Feeling out of tune while on stage?

[/\/\3phist0]

I played with a guitarist that used ultralight strings and a Floyd Rose equipped super strat with a scalloped fretboard. Whenever he chorded, he would be in tune with himself, but always sharp in relation to everyone else. I personally checked his intonation after he had his tech look it over and intonation was spot on.
Turns out that when I played the guitar it was fine in tune.
He gripped the neck like a vice and was pulling it sharp.

 

[bmdfla48]

I had the same exact thing happen at my first gig a couple months ago. Found out I was in tune when listening back to the recordings as well. I also kept checking my tuning on my muting pedal tuner, so I have to ask... Are you me??

 

[Alper Yilmaz]

When the volume is too high and if the guitar player(s), if any, is (are) a tad off, this is likely to happen. Unless one of the instruments are significantly off, this actually gives a nice chorus touch to it.

Also, one other thing to pay attention is to see if the band as a whole is tuned to 440Hz or 442Hz. In most studios--at least the ones I record at--the acoustic pianos are tuned to 442Hz. I lived through this a few times; my pianist came from a recording session at which he had tuned his keyboard/computer (where he gets his sounds from) to 442Hz to be consistent with the acoustic piano and forgot to switch back to 440Hz after the session. It took me a song or two to figure out what was going on.

I am not perfect pitch, but I can consider myself to have a strong relative pitch. Unless I play in an electroacoustic/spectral setup though, what I describe above throws me off...

Shortest post of my life, but does anyone else consistently feel like their bass is out of tune while they are performing? The past 3-4 gigs I've done, my bass sounds out of tune in my monitors. I tune my bass with a muting pedal tuner between almost every song lately out of paranoia. It's always 100% in tune and we have people who record our gigs nearly every time. When I listen to our gigs recorded, the tuning/intonation is as good as anyone could ask for.

Does anyone else have this problem? It's beginning to drive me crazy. It makes me hold back my playing, because I feel like I'm a 1/4 step out of tune half the time.

 

[Bass'd on a true story]

I had the same exact thing happen at my first gig a couple months ago. Found out I was in tune when listening back to the recordings as well. I also kept checking my tuning on my muting pedal tuner, so I have to ask... Are you me??

Short answer: Yes.

Long answer: Definitely.

 

[micahwc]

Is your intonation adjusted properly?

 

[morgan138]

Our guitar player had this happen once when there was some weird stage resonance feedback thing that kept clashing with his guitar and making him sound/feel out of tune even when he wasn't. Very confusing and frustrating.

 

[Thebiggestjerk]

Maybe you're in tune but your intonation is out OR the rest of the band is out of tune, or playing instruments with bad into.

 

[Bluesman88]

I've had this happen to me twice. Both times i made the band check tuning during sound check, both times I checked all the tuners, both times it sounded like dog crap on stage and both times the recording sounded absolutely fine. Played other gigs at the same venues without issue. Could definitelty be piano related or some other nonsense with the room- since I play fretless thsese days I'm getting more pickey about using my own amp and avoiding this exact situation at all costs.

 

[leegreenman]

This happened to me once during a gig on guitar. Pretty sure it was anxiety related. I wasn't comfortable on the instrument.

 

[oldNewbie]

Shortest post of my life, but does anyone else consistently feel like their bass is out of tune while they are performing? The past 3-4 gigs I've done, my bass sounds out of tune in my monitors.

Intonation is not just the fundamental frequency but overtone series and volume . For one, your ears are likely compressing the signal contracting the muscles of the inner ear , the so-called "acoustic reflex" , which starts kicking in about 85db. Seems that this "reflex" is not a simple effect , different people's auditory systems respond differently, and it's not constant across frequencies . You have the impression of a different pitch at higher volumes. Have you checked SPL when you get problems ? Better yet , got a way to turn it all down ?

 

[4dog]

Guitar player pulling notes in chords out of tune...Heaven help us...happens too freguently.

 

[mojomike001]

There is another thing that can cause you to sound out of tune. If you happen to fret a note well behind the fret and depress the string very hard, you will sharpen the note a bit. This can happen sometimes due to adrenaline. It can be even more pronounced on shortscale basses.

 

[swafran]

Is the keyboard player stepping on your notes with his left hand? Or a guitar player with lots of bass cranked on his amp? Once I even had a percussionist do that to me, some loud booming drum tuned close to the key of the song.

 

[Bass'd on a true story]

Two things I want to reemphasize.

1. It's a 3 piece with just guitar/bass/drums + vocals.

2. The recording is perfectly in tune, so it's not an actual tuning issue of any sort. I just perceive it as being out of tune from the stage. That's what I'm trying to sort out.

 

[Yango]

...I feel like I'm a 1/4 step out of tune half the time.

When you feel a half step out a quarter of the time... THEN it's a problem.

 

[Ross W. Lovell]

It happens on occasion but usually it's a guitar player who is slightly out and not me. I trust my tuner 100 percent. Even if I think I'm out I let it ride if my tuner says I am good to go. Rooms and acoustics can do weird things to our ears. That and your ear can only articulate low frequencies for so long before they become less defined.

You bring up a good point.

Does everybody use the same tuner or do you all have your own?

Tuners are adjustable, at least most are, though internally.

Maybe one of you has a tuner out if spec?


Might want to check that.

 

[DavC]

any recent sinus issues ..??? allergy kinda stuff can plug up your inner ear a bit ..!? it becomes hard to equalize the pressure ..

decongestants usually break that stuff lose ...

????

 

[Biggbass]

uh....no

and I always enjoy finding that my bass, after sitting in the case or gig bag between gigs, is still in 99% tune when I take it out to tune up.

 

[inanimate_carb]

Lots of way-out theories I've never heard pro-level players ever discuss here. Proceed with common sense, please. If the obvious tuner stuff or medication side effects have nothing to do with this, the sheer number of fretted stringed instrument players that don't properly stretch their strings out after installing them never fails to amaze me. The length of the string needs some stretching, and the seating of the string on the tuning post and in the bridge needs to be absolutely solid. Once that's accomplished on a properly set up instrument, it's possible to play all night without having to tune, and you won't experience off-the-wall tuning problems.

 

[ashtray]

Ear fatigue can definitely affect your ability to hear "in tune". Another possibility often overlooked is that DRUMS are tuned! If the drummer tuned his bass or floor tom to a note close to one you are playing, then you will hear that dissonance.

I used a rack mounted tuner - the kind that sweeps back and forth with a whole bunch of lights. You could hold a note, glance over your shoulder, and see that you were in tune during a song.