The Buzz Feiten Tuning System

Catalina Guitars is an authorized retrofitter for the Buzz Feiten Tuning System at our guitar repair workshop in Tucson, Arizona. This innovative guitar tuning system puts an end to frustration experienced by guitarists the world over.
You can visit the Buzz Feiten Tuning System website to find out more about how your guitar can be improved with the addition of this tuning system. As a Buzz Feiten installer, we would also like to provide you with some information about our experiences.

It's all about how to make a guitar play in tune

Buzz Feiten's experiences of intonation problems caused him to challenge how the guitar is setup & tuned. He eventually resolved his guitar tuning problems by making a small, but significant change to the guitar nut position & how the guitar is tuned & intonated.
The end result of applying the Buzz Feiten Tuning System to your guitar will be chords that sound sweet in every position and a never before experienced confidence in your guitars sound.

How is a Buzz Feiten Tuning System Installed? How will it affect my guitar?

Installation of the Buzz Feiten Tuning System does not require modification to most guitars other than the replacement of the nut. Guitars fitted with LSR Roller Nuts, Wilkinson Roller Nuts or Floyd Rose Locking Nuts, require further modification.

The Buzz Feiten Shelf Nut

Most commonly, the existing string nut is simply removed from the guitar & replaced by what is known as a "shelf nut". The shelf nut is a premium white bone nut designed to replace the existing nut without modification to the guitar. It's called a shelf nut simply because part of it projects over the edge of the fingerboard in order to move the point at which the strings leave the nut slightly forward of the original position. This resolves intonation issues caused by string stretch when fretting the strings at the lower frets. Using the shelf nut, the installation can be reversed in the future (though we don't know why anyone would want to go back!).

Guitars with Wilkinson, LSR or Floyd Rose Nuts

Guitars with LSR, Wilkinson or Floyd Rose Nuts require modification to the fingerboard and nut screw mount holes. For the most part, the modifications are unnoticeable, but do require the fingerboard to be cut in order to move the existing nut slightly forward of its factory installed position.

Setup & Intonation

Once the nut is installed in its correct position, the guitar is re-strung & setup. Tuning & intonation is done according to specific, precise pitch offsets. We use a Peterson VS-II virtual strobe tuner to complete this part of the process.

Completion

Each Buzz Feiten Tuning System installed on a guitar has a specific installation serial number decal which is applied to the back or front of the guitar headstock by the installer. This decal is an important part of the Buzz Feiten Tuning System identifying the installation and its authenticity.

Do I need a tuner that works with the Buzz Feiten System?

It is possible to tune the Buzz Feiten tuning system by ear, but we do recommend & stock tuners that are designed to work with the system.

Peterson Virtual Strobe Tuners

The Peterson Strobostomp or VS-II tuners outperform any other type of guitar tuner you're likely to encounter. Peterson tuners can accurately measure down to 0.1 cents making them 20-30 times more accurate than other tuner types. The Strobostomp is our most popular tuner sold with a Buzz Feiten Tuning System installation.

Peterson Strobosoft - Personal Computer Based Tuner

The Peterson Strobo-Soft tuner works on your home PC and operates the same as the other Peterson virtual strobe tuners. By connecting your instrument to the input of your PC sound card, you can easily tune your guitar with the familiar Peterson Virtual Strobe screen. The deluxe version of strobosoft has the Buzz Feiten tuning mode built in. For more details or to purchase the Strobosoft download, visit the Peterson strobosoft site by clicking on the banner below.

Korg DT-7 Guitar Tuner

The Korg DT-7 is a familiar style LED tuner with the Buzz Feiten Tuning mode built in & available through a switch selection. The Korg DT7 is compact & easy to operate.

The proof of the Buzz Feiten Tuning System is in how it sounds

If you want to hear how well a guitar tuned with this method sounds. Come visit our store & play one of our custom guitars fitted with the Buzz Feiten system. We think you'll hear the difference!

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