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A sturdy, accurate, yet slow and dim tuner.
Published on 09/27/12 at 16:05Encased in a durable metal housing with barrel footswitch, the Pitchblack measures in at just slightly smaller in dimension than the more famous Boss TU-2/3 tuner. This is a plus for those with cramped pedalboards.The Pitchblack also sports true bypass switching, so it won't color your tone when placed in your signal chain, and if you operate it via battery, you won't lose your signal in bypass mode if the battery suddenly dies.
It boasts 4...…
Encased in a durable metal housing with barrel footswitch, the Pitchblack measures in at just slightly smaller in dimension than the more famous Boss TU-2/3 tuner. This is a plus for those with cramped pedalboards.The Pitchblack also sports true bypass switching, so it won't color your tone when placed in your signal chain, and if you operate it via battery, you won't lose your signal in bypass mode if the battery suddenly dies.
It boasts 4 different display modes, including: Meter, Full Strobe, Half Strobe, and Mirror. The display itself is large with a readout of the note along with a range of LED lights that display variances in cent by their brightness in standard meter mode.
The tuner also has a parallel power jack for jumpering other 9v pedals from the same power source.
The cons of this otherwise great pedal tuner are note tracking time, and display brightness. On a dark stage, it's easily seen, but outdoor daytime gigs are the enemy, and direct sunlight can render the Pitchblack almost impossible to read. I found this was sometimes subverted by tucking the tuner or the pedalboard on which it sat, as close to a monitor wedge or other source of shade, as I could.
The Pitchblack exhibits some lag to how quickly it tracks a note compared to other pedal tuners, most notable the Boss TU series. This isn't a good thing when your singer doesn't give you much time in between songs to tune your guitar.
What this tuner has going for it is accuracy and simplicity, and this was enough a few years ago, but with the introduction of competitively priced models from other manufacturers that are comparable in accuracy, Korg would do well to update the Pitchblack with a brighter display and faster note tracking.
If they can do this, and maintain the original price point, I don't see why the Pitchblack series can't compete with the new and improved Boss TU-3 to become the gold standard in pedalboard tuners.

My Favorite Tuner
Published on 11/19/11 at 13:59

One of the best tuners out there
Published on 10/08/11 at 22:15I've been using this tuner exclusively for the past 3 years or so. I've used it extensively for gigging like I mentioned before, but I've also used it to setup my guitars. It is accurate to +/-.1%, which is perfect for setting the intonation on a...…
I've been using this tuner exclusively for the past 3 years or so. I've used it extensively for gigging like I mentioned before, but I've also used it to setup my guitars. It is accurate to +/-.1%, which is perfect for setting the intonation on a guitar. Since the tuner is chromatic you can use it to setup a guitar in any tuning. It is really handy.
I also really like the simplicity of it. There are not any unneeded bells and whistles, it does one thing and it does it extremely well. It will accurately tune your guitar.
Before buying the Pitchblack I owned a BOSS tuner, I've also used a bunch of built in tuners in multifx units. The Korg tracks much faster than any of these other tuners. It also seems better built than most of them.
Another great feature of the Pitchblack is the true bypass feature makes the tuner completely transparent. The TU2 used to really color my tone when bypassed, along with all the other tuning units I’ve used. It is not something that happens with the Pitchblack.
I realize this review pretty much sounds like a sales pitch, but I honestly can't find anything wrong with this tuner. Its fast, accurate, and cheap. Whats not to love?
Tech. sheet
- Manufacturer: Korg
- Model: Pitchblack
- Series: Pitchblack Tuners
- Category: Tuners/Pitch Pipes/Tuning Forks
- Added in our database on: 04/18/2008
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Other names: pitchblack, pitch black