Questions, answered.

Play one clear, sustained note close to the device microphone. The app shows the nearest note and cents deviation. Tune in a quiet environment for best results.

Chromatic mode detects any note from the 12-note scale. The nearest note and cents offset are shown automatically. Use this for any instrument not listed in the preset menu.

Choose a preset from the Presets screen. The expected string frequencies are used as targets. Play each string individually and adjust until the meter centres.

Select a Capo preset (1–7) from the Presets menu. The expected string pitches shift up accordingly. Tune your open strings to the new targets.

Select an alternate tuning preset (Eb, D, Db, C, B) from Presets. For temporary lowering, use the ♭ button on the main tuner screen to shift down 1–5 semitones without changing the preset.

The default reference pitch is A4 = 440 Hz. Change it in Settings. The selected reference affects all note calculations and is remembered between launches.

Strum multiple strings at once. Switch the meter style to Chords to see every detected note shown side by side, each with its own note name, octave, and cents deviation — colour-coded green/amber/red for in-tune, sharp, or flat. Adjust each string until all show green. Works for guitar and bass.

Tap the expand icon at the bottom-right of the Tuner screen to open Live mode — a larger, distraction-free version of the meter, ideal for placing on a music stand or projecting while tuning.

Tap the mic icon at the bottom of the Tuner or Drum Tuner screen to choose which microphone the app listens to, if your device offers more than one (e.g. built-in, headset, or external interface).

Tap the star next to any preset in the Presets screen to add it to Favorites for quick access at the top of the list. Tap the + button to create your own custom preset with any combination of strings/notes — custom presets appear in their own section and can be deleted with the trash icon.

Long-press (or right-click) a preset in the Presets screen and choose “Set Custom Reference Pitch” to give that preset its own A₄ tuning, independent of the app-wide reference pitch. A pin badge shows which presets have an override; choose “Reset to Global Pitch” to remove it.

The Tuner remembers your selected meter style, preset, flat offset, capo position, and favourite presets between launches — pick up tuning right where you left off.

Mute the opposite head. Strike the drum head about 1 inch inward from each lug. Record each lug reading in the Lug Map. Tighten a lug to raise pitch, loosen to lower. Aim to match all lugs on a head to the same Hz reading.

Allow both drum heads to resonate freely. Strike near the centre of the head. The detected Hz and note represent the drum's fundamental pitch.

Use the Top/Btm/Fund segmented control at the top of the Drum Tuner to choose which target you're tuning toward. Top and Bottom use each head's individual target frequency for the selected drum; Fundamental targets the drum's overall resonant pitch with both heads free.

Capture one lug as a reference, then compare subsequent readings against it. A value near 0 means the lug is matched. Positive = higher, negative = lower. Do not use Difference mode when measuring fundamental pitch.

Filter mode saves the current frequency as a reference and rejects readings more than ±20% away. This reduces noise from overtones and room sound. Reset the filter when switching drums, heads, or after large tuning changes.

Enable Hi-range when tuning small or high-pitched drums (e.g. piccolo snares or high toms) so the detector listens for a higher frequency range, improving accuracy for these drums.

Tap the view picker at the top of the Drum Tuner to switch between Meter (large Hz reading), Bars (all lugs as a bar graph against the target line), Radial (circular lug map), and Diff (centred ±Hz gauge for matching lugs to a reference).

Tap the kit/drum name at the top-left to choose a drum kit and an individual drum or head. By default the app opens to the Snare in the Standard Kit, and it remembers your last-selected kit, drum, and display mode the next time you open the Drum Tuner.

While tuning a string instrument, tap the Record button that appears below the Hz readout once a note is detected. A sheet appears showing the detected note, cents offset, and the current preset. Confirm the instrument name and which string you're recording for, then tap Save. For the Drum Tuner, strike a drum to get a reading, then tap Record in the bottom controls row.

On iOS, tap the History tab (clock icon) in the tab bar. On macOS, select History in the sidebar. Your recordings are grouped by instrument — tap any instrument to see its full history, organised by session date with each string's note, cents offset, and frequency.

Each time you record for an instrument on a given day, the readings are grouped into a session for that date. If you record the same string again on the same day, you're prompted to overwrite the existing reading or start a fresh session alongside it. A new session is created automatically the next calendar day.

If you record a string that already has a measurement in today's session, you'll be asked what to do. Choose Overwrite to replace the previous reading with the current one — useful if you re-tuned and want the latest result. Choose New Session to keep both readings as separate sessions on the same date — useful for tracking before and after adjustments.

In the instrument detail view, long-press (or right-click) any individual reading row and choose Delete to remove that single measurement. To delete an entire instrument and all its history, go back to the History screen and swipe left on the instrument row (iOS) or use the Edit button.

When the recording sheet opens, the Instrument picker defaults to 'New instrument…' with an empty name field — type a name to create a new entry. If you've recorded before, your existing instruments appear in the picker so you can add this reading to the same history. Each instrument's type is set by the active preset, so mixing preset types under one name (e.g. saving a guitar reading under a bass instrument) will trigger a warning.

When the recording sheet opens, the app automatically selects the string whose target frequency is closest to the detected pitch. For example, if you're tuning an E2 string that's a few cents flat, the detected note might briefly read D#2 — but the app still picks E2 because it measures frequency distance, not note name. You can tap a different chip to change the selection before saving.

If the string chip you've selected has a target frequency more than one semitone away from the detected pitch, a yellow warning appears below the string picker. This usually means you've tapped the wrong string chip by accident. Check that the highlighted string matches what you intended to record, then tap Save.

The Drum Tuner Record button is active whenever a reading is present. Tap it to open the record sheet — the drum, head type (Top/Bottom/Fundamental), and Hz reading are filled in automatically from the current state. Choose a kit from the picker or type a new name, then tap Save. Drum recordings show Hz deviation from the target (not cents) in the history view, colour-coded green within ±3 Hz, amber within ±10 Hz, and red beyond that.

If you type a kit name that doesn't exist yet, a new drum kit preset is created automatically and populated with the same drums and target frequencies as the kit you were tuning from. The Drum Tuner switches to this new kit immediately after saving, so your next readings go straight into the right place.

Open the Metronome tab. Set tempo with the slider, step buttons, or use Tap tempo. Select beat count and rhythm pattern. Press play to start. Switch display mode (Pendulum, Ring, Pulse, Minimal) from the picker at the top.

Tap the TAP button repeatedly at the desired tempo. The app averages the last several taps to calculate BPM. Works whether the metronome is playing or stopped.

Set Beats to the number of beats per bar (0–9, where 0 plays a continuous unaccented click). Choose a Pattern (Single, Duplet, Triplet, Triplet no mid, Quadruplet, Quadruplet no mids, Half-note) to subdivide each beat. The first beat of the bar is always accented in amber.

Enable the Voice toggle to have the metronome speak each beat number aloud as it plays — handy when you can't watch the screen.

On macOS, the sidebar shows a play/stop button next to Metronome and Reference Tone, so you can start or stop either one without leaving the screen you're on.

Open the Reference tab to play one or more reference tones. Tap + to add up to 12 simultaneous tones — each gets its own colour. Select a tone's note and octave using the grid, then tap play to hear it through the speaker and match your instrument's pitch by ear.

Choose between Sine, Square, Triangle, and Sawtooth waveforms to change the tone's timbre, and use the Volume slider to set the playback level. Both settings, along with your tone slots and selections, are remembered between launches.

Switch styles with the picker above the meter. Needle: classic analog arc with animated pointer. Arc: glowing dot on a curved track. Strobe: rotating bands that freeze when in tune. VU: curved needle with reference marks. Half Strobe: split left/right panels. LCD: retro hardware display. LED Bar: segmented bar. Instrument: animated tuning-peg/headstock view. Stave: notation staff showing the detected note. Chords: side-by-side readout for multiple simultaneously detected notes.

In Stave meter mode, choose how the clef is picked: Best Fit selects treble or bass based on the detected note, By Octave switches at a fixed octave boundary. Enable “Just intonation markers” to show extra tick marks for pure-interval reference points on the meter.

Response speed controls how quickly the meter needle/indicator follows pitch changes (Fast for quick feedback, Slow for a steadier reading). The Noise filter (Off/Normal/Strong) reduces jitter from background noise before it reaches the meter — increase it in noisy environments.

Pendulum: classic swinging arm. Ring: beat dots on a circle with a sweep hand. Pulse: full-screen flash on each beat — great for dark stages. Minimal: huge beat number with a subdivision indicator strip, ideal for music-stand distance.

Choose Light, Dark, or System appearance from Settings → Appearance. System follows your device's display settings automatically.

On iOS, Settings → Power lets you set how long the screen stays awake before locking (Idle timeout). This option isn't shown on macOS, where the system handles display sleep.

On iOS, Settings → Behavior lets you enable a haptic tap when a note is in tune, keep the screen awake while the app is open, and enable Low battery mode to reduce animation frame rates and visual effects to save power.

All settings — including reference pitch, meter style, sensitivity, presets, drum kit/drum selection, metronome tempo and pattern, and reference tone setup — are saved automatically and restored the next time you open the app. Use Settings → Reset All Settings to return everything to its defaults.

Detection may be unstable if: the sound decays quickly (plucked strings), heavy distortion or modulation is present, input is too quiet or clipping, the environment is noisy, drum hits are inconsistent, or drum filtering is set to the wrong reference. Play a clean, sustained note in a quiet space for best results.

Accuracy depends on microphone quality, input level, background noise, instrument overtone content, pitch stability, and platform audio processing. The app targets ±1–3 cents under good conditions but cannot guarantee results on all devices.

Still having trouble, or want to suggest a feature? Email intuner@telepromptme.com or visit www.telepromptme.com — both are also linked from Settings → About.