Octave Tuner
FAQ
Octave Tuner: frequently asked questions
Everything about pricing, accuracy, tunings, privacy, and troubleshooting for the Octave Tuner app on iPhone and iPad.
Pricing and Octave Pro
Is Octave Tuner free?
Yes. Octave Tuner is a free download on the App Store, and the tuner itself is free forever with no ads.
The free tier includes the full chromatic tuner, guided string-by-string tuning, five core tunings (Standard, Drop D, Half-Step Down, Open G, Open D), capo support, and reference pitch adjustment. There is no trial period and no time limit. Octave Pro is an optional one-time $5.99 purchase.
Is Octave Pro a subscription?
No. Octave Pro is a one-time $5.99 in-app purchase. It never renews.
Because the unlock is tied to your Apple ID, buying it once covers your other iPhones and iPads at no extra cost. There is no monthly or annual charge, and no auto-renewing trial.
What do you get with Octave Pro?
Octave Pro unlocks:
- All 19 built-in tunings, including bass, ukulele and banjo
- Unlimited custom tunings for 4 to 8 string instruments
- Instrument profiles that remember each guitar’s tuning and capo position
- Metronome and string setup assistant
- String Health, which tracks how well each string holds pitch over time
- Performance mode with a strobe display
- Alternate app icons
I bought Octave Tuner when it was a paid app. Do I have to pay again?
No. If you bought Octave Tuner while it was a paid download, Octave Pro unlocks automatically at no additional cost.
The app compares the build number of your original purchase against the first free release. If you bought the app before it went free, you are granted Pro permanently. If Pro does not appear, open Settings inside the app and tap Restore Purchase, making sure you are signed in with the Apple ID you originally purchased with.
How do I restore my purchase on a new phone?
Sign in to the same Apple ID you bought with, open Octave Tuner, go to Settings inside the app, and tap Restore Purchase. Restoring is always free.
Are there ads in Octave Tuner?
No. There are no ads in either the free tier or Octave Pro, and there is no advertising SDK in the app at all.
Accuracy and how it works
How accurate is Octave Tuner?
Octave Tuner is accurate to within ±1 cent across the guitar’s range, from a low E at 82.41 Hz to a high E at 1318.5 Hz, and updates in under 50 milliseconds.
It uses the YIN autocorrelation algorithm rather than naive FFT peak-picking. That matters most on the low strings: a plucked low E is full of harmonics, and simpler tuners often lock onto an overtone and report the wrong octave. YIN tracks the fundamental, so the reading stays steady while the note decays.
What is a cent?
A cent is one hundredth of a semitone — the standard unit for how sharp or flat a note is.
Most listeners cannot reliably hear a difference below about 5 cents. Octave Tuner treats ±3 cents as in tune, showing a green indicator, a soft glow, and a single haptic tap so you can keep your eyes on your hands. Amber means the note is flat, violet means sharp.
Can I change the reference pitch from A = 440 Hz?
Yes, and it is included free. In Settings you can set the reference pitch anywhere from A4 = 430 Hz to 450 Hz — useful for matching an out-of-tune piano, playing with an ensemble tuned differently, or period tuning.
How does capo support work?
Set the capo position anywhere up to the 12th fret and Octave Tuner shifts every target pitch accordingly, so the string names you see match the notes you are actually playing. Capo support is free.
Tunings and instruments
Which tunings are included?
Octave Tuner ships with 19 built-in tunings:
- Standard: Standard (EADGBE), Drop D, Drop C, Half-Step Down, Full-Step Down
- Open: Open G, Open D, Open E, Open A, Open C
- Alternate: DADGAD, Double Drop D, Nashville, All Fourths
- Other instruments: Bass 4-string, Bass 5-string, Ukulele Standard, Ukulele Baritone, Banjo (Open G)
Standard, Drop D, Half-Step Down, Open G and Open D are free. The rest require Octave Pro.
Can I create my own custom tuning?
Yes, with Octave Pro. Build and save unlimited custom tunings for anything with 4 to 8 strings, naming each one and setting the target note per string. They appear in their own section of the tuning list.
Can I tune a bass guitar?
Yes. Both 4-string and 5-string bass tunings are built in, and detection reaches down to 27.5 Hz — low enough for a 5-string low B at 30.87 Hz.
Can I tune a ukulele, banjo, or 7-string guitar?
Standard ukulele, baritone ukulele, and open-G banjo are built in. For a 7- or 8-string guitar — or a mandolin, or anything else with 4 to 8 strings — create a custom tuning with Octave Pro.
Does it work with an electric guitar?
Yes. Octave Tuner listens through your iPhone’s microphone, so you can tune an electric unplugged by playing close to the phone, or point the microphone at your amp’s speaker. No cable or audio interface is needed.
What is guided tuning?
Guided tuning walks you through the strings one at a time. Octave highlights the target string, shows which direction to turn, and advances to the next string automatically once the current one holds in tune for about a second. You can also tap any string to jump to it, or long-press to hear its reference tone.
Privacy
Does Octave Tuner record or upload my audio?
No. Microphone audio is analysed on your device in real time and is never stored or uploaded.
Octave Tuner has no analytics SDK, no advertising identifier, no account system, and collects no location data. Custom tunings and instrument profiles are stored locally on your device. Read the full privacy policy.
Does Octave Tuner work offline?
Yes. Everything runs on device, so the tuner works in airplane mode or anywhere with no signal. A connection is only needed to download the app or buy Octave Pro.
Devices and requirements
Which devices are supported?
Octave Tuner requires iOS or iPadOS 17.0 or later and runs on iPhone and iPad. iPhone is portrait only; iPad supports portrait and landscape, with the string selector moving to a vertical column in landscape.
Is there an Android or web version?
Not at this time. Octave Tuner is an iPhone and iPad app.
Is Octave Tuner accessible?
Yes. Every interactive element has a VoiceOver label, all text scales with Dynamic Type, and animations respect Reduce Motion. Talking Tuner announces your pitch deviation aloud so you can tune without looking at the screen.
Troubleshooting
The tuner is not detecting my note
- Open the iOS Settings app, find Octave Tuner, and confirm Microphone access is on.
- Move closer to the phone and make sure nothing is covering the microphone — including a case or your hand.
- Reduce background noise. Octave shows a noisy-environment banner when the room is working against it.
- Pick one string cleanly instead of strumming, since the tuner reads a single note at a time.
The reading jumps around while the note rings
This is usually a very quiet or very short note, or two strings ringing at once. Let the string sustain, mute the others, and pick with a little more attack. If a specific string is consistently unstable even when picked cleanly, String Health in Octave Pro will show you whether it is the string itself drifting.
Octave Pro did not unlock after purchase
Open Settings inside the app and tap Restore Purchase, confirming you are signed in with the Apple ID used for the purchase. If it still does not appear, contact support.
Still stuck? Get in touch on the support page.