rack tuners. worth it?

Bayou_Brawler · #1 01-11-2007, 08:37 AM

sooo i've been thinking about purchasing a rack tuner. i'm looking at a used korg...probably around $100.

how many of you think a tuner is worth 1 rack space and $100? before i went to the modular set up i always thought it was kinda silly to have a tuner that took up so much space and cost so much.

i mean i guess if you gig you could easily destroy 5 $15 tuners over 10 years... and maybe be close to the same cost but....

i think part of the reason i want one is just to fill up my rack and have it look cool haha...

thoughts?

nubs · #2 01-11-2007, 08:53 AM

for me it depends on a number of factors. do you have rack space vs. pedal board space? what your needs are. myself, i had rack space and picked up a behringer...its not a top of the line tuner by any means but its comprable and my bass is always in tune. looks good, works good, has some decent features i.e. rack lights and a metronome. but in the same token i have an ME-50B on my pedal board which has a built in tuner but i don't like pushing "two buttons with one foot" i also have the space on my board for my Boss TU-12, which i also like on my board because i can leave it on and see where my tuning is at all times. i will probably sooner or later ditch the ME50B from my gig board and go exclusively with stomp boxes....its all about what suits your needs, what works best for you in all situations.

hope that makes some sense without being to confusing.

i_got_a_mohawk · #3 01-11-2007, 08:55 AM

I think they are worth it, still dont have one tho, but soon hopefully.

The Pros :

Bright, you can tune easily on a dark stage.

Big tuner, as you said, they take up alot of room, it means you dont need to be right next to it to tune or to check your in tune.

Its in the rack, the benifits are simple, you wont forget it, and its protected!

Good quality, usually rack tuners are much better quality, they "recognise" which note it is etc much much quicker.

Good quality, they are also usually much more accurate aswell.

Look cool!

Cons:

Price

Peter Squire · #4 01-11-2007, 04:22 PM

I like them because there is a lack of stage real estate in most of the places we play, so I prefer to go bass>lead>amp.

LiquidMidnight · #5 01-11-2007, 04:30 PM

I honestly don't know how I could gig without one. Are they expensive? Yes. Are they worth it? I honestly think so.

As has been mentioned, they are extremely accurate, maybe even a little too accurate. I like them because I like everything to be in a rack, already plugged in. Also, I run mine between my bass and preamp. When I mute, I'm silent both through my rig and through the house (I consider live tuning to be highly unprofessional). I've learned by playing five strings that the B string is prone to slip a lot during a set. It's great to be able to retune it a few seconds on the fly in the middle of a set.

JimmyM · #6 01-11-2007, 11:06 PM

I'm on the other side of the coin. I don't really care for rack tuners. Takes up real estate in the rack, they're expensive, and you can't take it out and use it at a jam on the fly. So I use one of those little $20 Korg tuners onstage and I just got a couple of those Planet Waves pick-shaped tuners that I'm going to use backstage and on fly dates.

BTW, LiquidMidnight, you should look into that B string problem. Your B shouldn't go out of tune any more than any other string. Check your bridge and nut for burrs, tighten up your neck bolts really tight if you have neck bolts, and really stretch it out good 4 or 5 times when you change strings and keep stretching it for a couple days.

Munjibunga · #7 01-11-2007, 11:14 PM

I've got one in each of my racked rigs (3). The convenience is worth every penny.

MJ5150 · #8 01-12-2007, 01:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LiquidMidnight

I consider live tuning to be highly unprofessional.

I always thought it was cool. It provided me a chance to drop some knowledge on my non-musical friends. Like this....

Me: "Hey...you hear that? (Bass being tuned in the background between songs). That is the bass player tuning down/up for the next song."

My friends: "Cool. I wish I played an instrument and could recognize stuff like that."

-Mike

Armueller2001 · #9 01-12-2007, 01:50 AM

If I didn't have a Bass Pod XT Live that had a tuner onstage, I'd have one for sure.

lemur821 · #10 01-12-2007, 02:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MJ5150

Me: "Hey...you hear that? (Bass being tuned in the background between songs). That is the bass player tuning down/up for the next song."

I think it depends on where you're playing. At a rock gig you can do what you like as long as you're not holding up the show -- you're there to be awesome, not to be professional. Other types of music (or backing bands) vary from unprofessional to sociopathic.

lawsonman · #11 01-12-2007, 06:03 AM

I have a $14 korq. It's very seldom I have to tune more than once a night so for me it's not worth the rack space

IanStephenson · #12 01-12-2007, 06:33 AM

If you've got the rack space they're great. No plugging in, packing away, switching on/off - they just sit their doing their job all night.

I only had a half space free and went with a vf-1 which has a tuner in it (Boss also made the Tu-50 which was a half rack tuner - sadly discontinued). Space was more of an issue than price, but I wanted to keep the rack down to 4u, and the amp had eaten most of that.

The guitarist I play with has a Korg, and it's really easy to use - from across the stage, I can check what chords he's playing!

Ian

Jerry Ziarko · #13 01-12-2007, 06:11 PM

Just my opinion only, NOPE. I bought a high dollar Korg rack mount, and truthfully, I though it made no sense. Turning around to check a note during a song didn't work for me. Along came the $75 TU-2 and goodbye to the rack mount. Now I can even mute anytime I'm laying out in a song, look down and it's there. As far as being as accurate, I check the TU-2 against my rack mount and then against a Peterson strobe. Guess what? They all said the same thing. An A was an A, E was an E, etc etc. Now try a little test yourself, If you have access to a strobe tuner, fret any note on the neck 5 times in a row. See a difference? Just that little bit of extra pressure especially on the lower strings will make the visual pitch change. Will you hear it? Nope. Take your rack tuner and play every note up a single string. Every note will NOT fall perfectly in the center of your tuning display. So if you want to say on paper are they more accurate, maybe they are, maybe not, but in the real world, a $15 quartz tuner will get you to the same place. By the way, I lost my a$$ selling the rack tuner. Some people love them, I'm not a fan.

tplyons · #14 01-12-2007, 11:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

I've got one in each of my racked rigs (3). The convenience is worth every penny.

Change (3) for (1) and +1

lonotes · #15 01-13-2007, 08:51 AM

It depends. I have a Korg DT-1000. It is a very good tuner, and I like the convenience of it always being on. However, lately, I have been using a Peterson Strobostomp. It is the only stompbox that I have, so taking up real estate on a small stage is not a problem. Is the Peterson more accurate than the Korg? I think so. Is it enough more accurate to make a difference? Probably not. I must confess though, I am a bit of a tuner addict. In addition to those two units, I also have a Sabine XT 1100 (the little wedge shaped one), a Sabine AX 2000 (the one that you stick on to the body of the instrument), and a Peterson VS1. And I use them all, at different times, for different purposes. The bottom line is that as long as you are in tune, how you got there really doesn't matter. Do what you feel most comfortable with.

badstonebass · #16 01-13-2007, 09:20 AM

I have to have a needle. Right now I use a Q12E Chromatic Guitar tuner. It works good and has a mute so I can tune onstage in silence.

Bob Clayton · #17 01-17-2007, 12:47 AM

i have a Korg rack tuner, and a i like it a lot.

i like the fact that it's already connected with my head unit, it's easier for me to just plug in and play, rather than spending time connecting the cables and what not.

Philbiker · #18 01-17-2007, 06:09 AM

If your rig is in a rack and you have an open space it's a no brainer IMO. I have neither and don't want for a rack tuner. I like a pedal tuner.

bmc · #19 01-17-2007, 06:24 AM

A tuner is a tuner is a tuner. If you have a rack space with a gaping hole, fill it. Lots of reliable pedal tuners for less money that'll produce the same results.

redefine dave · #20 01-17-2007, 11:27 AM

I have a korg racktuner. At the time I purchased it, I had a Boss pedal tuner... The Boss was nice, but The Korg is a lot more accurate and quick. I, as someone mentioned before, love to not have to worry about plugging anything in or accidentley stepping on it during a show. I'm a huge fan of racks and rackmountable gear. Its so much easier getting to the show, stacking your rack on your cab, taking off the lids, and going. The only thing I have to plug in is my speaker cable to my cab, and my power conditioner into the house. It saves a lot of time, and I dont have to worry about one of my genius guitarists stepping on my tuner, thus, muting me.