TC Electronic PolyTune

The TC Electronic PolyTune, released in 2010, was the world's first polyphonic guitar tuner: a tuner pedal that shows the tuning of all six strings from a single strum, instead of picking each string one at a time¹². Made by TC Electronic, it arrived at a $99 street price in a diecast aluminum box with a heavy duty footswitch and a 100 LED display³⁴. Guitar World later wrote that it "cemented PolyTune as the new standard in tuning"⁵.

The idea behind it is simple. Strum all six open strings at once and the display shows every string by note name, with red and green LED indicators showing which notes are flat or sharp⁶. Pick a single string and the pedal switches itself to a familiar chromatic needle display⁶. MusicPlayers.com's reviewer called the polyphonic mode "a manner that has never been accomplished before," provided you stick to standard tunings⁶.

Tunes all six strings with one strum

The headline feature is the polyphonic display. In poly-chromatic mode the display shows all of the strings by note name at once, and red and green LED indicators show which notes are flat or sharp⁶. The later Mini versions rendered this as six LED columns, one per string, where green means in tune, the LED above means sharp and the LED below means flat⁸.

The pedal decides which mode to use by itself: strum all the strings at once and it goes polyphonic, pick a single note and it drops into chromatic mode automatically⁶. The Mini and Noir versions kept this automatic switching⁹¹⁰.

Tuning modes: polyphonic, chromatic and Stream

The original PolyTune offers three ways to read your tuning⁶:

Stream mode is the precision option, familiar from strobe tuners, and is selected from a recessed rear button⁶. The Mini added two separate chromatic modes, needle mode and stream mode, to cater to individual preferences¹¹. Later PolyTunes carry polyphonic, chromatic and strobe modes¹²¹³¹⁴.

Drop D and capo tunings

At launch, polyphonic mode only worked with standard intervals in E, Eb, D, C#, C or B, down-tuned only². Premier Guitar's reviewer found that dropped tunings made poly mode useless, while the monophonic strobe mode stayed accurate for any note³. In April 2011 TC Electronic answered what it called the single most demanded feature with a free software update adding Drop-D tuning and a Capo Mode that compensates when a capo is in use, available on TC's website¹. Switching between standard tuning and Drop-D is done by pressing and holding the footswitch for two seconds¹.

The footswitch and rear buttons

The original uses a compact metal enclosure with a Carling-style bypass/tune footswitch⁶. One recessed button on the rear switches the display to Stream mode; the other configures dropped tunings, up to five semitones across the entire guitar⁶.

The PolyTune 2 moved mode and tuning selection to two push buttons on the top side of the pedal⁷. The PolyTune 3's footswitch has a "notchless" soft touch feature that MusicRadar's reviewer found strong and secure¹³. On the PolyTune 3 Mini the single footswitch turns the tuner on and off, and holding it down toggles between standard and drop-D tuning¹⁵¹⁶.

Power: 9V, 45mA, with a 2000mA power out

The original runs from a 9V center-negative mains barrel jack or a single nine-volt battery, which TC claims gives approximately six or seven hours of use². The pedal itself draws 45mA of current⁶. The input and output jacks are mounted at the same height as standard Boss Compacts, which suits cable-less straight plugs².

The power output is the practical extra: you can chain multiple pedals to its Power Out connector, and other 9V center-negative pedals can be daisy chained up to a full 2000mA with a suitably currented adaptor²⁶. The PolyTune 2 and PolyTune 3 both keep a 9V output jack for powering another pedal in your chain⁷¹⁷.

The Mini versions differ: the PolyTune Mini requires a 9V power supply at all times, with no battery option and no PSU included¹⁸⁸, and the PolyTune 2 Mini has no DC out for powering other pedals¹⁹.

From the original PolyTune to the PolyTune 3 and Mini

The PolyTune 2, announced in August 2013 as the followup to the popular original, is a more accurate and easier-to-read version that displays all six strings simultaneously, showing which are sharp, flat or in tune⁷⁵²². The PolyTune 3, announced in April 2017, retains the previous features and adds an all-analog BonaFide Buffer, letting you choose between true bypass and buffered bypass depending on your setup; it shipped worldwide in May 2017 at $99²²¹⁷²⁶. The 3 Mini and 3 Noir, unveiled in 2019, shrink that feature set into a smaller footprint, with the 3 Mini's price still to be announced at the time¹⁵¹².

What reviewers said

MusicRadar's review of the original listed "Polyphonic mode is a revelation. Brilliant battery access. Bright display. 2mA power out for other pedals." among its reasons to buy². MusicPlayers.com found it "just as easy to use as any other tuner pedal" and that "the revolutionary product worked as advertised," while noting the true bypass circuitry worked as expected, with the bypassed signal sounding the same as a cable straight into the amp⁶.

Premier Guitar's reviewer agreed the polyphonic mode only pays off in standard tuning, including transposed standard tunings down to B, but found the strobe mode accurate for any note³. Guitar World's review of the Mini praised how "the bright display and Polyphonic mode let you tune up astonishingly quickly and accurately"²⁷, and MusicRadar's Mini review cited price, options and size as reasons to buy⁸. Premier Guitar summed up the PolyTune 2 Mini as "Bright, fast, accurate, small, and inexpensive."¹⁹. On the PolyTune 3, MusicRadar found highly accurate tuning a plus¹³²⁶, while Gearnews wrote that "the PolyTune is a pretty decent tuner, and quality does comes with" a cost²⁶.

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