problems with tuning

[Mr Rage]

i'm having problems tuning my bass, i'm learing and i have a korg tuner but when i get the needle in the middle, i can strike the string again and it's off and even when i'm tuning it, it will never stay in the middle. any help in to what i'm doing wrong?

[Robman?]

Well, one, you may need to replace that batteries in the tuner, that can cause it to jitter a lot.

Is it that your bass is going out of tune easily? Maybe somethings wrong with your machine heads? What kind of a bass is it?

You may need a better tuner, or you may be complaining about nothing. If you strike the string you should expect the needle to go in one direction or another and then quickly return to the right pitch.

[Neemo]

prolly just the tuner mine has always done that for any guitar or bass

i could be wrong though

edit: what robman said

[Skeba]

Make sure the pickups aren't too close to the strings. The magnets in the strings can distort the frequency of the signal.

Shouldn't be a problem with a bass though.

[Johnny Rattlesnake]

Stretch Your Strings!!!!
This take awhile. Tune the string. Next pull up on the string at the 12th, not more than a half inch(don't want to break a string). Retune and repeat until the string stays in tune.
Alway tune up. If you are too sharp, detune lower than the desired note and tune back up.

[Mr Rage]

my bass is a legacy, pretty much looks like a fender squire, just pissing me off coz i wanna get playing n learning and i'm not 100% sure if i'm in tune, maybe it is the tuner, but not something wrong if u could get a picture of it, i can explain the problems in a bit better detail.

[Johnny Rattlesnake]

If you need a point of reference, a telephone dial tone is A440.

[Robman?]

Most tuners have like a button you can push that will produce a steady A or E pitch.

[W 23 AXL II]

If you need a point of reference, a telephone dial tone is A440.

i think a telephone dial tone is actually an F note.

if you're having trouble tuning the regular octaves, try hitting each note at the 12th fret, to produce a higher octave. maybe you have a guitar tuner that cannot read the low bass notes?? try the 12th fret, should work better.

[Robman?]

If you need a point of reference, a telephone dial tone is A440.

i think a telephone dial tone is actually an F note.

if you're having trouble tuning the regular octaves, try hitting each note at the 12th fret, to produce a higher octave. maybe you have a guitar tuner that cannot read the low bass notes?? try the 12th fret, should work better.

yeah, thats what i did when i lost my bass tuner, I used my guitar tuner and did that, 

[AdZ]

Just tune the e string and tune by harmonics?

[Alan]

have you just put new strings on?

[Mr Rage]

yeah, i put on new strings and i re-strung it wrong so i have to do it again. but i've always had problems tuning even with the strings that came with it.

[Johnny Rattlesnake]

That's the first thing you do when you get a new guitar, fresh strings.
Sometimes the factory strings are lighter or heavier than what you are used to.
Plus, you don't know how long the strings have been on that guitar.

[Butch Français]

Stretch Your Strings!!!!
This take awhile. Tune the string. Next pull up on the string at the 12th, not more than a half inch(don't want to break a string). Retune and repeat until the string stays in tune.
Alway tune up. If you are too sharp, detune lower than the desired note and tune back up.

absolutely, exacly what I was gonna suggest too. stretch and stretch again!

[ann2718]

You could try muting the other strings to avoid sympathetic vibrations (that can affect the tuner).? Also, did you turn up the level all the way?

[Mr Rage]

i've got it working my bass and my tuner, thanks for all the advice.