Whacky Tuner

I have no experience with that tuner in particular so can't really comment on its reliability.

However, it could be the guitar itself ... depending on how it has been strung or the quality of the guitar, strings can go out of tune quite easily.

Either way, it's not normal for the strings to go out of tune so quickly.

Just FYI, I use a Korg CA-30 chromatic tuner. Quite cheap and very reliable.

If the strings are fresh, they havent gotten the chance to streatch out yet...that may be a reason for loosing the tune so quickly.

Try bending your strings real hard, and retune. This should stretch them in sooner.

I also recently bought the Korg CA-30, and its great.

Yeah, it can be normal... as already noted, new strings will stretch for a while.

It could also be that you were way out of tune to start with, which often requires multiple tunings. That's becuase going up a full step requires about 25% more tension on a string.

So if you were off a lot - if you were tuned to D standard, using a set like Martin 80/20 lights, you're starting off with about 128 pounds of tension on the neck. You tune one string up to pitch (adding a few pounds), then the next string... and by the time you're done you've added more than 30 pounds to the stress on the neck - E standard puts about 160 pounds of tension on the neck*

That's pulled the peghead forward in response to the higher string tension... and it's 25+ pounds more than there was on the neck after you got the first string in tune - so that string is now out of tune, and you have to repeat.

With each tuning you get closer, and eventually you're fine.

* - actual tension varies with scale length, string gauge, etc.

Thank you everyone for the responses. I may look into that Korg tuner.

Thanks again for the info.

By the way, Korg has introduced a successor to the CA30 - the CA40, which is supposed to be an improved version.

Do you have a vibrato/tremelo/whammy bar on your guitar? If you do, changing the pitch on one string, will affect the tension of all the other strings, because the vibrato unit compensates for the string tension with spring tension. In this case, I find that, if I start with all the strings tuned flat (you should always tune upwards), I need to tune the strings about 20 cents sharp, the first time around. Go back to the low E and you'll find that it's a little flat, so just tune to pitch - tune all the strings to pitch. You'again find they're a little flat, but not as much as before. Keep tuning until they are all at pitch.

Thanks for the info GB. When you say tuen upwards I am assuming you mean from low E to high E right?

Thanks for the info GB. When you say tuen upwards I am assuming you mean from low E to high E right?

Actually, I think he means flat to sharp...

:DUH:

Thanks. I feel dumb. LOL!!!

I took it as the sequence of strings. Oh well, one day I won't be such a newbie :)

Sorry, if I was unclear. Because tuners are mechanical, it's always best to add tension, because you are bedding the string deeper into the winds, there's less chance that the string will detune itself. When you tune from sharp to flat, you release tension and leave the possibility that the string will continue to detune itself, even after you think you're in tune.

It is amazing how you can pick up a new tidbid of information everyday. Man, there is sooo much to learn about guitars. Case in point... I was doing two things with my guitars that impacted their ability to stay in tune and I NEVER thought in million years that these two things would affect tuning...

#1, I was turning the tuning keys randomly when winding the strings so I had some of the strings wound clock-wise and some counter-clockwise. So, in same cases I had the string winding on the outside of the headstock. Somebody mentioned it to me and I took a look, and WHAM-O!! It made perfect sense to mean. Never would have thought of it on my own...

#2, the second was something that Wes posted the other day... tuning UP to pitch, not down. I never thought about it... if I went sharp I just tuned down... then I saw my buddy - who is a very good guitarist - tune his guitar using Wes's procedure. I asked him about it and he said, yeah, always tune up since you are stretching the strings... again, who knew??

So, always something to learn about this crazy instrument!!!