Tuner pedal vs clamp on

[TimGriffiths]

There's some bias in those kind of threads in that the advantage of clip on is that it's not a pedal but if you're talk in terms of using pedals then a tuner in a no brainer. That said I don't use clip ons, anywhere I wouldn't be using my pedal board is somewhere I can use my phone.

 

[Zbysek]

I use it on the bridge. (I have a Korg that swivels so I can see it.)
It stays on during transport, is right there & ready to go for a quick tune-up when I get the bass out and then I take it off for the show. (It can rattle a bit and the pickup is also right there on the bridge.)
I usually don't have to tune mid-set so ongoing accessibility is not an issue for me.

I see. Thanks-I might try to do the same...

 

[el murdoque]

When I play ampless gigs, I use the built in tuner of my Headrush board.
On gigs where I bring a pedalboard, there is a tuner on it.
Those I do without, I bring a clip on.
It all works for me.

The pedal is quicker than the clip on, especially on the B, but I won't bring an extra power supply and cable, just to have a tuner.
And I don't see the real estate on my board wasted, since it doubles as a mute button.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

I've bought 3 pedal tuners. I still have 3 pedal tuners. I've bought 5 clip on tuners. I have 2 clip on tuners. Clip on tuners somehow seem to wander off. Pedal's don't.

I also think clip on tuners look goofy.

Yeppers. I've bought 4 pedals, I have 3. One broke. I've bought 4 clip ons. I have 1. I think they are like socks. They disappear into an alternate universe.

 

[Stevorebob]

Pedal (Peterson Strobostomp). More accurate. Faster. Mutes. Can be seen at a glance while playing. PITA to mute then unmute and reset volumes on VV basses with a clip-on. However, clip-on only for home practice.

 

[phangtonpower]

I have been using my Boss TU-2 tuner for at least 20 years. First pedal I got. We used Boss tuners for marching band, so I was used to it. Plus I don't think there were clip ons back then?? I love it though. Besides tuning, the mute is probably the thing I click on and off the most. I'll always at least have a tuner in pedal form while playing.

 

[phangtonpower]

I use clip-ons because I don't have a pedalboard. Now, I often set up pedals (on the floor, obviously) but only one to three, and I don't want to add yet another -- especially a "no fun" pedal, as JimmyM called it.

More importantly: I sometimes play gigs in cramped conditions where it would be awkward at best to set up pedal(s). Then there are gigs where I don't have time for whatever reason(s). And I sometimes play multi-band festival gigs where backline is provided: for those I just go K.I.S.S. and use my bass into backline, nothing else.

Bottom line: for me, it's a no-brainer to use a clip-on and not pedal.

It's boring, but super easy to set up

 

[Fuzzbass]

It's boring, but super easy to set up
View attachment 3730884

That's an easy setup, all right. But I don't use a board, so it's even easier for me to use a clip-on. I keep one in each of my bass cases, right where I need it whether I use pedals or not.

 

[scottfeldstein]

Thirty + years ago I didn't use any kind of tuner. I just went "hey, can you give me an A on the keyboard please?" And tuned that string off it. Then I tuned the rest of the strings by harmonics. If I needed to revisit that tuning during the set, I would again use harmonics (out loud, like a savage!) to find out which string was out and bring it back in.

 

[daveX99]

...I resent a business pedal being on my board where a fun one could go.

It's this for me. I'm suffering from some pedal lust these days, and I can't justify the pedalboard real estate when a clip on will do.

I recommend the TC Electronic UniTune. I don't gig a lot, so I won't swear to how well it holds up when there is a lot of ambient sound, but it works well for me.

Maybe one day, when I can settle on which of the half dozen dirt pedals I have squeezed onto my medium-ish board (with other fun stuff) to use, I will make room for a tuner pedal.

 

[Rinchan]

Stumbled across this forum, i only use clip on for gigs because of this ugly ass rabbit

 

[Will_White]

The main advantage of a clip on is you can throw it at the guitar player when they inevitably go out of tune but it sounds fine to them.