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G force why I like it


OLDFART

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I do think having the G Force auto tuner is novel, pretty cool technology all things considered, and I will use mine until it craps out and refit it but for now it is OK.

You have to learn to adjust the sensitivity and accuracy of the setup and also SLOW it down. I also recommend holding the button in longer to activate single string tuning mode which seems to do much better.

 

There is a fundamental flaw in the software of the unit which I am surprised hardly anyone seems to know, including the Gibson chaps who designed it.

In the matter of tuning, one needs to "come up into pitch", "not down", as turning down into pitch just makes for an out of tune situation really soon.

If the unit had been software programmed to start below pitch and then tune up into correct pitch it would be so much a better unit.

Sort of a shame they gave up on it so quickly probably from the usual dirge of nits who seldom comprehend or like anything.

Mine works and as much as it is zero effort to use my usual PitchBlack board tuner I use the G force because, well it is there and having adjusted and tweaked it as much as it can be it does OK. It's just the tuning down into pitch that bugs me, goes out of tune almost right away because of that.

Rather astounding for me that experienced players do not know that tuning up into pitch is a trick orchestral string players have used for centuries to hold tuning. I honestly do not remember how long ago I was taught this but it has been a part of my normal means of tuning longer than I can recall. Maybe some reading this will pick up on it as it just works so much better. I thought it was a standard knowledge premise.

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I love the gforce. To date had no issues at all.

 

Must confess I have never noticed whether it tunes up or down. Does it tune both ways? I whack the strings hard so I do a retune every 30 mins anyways. Which is of course rather quick and easy! Sometimes a string is out, not always.

 

I think people are afraid of change. Why muck around with a tuner device and fiddling with tuners if you don't have to? Like you I will use it until it wears out. I think people complaining about change forget the modern Les Paul is very different indeed to the original. If the designers back then had not tried different things the modern les paul would not exist.

 

Bob

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As for tuning down as well as up.

 

When I first started to play in 1970, a very experienced player told me it was better to tune in the direction required, and not to tune upwards all the time.

 

 

Most people now would say that was an odd thing to say. I think he meant that it was better for ear training rather than better for the guitar.

 

Considering all this anew now, I would say that it only makes sense to tune upwards if:

 

A/ Your strings are not fully stretched in (as in new).

 

B/ There is some slack in the tuning gear.

 

Its sensible to allow a little slack in the mechanism. Even with good tuners the engineering tolerance must make a small allowance for temperature change etc. Without that the helical worm might become stiff and bind up. However, that allowance is very small. I'm not positive, but I think that good tuners in good condition should be able to tune down without slippage.

 

I would further guess that the G-Force is precise enough to work in either direction perfectly well.

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I always tune up, there always seems to be a little tension above the nut, not to mention, bending strings is part of playing, and it works out that tuning up always will leave the tension in the same place as for bending and releasing.

 

As it is, IF there was ever a guitar that was perfect, have zero friction at the nut and bridge, zero backlash from the tuners, and could be tuned down, I wouldn't know, as tuning up is always a habit. Who knows, maybe some of my guitars could do it.

 

Having said that, don't see where G-force would be an issue there for me, as giving the strings a little stretch while tuning is also a habit. Only difference there is turning a tuner manually or pushing a button and watching them spin.

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In the matter of tuning, one needs to "come up into pitch", "not down", as turning down into pitch just makes for an out of tune situation really soon.

If the unit had been software programmed to start below pitch and then tune up into correct pitch it would be so much a better unit.

 

I noticed this too when I first got my G-Force.

 

Later, I put the accuracy of mine to max and when I use single thing mode it tunes up.

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There is a fundamental flaw in the software of the unit which I am surprised hardly anyone seems to know, including the Gibson chaps who designed it.

In the matter of tuning, one needs to "come up into pitch", "not down", as turning down into pitch just makes for an out of tune situation really soon.

If the unit had been software programmed to start below pitch and then tune up into correct pitch it would be so much a better unit...

 

 

I have 2 MinEtune guitars and a 2015 GForce guitar and none of mine tune down to pitch. They all tune down past the pitch and then back up and all are using "from the factory" settings.

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.

Mine tunes down past pitch (flat), then up to pitch. This is the older Robot, but the tuning still works the same way and has the accuracy settings which I've got set to medium.

 

 

.

 

Yea, Gibson has been refining this idea for almost 10 years now. It's not likely they would have over looked that little trick.

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