Fan fret
A fretboard on which each fret runs at a slight angle across the strings, so the scale length differs from the bass side to the treble side.
Also called multi-scale, the design gives the low strings a longer scale for clarity and tension and the high strings a shorter one for easier bending, and the diagonally set frets keep the string paths nearer to perpendicular so intonation and feel stay consistent. Frets are usually set out in a fan with a neutral point somewhere in the middle of the board. The main cost is that chord shapes and barres take some adjustment, since the frets no longer sit where the hand expects.
Example: an eight-string instrument in a low tuning benefits particularly, because the longest string gets enough scale to stay articulate.
See also
Related
- PageMulti-scale
- PageScale length
- PageAccessory
- PageAcoustic-electric
- PageAcoustic guitar
- PageAaron Dessner
- PageAce Frehley
- PageAd-Rock