Klarinet Archive - Posting 001119.txt from 1999/03

From: George Kidder <gkidder@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: [kl] Tuners - what's a good one to buy?
Date: Sat, 20 Mar 1999 21:57:33 -0500

At 07:51 PM 3/20/99 -0500, Bill Hausmann wrote:

>My Korg DT-1 has served me well for many years, and is very compact (about
>the size of a tape cassette in its case). From a practical standpoint, I
>MUCH prefer tuners with a meter-type readout, whether mechanical, LCD, or
>LED, to those with flashing lights. The meters allow you to more
>accurately determine how many cents off you are. I have found that the
>Quik Tune tuners have relatively insensitive microphones, but the ARE
>cheap, and one model has BOTH types of readout!
>
I have to second Bill's comment about the flashing lights. I have a Korg
DT-3, which has been very satisfactory except for the lack of meter. It's
hard to be accurate with a resolution of about 10 cents per light. The DT-3
does adjust from A=436 to A=445 by 1 Hz increments, and reports the name of
the note it is locked on (concert notation). And it is relatively compact
like I imagine the DT-1 is, and fits in the Buffet case where there is not
all that much room.

One other curiosity about the DT-3, however. It is supposed to read either
in cents (-50 to +50) or Hz (-6 to +6) Since a cent is 1/100 of the
(tempered) semitone at any point within the range, the number of Hz per cent
should double for each octave increase in pitch. Now, when I sound open G
and deliberately sharp it by 10 cents, and then switch the meter to Hz, it
reads 5 Hz sharp. Do the same thing with the G above that (got to keep one
hand free for the switch), and it reads only 2-3 Hz sharp, not the 10 (off
scale) one would expect. Needless to day, I don't really trust the
calibration, especially not the Hz calibration, but it seems accurate enough
for in-tune notes.

Or am I missing something?

George

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