Accessories Best Sax tuner for studio use

[ZeroZero]

I have been looking for a while for a decent tuner for sax. I seek something that can lay on a table top and will show a clear large Message. Something that one can glance at every now and again. Tuners seem to come in two classes. The clip on type that guitarist use, these can have a bold color display, but are unsuitable here. I tried it. The second type are the size of a pack of cards and feature a grey display that does not show up in poor light, also not suitable.
What i would like is a "card pack" type with a proper display - in color and large. Or anything that does not clip on but still reaines a color display,

Can't seem to find it anywhere!
Z

 

[Pete Thomas]

Something that one can glance at every now and again.

Most players might say that once you have tuned your saxophone, it generally stays in tune. Checking notes against a tuner over the course of time may be counter productive.

I know for a fact if I do that in a studio based on a typical equal temperament tuner the results are often not great.

 

[PiccoloPirate]

This improved one, and the older OT12s are nice.
Lights up.

OT-120 - ORCHESTRAL TUNER | KORG (USA)

Tune wind and string instruments in a flash with the new OT-120, a needle-type meter with a wide range and versatile functionality.

www.korg.com

 

[Tenor Viol]

There have been various discussions about tuners and when/if to use them. There is a recent discussion on this.

The orchestral tuner posted above is probably the successor to the one that viol players I know use for tuning in recitals (viols use gut strings and have other be tuned frequently) and should be fine.

I don't want to reiterate the recent thread, but apart from initially tuning the sax, and re-checking it after it's had a warm up for five or ten minutes, you shouldn't need to be checking 'in flight' as it were.

 

[Nick Wyver]

Tablet with a tuner app.

 

[ZeroZero]

On a sax you need to lip in notes to get them in tune, especially in the top registers. The OT -120 is out of my price range.

Z

 

[Colin the Bear]

The whole personality of the saxophone is it's flexible pitch and ability to mimic voice.

An equal temperament tuner is an aid for fretted instruments where pitch, to a great extent, is fixed.

Equal temperament harmony is a compromise and imperfect.

Use the tuner to get the horn in tune with itself. Then put it away. Use your lip and ears to create beautiful perfect harmony.

 

[turf3]

It's not clear what purpose is envisioned. For that matter, when you say "studio" do you mean "recording studio" or "practice studio"?

Your individual instrument has the internal intonation pattern it has. Your job is to practice enough with it that the inevitable minor compensations become second nature. It's simply not possible to adjust note-by-note by looking at a tuner, you can't move fast enough. You have to have, already in so-called "muscle memory", the sense of how to play each note. So having a tuner active while actually playing music is of limited (some would say of no) value.

What a tuner is real good for is to set the overall tuning of the instrument against a standard (A=440). You set the tuning at the beginning of a session, to compensate for differences in reed, temperature, humidity, or your own personal condition (assuming that you have done the necessary practice and have a stable embouchure and know by muscle memory the intonation pattern of your particular instrument). It never hurts to re-check after a few minutes playing.

The other thing a tuner is real good for is to evaluate the internal intonation pattern of a new instrument or one you're considering buying - does the middle D come out real flat, or just a little bit? that sort of thing.

Frankly, saxophones simply don't "go out of tune" in the middle of a playing session. There's a little shift as the air column gets up to temperature, and of course if it's 12 degrees outside and someone opens the back door, the tuning will probably shift a bit, but the tone holes don't move around while you play, and the speed of sound in air is pretty constant once the air column's warmed up. If anything, the stringed instruments need to check tuning more often, especially if they've put on a new string or set of strings recently. (The joke about mandolins and 12 string guitars is that you spend half your time tuning and half your time playing out of tune.)

So I guess I don't see the reason WHY you'd want a tuner there staring at you the whole time you're playing, given that it'll not provide you any actionable information.

 

[turf3]

On a sax you need to lip in notes to get them in tune, especially in the top registers. The OT -120 is out of my price range.

Z

Well, first of all, pretty much any saxophone in good condition will NOT require lipping of notes to get them in tune. Every horn does have a few notes that will want a bit of voicing adjustment. The better air you put through the thing, the more stable and correct your embouchure, the more in-tune the horn will be. Oh, yes, you also need to use an appropriate mouthpiece.

As I noted above, there's no way you can stare at a tuner and react fast enough to "lip notes into tune" while playing actual music. Any minor compensations have to be worked out in practice and become second nature. That's one of the things practicing is for.

 

[PiccoloPirate]

Korg makes the TM-60 and TM-70.
Both have lights and a metronome.
I have the old TM-50.
Shop around as prices vary.
Model confusion, as the old Korg was the OT12, new OT120.

A quality tuner is great for getting back into practice, with respect to the Piccolo's third octave. My Picc has a line scribed, that marks it for A440 music.
Lowest note is D, 4th line, on the Treble Clef.
Playing along with recordings, or other musicians, a tuner ain't necessary.

 

[jazzdoh]

As others have said, tune your setup with tuner to get the sweet spot on the cork, then put the tuner away and use your ears to listen when its out, there are some problem notes on all saxes.
The more you do this the easier it becomes.

 

[Pete Effamy]

A quality tuner is great for getting back into practice, with respect to the Piccolo's third octave. My Picc has a line scribed, that marks it for A440 music.

I have a bat detector if that would help?

 

[ZeroZero]

With respect. I am not asking about how to play sax, at least not in this thread. Just tuners - full color non clip on ones. So suprisingly, no full color tuner for sax?

 

[mizmar]

How about

StroboPLUS HDC | Peterson Strobe Tuners

Since 1948, Peterson Strobe Tuners have defined the standard in tuning accuracy. The StroboPLUS HDC encompasses decades of tuning authority and technology to deliver the ultimate strobe tuner/metronome combo! The StroboPLUS HDC’s 0.

www.petersontuners.com

Lots of colors!

And microtonal tuning! Even the TE tuner app can't do that.

Strong Googlefoo got have I

 

[turf3]

Stroboconn is highly visible in all kinds of light. Peterson (referenced above) I think use a lot of color.

 

[mizmar]

Peterson (referenced above)

Colour aside, it does do a lot... Microtonal, rhythmic patterns (also better than TE tuner), And jacks if your plug-in inclined.
I'm not sure it's $£€¥270 better, but pretty good. And anyway

The OT -120 is out of my price range.

Even more so.
(Based on web content, not personal experience)

 

[davidk]

With respect. I am not asking about how to play sax, at least not in this thread. Just tuners - full color non clip on ones. So suprisingly, no full color tuner for sax?

This one has pretty colours: TM-50TR - TUNER / METRONOME / TONE TRAINER | KORG (U.K.)

 

[Vetinari]

Cheapy from amazon. There are dozens similar even cheaper.
No my sax isn't out of tune, I just whistled at it to demonstrat display.

 

[PiccoloPirate]

Not all of the lower priced tuners, have a display, that lights up.

 

[Pete Thomas]

It's not clear what purpose is envisioned. For that matter, when you say "studio" do you mean "recording studio" or "practice studio"?

I was wondering the same thing

Well, first of all, pretty much any saxophone in good condition will NOT require lipping of notes to get them in tune.

I'm not disputing that might be true in some cases, but in my experience plenty of needs either need, for at least thank me a bit, for lipping them. But this is the big problem with tuners is that they encourage you to lip to pitches that may not be the best. As well as distracting you from actually playing music.

As I noted above, there's no way you can stare at a tuner and react fast enough to "lip notes into tune" while playing actual music.

Agreed.

With respect. I am not asking about how to play sax, at least not in this thread. Just tuners

But presumably wanting a tuner is connected to paying the saxophone in this case.