The guitar is one of the most iconic instruments ever created. There are countless songs written and performed by famous and talented musicians throughout the world. So whether you’ve been playing for years or are just starting out, there is no doubt you’ve had a dream of being up on stage playing the guitar for thousands of people.
There are two ways to tune your guitar: with a tuner, or by ear. Tuning your guitar by ear is not much more than plucking a string and listening to its pitch. If it's in tune, you'll hear a nice tone, and if not, it will sound flat or sharp. But what if you only have access to a tuner? Using a tuner is simple. All you need to do is plug it into your guitar, and turn it on. The tuner will display a series of numbers based on the pitches detected by the pickup inside the tuner. You then match these numbers to the reference pitch, which is shown on the tuner itself.
Guitar pedals are a bit like fish. Everybody knows what they are, and most guitarists will have at least a basic idea of what they do. Yet despite this, a lot of guitarists (like fish) aren't entirely sure about what a guitar pedal is, or if they actually need one.
The tuner included with your guitar is a fine way to get in tune, but it's not the most accurate. You can do better with a dedicated guitar tuner, which you'd use before every performance and practice session. You can get away with using the tuner on your phone or tablet, but consider getting a dedicated clip-on tuner that's easier to take with you.
Innovative guitar tuners rely on several different technologies. Some clip directly onto the guitar. Others plug into the guitar and then clip onto the headstock. Some are even stompboxes, with controls for volume and distortion to take your sound to the next level.
We thoroughly recommend taking a look at our recently updated post on the best tuning pedals for guitars.
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