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Tuner snobs?

B

bassclef216

Feb 17, 2009
172
2
St. Charles, MO
#1
Ok...I feel I need to ask:

What is the deal with people who will say that they think a certain bass is "decent" or they like it but, "the tuners are crap." ???? I hear that alot when people review some Squier basses like the Vintage Modified or the Classic Vibe series. I had a guy say that about my Highway One jazz once. I was trying to sell it to someone and this other guy starts to chime in with his two cents on the Hwy 1 series. He said that he liked the Hwy 1's and that the only thing he did not like was the crappy tuners they put on. Now, I guess you could complain about the weight or the look, but I have never had any problem with the tuners on my Hwy 1 or my Squiers (which are probably the same). I mean, I twist the peg and the string stretches until I reach the desired note (EADG). I have not found that the bass goes out of tune that much if at all. And by the way...If someone gets on here and says that the better (more expensive) tuners affect the bass' tone I'm quitting Talkbass. Anyway...just curious what the big deal is about tuners (outside of asthetics) that would make someone not like a certain bass. To me it would be like some saying, "I really like that Honda Accord except for the crappy steering wheel. That thing is junk." I can understand that maybe it's ugly or something, but it's only a wheel that you turn to make the car turn...how can it be crappy or a peice of junk?
 
#6
"...If someone gets on here and says that the better (more expensive) tuners affect the bass' tone I'm quitting Talkbass. "

More expensive tuners directly relate to a better (non-subjective) tone. Buh-bye.

Just kidding, of course. However, I do believe a difference in manufacturer quality exists between tuners (most products actually). Now, a blanket statement such as, "Those tuners are crap," isn't beneficial at all.

I also think tuning machines on basses are able to get away with more neglect from the player. I played guitar for 20 years (electric and acoustic equally). I can say in those years, I knew the difference between a quality tuner, such as a Schaller or Sperzel, versus a cheaper piece of equipment. I was able to "neglect" the machines for more than 20 minutes without tuning up (there's a reason your guitarists are always tweaking with their machines).

Acoustic guitars are a little less finicky. I personally used Waverly machines on my Martins, and never had an issue.

Back to the realm of bass though. I don't play out as much as I once did. Now that I'm a bedroom/mancave musician, I find that regardless of the bass I pick up -- Warwick -> Warmoth, I have very little need to tune. So, if someone believes that a set of machines on a HWY1 are so ridiculously "crappy", I'd love to hear how they store the bass, how they transport the bass, and how they treat their bass, that has created such a disdain for a fairly simple piece of equipment.
 
#9
If you know anything about guns, its like this. It is kind of like putting a Glock in your hand vs a Kimber 1911. Both excellent guns and get the job done. However, which one is more accurate in competition and just feels better in the hand? just sayin... :)
 
#10
JoshuaTSP said:
High quality tuners are nice, but not a requirement.
Click to expand...

Correct. The factory tuners on my MIM Jazz are acceptable but not great and I'm in the process of upgrading to Hipshots. There's a little bit of play in the OEMs so it's sometimes difficult to precisely dial them in, and I find myself retuning more often than I have with other basses. Not a critical situation but it would be nice to quickly tune up and not have to worry about it so much.
 
#11
I don't get it either and agree with Echo7

I rarely if ever have to tune my bass more during a gig. In fact many times I have left in in the case for a week between gigs and pulled it out to find it in tune.

Being a guitarist I agree that Tuners are FAR MORE important on a guitar. for some reason basses just stay in tune for me. Maybe because i am not bending strings all that much.
 
#14
I don't want to name brands here. Brand
is not the issue.

I replaced tuners on two basses to change
colors.

In both cases, I really liked the original tuners
better as far as how they worked. But they all
stayed in tune and did their job.

Sense the less expensive tuners didn't seem to
work quite as well, I spent more than twice as
much on the next set. It was supposed to be a
definite up-grade.

You guessed it,,,,

I didn't like the more expensive tuners as much
as I liked the less expensive tuners?

The basses were a Squire and a Peavey. And I
now think they come with pretty good tuners
except the Peaveys tend to get loose at the
clover leaf and need to be tightened or soldered.
But they work great.

Tabdog
 
#15
This is all good to hear....I'm not crazy. I just had read it in several reviews and then when this guy said it directly to me I wondered what I was missing. BTW I definitely understand that some companies make really nice quality tuners, but to dismiss or knock a bass based on tuners seemed a little odd to me.
 
#17
This is far from being accurate (and a common misconception among a LOT of bassist), but I guess it depends on "how" accurate you want to be when it comes to tuning. But then again, I'm a tuning nut (hence why I have a Turbo ST-200)

I tune through-out every show just because I want perfection. Due to weather conditions, temperature changes at different areas, humidity, neck quality, machine tuner quality, and string age all may effect tuning. Does that mean my EBMM Sterling 5HH is crap and have horrible tuners? No, I just understand how conditions around me can put me # or flat and I would like to be as close as possible.

Granted, most newer basses these days come with some pretty good stock tuners. Are there better out there? Yes. Will you notice a difference? Depends on the bassist :D

But again, not to bash you say guitar is far more important than bass tuning, but it is VERY important and should not be over looked. All this said is just regarding tuning importance haha.

I personally have never bought expensive tuners. Usually the basses that I'm going for are outfitted with nice ones to begin with.

badstonebass said:
Being a guitarist I agree that Tuners are FAR MORE important on a guitar. for some reason basses just stay in tune for me. Maybe because i am not bending strings all that much.
Click to expand...
 
#19
I'm not sure if heavier tuners will have an effect on the tone, but a better (more expensive) tuner might feel smoother when tuning. Aside from that, the guy should have kept his opinions to himself. **Only because you were in the middle of selling your bass. This is the forum for different opinions.
 
#20
My 08 geddy lee was made before Fender decided to put "Fender Stamped" tuners on that model. I don't know if there is a manufacturing difference in stamped and not stamped per se, but I can say that my no-name tuners were awful. after being brought to tune under tension there was almost 10 degrees of play in the tuner paddle. almost like it was loose or not seated well in the gear. I upgraded to hopshots and have been happy ever since. When picking up any new GL with the Fender stamp on it, i have not noticed this extra play in the tuners. maybe i got a bad one or something. but Fender did go up 200 dollars on the price between my model year and the 09s. Maybe the higher quality tuners were part of that increase.
 

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