Meisel, Korg and Intellitouch clip-on tuners.
The Meisel rattles and the Korg didn't hold up to my travels of toting a ukulele everywhere and the Intellitouch's battery cover won't stay on.
In July 2001, Seiko Holdings Corporation became a holding company and adopted a management structure that allows each operating company to engage in business efficiently and flexibly while maximising its distinctiveness in each business field. Under this structure, we promote a consolidated management that enhances the power of the SEIKO brand while respecting the uniqueness and independence of each operating company and maintaining cooperation between them. As we are increasingly being held accountable for corporate social responsibility, we have established a fundamental corporate philosophy of "being a company with the trust of society." Based on this corporate philosophy, we will continue, as we have done in the past, to put into practice the efforts and approaches that are undertaken by each of our employees in improving their conduct and daily job performance.
More information available on listings's web site.
Sonic Research Inc.
Manufacturing, Sales, and Distribution:
4607 Lakeview Canyon Rd. Suite 305
Westlake Village, California 91361
(800) 811-0272
Toll Free: (800) 811-0272
Fax: (888) 820-6007
Corporate Headquarters:
Sonic Research Inc.
711 S. Carson Street Suite 6
Carson City, Nevada 89701
(775) 883-4831
Links
The Turbo Tuner - True Strobe Tuners from Sonic Research
( from listing's site ) -
The LED ring on the Turbo Tuner is a true stroboscope. The LEDs are driven directly by the analog input signal and electronically strobed, showing the actual stroboscopic effect between the input signal and internally generated frequency reference. This gives instant response and extreme accuracy.
More information available on listings's web site.
In the UK there is the clip on chromatic tuner Guitar Tech GT75 Clip-On Chromatic Tuner
Tuners are showing up in all shapes and sizes these days.
I have accumulated several metro devices over the years from the the classic wind-up pendulum metronome to various electronic metronomes.
Some musicians swear by them and others swear at them. But - one think for sure. EVERY musician is responsible for keeping and playing in time. An external time device like a metronome can be used too develop a great internal sense of time.
I have ALL my students work on playing in time.
Korg USA
316 South Service Rd
Melville, NY 11747
Links
Tuner, Metronomes and more...
(from their site) -
In the early 1960s, Korg founder Tsutomu Katoh was a nightclub proprietor. A popular Japanese accordionist and engineer named Tadashi Osanai performed regularly at Mr. Katoh’s club, and one evening, Mr. Katoh told Osanai it would be nice to have a rhythm machine to keep the beat. Mr. Osanai was sure he could build a rhythm machine himself, and convinced Mr. Katoh to finance his efforts.
In 1962, Mr. Katoh rented a small workshop alongside the Keio (pronounced Kayo) railway line so he and Mr. Osanai could develop a mechanical rhythm machine. Mr. Katoh named the fledgling enterprise Keio Electronic Laboratories, which later became Korg — a derivation of the words “Keio” and “ORGan.” Their first rhythm machine was ready in 1963. It was called the Disc Rotary Electric Auto Rhythm machine, but its more popular (and easy to say!) name was the DoncaMatic DA-20. Korg went on to release many models of “Drum Machines,” as they came to be known.
More information available on listings's web site.
Rhythm Source
1050 North Point Street #1504
San Francisco, CA 94109
Links
This looks like a great metronome that would be a valuable resource for any musician and especially
teachers.
There web site has a lot of great information on playing and developing time.
What IS IT?
The RhythmSource Metronome allows you to see as well as hear time, pulse, and meter.
The patented user-friendly visual interface makes practice more enjoyable with faster results as you stay in close touch with the meter, and the potential for silences within the phrases to develop your inner pulse.
Teaching becomes faster and easier, as you can simultaniously show the student both visually and aurally what different notes values mean in real time.
Check out the online demo
About RhythmSource?
RhythmSource is dedicated to the study, performance, and enjoyment of rhythm. We provide the best quality resources for understanding and improving ones time, pulse and rhythmic performance.
We have the most innovative metronomes on the market, books that can deepen your sense of rhythm, and finely crafted musical instruments from Colombia, South America.
RhythmSource was founded by Andrew “A.C.” Lewis. You can contact him at info@rhythmsource.com
More information available on listings's web site.
Sabine, Inc.
Alachau, FL
904 418 2000
904 418 2001 (Fax)
Links
Editor's Note: (Feb 2007) The MT9000 is the tuner and metronome that I use and reccommend to all my students.
Editor's Note: (JUne 2009)
The ZOID Clip-on Tuner has some nice features but durabality is not one of them. It looks
sturdy but the my uke fell over on the tuner and it broke where the post connects to the tune. I
would not reccommend this for anyone but the most careful person. And, we can be careful but not have
control over others around our instruments. These clip-on design should have not made it
out of design and testing.
A graduate of the University of Florida's School of Engineering, Sabine founder and CEO Doran Oster built the company based on innovation and quality. "Some people go into business distributing other people's products, or making products that are similar to everyone else's product, but cheaper," Oster said. "That's what I call a 'me too' product. We don't have the resources to do things cheaper than our international competitors. A Sabine product has to be something new or something substantially better than what's on the market."
ZOID Clip-on Tuners
More information available on listings's web site.
Links and Resources
- Metronome (link ) -
Metronome is a free metronome for Mac OS X. (Requires Mac OS 10.3 or later. Metronome is a
Universal Binary which runs 'natively' on both Intel and PPC Macs.)
- Metronome 1.8 (link ) - Metronome is a nice and useful metronome. It closely mimics a real world clockwork metronome in that it has a bell which you can set to sound at intervals of every 2, 3, 4 or 6 beats.
- Dr. Betotte (link ) - Multi divisions programable metronome/beat-box program, create any kind of complicated rhythms for practicing your instruments.
TUNERS.PHP | Updated: Tuesday, 09th March, 2010 @ 07:50am
Clubs, Forums, Links…
Miscellaneous
Books by Curt Sheller
Jazz Guitar
Amplifiers
Reviews
QuickStart Series
Books
.png)
.png){kind=icon}
.png){kind=icon}
Info 
.png){kind=icon}
.png){kind=icon}
.png){kind=icon}
Banners Ads
Average Visitors to CurtSheller.com
Averaging over 1000 visitors a day.
News, Updates & Search
.png){kind=spacer}
Site Map
Online Orders & shipping Information
All orders purchased here at CurtSheller.com, JazzGuitarResources.com, UkuleleChords.net and UkuleleForGuitarPlayers.com are processed using a secure shopping cart system and shipped within 48 hours USPS. Allow 7 to 10 business days for delivery. It is not our intention to profit from shipping and handling charges. The rates are an average cost, and intended to cover expenses only. Please do not ask how long it will takes to get your order. All US orders are shipped USPS Priority Mail® or USPS First-Class Mail® (under 1lb) and delivery dates are not predictable. I do not check on an order not received until three weeks have elapsed since it was shipped. Three weeks is not how long it takes to get your order. Rather, it is how long it takes to convince us that something is wrong. Some orders are returned by the USPS and we have to wait to see if that has happened before any action is taken. Thanks, Curt Sheller Publications. 
The wealth of FREE information, lessons, TABs and resources available on this site is supported by your generous purchases of the books, CDs and products on this site. Please support this site by visiting my 
The wealth of FREE information, lessons, TABs and resources available on this site is supported by your generous purchases of the books, CDs and products on this site. Please support this site by visiting my online store. Thanks, Curt!
To send feedback use the Site Feedback Form below to submit your feedback.