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MusicRadar

Entertainment

Richard Blenkinsop

"If you’re a perfectionist when it comes to pitch, this tuner is for you": Peterson StroboStomp Mini review

Peterson (Organization) Vox

Peterson StroboStomp Mini review: What is it?

Strobe tuners might not make up a huge portion of the tuner market, but this offering from Peterson could well tempt some players to switch things up. The Peterson StroboStomp Mini is a compact guitar tuner pedal with a precise strobe display. It’s a smaller version of the popular StroboStomp HD pedal and offers accurate tuning for electric and bass guitars, sturdy construction, buffered and true bypass, sweetened tunings and the ability to account for down-tuned and capo’d guitars.

Measuring just 94mm x 46mm (H x W), it’s a compact pedal, leaving plenty of space on your ‘board for other effects. You can power it by a conventional 9V power supply or by a USB-C cable. It doesn’t have a power output like some other popular tuners, though.

Peterson StroboStomp Mini review: Performance & verdict

(Image credit: Future/Richard Blenkinsop)

Plugging into the pedal via its top-mounted jacks, it immediately switches on, greeting me with its easy-to-read orange display. Plucking the strings of my trusty Jazzmaster, it’s very quick to react, telling me almost instantly what note I’m playing. Their manual suggests using a thumb or finger to pluck the strings instead of a pick, and I’d be inclined to agree.

Newcomers to the world of strobe tuners might need to take a few minutes to acclimatise - the reading is given via moving circles with the note displayed in the middle. The quicker the circles move, the further you are from the note in the middle and the slower they move, the closer you are. It’s worth mentioning that the tuner is so accurate they might not stop moving completely due to the nature of how strings vibrate on a guitar.

Peterson lists the StroboStomp Mini as having an accuracy of 0.1 cents, and playing around with the pedal, that is easy to believe. It’s undeniably incredibly accurate and encourages you to really make the smallest movements on your machine heads to get it perfectly in tune. If you’re a perfectionist when it comes to pitch, then this tuner is for you - it allows you to lock into your instrument’s tuning completely.

Also consider

Peterson StroboClip HD Clip-On Tuner: The StroboClip HD's 0.1 cents accuracy is unrivalled in the clip-on tuner field, making it perfect if you don't want a bulky floor tuner at your feet.
Vox VXT-1: With a tuning accuracy of 0.02 cents, this sleek and simple unit from Vox is ideal for most situations.

By default, we guitarists are used to looking out for EADGBE on a tuner. If you’re downtuning or using a capo, then these readings will be different. The StroboStomp Mini allows you to tell it by how many semitones you’re detuning, and it will still show EADGBE, meaning you don’t have to make quick calculations while tuning up.

Another thing that makes the Peterson tuner unique is its Sweetener Tunings. These help you tune your guitar ever so slightly differently so that it sounds sweeter or more musical, particularly when you’re playing in certain positions.

The notes in the western scale came about by diving an octave by 12. This means that all notes are the same distance apart - the intervals are the same. However, some players like to tune their guitar using slightly unequal intervals. For example, you might tune your B string a little flat so that when you’re playing major thirds on the G and B strings, they ring out more in tune.

The Sweetener Tunings let you completely lock these in, which is super useful in a studio setting. If you’ve ever noticed how some intervals sound different in certain positions, then this pedal can help you understand them better and quickly access the best tuning.

With 80 sweetened tuning presets onboard, including general settings for electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass, baritone guitar and more, there is plenty for you to get stuck into.

If you’re planning on using the pedal in a live setting, then you’ll have no problem in any scenario. It lights up clearly on a dark stage but is also bright enough to read easily in daytime lighting. Also, while the default background is orange, you can choose from nine other background colours if you’d prefer something else.

The pedal is sturdy and feels like it will withstand any level of touring. The footswitch is silent, but it does take a split-second to mute the signal, which might take a little getting used to if you use your tuner as a kill switch. What’s also a nice touch is that you get a perfectly cut piece of velcro to stick to the bottom of the pedal included in the box - ideal if you’re planning to add the StroboStomp Mini to your pedalboard.

The pedal is small, but most of the top face is taken up by the display, which means it’s easy to read. There are then two sets of two buttons on the left and right side of the pedal that let you navigate the various settings.

Getting around to the different settings and tunings isn’t the easiest, with only four buttons and a whole host of features. It takes a little while to get to know where everything is, but once you do, it should be straightforward enough. I’d imagine most people will stick with this tuner for a while, so you’ll get to know it well.