A Dream Come True . . .

. . . Or a nightmare waiting to happen? Gibson commercializes the self-tuning guitar: Gibson Says Self-Tuning Guitars Are Here To Stay, Even As Purists Fret

A Nashville instrument maker has spent millions of dollars over the course of a decade trying to perfect a self-tuning guitar.

It wasn’t until this year, however, that Gibson, the brand behind the iconic Les Paul, started making automatic tuners a standard feature on most of its electric guitars.

With the press of a button, tiny motors twist the tuning pegs and within seconds, the guitar is ready to play. The tuner is a small black box tucked out-of-sight on the back of the headstock.

“You know people see it and they’re kind of taken aback at first,” says Craig Anderton, a long time musician-turned-executive vice president for Gibson.

He remembers showing off the device to a longtime guitar tech in Santa Fe.

“I pushed the button and I strummed the strings and I watched it and he goes ‘I can die now. I think I’m in heaven.’"

Anderton says while there’s a common perception that a self-tuning guitar is only meant for beginners, he notes that it can save valuable time for even experienced musicians – whether they’re in the studio or on stage.

“Basically, I think that all that really matters is that once you try it, you can’t help but get addicted to it,” he said.

But many musicians who’ve tried the automatic tuning guitars say they don’t like them at all. Some of the pros that frequent Corner Music in Nashville are flat out rejecting the 2015 Gibsons.

Why? They say while the automatic tuning system can be fast, it can also be unreliable.

And then there’s George Gruhn at Gruhn Guitars. He’s been in the business for more than a half-century and he says he’s also tried the new Gibson models.

“My personal opinion is that this is going to be a very hard sale,” he said. “And I have not yet met anyone who claims to be having success with them,” . . .

Will it quickly tune to alternative tunings (dropped D, open G, D or E)? 30% more for a new Gibson is a big jump.

Can I get one to put on the 12 string?