Snark clip-on tuner awesomeness

I would put this invention right near the top of Great Inventions in Civilization. Just got one yesterday at GC and used it at a jam tonight.

It works like a charm -- the colors are perfect, it tunes accurately, and I don't have to hook up my tuner pedal while setting up at the jam, which means one less thing to worry about. It also can be bent around in a 360, so you can find some position that works for you. I clipped it on so that the readout is actually behind the headstock, visible to me, but invisible to the audience.

OK, maybe that Great Invention thing is a little overdone, but I'm very happy with this solution. Anybody else try one? I think they're made by Danelectro.

Found one (different brand though) on the floor at a gig once, someone must have lost it there. I used it for a while, especially when I was teaching and didn't have my pedal tuner handy, and I liked having one.

When the battery died I never bothered to get a new one... I think I still have the tuner somewhere.

I have a clip on aswell. Not your brand, but yes, i find it to be the greatest invention of all time. I do find it hard to intonate with however.

Bought a Snark on amazon.com for like $11 bucks...greatest little guitar accessory ever, love it !

Bought a Snark on amazon.com for like $11 bucks...greatest little guitar accessory ever, love it !

Ouch. Just saw that after spending 29.99 at GC.

I posted my review of Snarks earlier here:
http://www.tdpri.com/forum/stomp-box/249989-bought-pair-snarks.html

They are nice! I got both models. SN1 and SN2. Some cool features. I like these much better then some more high end ones I've had before.

I have a different brand and I love it. One less thing to plug into my signal chain, and when I want to tune, all I have to do is turn down the volume on my guitar.

How accurate are these? I like the idea.

How accurate are these? I like the idea.

I don't have perfect pitch so I can't say for sure. However, I tuned the guitar with the Snark at GC, then plugged in and used a Boss TU-3 to check the tuning. According to the Boss, it was right on.

FWIW.

I have a different brand and I love it. One less thing to plug into my signal chain, and when I want to tune, all I have to do is turn down the volume on my guitar.

+1

I use an Intellitouch clip-on.

Being able to plug directly into an amp and still tune silently without outside interference is very liberating.

When the battery died I never bothered to get a new one... I think I still have the tuner somewhere.
I had a perfectly good Korg TM-40 (tuner/metronome combined) that always worked perfectly for me when I played at home, or played electric guitar with a couple of friends.

That changed the first time I attended an acoustic song-circle/jam event. With about fifteen guitars all playing continuously, my poor Korg was completely unable to pick my my own acoustic guitars sound out of the background. Tuning with the Korg was out of the question, so I resorted to tuning the high E by ear to the cacophony of the other guitars, then resting my ear against the body of my guitar and tuning the other strings relative to that high E. Not very comfortable, not very quick, and not very accurate.

And that's when I discovered the true worth of a clip-on tuner. Basically, it's the only kind of tuner that works on an all-acoustic instrument in this sort of situation.

I've been using an Intellitouch, which works okay but is a little fussy about locking in to a note. I started using it with my electric guitars as well, because it's so much more convenient to clip it on the headstock than to turn off my guitar amp, unplug the guitar cable from the amp, plug into the TM-40, tune, then reverse the entire process. I'm particular about staying in tune, so I tend to do this every ten to fifteen minutes, especially when the temperature in the room is changing.

Yeah, an in-line pedal tuner would have been an alternative, but they cost quite a bit more, and way more than I was willing to pay - I'm not a gigging pro, but a hobby musician. In my situation, spending something near a hundred bucks for a pedal tuner seems a little ridiculous to me.

Last night I was at another all-acoustic jam, and I borrowed a Snark SN-2 to try. I immediately liked the bright, colour-coded display, and most particularly, the quick and rock-solid lock-in to any note you play. In fact, I liked the Snark so much that I just ordered one from Amazon.com this morning.

-Gnobuddy

How accurate are these? I like the idea.
I think the accuracy is very good - almost certainly better than the intonation problems that are built into your guitar. The major limitation is probably the width of any one of those tiny little display segments - you can't tune any finer than the width of one of those segments in the display!

As I mentioned, however, this is quite accurate - almost certainly more accurate than your guitar is capable of, unless perhaps you have brand-new strings, an accurately set up compensated nut (Earvana or similar), an accurately intonated bridge or saddle, and perfect finger placement and pressure.

-Gnobuddy

How accurate are these? I like the idea.

I have a snark and peterson strobe, and the Snark isn't as accurate as the strobe. But it is more accurate than my tech tune. Wish I could quantify it for you, but I can't. I like using my Strobe for setups and intonation, but playing with other folks, the snark is way easier to use.

the thing I like about the snark is that it is easily visible from any angle, and very easy to see. The techtunes and intellitouch clip ons can sometime be tough to see.

Pretty darn accurate. I'm a big snark fan.

The Snark is the first clip-on that I trust and can actually intonate with. If you get used to the feel of it (where it breaks over between LEDs), it's good enough for a basic setup.

It's easy to read from most any angle, and tracks quickly. I would definitely add it to the Greatest Inventions Ever List as well, and I'm a patent attorney ;)

I bought one from my local guitar store and liked it enough that I shopped around, got a comparison price, and got GC to sell me three black ones for $12 each. I wouldn't say they're a direct replacement for my Turbo Tuners, but the Snarks are a good alternative and a great value. My only gripe is that they don't fold down flat so they take up a touch more space than they could otherwise.

I just ordered one! Thanks for the tip! If it is as good as everyone says it is, I will order 2 or 3 more.

Dan

The Snark for me 'tracks' on all my axes better than the rest so far.
That's the most important thing for me with a clip-on.

Just got one off ebay for my Nylon string! Thanks 4 the heads ^

The Snark for me 'tracks' on all my axes better than the rest so far.
That's the most important thing for me with a clip-on.

+1, and the needle doesn't dissappear

What's the difference between the models, does anyone know? Is it just color?

I have a blue one...does everything I'd need it to do (the tap metronome isn't so great, but I have an actual metronome, so no biggie...)

What's the difference between the models, does anyone know? Is it just color?

I have a blue one...does everything I'd need it to do (the tap metronome isn't so great, but I have an actual metronome, so no biggie...)

One has a mic the other doesn't
Its a handy gadget.
I use one rather than have a tuner on my board.
Its accurate enough.
Cheap.
And the clamp is strong. My Intlitouch would go flying all the time.
I hop around some times.
No fear with the snark ! It ain't going anywhere.
The Snark is faster than the intilitouch as well.
Snark is much quicker.

I have a different brand and I love it. One less thing to plug into my signal chain, and when I want to tune, all I have to do is turn down the volume on my guitar.

Ironically, I posted this in December but I just bought a Polytune polyphonic tuner. I haven't gigged with it yet, but I've practiced with it and I suspect that *it* may actually be the greatest invention ever.

I still love the clip-on, though, for changing strings, tuning a backup guitar (or any other time when I don't want to plug into anything), my acoustic, my ukulele, etc.

If you want to hide them behind the headstock...why are they red and blue?

If you want to hide them behind the headstock...why are they red and blue?

I was thinking that too, why not make a brown one?
And I read they are set to turn themselves off in ten minutes. I wish you could keep them on for a whole gig without having to find the little button on the end of your headstock. Easier said than done if your eyesight aint what it used to be.

Still looking forward to the little blue tuner though! Does the blue or red have a mic?

Guitar Center has them in black exclusively.

Its helpful. I have the Intellitouch. I'm not completely happy with it. I have to stop and wait for it to rest before plucking the next string. Can't just pluck away.

Bought a Snark on amazon.com for like $11 bucks...greatest little guitar accessory ever, love it !

Wooow...Glad I read this thread first!
I was saving up to buy one of these Snark clip-on strobe tuners locally for close to 40 dollars. I can buy 3 on Amazon for that much!
:grin:

Round these part usual clip-on is the Intelli INT-600, but the Korg AW-2 is quicker and more accurate, piezo and mic.

I use a Korg AW-2G...I've used Korg tuners since the 80's...why change now? What's so special about this Snark...I looked at them but chose the Korg...same price, trusted name.

If you want to hide them behind the headstock...why are they red and blue?
IMO, the trouble with inconspicuous black clip-on tuners is that they not only hide behind your headstock, they also get lost and hide in your music gig bag or gig box! If, like most musicians, you're not the most organized person on the planet, it isn't the easiest thing to find a little black tunder doodad snuggled in the middle of black guitar cables, black clip-on book lights, dark brown Fender guitar plectrums, a black metronome - you get the picture!

So, personally, I'm glad these things come in bright and easy-to-see colors.

-Gnobuddy

I use a Korg AW-2G...I've used Korg tuners since the 80's...why change now? What's so special about this Snark...I looked at them but chose the Korg...same price, trusted name.
The lowest price I can find online for that Korg is $30, while I found blue Snarks on Amazon.com for $8 plus $5 shipping/handling - so $13 each, less than half the price of the Korg.

I have a Korg TM-40 (tuner/metronome), and I agree that it is very nice. Accurate and reliable, and also inexpensive. If it had been a clip-on tuner, I would have looked no further.

-Gnobuddy

Snarking is tough on these tiny tele headstocks.

I got mine and I will definitely order a few more to keep in all my cases and even a few for gifts.

Dan

Snarking is tough on these tiny tele headstocks.



I stick mine right on the end, with the display behind the headstock. Seems to work!

Got mine for my electric nylon string, and it tracks better than my Korg pitchblack. Now I need another for my lake placid blue strat and I can ditch the pitchblack alltogether, and add another 'effect' pedal to my board!! :smile:

Mine Snarks arrived also. It was time to put new strings on my Agile AS-820, so one of the Snarks got put to use immediately, tuning the new strings up to pitch.

Mmm. Very nice! As everyone says, they're easy to read, quick to lock-in to the note, and quite accurate.

I also love the flashing heart metronome thingamagigger. When I play for an audience, I still get a little nervous and often end up starting off at a little faster tempo than I intended because my brain is working at an accelerated speed from nervousness and I literally forget what, say, 100 bpm sounds like. With the Snark, I can set the flashing metronome on, look at it and use it to count myself into the song, and then ignore it so that I can vary the tempo as needed for expression as the song goes on. It's the best of both worlds, helping me start a song at the right speed, without locking me into the robotic rigid tempo of an audible metronome. Very nice!

Personally, I like the Snark's auto shut-off feature. The one thing I don't like about my old Korg TM-40 is that it has no auto shut-off, and no power-on indicator either. Quite often I forget to turn it off, and next time I go to use it I find the batteries are dead.

-Gnobuddy

Got mine for my electric nylon string, and it tracks better than my Korg pitchblack. Now I need another for my lake placid blue strat and I can ditch the pitchblack alltogether, and add another 'effect' pedal to my board!! :smile:
I'd be hesitant to leave one clipped permanently on a guitar, in case that was your plan. Over time, it's possible the guitar's finish would be damaged by contact with the rubber clamp. Sometimes chemicals migrate from one material to another when they're in contact.

When I was a kid I remember finding the rubber mat on some record-player turntables would damage any vinyl record you left sitting on it for long, and more recently i found out that rubber-padded guitar stands can damage some nitro guitar finishes.

I bought three Snarks myself, I plan to put two in the cases of my favorite two guitars, and the third in my music "box o' stuff" with the capos, spare batteries, plectrums, clip on book-light, and what not.

-Gnobuddy

The only "problem" with mine so far is that the battery doesn't keep the screen bright for "ever". Seem that the display gets a bit dimmer after a few weeks of use. Does not seem to effect the performance of the tuner though. I took my tuner off my board.
Might just let this next battery go dead just to see what failure mode is.
I bought my first Peterson strobe in 76' . But for little gigs and travel this thing is my new favorite toy.

Thanks for the tip about not leaving it on the guitar. But My guitar wont fit in the case with it on,so I have to take it off.
TIP # 1 - I was showing my little girl the heart beat metronome,and told her it also moniters my heart rate while I'm playing guitar! :lol::lol:
The next day it was still on,beating away...........so you have to manualy turn it off.
Pretty obvious I guess,but I somehow over-looked it.
Al, I wish it was a little brighter too,especially in daylight, but its totally acceptable.Let us know when your battery dies!

do they work in loud noisy situations like a gig? I had one a while back, (a different name brand though), that didn't work good at all in a noisy environments.

do they work in loud noisy situations like a gig? I had one a while back, (a different name brand though), that didn't work good at all in a noisy environments.

Seems to work fine for me at the jam.

Seems to work fine for me at the jam.

yeh but is it a very noisy? people screaming and banging on the stage...do you think it would work then?

I'd say yes. It reads the vibrations from the guitar and doesn't seem to be influenced by other sounds. Maybe others could chime in here, but that's my experience.

do they work in loud noisy situations like a gig? I had one a while back, (a different name brand though), that didn't work good at all in a noisy environments.

I would say that all tuners of this type have a hard time in a loud environment.
Usually you can't tune when the band is playing, either on clip or mic.

I'd agree, It doesnt use a mic so the vibrations on the guitar are really the only thing its sensing.

I would say that all tuners of this type have a hard time in a loud environment.
Usually you can't tune when the band is playing, either on clip or mic.

Yeh that's what I thought....oh well.

Try it out in that environment and see how it works for ya. You can also plug into a pedal tuner and compare.

These clip-ons have interested me for a while. Finally got me one and like the way it works. It will pick up other vibrations when I am not playing, but it will always react to my guitar over any extraneous noises. I like always having instant reference and not having a tuner in the signal chain. I chose this one based on seeing others with it and liking its small size. I have it facing the rear of the headstock and I can fold it back, leave it attached, and still put the guitar in its case.

http://www.oasishumidifiers.com/tuner-oh17.html

Try it out in that environment and see how it works for ya. You can also plug into a pedal tuner and compare.

Like i said, i had one before and it totally sucked ass on the band stand. If the shark is the same technology,then I know it ain't going to work already.

I have the Intellitouch PT10, great little clip-on, very quick and convenient.

I've had others too, and have found on all of them that while a decaying battery doesn't reduce actual accuracy, it does, along with headstock placement, effect the tuner's sensitivity to pitch vibration.

i have a couple Intellitouch. DEFINATE issues with background noise(noodling drums, accordion etc.) fairly accurate. batterys last a good long time. when they do run down the tuner has trouble locking on a note.
i use a Boss tu-2 on my pedalboard but always keep an Intellitouch on my gig box for when non-p board situations arise. very handy.
think i'm gonna try the snark, though! the price is right!

oh yah.....the Intellitouch does tend to fall off the headstock if you move around a lot! and if the notes don't lock quickly, you can try moving the tuner to a diferent location on the headstock. i'd imagine that goes for other clip on tuners as well.

Like i said, i had one before and it totally sucked ass on the band stand. If the shark is the same technology,then I know it ain't going to work already.

The red model has a built in mic. The blue does not. Unless your band members are playing so loud that it actually shakes your guitar while you are holding it in your hands, I can't see how it would be a problem.

Dan

"yeh but is it a very noisy? people screaming and banging on the stage...do you think it would work then? "

I think a fire hose would work then.

I think a fire hose would work then.
:mrgreen: :mrgreen: Thanks for the mental image!

My first clip-on was an Intellitouch, which I bought because my old faithful Korg TM-40 tuner would not work at the acoustic guitar jams I was attending - too much background noise from all the other guitars. The Intellitouch had no trouble at all, however.

I would think you'd need a pretty horrendous amount of background noise to vibrate a solid-body guitar enough to confuse a clip-on tuner. Alan may be right - if the noise level is that high, it's time to turn on the sprinkler system!

-Gnobuddy

Joined the club this week. It's my first clip-on tuner and it works a lot better than units I've borrowed at jams and rehearsals and such. Tracks very quickly and accurate. Actually made changing strings on my Seagull 12-string pretty painless. Well, as painless as can be expected...

They really are great for the price... I've used mine to tune up at practices while everyone was playing around me and never had any issues with it. Now I need to get more of them to keep in my other guitar cases!

I got the little Snark dude for Christmas, and didn't really think a whole lot about it. Seemed kinda like a little cheapo tuner.

Then I started using it. I keep it in my case with my acoustic so I always have a tuner (TU-2 on my board for electrics, though the Snark works there too). The thing is awesome. Bright display, spot on tuning. Used it for intonation the other day and it worked great there too.

Probably the best thing I got, and it was initially an afterthought.

Actually made changing strings on my Seagull 12-string pretty painless. Well, as painless as can be expected...
At least you're better off than the guy I used to know who had an early '70s Jaguar E-type sports car with a V-12 engine. Changing the spark plugs and spark plug wires on that thing was an all-day affair!

-Gnobuddy

Probably the best thing I got, and it was initially an afterthought.
I saw the thingy advertised in one of the music catalogs, and totally ignored it. It was only weeks later, after I borrowed a Snark at a jam to tune up, that I realised I was in the presence of technological awesomeness. :smile:

-Gnobuddy

all i'm saying is that i can't use it if its going to jump all around and not be stable when I'm trying to tune between songs in a live environment. i'm not trying to be a jerk about it. what would the built in mike do for me in a live noisy festival or club? Nothing.

all i'm saying is that i can't use it if its going to jump all around and not be stable when I'm trying to tune between songs in a live environment. i'm not trying to be a jerk about it. what would the built in mike do for me in a live noisy festival or club? Nothing.

Dude, there 8 bucks, try one.If you got people screaming and banging on the stage,surely you can foot the bill. :roll:

all i'm saying is that i can't use it if its going to jump all around and not be stable when I'm trying to tune between songs in a live environment. i'm not trying to be a jerk about it. what would the built in mike do for me in a live noisy festival or club? Nothing.

My point is that you want the one WITHOUT the mic. The blue one will do what you need it to do without issue.

I didn't think you were trying to be a jerk. I was just hoping you would see the light. No need for any of us to get snarky.

See what I did there?

Dan

What would the built in mike do for me in a live noisy festival or club? Nothing.
Right, nothing. So don't get the red version (which has the mic). Get the blue one (which has no mic). Or don't get one at all.

I'm not quite sure what your line of thinking is. If you're still wondering if this will work for you, get one and try it - most suppliers will let you return an item you don't like. And at eight bucks plus shipping for the blue ones (search Amazon.com), even if you end up keeping a tuner that doesn't work for you, you're barely out the cost of a cheap hamburger and a milkshake.

If, on the other hand, you've already decided this won't work for you, well then, your decision is made and your life just got simpler! Get a $100 (after tax) Korg Pitch Black inline tuner, and be done with it. You know that will work (with an electric guitar) in just about any environment short of being 30 feet under water. :mrgreen:

-Gnobuddy

i have the korg pitch black and use it on my board. I don't really need people to give me ideas to alternative ideas of differnt tuner devices. I play music for a living. Let's not get off the topic of this tuner. Ok I get it. you can stop quoting everything i say. Peace out.

This thread just convinced me to take the drastic $11.38 (shipping included) risk on the blue Snark for my acoustic. Hope things work out and I didn't blow all that money.

Hope things work out and I didn't blow all that money.
Somehow I think you won't be sorry. :mrgreen:

What's cool about the Snark is that it's an inexpensive little device that is supposed to do one simple task - help you tune your guitar - and it does exactly what it's supposed to do, and does it very well at that. Like a Swingline Stapler or a well crafted hammer, it's hard to have a lot of complaints about a device like this!

For me, the visual-only (flashing heart) metronome is a nice added bonus. Perfect for starting a song at the right tempo, and all I have to do is look away from the headstock once the song is started so I can vary the tempo as needed for maximum expressiveness (when playing solo acoustic guitar, obviously). No robotic click to lock you into a rigid-as-a-clock tempo, and yet it guides you. Perfect.

-Gnobuddy

you can stop quoting everything i say. Peace out.
Andre - quoting you is not some sort of rudeness from me. It's normal etiquette on a bulletin board like this, so you and other readers know exactly what I'm replying to. Without doing this, replies get very confusing as the original post may be far away from the reply, sometimes even on a previous page.

Peace out to you to. It's great that you can make a living playing music. Not easy to do these days.

-Gnobuddy

Sorry for my previous Snarky comment..........:lol:

it's all good guys... cool as a cucumber!

Thanks for the heads up people. I've just nipped over to eBay and ordered a couple.

I've got a black one and I'm wondering what the difference is between it and the red and blue ones. Truthfully I chose it because of esthetics -- I didn't want some bright blue or red thing hanging off my headstock. But it seems the red and blue ones are different.

I've got a black one and I'm wondering what the difference is between it and the red and blue ones. Truthfully I chose it because of esthetics -- I didn't want some bright blue or red thing hanging off my headstock. But it seems the red and blue ones are different.

I know there's a version2...whether the black one is the v2 I don't know.
They seem more scarce.
I had the same feelings as you re: the red and blue.

I've got a black one and I'm wondering what the difference is between it and the red and blue ones. Truthfully I chose it because of esthetics -- I didn't want some bright blue or red thing hanging off my headstock. But it seems the red and blue ones are different.

I think the black one is the same as the blue one. No external mic. I think it is made exclusively for Guitar Center/Musicians Friend/Etc.

Dan

I didn't want some bright blue or red thing hanging off my headstock.
My four-string electric bass is bright metallic blue. My five-string electric bass is bright metallic red. I didn't plan it that way, but my new red and blue Snarks will be nice matches to them. :mrgreen:

I'm glad Snarks come in different colors as well as black (which isn't a color, but is actually the absence of any color). This way the uber-conservative can have their sober funeral-black tuners, and the rest of us can enjoy some color in our lives.

I've always thought it interesting that cultures that prefer very somber colors typically also create and prefer rather emotionless music, while cultures that prefer a brighter palette in their colors and a spicier palate in their food often end up making music with more life and energy in it as well.

-Gnobuddy

Mine just came in. Ordered Saturday from Best Deal Music on Amazon, got it shipped for $13.

I too was not a fan of the blue, but upon receiving it, it's a metallic blue, so while not the ideal option, it isn't as bright as it looks in the pictures. As for tuning, it seems to do exactly what it's supposed to and is very quick and responsive. Much better than the quik tune hand held I've had for years. It also has a very bright clear screen. I have not yet used the metronome, nor the "transpose feature" that I'm reading about on the box (not sure what that does). One feature I especially like is that it's so fast in registering the note that I can play a lead and it shows which notes I'm hitting. This is helpful for me as I'm trying to dive more into theory and seeing the note I'm playing only helps to develop the connection of theory to muscle memory. (if there was a way to enter a Key or progression into it so it would tell you when you're playing the root, IV, V, etc. this thing would be worth a million dollars)

Really the only drawback I found to it was having a tough time finding a place to put it on the tiny tele headstock. Really not an issue, took me about 10 seconds but it's right over the fender logo. The neck on the Snark is much more flexible than I expected so you can get it to sit just about any way you want so you have a clear visual while playing.

Overall $13 well spent. I can't attest to how they would hold up in a gig with a bass player next to you shaking the stage with his subs, but that's what they make pedal tuners for. If you're to the point that you're playing live shows big enough to cause vibrations, it's probably time you invest in a Pitchblack or TU-2 anyway. This so far seems perfect for the home playing that I do.

Oh and mine also came with battery and a small Snark baggie to put it in when it's in the case, as they don't recommend leaving it on when you aren't playing so it won't rub off the finish.

I have not yet used the metronome, nor the "transpose feature" that I'm reading about on the box (not sure what that does).

I don't use the transpose feature either. It's a chromatic tuner, so you really don't need it - it's a useless feature, in my book. If you want to tune down your guitar a whole step, you already know that EADGBE just became DGCFAD - tune to those notes, and you're done. No need for the transpose feature!

One feature I especially like is that it's so fast in registering the note that I can play a lead and it shows which notes I'm hitting. This is helpful for me as I'm trying to dive more into theory and seeing the note I'm playing only helps to develop the connection of theory to muscle memory.

Brilliant! I hadn't tried that. Like you, I'm trying to learn the fretboard, and this sounds like it could be a great help in that daunting task.

(if there was a way to enter a Key or progression into it so it would tell you when you're playing the root, IV, V, etc. this thing would be worth a million dollars)

What a great idea! Whoever comes out with that feature will make some money, guaranteed.

It shouldn't be too hard, either, engineering-wise. You'd have to tell the tuner what the root note of the key is so it knows where the "I" is, and after that all it has to do is count semitones and translate that into I, II, III, IV, and so on - two semitones makes it a II, four semitones gets you a major III, and so on. If you're more than 12 semitones from the root, subtract off 12 (shift back to the previous octave) and do the same thing as before.

This so far seems perfect for the home playing that I do.
Works great at the acoustic and electric jams I attend also. Frankly, if its so loud in a room that the Snark won't work, I don't want to be in that room!

-Gnobuddy

I have 2 of the blue ones and I love them! I still use my Korg to intonate during a setup but the Snarks work fine for normal playing. I also love that it works on my electrics, steel string accoustic and nylon strings. I think this is the best $10 guitar gizmo I've ever picked up.

After letting it sink in for a day, I have an update for those who are interested.

The Snark is doing as well as before, but I did find some VERY small things that it has trouble with. I kind of tried testing its outer limits to see just how far it could go.

I had a friend over this afternoon to replace a pickguard and strings on his guitar. Used the Snark clipped onto the headstock putting the new strings on to get them in tune. The guitar was sitting on my counter top, and he was walking about 5 feet away, and the vibrations he was making on the ground caused it to misread. When he stopped, it was fine, but the vibrations from him walking did somewhat affect it. Put it on a strap or on my knee and it worked fine again. While he was playing in the same room as me at moderate volume, it had no effect on the tuner unless the guitar was sitting on a vibrating surface.

Also I tuned my mandolin with it. While it picks up the high notes and successfully tuned it, it was not as fast and decisive as when I use it with my acoustic, tele, or strat.

As I said, these are very minor, easily fixed problems especially considering the low cost of the tuner. Just thought I'd mention.

the vibrations he was making on the ground caused it to misread. When he stopped, it was fine
Oh, boy. You have a Tyrannosaurus Rex for a friend? :shock:

Sorry, you brought back those "water trembling in a glass" visuals from Jurassic Park and I couldn't resist. :mrgreen:

-Gnobuddy

One more user experience to report here. Yesterday I used a Snark to tune my Yamaha FGX 730SC acoustic guitar (http://www.guitarcenter.com/Yamaha-FGX730SC-Solid-Top-Acoustic-Electric-Guitar-105485742-i1449311.gc).

The guitar has a built-in electronic tuner, which is incredibly handy - I stopped using my old Intellitouch clip-on tuner once I bought this Yamaha. The stock tuner has two red arrow-shaped LEDs, one lights up to show you're flat, the other to show you're sharp, and both light up at the same time to let you know you're in tune. The letter name of the note (E, A, D, etc) is displayed at the same time. Simple, but effective.

So I clipped the Snark onto the Yamaha, but left it turned off. Then I tuned the guitar with the built-in tuner, and then turned the Snark on to see how well it did compared to the stock tuner.

Sure enough, while the two tuners were in almost exact agreement, the more accurate multi-sector display of the Snark revealed that my sixth string was just a tiny bit flat. When I went back to the built-in Yamaha tuner to check, I could just barely make out that the tuning wasn't perfect - both arrows lit up, but the one pointing left went out sooner than the one on the right as the note died away, which was the tuner trying to tell me I still needed to tune the string up a hair higher in pitch. That wasn't very obvious, though, until the Snark revealed the problem.

The Snark was definitely easier to read, easier to interpret, more stable at locking-in to a note, and had a steadier display.

Not bad at all for a $10-ish gizmo!

-Gnobuddy

I have a Intellitouch PT 30 clip on. They tell you to clip it to the wood of the headstock,
but I find it works better when I clip it to the 6th string tuner base (the square thing) on the back.

I bought a clip-on tuner last week when I bought my first acoustic and I love the thing. In fact, I like it so much that I am now using it to tune my Strat instead of plugging in my Korg tuner. These really are great inventions.

One of the things I love about TDPRI is just reading threads and hearing about cool stuff, filing ideas away for future reference. This thread came in handy today...

So, I was in Omaha today since a couple of my favorite shops were having sales. Didn't see anything that got me excited at my first stop, but I already know what my next purchase there will be, and it is still over the horizon a bit. Wanted to check out the Snark while I was there, but they were sold out of 'em...

At my second stop, I fully intended to finally pull the trigger on a red Marshall Class 5 I've been visiting every few weeks, but, alas, it was gone (you snooze, you lose, my brothers :cry: ). Bummer. I consoled myself with the thought that maybe that means they'll get the new Class 5s a little quicker. I hate to leave this particular shop without buying something, because they're such nice folks and have a lot of great stuff you won't find at GC. Turns out they still had a couple of these little guys left...

http://www.marscelmusic.com/images/Snark_SN1_MED(1).jpg

Got home, slipped in the supplied battery, and...in less than five minutes, I had tuned up my Baja, my Lester, my Strat, and my Hanson Cigno. No need to grab a cable to plug into my Korg, no need to power up the pedal board. Nice. Highly recommended...

On a side note, my Baja was almost perfectly in tune already even though I hadn't given her the treatment in awhile. God bless vintage tuners... :wink:

le Snark has kicked my tuner off the pedalboard! I even usedit to intonate )set up) a guitar. Close enough for gov't work. Very cool!

le Snark has kicked my tuner off the pedalboard! I even usedit to intonate )set up) a guitar. Close enough for gov't work. Very cool!

I now own two snark's for my strat and acoustic. The only reason the pitchblack remains on the board is that I'm powering another pedal from it!

I recently bought two of these. They work great. Very easy and accurate.

I love mine (in fact, I'm the OP of this thread). I do have a question for everyone.

How do you measure when your string is in tune? In other words, when you pluck the string, do you go by the initial reading or where it "settles"? I find sometimes it initially registers sharp but then settles to the in-tune marker. Which is correct?

I got the blue one. Its better than my Intellitouch. to OP, I seem to tune it when I sense there is an average response, I do notice it going sharp if I twang it too hard.

Just picked up the blue Snark last week (as a result of reading this thread). I must say, I'm very impressed. I was thinking about getting a pedal tuner but didn't want to take up valuable pedalboard space...this thing saved the day! I just clip it to my mic stand when not in use. It's very accurate, and doesn't seem to pick up the other players on stage which is nice.

To the OP...as with ANY tuner I usually wait a second or two until the note settles down. But not much longer than that. Another trick I use, and I've been doing this for many years with great results, is just to pluck the 12th fret harmonic and tune to that instead of the open string. It pretty much eliminates the issue with having to wait for the string to settle down, the harmonic is very constant...and the Sharp tuner picks up harmonics very well.

JMHO.

To the OP...as with ANY tuner I usually wait a second or two until the note settles down. But not much longer than that. Another trick I use, and I've been doing this for many years with great results, is just to pluck the 12th fret harmonic and tune to that instead of the open string. It pretty much eliminates the issue with having to wait for the string to settle down, the harmonic is very constant...and the Sharp tuner picks up harmonics very well.

JMHO.

Thanks!

Found another use for my Blue Snark which has a mic.
Last tour in Europe we used it to determine the pitch level of the on stage grand piano's.
Some venues especially the classical ones tune the piano's to European pitch standards and thats 2 to 3 cents high.
So at sound check I would switch the snark to mic mode and find out were we were at for the evening. 75% of the piano's were tuned at A442. You can feel and hear the difference !

How do you measure when your string is in tune? In other words, when you pluck the string, do you go by the initial reading or where it "settles"?
I do it the same way as Chris G - wait for a second or so for the string to settle down, then note the reading on the Snark and tune accordingly.

There is sound science behind this. The initial pick (or finger) attack starts several different frequencies all going at once in the string - that's what we call the initial transient. Most of the frequencies quickly die away, leaving you only those frequencies at which the string "wants" to vibrate. And that's the time when the Snark can give you a good accurate reading.

Incidentally, the Snark (and other good tuners) can reveal that poor quality or old and worn out strings can do some weird things - sometimes they won't settle down to one steady frequency at all, but instead waver and fluctuate and generally misbehave all the way from initial transient to the final end of the note. Time to change strings when you see that happening, or at least to clean them and try again!

Yesterday I grabbed my Yamaha acoustic and went to watch TV with my wife in the other room. I forgot to grab the Snark, so I tuned the guitar with its own built-in electronic tuner. It didn't sound quite right to me, so I fine-tuned it by ear, using harmonics and some fretted notes. It still didn't sound quite right (some chords had a little roughness to the tone), so I finally gave up and went and grabbed the Snark from the little box where I keep it.

Thirty seconds later, the Snark worked its magic, and my guitar sounded as sweet as it was supposed to.

Amazing. These little Snark's really do a great job of getting your guitar very accurately in tune. If you have a decent ear for tone, you'll hear a slight but definite improvement in the tone of complex chords.

Al Watsky's post is very telling also - going from 440 Hz to 442 Hz is less than a one half percent change in frequency, and less than one thirteenth of a semitone (less than 8 cents). And the Snark is able to measure and display that accurately and quickly enough to be useful.

Of course there are other even more accurate tuners out there, but when you consider the size, convenience, ease of use, and price of these little Snarks, they really are an exceptionally good product.

-Gnobuddy

I love my blue Snark, and not cuz its blue!

I picked up a red Snark as a result of this thread. Absolutely love it!! Someday I'll buy a second just cause I got it for $14.95 shipping included.

I am now the proud owner of 3 Snarks. Roughly 33 bucks. Shipped. No brainer.


Dan

$15 for a red, and $11 for a blue - how is Guitar Center getting away with charging $30 (plus tax!) for these?

-Gnobuddy

82267 A dandy gadget. This one matches the guitar.

I'm already on my second Snark--love 'em!

Oh, as to why I'm on my second one--they do break if your buddy's dog eats them. Something to remember.

$15 for a red, and $11 for a blue - how is Guitar Center getting away with charging $30 (plus tax!) for these?The one they want $29.99 for is this one (http://backstage.musiciansfriend.com/Accessories/Practice-Performance-Aids/Tuners-Metronomes/Tuners/Clip-On-Chromatic-All-Instrument-Tuner-Red.site1skuH65652000002000.sku). It is a different (and more sophisticated) gadget. So far as I know, the inexpensive model only comes in blue and black, so if you got a red one for $10-15 somebody might have made an expensive boo-boo in your favor... :wink:

Update: Just visited the GC website, and it appears that someone there doesn't know the difference, either, as the guitar/bass blue model is showing as the same price as the more capable all-instrument model... :roll:

I got this one for € 5,80 from Thomann.
http://www.thomann.de/de/thomann_ctg10.htm?sid=984d9e2081b7bee8229f8233ebfe e70c
it has big display for easy reading and it changes the colour when in pitch, just as easy as the traffic lights :mrgreen:
I mainly use it for my resonator and pass it on if a stranger comes along to jam with me.
battery seems to last forever. it turns off after 10min when nothing vibrates.
it has 3 modes only. guitar, bass and chromatic. don't need no stinkin' metronome :wink:

yep, one of the coolest gadgets ever.

I have a cheap clip on tuner from a Chinese ebay dealer that was $5, and it works good, but I just ordered a Snark from Amazon for $10.59 thanks to these rave reviews. You guys know how to spend my money...

I have a cheap clip on tuner from a Chinese ebay dealer that was $5, and it works good, but I just ordered a Snark from Amazon for $10.59 thanks to these rave reviews.
Be sure to let us know if you find any difference between your new Snark and your previous tuner!

Many of us happy Snark owners had a previous clip-on tuner of some other brand that just didn't work as well as the Snark. I had a $30 Intellitouch PT-10 that worked and wasn't horrible, but it was slower, more erratic, and less accurate than the Snark. Once I got a Snark, the Intellitouch just sat unused in my little music box-o-stuff, along with the spare strings, picks, 9 volt batteries, and whatnot.

Last week I gave the Intellitouch PT-10 to a little girl who just started taking guitar lessons at the same studio where I study guitar. Her mom was already stretching the family budget to pay for the guitar lessons and the little girl needed a tuner, so it seemed the obvious thing to do. I guess it's an ill tuner that tunes nobody any good! :mrgreen:

-Gnobuddy

Update: Just visited the GC website, and it appears that someone there doesn't know the difference, either, as the guitar/bass blue model is showing as the same price as the more capable all-instrument model... :roll:
Oh, I know the difference...and, I bet, so do most people on this thread. And yes, I've been seeing GC advertise red, blue and black Snarks all at the same $30 price.

Meantime, you can get the red Snark on Amazon.com for $9.32...less than one third the Guitar Center price, or if you prefer to put it another way, for twenty bucks less!

-Gnobuddy

Be sure to let us know if you find any difference between your new Snark and your previous tuner!

Many of us happy Snark owners had a previous clip-on tuner of some other brand that just didn't work as well as the Snark. I had a $30 Intellitouch PT-10 that worked and wasn't horrible, but it was slower, more erratic, and less accurate than the Snark. Once I got a Snark, the Intellitouch just sat unused in my little music box-o-stuff, along with the spare strings, picks, 9 volt batteries, and whatnot.

Last week I gave the Intellitouch PT-10 to a little girl who just started taking guitar lessons at the same studio where I study guitar. Her mom was already stretching the family budget to pay for the guitar lessons and the little girl needed a tuner, so it seemed the obvious thing to do. I guess it's an ill tuner that tunes nobody any good! :mrgreen:

-Gnobuddy

Well, I put my cheapy China tuner and Snark on my strat and ran it through my Fender pedal tuner. All would have been acceptable. The Snark can fine tune better, and it is easier to read. It's very awesome indeed. It seems very well built and I'm glad I read this thread :mrgreen:

Had used three different models of the intellitouch for several years, sometimes used a Boss Tu-2 and recently a Tu-3. The Tu-3 is supposed to be true by-pass, but doesn't sound like it to me. Just picked up a couple of blue snarks and I'm sold. Faster response, more precise, not as finicky as to location on the headstock as the intellitouch. Probably the limited battery life is due to using one instead of two. Great product and an even greater value.

My musical partner-in-crime and I run a couple of VERY busy electric blues jams in the DC area. We both always have our blue Snarks on us (we both have two). They are fast and accurate, clip on fast and easy, are totally immune from the cacophony around them-perfect for coaxing nervous (or drunk) jammers into a better state of tune quickly. We both have also replaced our Boss floor tuners with Snarks onstage, in the studio, and on the bench. This is my favorite new product-just replace the crappy Chinese batteries with name brand ASAP.

Bought a Snark on amazon.com for like $11 bucks...greatest little guitar accessory ever, love it !

muscians friend beat that price when I called them and gave it to me for under 10 bucks.

muscians friend beat that price when I called them and gave it to me for under 10 bucks.
Now we're talking! Nice price you got there, buddy!

I found the first chink in my (blue) Snark's armour a couple of days ago. I tried using it to tune my five-string Yamaha bass (RBX 375), and it had trouble with both the low B and the low E strings. The low A was iffy as well. No problems with the top two (D and G) strings. I guess those low bass strings are just too low in frequency for this type of clip-on tuner to work well.

So I pulled out my trusty old Korg TM-40, plugged the bass into it, and tuned it up that way. Since I got the Snarks I've only used the TM-40 as a metronome during practice - but I hadn't touched my bass in months. Looks like the TM-40 will continue to earn its keep, and so will the Snarks!

-Gnobuddy

I finally got on the Snark bandwagon after reading about them for quite a while now.

I ordered something from Amazon recently and remember reading that Snarks were much cheaper online than at Guitar Center (where they're $30).

So I ordered one. It was eleven bucks and change and it arrived today.

I tore into the package when I got home and, not having a guitar immediately handy, I clipped it to my index finger. Then I raised my hand to my mouth and hummed against what I think is called the first metacarpal bone - the one that runs between the wrist and the index finger.

Guess what? The Snark can identify a note hummed into your hand from being clipped on your fingertip!

Later I tuned a couple guitars and a bass and now I see what all the fuss is about.

Great product...at least after a few hours of ownership.

I love mine (in fact, I'm the OP of this thread). I do have a question for everyone.

How do you measure when your string is in tune? In other words, when you pluck the string, do you go by the initial reading or where it "settles"? I find sometimes it initially registers sharp but then settles to the in-tune marker. Which is correct?

I've seen this debated before. Do you tune to the initial attack, or at the decay? I think this is where the old saying that "guitar players spend half their time tuning, and the other half playing out of tune". I tune after the attack when the string settles. Just make sure everyone tunes the same way.

BTW, I got one of those snark tuners stuck in another gift from my wife for Christmas last year and haven't used my TU-2 since. In fact I sold one of my pedal tuners and will probably be getting rid of the TU-2 soon. The snark is just too easy.

Snark SN-8...Brighter,faster and more accurate? If so I'm gonna get one!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SNARK-SN-8-CHROMATIC-TUNER-FOR-GUITAR-BASS-ALL-STRINGED-INSTRUMENTS-/220911101059?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item336f53e483

Just looking at them I must admit I thought they looked kind of stupid, then a friend of mine gave me one and I found that they are actually a good little device. I am glad I am open minded, otherwise I'd miss out on a lot