A friend of my Dad's is a very good old-time fiddler. He absolutely refuses to use a tuner. He lets the rest of the band tune up, then he tunes himself from the guitarist. A quote: "I don't need those things, I just have to make a couple adjustments through the first few songs, then I'm perfectly in tune!".

My response to this: If you had used the tuner, you would have been "perfectly in tune" (or close to it), right from the start.

We drive cars because it's quicker and more convenient than walking. We use a word processor because it is quicker and more convenient than having to write and re-write various drafts of a document.

So what's the shame in using a tuner? I can tune by ear, but I prefer a tuner because (that's right) it's quicker, and more convenient.

P.