SABINE AX2000 Contact AutoTuner Operating Manual

AX2000 Series  Contact AutoTuner

Operating Guide

AX2000

Now that you’re the owner of a patented Sabine AX2000

Contact AutoTuner, the most unique and innovative chro-

matic tuner available, you’ll find tuning your instrument has

never been easier.  This removable, business card-sized

tuner is always at your fingertips.

The AX Tuner’s highly accurate advanced digital technol-

ogy allows superior performance when tuning most stringed

instruments, particularly electric or acoustic guitars, banjos,

mandolins, violins and bass guitars.

OUTSTANDING FEATURES

• Highly Accurate

• Mounts Directly on Your Guitar

• InTouch™ Contact Microphone Picks Up Your

Instrument's Vibrations

• It's Cordless!

• Easy-To-Read Three-Color LED Display

• World's Smallest Tuner

• Full-Range Chromatic Scale

• Automatic Recalibration

• Automatic Power Down

• Longest Battery Life

• Quartz Accuracy

• Available with Rich Wood Finish (AX2000-W)

INSTRUCTIONS for TUNING

 CAUTION:  The AX Tuner is not recommended for use on

instruments with antique or cracked finishes. See cautions

on reverse side.

1. PLACE THE TUNER DIRECTLY ON YOUR INSTRU-

MENT WHEREVER IT IS MOST CONVENIENT AND

EASY TO SEE.  You will want to experiment with the tuner

to find where its peak performance can be reached on

your particular instrument.  For example, the tuner may

work best on your guitar when placed near where the

fingerboard meets the top or on the side next to the neck's

heel.

2. PRESS THE POWER BUTTON ("P") TO TURN ON

YOUR TUNER.  When the power is turned on, the D#

note indicator will blink once per second.  Tones gener-

ated by both acoustic and electric instruments are de-

tected by the AX Tuner’s InTouch™ sensitive internal

contact microphone.  The AX Tuner picks up vibrations

from the top of the instrument rather than the air so it is

less affected by background noise than other tuners. It is

therefore not necessary to play loudly; plucking the string

lightly once per second usually gives the best results.

Heavy plucks may make tuning more difficult.

THE TUNER WILL TURN ITSELF OFF AFTER TWO

MINUTES. However, if you wish to defeat the power down

timer to have the tuner stay on throughout the perfor-

mance instead of automatically turning off after two min-

utes, turn the tuner off; then hold down the calibrate ("C")

button and press the power ("P") key.  Release the power

key first and then the calibrate button.  Two LEDs will light

initially to indicate the tuner is in the non-timer mode.

3. LIGHTLY PLUCK THE STRING YOU WISH TO TUNE.

Adjust the instrument’s pitch until the desired NOTE INDI-

CATOR LED lights. For example, if you wish to tune a D

string on a guitar, pluck the string and tune it until the "D"

LED lights.  Pluck the string every second or so to keep

the note "fresh" and to prevent the note from fading flat.

Also, to eliminate extraneous overtones, mute the other

strings after each pluck.

4. SLOWLY ADJUST THE INSTRUMENT’S PITCH UNTIL

THE DESIRED NOTE’S LED TURNS GREEN, INDICAT-

ING THE STRING IS IN TUNE.

Note that the LED turns yellow when the tone is flat and

turns red when the tone is sharp.  The LED blinks rapidly

when the tone is far from being in tune and blinks slower

and slower as the tone approaches being in tune.

Repeat steps 3 and 4 for the other notes until the entire

instrument is tuned.

5. TO REMOVE THE AX, GENTLY TWIST AND LIFT THE

TUNER.  Store the AX in its DomeHome™.

RECALIBRATING your AX TUNER

Most other tuners allow the user to recalibrate only a few

Hertz from standard A = 440 Hz.  They are almost useless if

you wish to tune to an instrument that is more than a few

Hertz out of tune.  However, you can recalibrate your AX

Tuner to match the pitch of any reference instrument simply

by touching the calibrate ("C") button.

Example:

  If you wish to tune a guitar so it will be in tune

with a certain piano, place the tuner on the piano, defeat the

two-minute power down timer, play an "A" (or any other note)

and wait a moment for the note to register on the tuner’s

display.  Then lightly press the calibrate button on the tuner.

The "A" LED will turn green, indicating that the tuner now

considers the piano to be in perfect tune.  Now if you tune

your instrument to the tuner, your instrument will be in tune

with the piano.

Note: To reset the tuner to standard a = 440 Hz, press the

power button to turn the tuner off and then back on.  The ax

tuner always returns to a = 440 Hz when it is turned on.

CLEANING THE SafeMount™ PAD

Only dampen the pad.  Do not immerse the tuner in

water or place it directly under a faucet.  This may dam-

age the tuner and will void the warranty.

  If the tacky

material gets dirty, there are two ways to clean it.

1. Use a little isopropyl rubbing alcohol and a toothbrush

(preferably an old one!). For quick & easy cleaning, carry

around some foil pack alcohol wipes to clean the pad.

CAUTION: Make sure the alcohol has dried completely

before placing the AX Tuner on your guitar. - or -

2. Place a dab of  NONABRASIVE, NON-MOISTURIZING

soap on your finger and spread the soap on the material.

Then rinse your finger and use it like a squeegee to clear

the pad of soap. Allow the pad to air dry for about 10

minutes. The SafeMount™ becomes tacky again when it

dries.

To keep the pad tacky longer between cleanings: Keep the

guitar surface clean, avoid touching the SafeMount™ pad,

and keep your AX Tuner in its DomeHome™ when not in

use.

AX2000-W