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Oct 22, 2026 - 5:44:57 AM

cjwit

USA

115 posts since 1/12/2019

So I'm not sure why I made it this far in life and no one has told me about Peterson tuners. I'm sure others have different experiences, but I picked up a StrobeClip after my kids lost my D'Addario (darn tootin' kids) and I'm really impressed. I have a banjo I built that has a Balch head on it and it's always been just a little frustrating to tune. The head's shifts from tension combined with the "pluckiness" make it hard to get just right. I assumed it was my fret job and I was ready to pull them and make it a fretless, which I love playing (and can keep in tune!).

But my first experiences with the new tuner have been pretty impressive. Same for the just fifths when using it on the fiddle, something you always try for, but I struggle with.

So my question: in the double C/D family of tunings, the BJO "sweetener" seems to work pretty well. Equal temperament/chromatic is somewhat awful, as are all other tuners. Everything is a little out of tune. I see that you can really nerd out on these, though. Anyone find or make offsets for other old time tunings? I'm still early in the experimenting.

Like I said, I'm sure others have found these to just be expensive tuners that don't help, but I feel like we often spend far more on instruments for upgrades that make much less of a difference. I'm putting this in the category of "worth it" alongside my Blue Chip flat pick and thumb pick and my Yates fingerpicks. How's that for setting a fire to a forum post. What other little things have made a huge difference for you?

Oct 22, 2026 - 8:06:47 AM
likes this

2008 posts since 1/9/2012

The Peterson JMI ("Just Major Intonation") temperament is a blessing for diatonic autoharps (37 strings). You also have to set the the base or fundamental for the scale it is using to match the preferred key of your instrument. If you're playing with others, you need to set an absolute frequency, e.g. A = 440, as well.

I never take my Peterson out for banjo -- in spite of it being one of the coolest (albeit pricey) gadgets in the world. Harmonics on the open strings (e.g., at the 5th, 7th, 12th, and 4th frets) give me the frequency ratios I want where I want them, i.e., on open strings. That not only goes for double-C but also for "Last Chance" fCFCD, of which I've recently become enamored.

Oct 22, 2026 - 8:15:29 AM

3588 posts since 9/5/2006

The Peterson is great and I've become quite fond of unitune as well. Both are very accurate. The Peterson is a compact version of the oscilloscope tuners used in better studios.

Oct 22, 2026 - 8:59 AM

11726 posts since 4/23/2004

I've had two of the Stroboclips. The first one ate batteries like popcorn. I gave it to somebody. The rechargeable version I've had for the past 5-7 yrs is very nice...and I may recharge it twice a year.

I often use it for OT tunings. I never use the sweetening features. Frankly, I couldn't hear the differences.

Oct 22, 2026 - 9:49:25 AM

jojo25

USA

1675 posts since 12/1/2004

I am a fan and a user of Peterson clip on strobe tuners...main thing for me is that they are visible even in challenging light conditions...all I really need to see is movement...or lack thereof...not colors...tho for my wife's fiddle I do use a "colored" tuner...but only because it has a clamp that actually fits a fiddle scroll...so it is easy to put on and take off...and it provides a very solid connection

Oct 22, 2026 - 4:07:57 PM

cjwit

USA

115 posts since 1/12/2019

I can’t help but wonder how much of the difference is the timer and how much is the clip. I’ve never felt good about snarks, but this one even works on my fiddle scroll without having to spring for that added clamp. But yeah, it’s certainly easier to see, too.

Oct 22, 2026 - 4:21:48 PM

532 posts since 9/9/2006

quote:
Originally posted by trapdoor2

I've had two of the Stroboclips. The first one ate batteries like popcorn. I gave it to somebody. The rechargeable version I've had for the past 5-7 yrs is very nice...and I may recharge it twice a year.

I often use it for OT tunings. I never use the sweetening features. Frankly, I couldn't hear the differences.


I've had a few Peterson clip-on tuners from a few generations, and while I find them very accurate, I've had a few problems with them. I had a middle-generation StroboClip that came out a while ago, and mine too ate batteries like popcorn, dying just when I needed it most. But I tried to always keep a few new CR2032 cells in my case. Then a month or so after the warranty ran out, it just stopped working, showing random displays, but not registering the strings plucked. I fussed with it a while, but to no avail. So I thought, "Peterson seems like a reputable company whose products are used by professionals, so they probably provide reasonable service." So I looked up their repair policies - which said they'd repair any of their tuners for a flat fee of $70. Well, that tuner sold for $69.95 (and as an early purchaser, I got it for something around $45)! Gee, such a deal! So I tried other tuners, but none were as good, so recently I picked up the current rechargeable version of the Peterson StroboClip ($80!) and it seems to work well, but recently, twice when it needed the charge topped up, I plugged it in, and when I next turned it on, it was completely discharged and wouldn't even turn on! Grrr.

Edited by - BrendanD on 10/22/2026 16:24:19

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