Guitar intonation tuner app? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Circlotron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 10, 2020, 06:02:33 am
content: One way of adjusting the intonation of a guitar is to tune a given open string to the correct pitch, then press the 12th fret, pluck, and see if the pitch is exactly double. If it is a bit sharp or flat then the wedge or similar at the bridge end of the string is adjusted back or forth a little, then tune the open string to correct pitch again, then 12th fret and check for double pitch again... A lot of fiddling around retuning the open string every time.What I would like to see is set the open string to nominally correct pitch then use that pitch as areferenceto check for double because every time you adjust the bridge you also affect the open string. It would be good if you could pluck open, then pluck 12th, and if it is off then adjust the bridge and pluck open straight away again without having to first reset it. We are only looking for an exact 1:2 pitch ratio - not necessarily exact pitch at this stage. When it is finally adjusted right, if open string is right then 12th fret will also be right.Is there an app that will do this - listen for a reference pitch, as well as have the normal absolute pitches built in? Maybe it's an idea for a new app?

author: 2N3055
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 10, 2020, 08:31:39 am
content: I just use tuner, set open string right, test octave(12th fret), if lover or higher, fiddle with bridge, and than , on tuner you just check if if needle (or light or whatever display is) is moving when you go open/octave..If open string is 5 cent low, and octave is 5 cent low , you octave is perfect..So you can do 5-6 backs and forths, before you go off the fine scale on the tuner. Then you pluck open string, tune in, and keep repeating until you're done. It is really quick and most of the time is bridge setup...Don't tune octave by ear. Top notch tuners are 10-20 USD. It's good investment.That is why you can't find app that will do what you asked. Everybody is doing it with tuner the way I explained.

author: Circlotron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 10, 2020, 10:14:16 am
content: Quote from: 2N3055 on December 10, 2020, 08:31:39 amGot it!I've been using GuitarTuna on an Android tablet to measure the pitch. Checked it against my function generator and it's as good as dead on.https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ovelin.guitartuna&hl=en_AU&gl=US

author: 2N3055
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 10, 2020, 10:37:18 am
content: Quote from: Circlotron on December 10, 2020, 10:14:16 amLooks nice, i'll look at it..Although I have handheld Seiko, Snark clip on, tuner in effect pedal and in the amp... I guess never enough tuners... They are like multimeters... They just keep piling up....

author: Benta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 10, 2020, 11:54:32 pm
content: Quite frankly, if you need an app for this, you're not a musician.Back in the 80s when I worked as a rock guitarist, I did this by ear. And it wasn't difficult:New guitar: check (and adjust) the fretboard for straightness and possible twist, set the string height, set the bridge sliders for octave correctness.Adjust the pickupsDone. By ear.

author: Circlotron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 11, 2020, 01:09:24 am
content: Quote from: Benta on December 10, 2020, 11:54:32 pmMy electronic design skills are good enough to make a living from, and I do.My musical skillz are comparable to some of the electronic facepalms you see in various places on the web.

author: 2N3055
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 11, 2020, 08:14:34 am
content: Quote from: Benta on December 10, 2020, 11:54:32 pmYeah, you pluck harmonic on octave and press octave back and forth and tune.. I also was doing it by ear back then..And that little EADGHE harmonica...I also made my own bass amp, and active electronics for bass.Good times, we had lots of fun...Times have changed.. With tuner it's faster...even 20 years ago decent electronic tuner was cheaper than set of good bass strings.Also beginners cannot reliably tune down in cent area, their ear is not trained yet.Show up on a gig nowadays without silent tuner and you'll get weird looks..All the best,

author: John B
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 11, 2020, 08:32:39 am
content: Quote from: Circlotron on December 11, 2020, 01:09:24 amI think the salient point is that if you cannot hear the difference, what use is a measuring tool if the end result is indistinguishable to you?Also why not use use the octave harmonic then fretted octave? Much easier to hear, even down to cents difference, rather than trying to hear an octave +/- cents.

author: 2N3055
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 11, 2020, 09:25:52 am
content: Quote from: John B on December 11, 2020, 08:32:39 amWith beginners, it is more about making sure that instrument is tuned up so you can properly train ear to exact pitch..You do use harmonic over 12th fret and pressed 12th fret, back and forth..But there is a difference in tone color (timbre) so those two tones are not exactly the same, despite having same nominal pitch.You also have to try dozens of times, varying pressure, to see if that affects tuning, which it will to some extent, depending on string type, fret profile, which string it is..If strings are brand new, they will keep on stretching all the time you're doing this so add this to confusion.For beginners it is not shame to ask for help, only important thing is tuned instrument. For pros, they want to just do it fast (and silent)..

author: GlennSprigg
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 11, 2020, 01:32:59 pm
content: I'm a Guitar player... and once, years ago, a music shop owner said to me that it's the FIRST time he has seen anybodycheck a guitars 'tuning' with a 'comb' !!What I was doing, (and often do!), is pluck strings while using the back edgeof my comb without fully depressing the strings, to create additional 'harmonics', so that I quickly and easily check for theposition directly over certain built-in Fret positions including the '12th'. As you say, the position of the 'Bridge' adds a wholenew dimension to 'Open-Tuning'. Often in regard to say Steel-String guitars, the position/shape/angle of the 'bridge' isfixed, and greatly affects the 'intonation' of the instrument, when playing up the frets!THIS is often quite subjective in results, as one also needs to consider the height of the strings above the Fret-Board,(as varying people like/prefer), because one needs to consider that to 'depress' that string all the way to the FretBoardresults in that string being 'stretched further' slightly too, affecting the tonal qualities/accuracy as you move up the frets!!The BEST we can do, is to settle on an 'average', depending on the chords/notes played, and in the KEY we are in.The biggest upsetting of what I mentioned & why, is the use of a CAPO, and why/when.

author: bob91343
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 11, 2020, 07:16:49 pm
content: The guitar is an imperfect instrument but in the hands of a true talent its limitations seem unimportant.Having said that, the way I check mine is without a tuner. I pluck the open string and then lightly touch the halfway point of the string to make it vibrate one octave higher. Listening to that and then pressing down on the 12th fret to see if it's the same pitch will verify the bridge position.The most accurate method is to tune one string against a tuner, then find those spots on other strings as well as the tuned one that match the pitch, without using any frets. In other words, there are harmonics that match each other on each string that are the same pitch. It's even easier on the bass violin where you can bow the strings two at a time with fingers lightly touching appropriate spots on the two strings. Hearing the unison pitches at the same time allows you to hear the beats and reduce them to zero. As a venerable bassist, that's my method of choice. It's faster and more accurate than a tuner.