Choose which microphone the tuner listens to, read the signal meter, and get a bass low E in tune.
What's new
- 2026-08-29 — Audio source picker — choose which microphone or audio interface the tuner listens to. Your choice is remembered in the browser and restored next time.
- 2026-08-29 — Signal meter — a live level bar with a marker showing the level detection needs, plus “No signal” and “Too loud” warnings.
- 2026-08-29 — Low-string harmonic folding — a string heard only through its overtones is folded back to its fundamental, so a bass low E finally tunes on a laptop mic.
- 2026-08-29 — “Listening on …” — the tuner names the input actually in use, so “System default” is never a mystery.
Why low strings were hard
Small microphones cannot move air at 41 Hz. A bass low E often reaches a laptop mic only as its second harmonic at 82 Hz — and 82 Hz sits between the D and G string targets, so the tuner chased the wrong string and the low E could never be brought in tune: D# too high, E too high, F too low, round and round. The tuner now recognises that case and reports the real fundamental instead.
How to use it
- Pick your input — the Audio source selector sits under Instrument and Tuning. On a first visit it is empty and greyed out: browsers refuse to reveal device names until microphone access has been granted at least once. Tap Start, allow the mic, and your devices appear.
- Watch the signal bar — if it does not move, the tuner is hearing nothing at all. Usual suspects: the wrong input selected, the mic muted by a laptop function key, or another app holding the device. “Too loud” means back off or lower the input gain.
- Tuning a low string — just play it. Check the frequency readout: a 4-string bass low E should say roughly 41 Hz. If it reads about 82 Hz, the tuner is hearing the octave — which is exactly the case that is now corrected automatically.
- Lock a string when octaves collide — in tunings where one string is an octave above another (drop D, DADGAD, open C), the two readings are physically identical and no tuner can guess. Tap the string chip to lock onto it; listening then narrows to that string alone.
- Use an audio interface if you have one — select it under Audio source. A direct signal has a full, strong fundamental, so low strings register instantly and the reading barely wavers.