Guitars need to be tuned on a very regular basis. If you want to avoid the inconvenience of constantly having to tune your child’s guitar for them, I strongly advise you to teach them how to do it for themselves right from the start. It’s not a difficult process if you buy them a decent guitar tuner.
Learning to tune a guitar is an important part of learning to play one, so get them started as soon as you can.
When I first learned to play the guitar as a child, I didn’t have a tuner. I had to learn how to manually tune each string by ear from the high E string, which was often not in tune itself. It was a far from a perfect situation, but at least the strings were in tune with each other, even if they weren’t in tune with the rest of the musical world!
These days, there is no need to manually tune each string by ear from the High E string. Instead, each string can now be tuned individually using a guitar tuner which will have a display that will confirm that a particular string is, or is not, in tune.
There are a number of different types or guitar tuners and some of them are easier to use than others. You will definitely want to get your child a guitar tuner that is simple to use.
So, which are best guitar tuners for kids?
Guitar Tuners For Kids – 3 Options
1. Standalone Guitar Tuners
Standalone guitar tuners are basically small electronic boxes made of plastic or metal.
They are usually powered by a couple of AAA batteries and often come with extra features in addition to being used to tune guitars and other instruments.
They can come with a metronome feature that can be used to help your child learn to play in time as well as in tune.
They are not large items and can easily be carried around in a good quality guitar case, but are a little less convenient than a clip-on guitar tuner.
Check Best Prices of Standalone Tuners
2. Clip-on Guitar Tuners
Unsurprisingly, Clip-on guitar tuners can be clipped onto the headstock of your guitar, be used to tune your guitar, and then stay there while you are playing.
They are by far the most convenient option and are very inexpensive to buy. They are generally smaller than the standalone units and are powered by a single CR2032 battery or similar.
They rarely have any of the extra features that are often found on the standalone guitar tuners, but they are a great option if you don’t want or need a built-in metronome and just want a very simple and portable tuner.
Check Best Prices of Clip-On Tuners
3. Phone Application Tuners
There are many free cell phone applications for iPhones or Android phone that can be used to tune guitars and other instruments. I have “Guitar Tuna” on my own phone to use when I don’t have access to an alternative guitar tuner, but there are many other options available.
They are okay, but the one big downside of phone application tuners is that they require a phone to be in the possession of your child and switched on in order to tune the guitar,
Not all kids have constant access to a mobile telephone and, even if they do own one, their guitar teacher may not be too keen on them having it switched on during lessons as other alerts and ringtones may be a very unwelcome distraction.
So, it’s worth having one on your cell phone or your child’s cell phone but I wouldn’t recommend that you rely upon them as the only tuning option
Final Word
Personally, I am a big fan of the clip-on guitar tuners for kids. They are very simply to use to tune your child’s guitar at the start of a lesson and can stay clipped on during lessons or practice sessions in case it needs to be quickly tuned again. They are also very inexpensive.
If you have any questions or comments about the Best Guitar Tuners For Kids, please leave them in the box below and I will get back to you as soon as I can.
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