N-Tune Onboard Chromatic Tuner User Manual
- June 4, 2024
- N-Tune
Table of Contents
Advanced Tuning Technology
Built into the guitar!
Quick start!
See page 19 if the tuner is already installed and you can’t wait a second
longer to tune your guitar!
Safety Instructions
- Read all instructions before beginning the installation.
- Keep these instructions for future reference.
- Heed all warnings.
- Do not use this product near liquids.
- Clean only with a dry cloth
- Keep product away from heat sources such as radiators, heat registers, stoves, and fireplaces.
- Refer all servicing to qualified service personnel.
- Dispose of used batteries in accordance with all applicable laws and procedures.
WARNING: Installation of the N-Tune™ system may void the manufacturer’s
warranty on your guitar Check with your guitar’s manufacturer or the dealer
from where the guitar was purchased for details. It is highly recommended that
only a qualified guitar technician install the N-Tune.
*Zero Crossing, Inc. assumes no liability for any damage or injuries incurred in relation to the installation or modification of your guitar
PACKAGE CONTENTS
- 5 Colored display rings
- LED Circuit board with ribbon cable and connector
- 250kQ or 500kQ Volume pot/switch (with wiring harness/battery connector)
- 9V battery
- This manual (And, in a separate bag found underneath the plastic tray):
- Battery holder and Velcro®
- Flathead replacement pickup screw (For use on guitars models that need it)
- 2nuts
- 1 plain washer
- 1’C’ washer
Introduction
The N-Tune™ chromatic tuner assembly replaces the volume control of your
electric guitar It can be installed by experienced guitar technicians in most
electric guitars or basses without the need for routing, woodworking or other
modifications. (See our website for a current list of known guitars in which
the N-Tune will work).
The tuner will take the place of a standard, passive, three-terminal guitar
potentiometer (pot).
Two pot values of the N-Tune are available:
A 250kQ pot
A 500kQ pot
Note: If your existing volume pot has extra features that make it do more
than just control the volume, then these extra features will no longer work
with the N-Tune installed. Consult an experienced guitar technician for your
available options for guitars with extra volume control features.
Features
- Your original volume knob is reused.
- The N-Tune display ring, mounted under the volume knob, shows the various notes and the tuning status symbols: flat, sharp, and tuned.
- As astring is plucked, the signals from the pickups are sampled and the note and tuning status are shown by the display’s LED’s.
- Pull the volume knob up to turn the tuner on and mute the output of the guitar Press it down to turn the tuner off and restore audio signal to the output jack.
- The tuner is powered by a user-replacable 9-volt battery
- The N-Tune features an Auto Power OFF feature that prevents draining the battery by automatically turning the tuner off if it is left on for 3 minutes.
Installing the tuner
It is recommended that the following installation procedure should only be
undertaken by experienced guitar technicians. If you are not well experienced
in working with guitar electronics, you should not attempt this install
yourself
IMPORTANT NOTE FOR FENDER® and FENDER- TYPE GUITARS: There are many different
styles of electric guitars and installing the N-Tune may require some
compromises to consider For instance, on some Fender Stratocaster® (Strat®)
models, you may notice that the N-Tune display ring can interfere with access
to a portion of the pickup adjustment screw that is adjacent to the volume
control. Depending on the particular guitar accessing this screw for pickup
height adjustment may require temporary removal of the N-Tune display ring and
circuit board. Also, be aware that there are different types of screws for
this function.
A flat head, counter-sunk pickup adjustment screw has been provided that will
work for some models. This provided screw requires a counter-sunk hole in the
pickguard in order to allow for a flat surface under the edge of the N-Tune
circuit board and display ring. Some Strat models do not have counter-sunk
holes for the pick-guard mounting screw.
It may be necessary to countersink this hole and use the provided screw to get
your N-Tune circuit board and display disc to install flush to the pickguard.
WARNING:
BE AWARE THAT INSTALLING THE COUNTER-SUNK SCREW INTO A PICKGUARD THAT DOES NOT
HAVE COUNTER-SUNK HOLES CAN CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE PICKGUARD. FOR BEST RESULTS,
REFER ALL INSTALLATIONS TO A QUALIFIED GUITAR TECHNICIAN WHO CAN PROVIDE YOU
WITH THE BEST OPTIONS FOR INSTALLATION OF THE N-TUNE IN YOUR GUITAR.
Tools required
Soldering iron, solder solder sucker or solder wick, pliers, a screwdriver
selection, and nut drivers.
Electro Static Discharge (ESD) precautions
In order to prevent possible damage to static sensitive circuit components on
the LED circuit board, it is generally recommended to observe standard ESD
precautions when handling the printed circuit board (PCB) by using a properly
grounded ESD wrist strap to reduce the chance of static charge build up from
your body
Do not remove the LED circuit board from the anti-static plastic sleeve until
the moment that you are ready to use it. Once removed, do not touch the PCB
components or conductors.
The Potentiometer (pot) assembly
The potentiometer assembly consists of a push-pull pot/switch assembly that is
pre-wired to a 9 volt battery connector and a four pin connector for the LED
circuit board connection.
installation Procedure
The following procedure assumes your guitar has a standard 3-terminal
potentiometer
Use these instructions as a guide and also refer to our website
www.n-tune.com for more details, updates, and
information about particular guitar
models.
-
In order to allow for easier access to the back of the pickguard, some guitar technicians may prefer to remove the strings from guitars
that have the volume control mounted on a pickguard -
Remove the necessary hardware to gain access to the volume control. Store this hardware for easy retrieval.
-
Before removing the existing volume pot, make a detailed sketch carefully noting the location and colors of all of the wires that are currently connected. Be sure to clearly label which wires connect to the various other components of the guitar
-
The threaded shaft of the N-Tune pot is 8mm in diameter If the volume control pothole in the guitar is too small, you may have to enlarge the hole to 11/32″ (8.73mm) AT YOUR OWN RISK*
-
With the special “C” washer in place, adjust the nut until there is at least 5.5mm of thread showing above the pick guard or the guitar’s face. Check that the pot does not interfere with the : back plate or pick guard. (For reference, 5.5mm is the thickness of the supplied display ring plus the thickness of a nut)
-
Desolder the ground connections (typically the black wires of the existing volume pot and re-solder them to the “L” terminal or the chassis case terminal (whichever is more convenient).
For 250k pot versions: Solder the ground connections from the old pot to terminal “L” (or the chassis case terminal) on the new pot. Solder the input signal wire from the existing pot (typically the lead from the pickup selector switch) to terminal “5” on the N-Tune pot. For 500k pot versions: Traditional “Humbucker” double coil pickups have a dual conductor braided shield pickup lead. For this type of pickup lead, the external braided shield is the ground conductor and the hot lead is the insulated (coaxial) center conductor To wire this type of pickup to the N-Tune, this center conductor (which is probably on the “R” terminal on the existing pot) needs to be soldered to terminal “5” on the N-Tune pot assembly Also, wire — a jumper from terminal “L” to connect to the braided shield/ground. It may be a good idea to insulate the end of the braided shield with a portion of electrical tape so that it cannot touch against any of the other terminals on the N-Tune pot assembly inadvertently grounding them out -
Solder the output jack “hot” (or positive) wire of the existing pot (typically terminal “M”) to the “M” terminal on the N-Tune pot assembly. (See the figure on page 10.
De-solder any tone control wires that may be connected to the existing volume
control pot and re-solder them to the same terminal on the N-Tune
pot assembly
Before reassembling the guitar plug it into an amp, make sure the N-Tune
pot/switch is pushed in and the volume pot is turned up. Strum the strings and
check that the volume control is working. If you. have removed the strings,
you can tap on the pickup Pass the connector and ribbon cable of the LED
circuit board through the open hole. Check to make sure that the orientation
of the LED circuit board and the C washer is correct for routing the ribbon
cable so that the LEDs will be facing you when you play the guitar
11. Push the N-Tune pot through the hole and make sure the ribbon cable of
the LED circuit board fits into the open slot in the C-washer Join together
the white connectors from the LED circuit board and the N-Tune pot assembly
Securely attach the battery holder clip to the inside cavity of the guitar
with the provided Find a place for the battery that will not be in the way of
any pots, wires, or other controls.
Pull the shaft of the N-Tune pot to turn on the tuner Verify that the LED’s
flash. Push the | pot shaft in to turn the tuner off. ‘
Carefully cover the LED circuit board with your chosen plastic display ring,
ensuring that the
LED’s line up with the pockets in the ring.
Position the display ring/LED circuit board assembly in place over the
threaded shaft of the pot being careful of the routing of the ribbon cable
through the opening in the C washer
12. Place the supplied washer on the top of the display ring and the supplied
nut on the threaded shaft of the N-Tune pot assembly and hand-tighten the nut
so everything is loosely held in place.
Carefully rotate the display ring/LED circuit board assembly until the “tuned”
indicator will 3 be pointing toward you and clearly visible , when you play
the guitar
13. Once everything is orientated correctly and you are sure that the ribbon
cable is not going to be pinched, use a nut driver to gently yet firmly
tighten the top nut to lock everything in place.
14. Reassemble the guitar being particularly careful to route all wires so
they will not be pinched when the pick guard, or other hardware, is remounted.
Be aware of any bulges or areas where things don’t fit correctly and address
these issues before proceeding. Once the guitar is reassembled, restring the
guitar if you have removed the strings.
16. Push your volume knob onto the knurl of the N-Tune pot.
17. When the knob is pulled up, the tuner will turn on and there should be no output signal to your guitar amp. See the next page for details of how to tune the guitar When the knob is down, the tuner and its LEDs will be off, and the guitar’s output signal will be restored.
You are now ready to tune up your guitar with N-Tune!
Tuner details
The display ring is marked with notes A, B, C, D, E, F and G. In addition, there are tuning status indicators as shown in this table:
| Mark | Description |
|---|---|
| FLAT The string needs to be tightened. This red LED will flash faster as |
you get closer to tuned.
| it loosened. SHARP The string needs to be This red LED will flash faster as
you get closer to tuned.
| GTUNED. The string is in tune when loosened. this green LED comes on.
| TUNED SHARP This LED lights when the string is in tuned to a sharp, such as
F#.
The tuner allows you to easily tune any string to any note and set up special tunings.
Tuning procedure
- Pull on the volume knob to turn on the tuner (When the tuner is on, the output is muted.)
- Pluck a string and its closest note will be dis- played by the A, B, C, D, E, F, or G LEDs.
- Tune the string until the desired note is dis- played.
- If the flat symbol is flashing red, then tighten the string. It will flash faster as you get closer to being in tune.
- If the sharp symbol is flashing, then loosen the string. It will flash faster as you get closer to being in tune. Try tuning down until the flat symbol is flashing, then tune up.
- The green-tuned symbol will light with happiness when you are in tune! ’ Repeat this procedure with the other strings.
- If you are trying to tune to a sharp, such as F#, then tune up until both the green-tuned light and the yellow-tuned sharp light come on.
- Push the volume knob back in to turn the tuner off and restore normal output.
Changing the battery
The tuner has minimal battery power draw and should provide many months of use. If you need to replace the battery, use the following steps:
- Depending on how it is installed, the battery can be accessed from the rear panel of your guitar or from under the pickguard.
- Velcro strips hold the battery mounting clip in place inside the guitar
- Remove the battery and carefully install a new one, making sure that the polarity is correct.
- Remove the battery if your guitar is not going to be used for long periods of time.
Specifications
Note Range
2/Hz to 3520 Hz (notes A0-A7)
Accuracy
+/-2 cents
Input Source
Instrument pickups
Battery Life
Estimated at one year’s worth of tuning (approximately 600+ tunings The tuner
automatically powers down when not in use to conserve battery life
Power Requirements
One 9V battery
Physical Dimensions
Tuner Disc with LED circuit board
Height: 1.35″
Width: 1.35″
Depth: 0.12″
Potentiometer Body
Height: 0.98″
Width: 0.72″
Depth: 0.94″
Warranty and repair
- lf you suspect that there is something wrong with your tuner please contact us at:
- The patent pending N-Tune guitar tuning system carries a one year limited warranty Contact our tech support via email or our website for any warranty related issues. Proof of purchase may be required.
Please visit www.n-tune.com for”
- Warranty Details
- Technical Support
- Alternative language instructions
N-Tune is a trademark of Zero Crossing, Inc.
All other brands are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective
holders and are hereby acknowledged.
© 2008 Zero Crossing Inc. All Rights Reserved. Manual Rev C Apr 2008
Designed by guitar-playing geeks in Seattle, WA, USA.