Best Guitar Tuner Reviews – Digital Pedal, Handheld, and Clip On Tuners for Acoustic, Electric and Bass Guitars

There are so many factors that can determine how much a guitar tuner can cost. It all depends on certain features like type, tuning mode, accuracy, and many others.

Our research shows that good guitar tuners can cost anywhere from $10 all the way up to $100. Like we noted earlier, the functions you will get with your purchase will likely not be the same. Within the range we have stated, you can get a good tuner. If, however, you need something more, you can go for more expensive models. We advise against purchasing even cheaper guitar tuners as they are likely going to be of such low quality that you will end up having to tune your guitar by ear.

Choosing the right guitar tuner requires that you spend some time considering some important factors. Knowing and considering these factors will help you choose the guitar tuner that will be just right for you. Some of these factors include:

• Type
• Accuracy
• Tuning Mode
• Application – Where and how you will use the tuner
• Type of Guitar
• Versatility

Let’s briefly take a look at these features.

To start with, there are different types of guitar tuners, and you have to determine which of the types you want. There are three major types: clip-on, handheld, and pedal tuners. You also have rack mount tuners, sound hole tuners, software tuners, App tuners, and other tuners classified according to their tuning mode.

We will focus more on the three major types of guitar tuners we mentioned above. The clip-on tuner can be regarded as the most popular of all tuners. This may not be unrelated with the fact that it is quite convenient to use. They are also small and among the most affordable. Though many consider them the least accurate of tuners, they are accurate enough to be used in live gigs. More so, you can tune your guitar even with noise from other instruments around. The clip-on tuner is a great and easy way to stay in tune while jamming.

The next type is the handheld tuner. As the name implies, you hold it in your hand and plug your guitar in via a ¼ inch jack input, and then you can tune your strings. Some have built-in microphones that allow you to tune acoustic guitars and other stringed instruments. Although some guitarists believe that these are a bit more accurate than clip-on tuners, they are not as convenient to use as the clip-on tuner.

If you choose to purchase a handheld tuner, and you wish to tune with the built-in microphone, you will have to do so in a quiet place so there won’t be audio interference to mess up your tuning. Should you, on the other hand, decide to use the ¼ inch jack input, you will need to unplug your guitar from your amp and plug it into the tuner. This could be both time wasting and inconvenient especially in a live event.

On the positive side though, there are higher-end handheld tuners that will offer you better features such as polyphonic tuning, presets, and much more. Lastly, we will look at the pedal tuners.

This is easily the most “professional” of the guitar tuners discussed so far. Guitarists are known to have pedal boards where they arrange their effect pedals. Pedal tuners are meant to fit into the pedal board for quick and soundless tuning. Many guitarists like this type of tuner because they can quickly mute the sound and run a check of their strings between performances without having to plug and unplug anything. Some will show you all of your strings and whether they are in or out of tune. If any is out of tune, you can quickly identify it and tune it.

Some guitar tuners are regarded as more accurate than others. The guitar tuner regarded as the most accurate is the rack mount tuner. This is also easily the most expensive of tuners. You can always check the accuracy of a tuner before buying it. The minimum accuracy you should go for is +/-1 cent. This will give you an accurate enough tuning.

One of the reasons why many guitarists use clip-on tuners is that, even while gigging, you can be monitoring your strings. Many of these types of tuners will change color when your strings go out of tune. This will help you quickly fix it before it becomes very obvious.

Where and how you will be using your guitar tuner is a critical factor to consider. Regarding accuracy, you need the most accurate tuner you can get for recordings. In live gigs, any averagely accurate tuner will do as the general SPL (sound pressure level) makes it difficult to do critical listening whereas critical listening is essentially all you will do in the studio. What this means is that you are more likely to notice the slightest out of tune note in the studio or on a recording than you will in a live event.

Still on the issue of where and how you will be using the tuner, a second point to consider has to do with your instrument. If you are using an electric guitar in a live concert, you can easily mute the sound and quickly tune. However, if you are playing an acoustic guitar in a small hall, when you pluck or strum your strings to tune them, your audience will hear you. Since you cannot totally mute the sound from an acoustic guitar, you will likely want to strum as lightly as possible while tuning so you will need a tuner that is sensitive enough to pick out that low strum and tune your acoustic guitar accurately.

Many brands are now coming up with tuners that allow you to tune all of your strings at the same time. That means that it will show you all the strings and how much in or out of tune each is. You can find this feature (polyphonic tuning) in almost all types of guitar tuners. Like we noted above, it is quite convenient especially in live gigs where you may not quickly hear when your strings begin to go slightly off tune. This type of tuner will show you which string is in tune or going out of tune. All you need to do is take a quick peek at it from time to time. Whenever you notice a string going slightly off tune, you simply tune that one string.

Another thing that can make things easier for you is getting a guitar tuner that can be used for multiple types of tuning. For example ones that can be used with a ¼ inch jack input or an in-built microphone are very helpful. These types of tuners will allow you to tune a wider variety of instruments. You can also choose one that is a tuner and metronome combo. This will help you especially during personal practice as you can tune and then switch to the metronome function to keep your groove tight.

Lastly, be sure to get a tuner that is right for the kind of guitar you have. Not all tuners can tune an electric guitar as well as an acoustic one. While many can tune both, be sure the one you are choosing can tune your type of guitar.