GuitarPlayer Verdict
The Nexxus 360 is fast, accurate and right to the point without bouncing all around, making it a cinch to home in on the desired pitch.
Pros
- +
Rechargeable is economical and less wasteful
- +
Fabulous display is fast and accurate
- +
Fantastic flexibility
Cons
- -
Only that a troubadour must remember to keep it handy and charge regularly along with other devices on the road
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Tuning technology remains one of the bright lights in the guitar gear arena, especially on the purely acoustic guitar side, where clip-on tuners rule the roost.
D’Addario is always pushing the envelope and has achieved another breakthrough with the Nexxus 360, its first tuner to use a rechargeable lithium battery. Other features include full 360-degree rotation, a flexible pivot point, and a brilliant, bright and colorful LED screen.
The Nexxus 360 costs a bit more than similar tuners, but consider that a pair of Duracell lithium coin button batteries runs about six bucks online (and more in a store), and you'll start to realize how much money it can save over the long haul.
The tuner becomes an excellent note-recognition device, helping to decipher the fretboard at every turn
The Nexxus comes with a USB cable, powers up quickly, and delivers about 24 hours of use on a full charge. That’s about the same amount of running time you'll get from a three-volt lithium battery.
The Nexxus is absolutely awesome around home. When it runs out, simply plug it into a USB power hub for a spell and you’re back in business. It’s a fine feeling to simply leave it on all the time without worry about drainage.
In that regard, the tuner becomes an excellent note-recognition device, helping to decipher the fretboard at every turn. That’s particularly handy when playing in open tunings, where the fretboard becomes much more mysterious.
On the road, well, the Nexxus 360 is simply one more thing in the electronic arsenal to be addressed at every stop, right along with your computer/iOS device, headphones/powered speaker, and of course, whatever vape or e-cigarette device you're toting.
But it’s sure nice not to worry about the battery failing at a critical moment, especially if you didn’t have a chance to stop and plonk down the ducats for backups. If the Nexxus runs out of juice, simply use a phone adaptor and plug it into your pedalboard power for a refill.
By the way, a little light indicates the level on power-up to help you know when the tuner needs a charge.
Red on either side means very sharp or flat, yellow is closer, and three greens at the top mean you’re good to go
What’s drawing power is the Nexxus 360’s fantastically illuminated, crystal-clear, full-color LED screen. It works chromatically, with a semi-circle of 15 little LEDs surrounding a large note letter readout in the middle. Red on either side means very sharp or flat, yellow is closer, and three greens at the top mean you’re good to go.
Display and functionality are fabulous. The Nexxus 360 is fast, accurate and right to the point without bouncing all around, making it a cinch to home in on the desired pitch. Calibration can be adjusted via the two little buttons on either side of the power button, and those are the only three controls – nice and simple.
When you hit and hold either the up or down button, calibration adjusts by as many cents as flash by, and upon release, three numbers flash sequentially to show where it landed, such as 4-4-0. The tuner has a range of 415 to 465 Hz.
The size and style of this tuner is much appreciated. Having tons of experience with myriad clip-on-style tuners, I can see why D’Addario wound up with this here and now. Some older headstock tuners are large and indiscreet, and while micro-tuners are super stealthy, they’re more difficult to read, and easy to misplace.
The Nexxus 360 is a Goldilocks size – not too large or small, and just right for the job at hand. The clamp is nice and tight, and the tuner’s omnidirectional capability and flexible fulcrum make it easy to find the best position for the player without distracting onlookers from the real show.
In summary, the size is right, the bright display is precise, the plastic casing feels durable, and the über-adjustable screen facilitates the line of sight. Rechargeability is convenient, saves money and waste, and is much safer.
The Nexxus 360 is a Goldilocks size – not too large or small, and just right for the job at hand
What the airlines say about those coin batteries is true: I used to keep a bunch of them in a plastic bag, with plastic wrap interwoven for separation. Lo and behold, one day when two or more of them must have been in contact, the bag spontaneously combusted! Luckily, I happened to be looking in that direction as the adjacent wooden CD storage tower started to smolder.
This editor is all for looking back on single-use battery power as a bygone age. For all the reasons just stated, the D’Addario Nexxus 360 Tuner earns an Editors’ Pick Award.
FEATURES: 360-degree rotating screen, full-color LED display with high-powered backlight, 24 hours use on a full charge
EXTRAS: USB charging cable
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