fiddle vs. tamper

[svartnik]

I tried ……………………………….. with the knobs on my TV, but it was all in vain – the picture just got worse.

fiddling or tampering? IMO both and tampering sounds better.

[bhaisahab]

I tried ……………………………….. with the knobs on my TV, but it was all in vain – the picture just got worse.

fiddling or tampering? IMO both and tampering sounds better.

"Fiddling" is more idiomatic.

[bhaisahab]

I tried ……………………………….. with the knobs on my TV, but it was all in vain – the picture just got worse.

fiddling or tampering? IMO both and tampering sounds better.

"Fiddling" is more idiomatic. Tampering suggests something illegal.

[svartnik]

'Fiddling with the accounts' also suggest an underhand practice.

tamper with sth phrasal verb
to touch or make changes to something which you should not, usually without enough knowledge of how...

Cambridge Dictionaries Online - Cambridge University Press

According to their definition, could 'tamper' be inserted in the sentence?

[Raymott]

I tried ……………………………….. with the knobs on my TV, but it was all in vain – the picture just got worse.

fiddling or tampering? IMO both and tampering sounds better.

Tampering suggests that you're not using them as they were meant to be used. Maybe you're sticking a screwdriver behind the knobs to manipulate them.