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  #1  
Old 08-31-2009, 02:37 AM
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Tuning Fork

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Are there any tuning forks on the market for B bass strings? I want to tune my bass with extreme accuracy.
  #2  
Old 08-31-2009, 02:50 AM
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Originally Posted by MellowViper View Post
Are there any tuning forks on the market for B bass strings? I want to tune my bass with extreme accuracy.
if you want extreme accuracy, why would you want a tuning fork?
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  #3  
Old 08-31-2009, 03:05 AM
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Doesn't it depend on how a fork is used? If tuning by ear I suppose your accuracy is diminished. However, if you are tuning by the resonance of the point and the fork's frequency, then I think it's pretty accurate.

But nothing beats an excellent electronic tuner, I suppose.

Last edited by trowaclown : 08-31-2009 at 03:10 AM.
  #4  
Old 08-31-2009, 03:20 AM
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You can find tuning forks tuned to various pitches, so finding a B one should not be a problem.
  #5  
Old 08-31-2009, 03:31 AM
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A440 will still be your "truest" or are you buying 5 forks?

"Statisticly" You want the pitch to be in the "middlish" 2 strings.. A fork will do both an A and D string

I toured for years with only a fork... no issues.

T

PS.. when buying a fork.. look for the one with a ball at the end - you can hook it in your ear.. going hands free for the bass work.
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  #6  
Old 08-31-2009, 03:37 AM
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The pitch of a tuning fork drifts with age, usage, and temperature. Better off with a good strobe tuner, like the TurboTuner. With its 0.02 cents accuracy, you'll need to be able to identify beats hundreds of seconds long before tuning with a perfect tuning fork is more accurate than the turbo.

Besides that, a 31Hz tuning fork is huge.
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Last edited by ehque : 08-31-2009 at 03:41 AM.
  #7  
Old 08-31-2009, 11:53 AM
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custom made tuning fork @ 31hz - 42 bones.

http://www.luminanti.com/tuningforks.html#anchor19054
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  #8  
Old 08-31-2009, 12:51 PM
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JTE JTE is offline
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I just carry an A-440 fork with me. So what if it's three octaves above the opne A string? The harmonic at the 5th fret gets you 220 Hz, and if you can't get your bass in tune with a reference point an octave above, then you might want to work on your ear. Tune the A string to the fork and the rest of the bass to that string. And the 5th fret harmonic IS exactly two octaves of the open string- that's the physics of a vibrating string. Octave harmonics ARE right on, even if the 5th harmonic (e.g. the one at the 7th fret) aren't good for tempered tuning.


I bought my last fork one for about $4.00. I've got about four of them (some in guitar cases, one in the tool box, and one in the gig bag). Only one of them reads anything other than 440 on my four tuners (Boss TU-2, Sabine, and a Peterson VS-1). And that one fork has some rust on it, so I wouldn't expect it to be right at 440.

Quick, simple, easy, and reliable.

John
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  #9  
Old 08-31-2009, 01:05 PM
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Stick with an electronic tuner (Peterson, Turbo Tuner). I'm a big fan of accuracy but the B string (actually, all the strings) will fall flat as soon as you lay hands upon the fretboard...the ol' thermal expansion / contraction thingy.

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  #10  
Old 08-31-2009, 05:46 PM
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Korg PitchBlack tuner will get you alot of accuracy, for not alot of cash. Never leave home without it.
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  #11  
Old 08-31-2009, 06:37 PM
ByF ByF is offline
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At the same site standupright suggests, you can buy this one for only $26:

"The third note of the original 6 Sacred Solfeggio frequencies is "Mi" for "Miracles" and is 528 Hz. It is the exact frequency used by genetic engineers throughout the world to repair the blueprint of life, DNA, the healthy core of which is a six-sided crystal of structured water. Dr. Lee Lorenzen, a world renowned biochemist working with water crystallization methods to rejuvenate DNA says "I was intrigued by the frequencies of the healing codes. The third frequency is well known to scientists working on DNA repair.'' Dr. Lorenzen believes this '528' frequency might be beneficial in delaying aging."

It will tune your bass, and repair your DNA too! I bet your electronic tuners won't do that!!

Ed
  #12  
Old 09-01-2009, 12:10 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ByF View Post
At the same site standupright suggests, you can buy this one for only $26:

"The third note of the original 6 Sacred Solfeggio frequencies is "Mi" for "Miracles" and is 528 Hz. It is the exact frequency used by genetic engineers throughout the world to repair the blueprint of life, DNA, the healthy core of which is a six-sided crystal of structured water. Dr. Lee Lorenzen, a world renowned biochemist working with water crystallization methods to rejuvenate DNA says "I was intrigued by the frequencies of the healing codes. The third frequency is well known to scientists working on DNA repair.'' Dr. Lorenzen believes this '528' frequency might be beneficial in delaying aging."

It will tune your bass, and repair your DNA too! I bet your electronic tuners won't do that!!

Ed
ha!

that whole site is filled with some of the most worthless, divorced from reality, non-sensical claptrap i've ever read .

even the tech specs on the forks are useless; "accurate to .25%!"...great! .25% of what? if i'm charitable and guess that it means accurate to a quarter of a cent (which is plenty accurate), it's still not as accurate as a real strobe like the turbo tuner.

oh, and standing on stage playing with tuning forks between songs is a good way to get fired off your gig .
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  #13  
Old 09-01-2009, 12:49 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ByF View Post
At the same site standupright suggests, you can buy this one for only $26:

"The third note of the original 6 Sacred Solfeggio frequencies is "Mi" for "Miracles" and is 528 Hz. It is the exact frequency used by genetic engineers throughout the world to repair the blueprint of life, DNA, the healthy core of which is a six-sided crystal of structured water. Dr. Lee Lorenzen, a world renowned biochemist working with water crystallization methods to rejuvenate DNA says "I was intrigued by the frequencies of the healing codes. The third frequency is well known to scientists working on DNA repair.'' Dr. Lorenzen believes this '528' frequency might be beneficial in delaying aging."

It will tune your bass, and repair your DNA too! I bet your electronic tuners won't do that!!

Ed


don't overlook the ones that tune your angels.
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  #14  
Old 09-01-2009, 12:51 AM
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Originally Posted by walterw View Post
ha!

that whole site is filled with some of the most worthless, divorced from reality, non-sensical claptrap i've ever read .

even the tech specs on the forks are useless; "accurate to .25%!"...great! .25% of what? if i'm charitable and guess that it means accurate to a quarter of a cent (which is plenty accurate), it's still not as accurate as a real strobe like the turbo tuner.

oh, and standing on stage playing with tuning forks between songs is a good way to get fired off your gig .
do you really work at alpha music in va beach?. that's my old stomping grounds
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  #15  
Old 09-01-2009, 02:35 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by walterw View Post
that whole site is filled with some of the most worthless, divorced from reality, non-sensical claptrap i've ever read .

even the tech specs on the forks are useless; "accurate to .25%!"...great! .25% of what? if i'm charitable and guess that it means accurate to a quarter of a cent (which is plenty accurate), it's still not as accurate as a real strobe like the turbo tuner.
I agree with your first statement.

I would assume .25% refers to the frequency - so a 440Hz A tuning fork would differ by plus/minus 1Hz.

That's pretty damn bad, and definitely audible.
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  #16  
Old 09-01-2009, 07:43 AM
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Originally Posted by MNAirHead View Post
PS.. when buying a fork.. look for the one with a ball at the end - you can hook it in your ear.. going hands free for the bass work.
I bite on the end of the fork, biff it, then tune. I'd be afraid to put it in my ears...
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  #17  
Old 09-01-2009, 10:12 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JTE View Post
I just carry an A-440 fork with me. So what if it's three octaves above the opne A string? The harmonic at the 5th fret gets you 220 Hz, and if you can't get your bass in tune with a reference point an octave above, then you might want to work on your ear. Tune the A string to the fork and the rest of the bass to that string. And the 5th fret harmonic IS exactly two octaves of the open string- that's the physics of a vibrating string. Octave harmonics ARE right on, even if the 5th harmonic (e.g. the one at the 7th fret) aren't good for tempered tuning.


I bought my last fork one for about $4.00. I've got about four of them (some in guitar cases, one in the tool box, and one in the gig bag). Only one of them reads anything other than 440 on my four tuners (Boss TU-2, Sabine, and a Peterson VS-1). And that one fork has some rust on it, so I wouldn't expect it to be right at 440.

Quick, simple, easy, and reliable.

John
Or yell "sling us an A" at the piano player, then tune the A string to that (as the Brass section do their stuff) and the rest of the Bass to itself using 5th fret and 7th fret Harmonics - simples
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