TC Electronic PolyTune 3

The TC Electronic PolyTune 3 is an ultra-compact polyphonic tuner pedal with several tuning modes and an integrated BonaFide buffer, made by TC Electronic¹. Polyphonic tuning is the idea the PolyTune line built its name on: strum all open strings at once and the display shows which of them are out of tune, instead of picking one string at a time. It was announced in April 2017 as the third entry in the PolyTune line, and reached shops worldwide in May 2017²³.

What sets the PolyTune 3 apart from most tuner pedals is the buffer. A buffer is a small amplification stage that keeps your signal strong through long cable runs and large pedalboards; TC says its BonaFide Buffer lets you keep the pedal engaged all the time while playing⁴. You are not locked into it: the pedal offers selectable True Bypass and True Buffer modes, so you can match it to your setup³⁵.

The controls and tuning modes

The PolyTune 3 offers three tuning modes: polyphonic, chromatic and strobe⁸. In polyphonic mode you strum all strings and read them together; chromatic mode tunes one note at a time to the nearest semitone; strobe mode is the precision option, accurate to ±0.02 cents, with the chromatic mode at 0.5 cents². A display mode button on the pedal toggles between needle and strobe display styles for both electric guitar and bass guitar².

In buffer mode the pedal can additionally be set to "Always On", meaning the tuner display stays lit and actively tracks your tuning even when the pedal is not muting the signal³. The buffer itself is described by TC as a pristine, signal-preserving circuit in True Buffer mode⁵, with a high signal to noise ratio of more than 112 dB⁷.

The display is a 109-LED screen that MusicRadar's reviewer found exceptionally readable, and the pedal sits in a solid metal enclosure like other TC pedals².

The PolyTune line and its versions

The PolyTune series began as what TC called the world's first ever polyphonic tuner, and the PolyTune 3 is its next generation, retaining the previous features⁵. MusicRadar noted at launch that the pedal packs the same features as the PolyTune 2, with the BonaFide Buffer as the addition¹⁰.

The Mini follows the earlier PolyTune Mini, which Guitar World described as a major-league success for TC¹². Its controls are laid out as a mode button on the right side and two DIP switches on the left, covering buffered or true bypass and the screen's always-on or active-only behavior⁹. Power for the Mini is 9V at 100mA¹³.

What reviewers said

MusicRadar's review of the PolyTune 3 called it TC's best guitar tuner yet²:

The same reviewer highlighted the strobe mode's ±0.02 cent precision as "a total godsend in recording and live situations", praised the bright 109-LED screen for readability, and noted the solid metal enclosure and the strong, secure footswitch with its soft-touch feel². On value, Gearnews wrote at launch that the pedals "aren't exactly cheap, but then again the PolyTune is a pretty decent tuner, and quality does comes with a cost"⁴. More recently, a Guitar.com review listed the PolyTune 3 at $63.90 and called it great value against a competing tuner, noting its switchable true bypass or analog buffer as standard⁶.

For the PolyTune 3 Mini, MusicRadar's review listed "highly accurate tuning" among its pluses¹³, and Guitar World's review noted the different tuning modes and switchable true and buffered bypass¹². Both MusicRadar and Guitar World list the Mini as good for electric, electro-acoustic and bass guitars¹³¹².

Aclam Guitars, writing about buffered versus true bypass generally, points to the PolyTune 3 as an example of a pedal that lets you choose between the two systems depending on what your rig needs, which is the practical case for putting a tuner of this kind first in the chain¹⁴.

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