FOTW'S CURRENT FAVORITE TUNER 03/20/07 IS THE IMT-500 AVAILABLE IN OUR NEW ONLINE STORE

Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2004 11:05:48 -0700 (PDT)

Hello, I recently purchased the Regal squareneck pkg. from your store and am very
happy with the dobro,videos,etc. My question regards the korg tuner. When I pick
the low G string, the tuner does not pick up the sound. All of the other strings it
picks up immediately and there is no problem. Is there something I can do to allow
the tuner to "hear" the base G string? I have held the tuner as close to the string
as possible. picked the string soft and loud, but it still won"t pick up that low G. Any
suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

Jeff Ogle

Greetings Jeff,

I've seen this happen before...it might be that you have to set your adjustment for auto or individual notes...my suggestion would be to first make sure that your G string is at a relative pitch (at least close to the pitch it needs to be)...to do this, try to match it as one octave lower than your G 3rd string....once it's close, you should be able to fine tune it to the Korg...if the G string is too low, and not even close to the pitch you're trying to tune up to, then the tuner will not register it at all...

Mickey

Subject: tuning a mountain dulcimer
Date: Sat, 22 Nov 2003 13:47:05 -0800

First, my knowledge and skill at tuning anything except a radio
is zero. I want to buy a mountain dulcimer next week. I do know
that being able to tune an instrument is necessary before
beginning to learn to play it. I have a Korg CA30 electronic
tuning device; it seems to use 440 hz (C) as about the only
reference I recognize....How can this device be used to tune
DAA, DAD, etc. without a D or A reference? I ain't stupid, just
dumb about musical instruments. Thanks.

Glad to assist if I can:

Having the Korg will assist you greatly...even pros, with developed ears, use them.

It should be A at 440 hz...it does have its own calibration which usually does not need to be messed with...as long as the number indication at the top left is "440"...it works very simply:

1. Turn it on with the red push-button...
2. Pick one of the strings and observe what note comes up on the LCD.
3. Tune the string up or down as you observe what note comes up on the LCD.
4. When the note is reached, you'll notice that the LCD arrow will center and the LED lights will show green instead of red.

For a D or A reference, simply tune your strings up or down until you see the indication on your tuner. The only concern you should have is overtightening...to prevent this, simply start with the string completely loose.

Hope this helps...Mickey

Date: Fri, 23 Mar 2001 23:32:33 -0600

Hey Mickey!
It's only been 6 months since we last connected, and it sure looks like Folk is doing GREAT! The web site looks super, and how about those testimonials! I couldn't agree more, you guy's are providing the best in customer service, quality merchandise, and unbeatable prices backed by a sure fire guarantee. For the money, my Trinity College Octave is all I could ask for... that is until I'm ready to trade up to the soon-to-be released, Mid-Mo Octave. Can't wait!

Wanted to check in to let you know that we finally finished recording our CD of traditional Irish tunes. And, the octave sounds pretty darn good (I just need a few more years of practice!). Look for it in your mail box, as I'll be sending it off soon.

Quick question Mick, I'd like to finally install that permanent pick up we talked about back when, into my octave. As much as I'd like your shop to handle it, I'd rather avoid having to ship it back there. Could I ask you to give me a good idea as to how best to do the installation, sensor placement, etc.?? (either by myself, or preferably, by a local pro) Perhaps a diagram, or in brief written form? Either way, I would like to purchase the unit from Folk (sorry, but I can't remember the name of the thing).

Hope all is going well for you. Let me know what you think of our humble recording effort... we sure had fun doing it!!
Take care,
Tavo


Greetings Tavo,

Great to hear from you...I can't say enough about FOTW's progress and exponential growth...one word sums it up: phenomenal!

I'll look forward to hearing your new release. Thanks so much for thinking of me and sending a copy out. I'll promote it for you on our website if you'd like...do you have a website link where it can be purchased?

For pick-up installation, on the TC Octave, there's quite a bit of detail involved. Number one: drilling out the endpin to fit the pick-up jack properly. There's an exact diameter required for the fitting of the jack. Placement of the transducer is also critical...we've found that the most balanced tone between treble and bass, on the TC Octave, would be directly behind the bridge between the G and D strings.

Now, we do have a variety of pick-ups available including: Fishman, McIntyre and the Shadow. We've found that the Shadow as being one of the most successful in all of our installations. It's a matter of personal preference overall.

Hope this helps...Mickey

Date: Wed, 24 May 2000 01:03:40 -0600

Question? Using a Korg chromatic tuner ca-20, What should the HZ be set at to tune a mountain dulcimer and what is the difference between setting at the low end 430hz and setting at the high end 449hz ? Thanks Don Kelly

Hello Don,

Hertz should be set at 440 A...this is your standard for tuning all instruments. Other hertz settings are usually only applicable for calibration. Mickey

Date: Tue, 31 Oct 2000 00:58:20 -0600

Mickey--

It just occured to me that I should probably buy an electronic tuner. Can
you recommend an easy-to-read, moderately priced tuner? Please give the
price so I can add it to the order that I plan on mailing out within the
next couple of days. Thank you.

Ned Conway

Hello Ned,

The best tuner I've found is the Korg electronic tuner...

It works in an automatic mode, denoting the correct pitch as the note is played. It has both an LED Readout and and LCD...the LED works with 3 small lights...2 red and 1 green. The LCD works simultaneously with the LEDs; it has a meter arrow that points at different cycles both flat and sharp, and points straight up with the note reaches the correct pitch. It requires 2 AAA batteries that will last quite a long time. I personally use one, for over a year now and haven't had to change batteries yet.

The current discount price for this one is 15.00...

Mickey