Q: What is the difference between locking and non-locking guitar tuners?
A: Locking tuners include a clamping mechanism to lock the string in place. This has two advantages. First, by locking the string against the tuner, you can use fewer string windings to keep the tuning stable. Less windings generally means quicker and easier restringing. But the main advantage of locking tuners is with tremolo-equipped guitars. By locking the strings to the tuner, this reduces the amount of string slippage due to use of the tremolo bar and results in reduced tuning problems resulting from tremolo use.