TC Electronic Polytune Clip experiences?

[AgentKooper]

I’ve had mine for two years.
I love it.

[Monsoon1]

I'm in love with mine. I went through at least 4 popular tuners over the years and not one of them was worth the cost.
But the polytune is simply brilliant.
I got mine when it was on sale last year for something like $25.

[Wade Hampton]

Originally Posted by min7b5

I have the Unitune and love it. I just didn't see myself using Poly's ability of seeing all string at once. The Unitune is the same as far I can tell, but just does one note at a time

Right. I already had several Polytunes when the Unitune came out, and never used the function that showed all of the strings at once. Since then I’ve bought a couple of Unitunes, and those are what I’ll buy if I ever need any more. The Unitune does everything that I need a tuner to do.


whm

[Mycroft]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

J-Doug, I find the TC Polytune and its less expensive counterpart the TC Unitune to be the most accurate of the easy to use clip-on tuners in common use. I own several of each, and those instruments that I take out of the house and use to perform with each have one stashed in their case pockets.

They’re not cheap but they’re excellent products.


Wade Hampton Miller

Wade, how are they with low (Baritone-type) frequencies?

Thanks for all the replies guys! One question: Does anyone use theirs in the strobe mode? Or is the chromatic mode just as accurate?

[Ed66]

I didn't use it in strobe mode initially, but once I switched I left it there. I do feel it's a little more accurate. I'll also say I do like the strum feature as I'll switch it on, strum, and if everything shows as in tune I'm good. If a few strings show out of tune I'll deal with them individually. I keep one on each of my regular players since they hang on the wall.

[jaymarsch]

I have used the Polytune since it came out and really like them. I have found even the strum feature works with my two best guitars. I love that it folds somewhat flat and it has never bothered me that it doesn’t swivel because it is so easy to read. Battery life has been really good on mine as well.

Best,
Jayne

[Glennwillow]

I have a TC Polytune, a Unitune, and a Strobo-clip. Of the three, the Strobo-clip, I think, is the most accurate. But they all work well. For the money, the Unitune is the best, least expensive way to go.

I am used to the behavior of the Strobo-clip, so it doesn't bother me. But based on reactions I have seen from most people, they don't have the patience or personality to deal with the vagaries of the Strobo-clip. The TC Unitune is the lowest cost way to get good accuracy with minimal fuss.

However, when I tune a guitar before recording, I use the Strobo-Clip.

- Glenn

[jschmitz54]

I have a Unitune and compared its tuning to an online strobe tuner and it was within a cent. I play and tune most everyday and my first battery lasted nine months.

[Wade Hampton]

After I mentioned that I like TC Polytune and Unitune tuners a LOT, International Man of Mystery Mycroft asked:

Originally Posted by Mycroft

Wade, how are they with low (Baritone-type) frequencies?

They're great: by far and away the best clip-on tuners I've ever used with my baritone guitar. With the Snark tuners if the battery starts to wear down a little bit, they stop picking up the lower frequencies. The Intelli tuners I used before the Snarks didn't even like the low E string on a regular guitar, so you can imagine how well they worked with the baritone.

With both the Intelli and the Snark tuners, the usual way I measured the pitch on the low B string of the baritone was to hit a harmonic at the octave fret, and tune from there. But with the Polytune and Unitune I just sound the string itself, and the tuner has no problem reading the note. The main way I can tell that the battery might need to be replaced is that the screen display gets a bit dim, but the tuner keeps working on all the strings regardless.


whm

[Mycroft]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

After I mentioned that I like TC Polytune and Unitune tuners a LOT, International Man of Mystery Mycroft asked:



They're great: by far and away the best clip-on tuners I've ever used with my baritone guitar. With the Snark tuners if the battery starts to wear down a little bit, they stop picking up the lower frequencies. The Intelli tuners I used before the Snarks didn't even like the low E string on a regular guitar, so you can imagine how well they worked with the baritone.

With both the Intelli and the Snark tuners, the usual way I measured the pitch on the low B string of the baritone was to hit a harmonic at the octave fret, and tune from there. But with the Polytune and Unitune I just sound the string itself, and the tuner has no problem reading the note. The main way I can tell that the battery might need to be replaced is that the screen display gets a bit dim, but the tuner keeps working on all the strings regardless.


whm

Thanks. My Intelli usually works fine with the octave harmonic trick, even on the Beneteau. But it doesn't like the Baritone Weissinborn. Sometimes the cell phone tuner will do the trick. Tonight even that didn't work. Which is better, the Polytune or the Unitune? The TC website has no info on the Unitone, only the Poly.

[Wade Hampton]

Originally Posted by Mycroft

Which is better, the Polytune or the Unitune? The TC website has no info on the Unitone, only the Poly.

As I wrote earlier in the thread, the Unitune gives me all I need out of a tuner. I've never found checking all strings at once to be advantageous, so I've never really used that particular function of the Polytune - I mean, I experimented with it when I first got the tuner, but never made it part of my tuning routine.

From what I can tell, the Unitune has the same basic electronics in it as the Polytune, it just lacks that one polyphonic function. Since that makes the Unitune twenty dollars cheaper, that's okay with me!

The only thing I dislike about either the Polytune or the Unitune is the same thing Andy mentioned: it doesn't swivel. On my guitars, mandolins and banjos that's okay, but it makes trying to tune one of my mountain dulcimers with it kind of a pain.

C'est la vie...


whm

[raysachs]

I love the Polytune - I ave the Polytune 3 pedal for my electrics (and the very rare occasion I plug my acoustic inand I have a couple of the clip-on tuners but I never use them on my acoustic because I really like having a discrete soundhole tuner, which the little D’addario Tuners are perfect for and because my Emerald X7 has so little real estate on the headstock it’s actually hard to fin a place to clip the Polytune to it. If I ever find a way to rig one up as a soundhole tuner, I’d never use anything else. I end up using a polytune on my ES339 when I’m playing it unplugged in the morning, which I do just often enough to keep a tune on the headstock...u

I’m glad to see a few other people who use the Poly function of the Polytune. I find it excellent to check tuning. Obviously once you start tuning an individual string, you’re in uni mode, but I’ll periodically give the guitar an even strum and if all of the strings are showing in tune, I’m good. Or if all but the low E are in tune, I’m good, because experience has taught me that if that’s the only string that’s off and it’s really close, it’s actually in tune.

-Ray

[Dryfly]

I've been using a Polytune for a couple of years and like its accuracy and
compact design. Recently the nut for the bolt that the hinge pivots around
disappeared. I emailed TC and they contacted me back saying they would
send me a whole new unit. I thought that was very nice of them and told them so. When they emailed a tracking invoice it was for 2 units. I emailed back
to report the error and they said don't worry about it, just keep them both.
WOW!

I picked up a black Polytune Clip over lunch. I have 30 days to return it if I don't like it. I'll try it out tonight and post my thoughts. I'm sure all of you are waiting with bated breath... :P