Mechanical Metronome for Guitar Practice?

[asoalone]

I like Wittner KeyWound Metronome - Listen OnLine mecanical metronome (Pyramid wittner), but I never practice with it .

My question is:

1. It's too loud .. or too quiet ?
2. so many people use digital metronome ... how do you think about mechanical ?
3. It's comfortable to use to practice ?
4. which one you choose between ... Wooden case & plastic case ?

[Little Jay]

I have a very simple plastic one, Thomann's house brand, but it works great.

I prefer it over any digital metronome for some non-rational and sentimental reason that I can't realy explain....maybe the idea that Miles and Wes had nothing else to practise with, back in the days?

It's plenty loud and practising with it greatly improved my speed, accuracy and timing. It's completely different from practising with band in a box or play-alongs, since you have to hear the piano and bass in your head ;-)

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

I am surprised those mechanical ones are still out there! Get a Boss or whatever. You can set it to click or to flash its LED, you can dial up funky meters like 7/4, you can toss it into your guitar case, working on speed, you can gradually speed it up with very specific BPMs, etc...

The only plus I can think for the mechanical ones is they are a nice piece of furniture.

[morroben]

+1 I would like to have a nice mechanical one to set on the desk in my music room just because I think they look cool. The digital ones are far more versatile and practical to use, though.

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

My sister-in-law has a very nioe wooden one on her baby grand piano. She bought them both just for their value as furniture.

[Gramps]

Alway digital in some way. More often than not I'll use a free web based metronome. Since I played with a drum machine for years I don't have many issues with keeping a steady tempo.

[FatJeff]

I've used the little blue Korg for ages and love it. Only $15.00 or something like that. I had an expensive $75.00 mechanical one and it got broken right away when it fell off my piano.

[spiral]

I've debated getting one because they are so simple and it would be nice to have it stay next to my practice stuff. But, my phone has a tuner and metronome which is always with me, and it has volume control. Love the look and sound of mechanical, but i use what i already have.

[oldane]

I couldn't care less, as long as it keeps time. BTW, I have both a mechanical and a digital one - one at home and one in our holiday log cabin.

[brwnhornet59]

+1 on that.

I use an online metronome. There are plenty to choose from. Google it.

[morroben]

FWIW, I have a little Korg digital metronome in a drawer somewhere but the one I actually use is the MobileMetronome app on my phone.

[pierre richard]

mine is more than 40 years old....wooden..mechanical...works like it did when I first got it when I was in my 20's....

time on the instrument....pierre

[burchyk]

mechanical metronomes can get uneven beats, the spring needs winding, and there is no benefit from having a "warm mechanical click" for me - a digital "click" irritates just the same by showing my crappy timing

p.s. a nice trick is to set the tempo to 1/2, 1/4 or even 1/8 - will not let you adjust with every quarter note but force to keep the tempo

[Little Jay]

I guess I'm just old school...... love a mechanical one!

(have a digital one in my iPhone for on the road)

[Marto]

I have a mechanical metronome but I don't use it any more I use a metronome app on my phone. I like the idea of the mechanical metronomes but unless they are sitting on a perfectly flat surface they don't keep time and the idea of practicing with a slightly skewed click is a bit concerning.

[asoalone]

thank you for your comment ... today i brought wittner plastic case .... It's good for me .

^^

[Elias Graves]

I use mechanical. I like the click sound and I like the visual of the swinging arm. Helps me lock in.

Don't know what it is with metronome vs drummer, but I can latch on to a drummer much quicker than a metronome.

EG

[spiral]

Don't know what it is with metronome vs drummer, but I can latch on to a drummer much quicker than a metronome.

Because a drummer is musical / rhythmic.

[burchyk]

In my case its because the drummer plays smaller divisions and he also latches to me

[tempibrand]

I have been using the mechanical metronome for practice and it really has helped! Metronomes really have helped to improve my rhythm and sense of timing and tempo, so when I play, I play accurately and the music sounds really good. I don't really use the bell feature as available on most mechanical metronomes but the tempo is vital. I generally use Hanon and do finger exercises and practice and notice that my fingers get stronger and more reliable in harder and more complex music practice. The metronome that I use is attached below:

[55bar]

I really want one of these after watching the Emily Remler videos when I was a kid.

[Jabberwocky]

Carol Kaye recommends the Franz Bakelite metronôme, too.

[MarkRhodes]

A demonstration video of the Franz metronome

[Squeezebox]

I would like to buy a mechanical/windup/old school metronome as a practical home ornament for my music corner in the future.

I don't mind forking out a bit of dough if it looks and sounds nice. Mostly, I use a metronome on my phone but it would be fun to have a traditional one around on a shelf somewhere next to music books.

What manufacturers and models should I look out for? Can circa 100 € get me something that can be displayed and is not too plastic-y?

Edit: ah, I hit the post thread button before getting rid of the hyphen.

[marcwhy]

If it were mostly for decoration, I'm not sure the model and manufacturer are that important ...

Google shows me wooden, mechanical metronomes from $30 - 180, so I'm sure you can find something.