Wish Tuner - frequency offset limit

fuzzydude

Inspired
Updated wish request:

I wish for a tuning range of
427Hz <-> 453Hz (±3 Hz/±10 cents beyond the current tuning limitation of 430Hz <-> 450Hz) (See this post)


Edited: This other option won't work Another option that could get the Axe FX able to tune anywhere but without modifying the existing 430Hz <-> 450Hz tuning range would be to modify the "Downtune" option of the tuner to not just 0-4 semitones down, but also to "Uptune" at least 1 semitone up, though 4 semitones up would also be nice.
That easy addition would be all that is necessary to quickly tune to nearly any usable frequency of A.




Old wish request here:

This is a bit of necro of the Axe FX II thread by a similar name that died 5 years ago. But I have an Axe FX III so...

Also, not the same as the wishlist item to expand out to 528Hz since I don't know of any songs tuned that high.

What I'd like is to expand the current tuning limitation past the +/- of 10Hz from standard A440. I cover more than half a dozen classic songs whose actual tune is outside of that.

I can see the new firmware (19.04) detects the exact frequency easily so it would be nice to swell that tuning calibration range a bit to like 420Hz <-> 460Hz at least.

I have a Peterson Stroboplus HDC I use for intonating that goes from 390Hz to 490Hz (more than even I need), but it sure would be nice to not need it every time I want to tune up for one of those songs.

I know I can play with offsets to get there, but that's not really the proper fix or the intended usage of the tuning offsets IMO.

I also read somewhere that Cliff said fixing the issue would break/change any preconfigured offset settings (like from -10 to -20 after a firmware update), but I'm thinking it's time to pull that band-aid and just have folks fix their tuning offsets after updating.

Who's with me? 🤘🤘
 
Last edited:
Mostly, because they don't sound right when not played in the correct original tune. If you want to play a song and want it to sound like the original, it's necessary.
Same problem as playing with a guitar that isn't intonated correctly, or playing E Standard for a Eb Standard song (exaggerated example).
It changes the mood of the song enough that people can hear and feel the difference.

If you're an original artist, it may be just the difference in sound you've been looking for. Lots of the greats have found their expression in different frequencies. Mozart would tune to A421.6hz and his compositions feel completely different there vs A440.

Thanks for asking.
 
Why not just play those songs in A 440?
Bands such as Pantera and Machine Head tuned to A425 (down 60 cents).

What is the purpose of the Axe-FX being simply unable to tune a guitar to play along to these bands? They've sold tens of millions of albums, it's not like it's a weird niche request.
 
Mostly, because they don't sound right when not played in the correct original tune. If you want to play a song and want it to sound like the original, it's necessary.
Same problem as playing with a guitar that isn't intonated correctly, or playing E Standard for a Eb Standard song (exaggerated example).
It changes the mood of the song enough that people can hear and feel the difference.

If you're an original artist, it may be just the difference in sound you've been looking for. Lots of the greats have found their expression in different frequencies. Mozart would tune to A421.6hz and his compositions feel completely different there vs A440.

Thanks for asking.

A workaround is to tune the frequency up and then tune a half step lower than you were intending.

For instance Dimebag of Pantera tuned to E standard at A425 (60 cents down)... or, to Eb at A450 (40 cents up). Same thing.

With a little creative use of the frequency calculator (below), you can achieve the same result by tuning to a different note. I don't think it serves the Axe well that this is required though.

http://www.sengpielaudio.com/calculator-centsratio.htm
 
Last edited:
Do it by ears. As I play a lot behind records I always fine tune by ears with the song . Even Metallica got weird tuning in the ride the lightning album (for whom the bell tolls ) . Thinking of old Aerosmith too… many songs aren’t in 440. Maybe the tape, maybe they were drunk …. Listen to the supposed E or A in the sing and tune down/up. Personally I d like to see a improved visual in the fc12 of the tuner, with the same type that we have in the front panel of the axe, not big blocks .
 
Do it by ears. As I play a lot behind records I always fine tune by ears with the song . Even Metallica got weird tuning in the ride the lightning album (for whom the bell tolls ) . Thinking of old Aerosmith too… many songs aren’t in 440. Maybe the tape, maybe they were drunk …. Listen to the supposed E or A in the sing and tune down/up. Personally I d like to see a improved visual in the fc12 of the tuner, with the same type that we have in the front panel of the axe, not big blocks .

Guitars I tune by ear sound never sound right to me, and they usually are just a bit off. It's even harder to remember 2 or 3 sweetened tunings by ear. I'm never satisfied with the result and prefer repeatability. I do envy your ear though. But I don't understand why you need an improved visual on the fc12 tuner if you tune by ear.

In 2022, it does seems like a lot to ask of someone who just bought the greatest and most expensive FX processor while the competitors all do it for less. That said, would I buy it again? You bet. Still hoping it gets updated though. ;)

Metallica has some songs in A445 like "Fade to Black". If I want it to sound right every time I worry a lot less by tuning with a precise tuner at a known tuning. Just tuning by ear would stress me out that it would sound like crap when I start playing. I certainly don't want to stop playing a song to retune. Luckily, Aerosmith fits in the +-10 cents of adjustment at A444 for "Dream On" for example. Many other songs don't and my ear tuning gets worse at the extremes of +-20 cents beyond A440.
 
Mostly, because they don't sound right when not played in the correct original tune. If you want to play a song and want it to sound like the original, it's necessary.
Same problem as playing with a guitar that isn't intonated correctly, or playing E Standard for a Eb Standard song (exaggerated example).
It changes the mood of the song enough that people can hear and feel the difference.

If you're an original artist, it may be just the difference in sound you've been looking for. Lots of the greats have found their expression in different frequencies. Mozart would tune to A421.6hz and his compositions feel completely different there vs A440.

Thanks for asking.
I'm not sure why anyone would put a laugh emoji on this post. Songs that were recorded flat or sharp from standard don't sound "right" when played back at standard pitch. Or at least, they don't sound the same. I don't think I'd use this feature, but I understand why someone would. Every time we play Xanadu, it sounds flat to me at standard pitch. That's just one example.
 
Why not just play those songs in A 440?
Some of us outright REFUSE to tune to 440. I personally don't use 440 for both sonic and HEALTH reasons, which is why it's a hard refusal. If you knew something made you ill would you do it?
Luckily I can get to my target of 432 with the Axe,but in reality think we should be able to calibrate this digital device to any frequency we wish. I don't think we're limited by the frequency range of a quartz crystal anymore.
 
Some of us outright REFUSE to tune to 440. I personally don't use 440 for both sonic and HEALTH reasons, which is why it's a hard refusal. If you knew something made you ill would you do it?
Luckily I can get to my target of 432 with the Axe,but in reality think we should be able to calibrate this digital device to any frequency we wish. I don't think we're limited by the frequency range of a quartz crystal anymore.
In your tuning, if you play an A (fifth fret high E), and bend it up a quarter step, it's now about 440Hz.
Is your health harmed by this?
 
Last edited:
Some of us outright REFUSE to tune to 440. I personally don't use 440 for both sonic and HEALTH reasons, which is why it's a hard refusal. If you knew something made you ill would you do it?
Luckily I can get to my target of 432 with the Axe,but in reality think we should be able to calibrate this digital device to any frequency we wish. I don't think we're limited by the frequency range of a quartz crystal anymore.
Ok. Now I'm lost.
 
With some time on my hands and inspiration from Wolfenstein98k's post, I realized that 430Hz to 450Hz is very close to all that we would need to be able to use the Axe FX for any tuning, but it comes up short by only ±3Hz (±10cents)!

Currently the Axe FX III has a tuning range of:
430Hz <-> 450Hz which is about ±40 cents from 440Hz

But if we had a ±50 cents tuning range it would allow us to move up or down semitone(s) to hit any tuning we want (obviously since there are 100 cents per semitone):

(-3Hz)427Hz <-> 453Hz(+3Hz) which is about ±50 cents from 440Hz

By increasing the tuning range only ±3Hz or ±10 cents we could at least do the math and get any tuning on the Axe FX.

Imagine someone wants to play "Some might say" from Oasis tuned to A455Hz. Not my cup of tea either, but if you tried to tune to either E standard at 455Hz in the Axe FX or tune to F at 429Hz for the same tuning you wouldn't be able to. But if you had the increased range above you could.

So... instead of the ±20Hz/±80 cents I wished for originally, I instead wish for a smaller increase since it's really all we need. Hopefully that means it's more likely to actually be implemented. 🤞

I wish for a tuning range of
427Hz <-> 453Hz (±3Hz/±10 cents beyond the current tuning limitation of 430Hz <-> 450Hz)

Here's a useful tool that helped me wrap my head around those numbers:
https://www.omnicalculator.com/other/semitone
 
Another option that could get the Axe FX able to tune anywhere but without modifying the existing 430Hz <-> 450Hz tuning range would be to modify the "Downtune" option of the tuner to not just 0-4 semitones down, but also to "Uptune" at least 1 semitone up, though 4 semitones up would also be nice.

That easy addition would be all that is necessary to quickly tune to nearly any usable frequency of A.


Bakerman is right. There would still be a gap. Removing that suggestion.
 
Last edited:
Another option that could get the Axe FX able to tune anywhere but without modifying the existing 430Hz <-> 450Hz tuning range would be to modify the "Downtune" option of the tuner to not just 0-4 semitones down, but also to "Uptune" at least 1 semitone up, though 4 semitones up would also be nice.

That easy addition would be all that is necessary to quickly tune to nearly any usable frequency of A.
This wouldn't change the gaps in the pitch continuum created by the 430-450 Hz range. I think making that cover at least a semitone is more useful/important than adding more values to the downtune parameter.
 
You're right . There would still be a gap from 450Hz and 456Hz. Since 1 semitone up would be 466Hz minus the current 10Hz of tuning range would only get us to 456Hz. I'll remove that suggestion. Looks like we just need a tuning range of 427Hz to 453Hz. I'll leave that one.
 
Last edited:
Since 1 semitone up would be 466Hz minus the current 10Hz of tuning range would only get us to 456Hz.
You might be thinking of steps in the wrong order here, although the answer still rounds to 456 Hz.

The tuner calibration value moves the frequency of some note (normally labeled A) around the range of 430-450 Hz. If you dial it from 440 to 430, the note a semitone up changes by about 10.6 Hz, ~466.16 down to ~455.57 Hz. The downtune parameter only changes the note names you see.
 
Back
Top Bottom