Soundbrenner Pulse, Vibrating Metronome for All Musicians and Instruments, Perfect for Drums, Guitar, Piano and More, Best in Show at NAMM

First of all, I'd like to mention that I've tried a pulse metronome previously and quickly abandoned it for both performance and practice purposes -- it was just too inconvenient to use. Despite this prior experience, I ordered the Pulse anyway because the design looked different enough from what I had experienced that I though it might work for me. It did! This is an amazing device, one that seems to have been designed by people who actually use the product. The device's user interface is fantastic. I'm using it for solo guitar and, if I place the device on the inside of my left wrist (my fretting arm), I can both see the Pulse and manipulate its functions easily, even in the middle of a song. The learning curve was very short, even though the interface was like nothing I had ever experienced before. The printed guide is clear and there are some excellent short instructional videos available on YouTube (some placed by the company; some by users). In order to access the more advanced features and really set the device up to your preferences, you have to pair with a smartphone and, in this, I had to do a bit of digging in the documentation, but, other than that, it was very easy to get started. It also takes a day or two to get used to playing "against" the pulse. After you get the hang of it -- you forget it's there. A word about the interplay with the phone -- the phone app is also very well designed and the bluetooth connection is stable. The connection "feels solid." I have no need to "play" the Pulse beats out loud, but, if I did, the phone would serve beautifully as a sophisticated aural metronome speaker. You can also use the phone app to control the function of device (especially the deeper functions). However, beyond setup, I wouldn't do so would so because the last thing in the world I want to do is fiddle with a phone during performance. As far as I can see, its prime benefit is that you can control the Pulse's basic functions just by tapping lightly on it. People in other situations might benefit from the capability of controlling function through the phone. I did have to contact their support in the first couple of days because I wanted to order backup wrist straps in a configuration different from what they offer. A very nice person got back to me in a timely manner and arranged for me to get exactly what I wanted, saving me $20. I think this is an extraordinary level of support -- they're going through the trouble of repackaging something in order to save a customer money. (Frankly, that's the main reason I'm taking the time to write this review -- I'm grateful to them.) For me, this was one of those happy situations we get sometimes where we order something with a bit of uncertainty and then discover that it actually exceeds expectations. I love this thing and admire the creativity of the people who developed it. Well worth the money, in my opinion.

I have read reviews of this unit going off the beat. As of yet, I have not experienced this shortcoming, but if I should the solution is to put it off and restart it. Nevertheless it works great and does help internalize the beat. I used it for several days playing piano for 3+ hours and truly enjoyed the experience and I recommenced it. For 4/4 I run it 2 beats to the bar, catching the down beats. You do not have to pay for the extended app. The free version lets you fine tweak it to your hearts content. Very glad I made the purchase. A quality product.

Soundbrenner charges a premium subscription for a metronome, they sell products at a steep premium, and therefore you would expect a premium experience from this company, I wish I could express the depth of my disappointment in my product experience thus far. Shipping took ages. I paid for a brand new product and received a clearly used product. I paid for a premium experience and received a damaged torn up box with pre-cut packaging tape holding it together, products that were not in their wrapping, chords which were not in their twisty ties, a product with skin and dirt on it, watchbands / charge cables that were just stuffed back into the box haphazardly, the box had been completely dismantled at one point with none of the glue still holding it together on the inside and no product manual or instructions. Oh, I even just tried to plug it in, just to try it on my wrist. The cable that was unsecured in the box has a bent USB port and will not transfer power. In other words, the pulse while plugged in doesn’t recognize that it’s being charged, it did not arrive charged, nor does it work at all. This is beyond unacceptable. I put this both on Amazon and Soundbrenner, since it is advertised as the Soundbrenner store on Amazon. Clearly, this should be returned and I’m tempted to write “used” all over the box so they can’t send this out again.

The tactile pulse is somehow more effective than just hearing audio clicks of a metronome. I'm using three devices for a trio group, and this has helped us fix several tricky rhythmic sections of pieces we have worked on in the past, but never quite got correct. It's a little mysterious why it works so well. The pulses are a little "instrusive" but in a good way. It's like having a music coach tapping you on the shoulder. Maybe its because touch is a different pathway to the brain than hearing? The company has been supporting the device very well. I did experience the Pulse timing being way off from what it was supposed to be, but that only happened a few times early on (April 2018) and it seems some firmware and software updates have fixed this -- it hasn't happened since. They also replaced a non-functional USB cable in one of the devices at no cost. The software on the app is quite good. It has many options to customize things, including the type of touch, the pattern of tempo, whether to hear metronome sounds and what type of sounds, colors of pulses, etc. The pulse can be set very short and crisp. You do have to recharge the Pulse frequently. They claim to have improved the battery life with a software update. I just recharge after every use, and top off before using. Not a problem. I use a USB hub device to charge all 3 devices at once. They provide two straps, a short one and a longer one. In my group, each person has chosen a different place to wear it. This is a very innovative device, and remarkably stable and useful for a "version one" product. I only use this in rehearsal. My one wish would be to have a foot pedal to pause the pulses during a ritard, maybe press and hold. And perhaps switch to a different tempo with a quick foot pedal press.

まずはデザインと見た目。 本体は腕時計感覚でつけれます。激しい動きをしても、特に問題はないです。アプリと連動したら、色も変えられて、おしゃれだと思います。ライブ前の練習とライブで利用できます。 本体 本体はシンプルな操作でオン・オフができます。BPMの上げ下げは本体のみでもできます。ダイアルがよく作られて、触るのが単純に楽しいです。 アプリ/機能 IOSのアプリを利用してますが、わかりやすいです。Bluetooth接続も簡単にでき、メイン画面に必要な情報がほぼ全部乗ってます。BPMが簡単に設定ができて、曲の練習がより良く正確になってると思います。 メトロノームのトーン、ディスプレイの設定、カウントインなどなどアプリの方で簡単に設定ができて、良い感じだと思います。 アプリの話になりますが、曲を入れ、BPMを設定して保存ができます。練習用に、複数なっ曲を練習する時の"曲ライブラリ”は結構便利だと思っております。 最終的な感想は以下です - 見た目がすごくおしゃれ （色も変えられる） - アプリとのbluetooth接続の問題は特にない （演奏しても） - "曲ライブラリ"を利用し、複数な曲のBGMを保存するのが一番良いポイント より良く正確なテンポを掴むために今後の練習の際にて利用すると思います。

This device is quite remarkable in helping you to keep time. No more annoying clicks to listen to and the vibrations really get you into the groove. You can adjust the vibrations to suit and I use a stronger vibration on the one beat. You actually feel the beat rather than listen out for it which enables you to concentrate on the music. You soon get used to the change in your senses from listening to feeling and initially you may find the transition a bit odd but you overcome this very quickly. The device works really well with the App which I use to control all the functions. The only negative is attaching the charging cable to the device which has a magnetic lock and the stiff cable tends to dislodge it when trying to attach it. This is a minor irritation that does not detract from the effectiveness of using the device. Time will tell if longevity is an issue.

Ce produit correspond tout à fait à mes attentes. Il m'a fallu le temps pour trouver la vibration qui me convient ainsi que le positionnement au poignet mais maintenant que c'est fait cela me permet de localiser et de corriger mes erreurs rythmiques. Je travaille mieux avec ce type de métronome.

Perfect for keeping time on stage to count the band in!

Répond amplement aux attentes que j’avais. Excellent produit facile d’utilisation. Les concepteurs ont réalisé un super travail.