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Topic: Fret Board Positon |
Jeff Massie
From:
North Dakota, USA
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Posted 24 Nov 2008 3:25 pm |
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| I was reading on the forum that the 12th fret should be half way between the rollers at each end of the strings. My queation is should you get the same reading on your tuner with the bar at the 12th fret as you do on an open string, if your 12 th fret is in the right postion. I at time have to postion my bar a little off the fret to get the chord to sound right, could my fret board be a little off? |
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Richard Sinkler
From:
aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana
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Posted 24 Nov 2008 5:59 pm
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Or the amount of pressure you use with your bar hand. I'm betting it's probably not the fretboard unless someone changed it at some time.
It's also common on some pedal combinations to have to play a little off fret (A & F pedals to name one). Learn to rely more on your ears and not your eyes for positioning. |
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John Groover McDuffie
From:
LA California, USA
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Posted 24 Nov 2008 6:23 pm
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When I got my s-12 Sho-Bud it had a mis-placed fretboard. It took me a few months to realize why I was having a hard time playing in tune. It was especially problematic since the amount I had to place the bar above the fret was an increasing proportion of the fret-to-fret distance as I went up the neck.
Once I re-positioned it the guitar was a lot easier to play in tune. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 24 Nov 2008 6:56 pm
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| Quote: |
| I at time have to postion my bar a little off the fret to get the chord to sound right... |
That's perfectly natural. What you're trying is to sound as perfect as possible, not be as "visually perfect" as possible. The frets are to be a guide, and not perfectly aligned position markers. Your downforce on the bar, the weight of the bar, the size of the bar, as well as the viewing angle, will all play a part in how the bar appears over the frets as you play. Some players can even play pretty well with no fretboards at all! The bottom line is that you must train and use your ears as the final "positioner" when you play. The frets just get you in the ballpark.
And yes, the 12th fret should be at the exact center of the vibrating part of the string. |
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Pat Comeau
From:
New Brunswick, Canada
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John Groover McDuffie
From:
LA California, USA
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Posted 25 Nov 2008 12:51 pm
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| When I re-positioned my fretboard I used the natural harmonic, in addition to measuring, to locate the center of the string length. In order to be as precise as possible I used a small diameter pencil eraser instead of my finger to "stop" the string and generate the harmonic. |
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Don Brown, Sr.
From:
New Jersey
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Posted 25 Nov 2008 7:00 pm
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Easiest way of finding out how far off a fret board is at the 12th fret, is to hold the bar on the 12th fret, don't touch any strings with your hand or fingers. Pick 4,5,6 behind the bar, and then in front of the bar. Slide the bar until you hear the two blend precisely. "You can't miss it!" Regardless how bad of ears a person might otherwise have.  Look down and see where your bar's at.
It's about as precise as you can get. Much better than measuring. Don |
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