Korg LCA120 Chromatic Tuner

High-performance chromatic tuner with an extra large LCD.

The LCA-120 features an extra large backlit LCD which offers an easily visible meter area, while the display contains convenient tuning functions for accurate tuning as well as numerous functions that are helpful for lessons.

The flip top design allows you to close the LCA-120 to protect the LCD, while also making the unit compact for convenient transport. Closing the tuner will also turn off the power automatically, preserving battery life. When tuning, the backlight will automatically turn on when sound is detected.

The function buttons are arranged with plenty of space for comfortable operation and easy access.

• Extra large backlit LCD for excellent visibility
• "Focus Tune" function allows for even more accurate tuning within +/-10 cents
• Sound Level meter visually indicates the volume of a performance
• Sound Back mode lets you tune using a reference tone together with the meter (using the optional CM-100L contact microphone)
• Temperament Program function lets you specify the tuning pitch for each note
• A wide tuning range of A0--C8 (88 notes) and adjustable calibration (410 Hz--480 Hz) supports all types of instruments
• A four-octave reference tone is built-in
• Indicator marks for perfect major and minor thirds are provided
• Built-in microphone

Since Korg developed the world's first needle-type tuner in 1975, it has been the trusted brand chosen by more than twenty million musicians. The LCA-120 precisely detects notes in a wide range of A0--C8 (88 notes) using Korg's sophisticated technology. The calibration is also adjustable over a broad range of A4=410--480 Hz (in 1Hz steps), supporting tuning of wind, string, and keyboard instruments used in orchestras or brass bands. In addition to the conventional detection method, you can choose from three different tuning methods as appropriate for your needs: Focus Tune, Sound Back, or Sound Out.

Focus Tune mode allows even more precise tuning within a range of +/-10 cents. If you select this mode, the display meter will switch to indicate a +/-10 cent range when the note reaches +/-10 cents of the correct pitch. This allows the pitch difference to be shown over a finer range, facilitating final adjustments for more accurate tuning.

Korg's own Sound Back mode is a tuning method in which you can tune using the meter display together with a reference tone generated by the LCA-120. When using a contact mic (such as the optional CM-100L) connect your instrument to the input jack of the LCA-120; the built-in speaker will produce a reference tone that is closest to the pitch of your instrument, and the display will indicate the difference between your instrument's pitch and the reference tone. This lets you tune both visually and aurally for greater accuracy and efficiency.

The LCA-120 contains a reference tone with a four-octave range of C2 (65.41 Hz)--C6 (1046.50 Hz). Since this allows you to tune while listening to a reference tone produced from the built-in speaker, its ideal when two or more musicians need to tune simultaneously. There is also a headphone jack with volume control, so you can tune through headphones or connect them to an external amplifier.

You can obtain pure-sounding harmonies by slightly adjusting the pitch of major thirds or minor thirds relative to the equal tempered pitches. The LCA-120's meter scale provides marks to indicate the position of pure major and minor thirds relative to a given pitch, and by tuning to match these marks, you can obtain beautifully consonant harmonies in an ensemble situation. This is convenient not only for orchestral instruments, but also for vocal or a cappella practice.

* The note you will need to adjust when tuning to a pure major or minor third will depend on the music you are performing.

In addition to equal temperament, the LCA-120 gives you the option to program your own temperament. You can specify the desired pitch for each of the eighty-eight notes from A0 to C8, and recall a frequently-used temperament at a touch.

The volume of your instrument is shown graphically in the Sound Level Meter as well as numerically (00--99). This provides a convenient way to practice maintaining a consistent volume, or to practice gradually increasing or decreasing your volume over a sustained note. The Sound Level Meter mode can be used simultaneously with the tuning functionality.

Even when the LCA-120 is powered-off, its backup memory functionality will preserve the temperament program, mode setting, calibration, and other settings you make. (These settings are preserved even when you replace the batteries.)