About Peterson
Peterson Strobe Tuners traces back to 1948, when founder Richard "Dick" Peterson completed the Model 150, an analog strobe tuner he originally built to tune pipe organs. The company, headquartered in Alsip, Illinois, followed it with the Model 70 in 1964, the first commercially available handheld, battery-operated tuner, and then the Model 400 in 1967, the breakthrough design that established Peterson's strobe technology. That strobe-based approach, reading pitch as a spinning visual pattern rather than a needle, remains the core of every tuner the company builds today across its clip-on StroboClip, pedalboard StroboStomp, handheld StroboPLUS, and desktop StroboSoft lines, all built to Peterson's signature 0.1-cent accuracy and loaded with its proprietary Sweetened Tunings, instrument-specific pitch offsets that correct for the natural intonation compromises of equal temperament.
Peterson's clip-on strobe tuner, the StroboClip HD, has been reviewed by both Premier Guitar and Guitar World. Premier Guitar's hands-on review praised its precise tuning, wide and easy-to-read display, versatile Sweetened Tunings presets, and USB-updatable firmware, noting its higher price against ordinary clip-ons as the tradeoff for that accuracy. In 2023 the company marked 75 years of building strobe tuners, a run that has made it a long-standing reference point for luthiers, techs, and recording players who need tighter-than-standard intonation accuracy.
Brand website: petersontuners.com
What Peterson makes
Peterson's catalog runs wider than the gear we review. The lines we know best from our own testing are marked with a star:
StroboClip HD / HDC
Clip-on strobe tuners for guitar, bass, and other stringed instruments -- the line our featured pick belongs to — featured on House of Octave
StroboStomp HD / Mini / LE
Pedalboard strobe tuner pedals built to the same 0.1-cent accuracy for gigging electric players
StroboPLUS HDC
Handheld strobe tuner and metronome combo with over 200 onboard Sweetened Tunings and Guided Tunings
Sweetened Tunings
Peterson's proprietary library of instrument-specific tuning offsets, built into every Peterson strobe tuner
StroboSoft 2.0
Desktop software strobe tuner for bench and studio use
Why we recognized Peterson
The House of Octave Top Brand recognition isn't paid for and can't be applied for. We award it to the brands whose gear consistently stands out in our player-tested category guides. Peterson earned it on the strength of the products below, judged the same way every product on this site is: assessed on build, tone, and playability, weighed against what players actually report over years of use, and ranked on merit.
Peterson gear we rated highly
Peterson StroboClip HD Clip-On Strobe Tuner
Our pick for players who care about being genuinely in tune, not just close: true strobe accuracy of plus-or-minus 0.1 cent, roughly ten times tighter than a standard clip-on, the difference between in tune enough to play and precise enough to record or set intonation by. It comes loaded with Peterson's Sweetened tuning presets, specialized offsets for acoustic guitar, nylon/classical, bass, ukulele and more, and pairs a high-definition strobe display that shows pitch movement smoothly with a premium metal-and-glass clip build.
Read the 10 Best Guitar Tuners of 2026 (Clip-On, Pedal, Strobe & More) guide →What earned Peterson the recognition
- The Peterson StroboClip HD is a House of Octave top pick among guitar tuners, chosen for players who set their own intonation or record
- Peterson's 0.1-cent strobe accuracy is roughly ten times tighter than the 1-cent accuracy of a standard clip-on tuner, built on strobe technology the company pioneered with the Model 400 in 1967
- Reviewed favorably by Premier Guitar and Guitar World, which praised the StroboClip HD's precise tuning, wide display, and versatile Sweetened Tunings presets
- Independent, US-based manufacturer headquartered in Alsip, Illinois that has built strobe tuners since 1948 and marked 75 years in the category in 2023
- Proprietary Sweetened Tunings, instrument-specific pitch offsets built into every Peterson strobe tuner, are a feature no other tuner brand in our roundup offers