Hipshot D-tuners

[Jono Bolton]

Do they work? I fancy getting one for one (or possibly both) of my basses because I go between standard and drop D a lot in a set and something like that would be pretty useful and would save a lot on fannying about with tuning on stage and save time between songs too. Actually, typing that has made me realise that I could put it to use during a song too. Looking online they run at about $90 and I don't really want to blow £45 plus customs on something thats not going to work properly.

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

I have them on three of my basses, a highway 1 jazz, an '81 precision & an epi t-bird.

Yes they do work - very well as long as:
[list]
[*]The little screw that governs the amount to detune is set up properly
[*]You have a small dab of vaseline on the pivoting piece
[*]you remember to tune up, flip the lever up & down and retune
[/list]

As soon as they make one for my mustang I'll get one for that as well.

[Machines]

I think they're horrendously expensive.. i'd love one on my Stingray but can't justify £45 for a machine head that saves me about 5 seconds.

[nick]

[quote name='jono b' post='157475' date='Mar 14 2008, 03:09 PM']Do they work? I fancy getting one for one (or possibly both) of my basses because I go between standard and drop D a lot in a set and something like that would be pretty useful and would save a lot on fannying about with tuning on stage and save time between songs too. Actually, typing that has made me realise that I could put it to use during a song too. Looking online they run at about $90 and I don't really want to blow £45 plus customs on something thats not going to work properly.[/quote]

I've just literally bought one myself from the States ($70), tired of detuning too & don't need [i](want)[/i] a five-string.
A lot of people rave about them - plus they're very rarely seen on secondhand market.
Can let you know if it works or not when I've tried it out....

[Merton]

I had one put on my Status Retroactive when it was being built, so very very glad I did - I even use it halfway thru a song for the middle section, then flip back up again over 2 beats back into the chorus. OTT? Yep, but why the hell not!

[Raph]

I have two on my 4-string basses and love them. Makes tuning the E very slightly more fiddly - as jean-luc says above you have to tune, flip and retune to make sure the string has settled, otherwise it'll go out as soon as you play the first note. Lubricating between the nut and the string helps.

"£45 for a machine head that saves me about 5 seconds" - if I only used it that way I wouldn't bother with a de-tuner, but I play it pretty much as an extra note, flipping it in and out while playing. Sometimes I leave it down for a stint, so octaves are on the same fret, but as soon as anything melodic happens (admittedly not frequent at the bottom of a bass), I flip it back up for normal tuning.

In short - yes, I think it's brilliant. It stopped me bothering with 5-string basses for about 10 years. I succumbed in the end, but just that extra note on a 4-string was great - obviously for Play that Funky Music you can just detune for the whole number, but even then it's great to flick a lever rather than have to faff tuning between numbers.

Only tip I have, like what's been said above - keep it lubed, cos any wear will mean wibbly movement in the pivot or in the cam, which will result in unreliable tuning. Bike chain oil's good.

Edited April 9, 2008 by Raph

[mcgraham]

I was considering getting one on the neck I'm having made for my bass, but I rarely downtune, and if I do, D is not the 'only' note I'm downtuning to. I also find that I'm exceptionally quick at (re)tuning without a tuner in one movement and followed by a quick final adjustment to get it dead on.

Depends on what you want it for really!

Mark

[nig]

Ive just taken one off my g&l, it was perfect, you tune the e string, drop the cam off, retune to d with a little nurled cam adjuster/stop screw, thats it, never gives any probs, I never used it really and saw 1 odd g&l machine head on e bay, so set the bass back to stock, If you may want to buy it or want some piccys then drop me a line.

[The Burpster]

I have one on the way from the US as we speak as part of the package of upgrades for my H1 P---- I'll let you know when its all together!

[Raph]

" I also find that I'm exceptionally quick at (re)tuning without a tuner in one movement and followed by a quick final adjustment to get it dead on." - True - that's what I do on the upright. Remembering the position of the machine head and just going back to it is surprisingly reliable.

PS "D is not the 'only' note I'm downtuning to" - you can detune down to C as well - I tried it but couldn't get on with a major 6th between the bottom two strings, too confusing!

[Wil]

They're brilliant. I thought I'd moved exclusively to 5 stringers, but now I use a 4 with a D tuner as my main bass and haven't looked back. Like Merton, in one song I even flip it down for a heavy breakdown section then back up to E while I'm playing. Works a treat.

Approx 50% of the songs in my band's set are in drop D, the other 50% in standard tuning. I might have a song in drop D, a song in standard, a song in drop D etc etc, and having to manually retune after each song would be a right pain in the arse.

Edited April 10, 2008 by Wil

[CPBass]

I wouldnt leave home without one. Flip down and up during songs....its great

Ive had mine for over 10 years and she still works wonderfully with very little maintenance.

Well worth the cash for that big bottom D without the need to go 5 String.

C

[Kev]

have one fitted to my fender, along with normal hipshots, very useful and easy

[NAS]

[quote name='Merton' post='157577' date='Mar 14 2008, 05:51 PM']I had one put on my Status Retroactive when it was being built, so very very glad I did - I even use it halfway thru a song for the middle section, then flip back up again over 2 beats back into the chorus. OTT? Yep, but why the hell not! [/quote]
+1.
[attachment=7464:DSC01797.JPG]
I also had one put on the '52 PBass copy I had built.
[attachment=7465:DSC00269.JPG]
Very useful for all those songs in D related keys and not as expensive as a 5 string. Stays in tune well enough for gigging although you do have to take a bit more care tuning up initially (tune in both positions and adjust screw if required. Also looks quite cool. Just always keep the original tuner if you're ever going to sell on the bass.

[Higgie]

Had one fitted to my DJ4 a little while ago. Absolutely love it! Comes in handy for dropping your tuning mid song as others have said. Even if you don't use it that much, it's nice to be able to use it when you do need it!

[WarPig]

I want to fit one to my aerodyne, but im not sure on which one to get.

[bremen]

[quote name='WarPig' post='173974' date='Apr 10 2008, 03:31 PM']I want to fit one to my aerodyne, but im not sure on which one to get.[/quote]

They (Hipshot) answer emails very promptly.

[nig]

Here it is.It doesnt look as bad as it does in the close up shots but needs a clean up

Edited April 10, 2008 by nig

[WalMan]

[quote name='Machines' post='157503' date='Mar 14 2008, 04:41 PM']I think they're horrendously expensive.. i'd love one on my Stingray but can't justify £45 for a machine head that saves me about 5 seconds.[/quote]
Not exactly cheap, but probably not unreasonable for the additional working gubbins.

I fitted one to my Wal about 15 years ago and it is great. A direct replacement for the original tuner (and they cover pretty much any style & finish you want) and I wouldn't be without it now.

It's not so much that it's not possible to quickly detune with the tuner (indeed I have a live track from pre D-tuner fitting where I did the detune during the song to get a low D for the ending) but that you can flick back & forth between the two to get the extended range for a short section then back up with no problem at all.

Until I got the 5 I used it in various ways, constant detune for a song, as well as start detuned, flick up for a key change on a solo & back down again after, or just the occasional flick down and back up as needed through the song.

Depends what you want, and how often you might use it, but IMO its a great bit of kit & well worth it.

[quote]I want to fit one to my aerodyne, but im not sure on which one to get.[/quote]
Check out the models [url="http://www.hipshotproducts.com/cart.php?m=product_list&c=6"]HERE[/url]

Edited April 10, 2008 by WalMan

[WarPig]

Aye, i checked it out before, just didnt mention any size for the bt7.

Anyway i emailed them earlier and just got a response:


''My name is Bill Woolery and I'm a Tech at Hipshot. Thank you for
your question about our Extender keys.
I'm sorry to say that we do not offer an Extender that is a direct
replacement for your bass. These tuners have both a smaller base plate
and a smaller (7/16") string post. The closest match would be a BT-7
Extender, but would require you to re-drill both the mounting and
string post holes.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any other questions.''