In the mid 1970s BOSS was one of the first companies to design and commercially release an electronic guitar/bass tuner (TU-60). Since then every major instrument manufacturer and musical accessory distributor has followed suit and electronic tuners can be bought today for no more than a few pounds.
Technology has also increased their level of sophistication and some instruments have tuners built-in for ease and speed of tuning whilst on stage. Other tuners have been configured as foot pedals so that they are permanently "in-line" and so tuning can be checked at a glance in between songs.
Some of the more stylish tuners also have electronic metronomes on board. Alternatively, electronic metronomes can be purchased as stand alone items. Some present a simple beep as the tempo indicator whilst other more upmarket designs also feature a flashing LED read-out so that the user has a visual indication of the tempo as well as an audible one.
