PROS: Stealthy, good functionality, great price.
CONS: Visual metronome is lacking in concept.
PRICE: $39 (2/pack)
Tuners used to be big and clunky, but everything these days, they’re getting smaller. D’Addario has a new clip-on headstock tuner that lives up to the “bigger isn’t always better” credo.
OK, this thing is tiny, but it has five mini buttons that allow quiet silent tuning, as well as a visual metronome. It’s made of a hard plastic, and the display is bright enough under most situations to be easily read. It clips on a headstock, and due to the vibrations, displays the pitch of the string being plucked. It has a range of 410-480Hz, meaning that no matter what reference tone is being used, this should handle it. It works well for pretty much any stringed instrument: electric and acoustic guitars, basses, mandolins, and even ukuleles.
Thankfully, due to its small size, it’s very stealthy, and since it uses vibrations, on an electric just turn down the volume and tuning up is a breeze. At a street price of about $15 each, it’s one of those things that should find a home in every guitar case. Make it your primary tuner, or use it as a backup in case your pedalboard tuner dies mid-show. The only downside is the visual metronome; it works, but the click of a real metronome really can’t be beat. That said, considering the price, functionality and size, the NS is still well worth it.
FEATURES
- Built-in piezo transducer picks up instrument’s vibration
- Improved software for faster response, improved accuracy
- Tri-color reversible backlit LCD screen
- Wide calibration range (410Hz to 480Hz)
- Visual metronome
- Compact design, low weight
- Tunes a variety of stringed instruments