John used a scalloped fretboard on his groundbreaking albums with the fusion band Mahavishnu Orchestra (a Gibson ES-345) as well as his Indian-influenced band Shakti (an Abe Wechter-built 13 string built from a Gibson J-200). With a scalloped fretboard you can press down a lot further as the frets have been filed deeper. I dont know why, but with jumbo frets i practically never touch the fretboard, if i ever do. The first Production model Stratocater featuring a Scalloped Neck was an early version of the Yngwie Malmsteen Artist Series Strat put out by Fender which came out in the early 90s. In Europe, early lutes were built with scalloped fretboards, probably as influence from the Eastern instruments. People inexperienced with files can chip or gouge the frets too. no thanks! A precise and light touch is essential because there is no wood beneath your finger to stop your note from pressing the string beyond the desired pitch of that fret. I cant stop playing it, even my sloppy sweeping is enhanced. Looks like you haven't made a choice yet. I've always wanted to try it.. but I am kind of deterred by the irreversibility of it. This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. The Blackmore Strat has fully scalloped fretboard from about the 11th fret up to the 21. When I originally resurrected this guitar it turned out so good that I felt it would be ideal candidate to try scalloping. I resurrect broken and low quality guitars regularly, or maybe I should say irregularly. Thanks for stopping by! The first drawback is that it is an irreversible modification. Long ago, I realized I would never want to play again with wood under my fingers restricting my playing style. You can position your finger so you can get a little under the string as well. ( above the 12th fret) i love it, i know people will say i shouldnt be playing up there anyway but i make use of the scalloping. Just to mention Uli Jon Roth here who used scalloped necks since the 60s and also he is just worthy to be mentioned as he is the greatest most underrated player ever. Try some old Deep Purple or Rainbowor better yet the Mahavishnu Orchestra or Shakti. Billy Shehan Signature Model Bass has these. If you look at a scalloped fretboard from the side, it looks like the fret is scooped out. The plan is to fill up several discs with live and studio tracks. Full scallop or partial,as its hard to tell. Question: how does having a scalloped fingerboard effect tapping? Maybe its just me and my lack of skills but I hated playing that thing. If you scallop your fretboard it will affect the tone by adding a slight airiness to the tone. Modern luthiers scallop a fingerboard by using round or conical files between the frets. I have Telecaster Thinline with 22 scalolped maple frets. Talking in the eighties. Furthermore, it can make the sound slightly more precise as it cuts well when playing alongside other instruments. This facilitates very wild bending that you hear in this music. Based on that intuition, you should be able to decipher if you want a Mild. 6000 or 6100, frets will probably give you the most comparable similarity to a lightly scalloped neck. This increases clearance and reduces friction between fingers and fretboard, making bends and lead techniques quicker and easier. The top of the frets is themselves the indicator that you are pressing the note (not the wood underneath). The Vais JEM guitar feels right where you have 4 last high frets are scalloped. Some guitars have just the last few frets scalloped, for ease of bending on the higher registers of neck. But, perhaps just scalloping the highest region, or going from very shallow at the first frets to a little deeper at the very highest would be a good remedy. Try, feel and hear , you may never wanna go back to the stiff old fretboard . I did one on an Ibanez Roadster that is truly terrible quality work. A Half Scallop has wood scalloped only between frets 12-21 (or higher depending on how many frets your guitar has). Warmoth offers two scallop configurations: The full fretboard is scalloped from the nut through 22nd fret. A scalloped fingerboard feels completely different, as differences in neck radius have less of an impact, and a part of the neck is simply gone. Scalloped necks are used by many famous guitarists: There are others you will find more and more present day as the mystery surrounding scalloped Necks is disappearing and they are more available. Present Day many great guitars have partial or full-scalloped fingerboards. Players however report they ultimately can play faster in general after some substantial time playing scalloped necks due to a more precise skill level they have achieved. A lighter touch must be utilized so you do not press the chords or notes being played sharp or out of tune. It is said that it is much easier to bend strings with a scalloped guitar, and many guitarists do claim that scalloped fretboards allow you to play faster, as there is minimal contact with the string. Im not much of a guitar player at all, just keep an old beater in the basement to fool with every now and then (A $40 Academy electric). Are They BETTER! GuitarSkillsPlanet.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. On a scalloped fingerboard, you do press until the string contacts the top of the fret and no more. You get everything already there and everything we record in the future for the archive. Waymore Sound strives to be the ultimate resource for learning about Equipment & Musical endeavors for people at all Skill Levels. No one I know has ever played a scalloped tele (Jazz goes to my 335 as does a share of the commercial gigs) but as far as I know Ive never seen anyone play a scalloped tele. Some guitars are offered with just the last few frets scalloped, for ease of bending- especially if the guitar has 24 frets. I agree. You get the ease of bending of a scalloped board, but you cant bend notes by pressing down very far, and bending individual notes in chords (a very cool effect) doesnt work at all. Im considering having scalloped frets for certain guitars. Scalloped fretboards can improve overall technique, speed and accuracy due to the need to use a more precise and lighter touch on the strings to avoid pressing the string off tune. No way to return to regular one, it feels like jumping in fresh wather at very hot summar day. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. Your comment implies that everyone other than the poster who mentioned scalloped necks as a standard "hated them.". Shallow scallop on your neck or one thats All out Carved to the max. 3. I can relic YOUR neck too - Ask for prices! All rights reserved. Chords are especially problematic, and if it is difficult to keep one note in tune, simple open chords can become a nightmare as the fretted notes can easily pushed too hard, sounding sharp against the open strings. Whats The Difference Between Economy Picking & Alternative Picking? Scalloped-fretboard guitars used in Vietnamese music also have this kind of fretboard; those are called lc huyn cm or ghi-ta phm lm (literally ghi-ta guitar + phm fret + lm sunken). Does A Scalloped Fretboard Affect Tone? I dont play that kind of music much anymore, but I also like the scalloped neck playing more indie Rock, and even Country licks. A Deep Scallop will give you the full effect of playing String and Frets only with NO wood contact whatsoever beneath your fingers. These are very rare to find and you will probably need them custom made by a luthier as finding a guitar that was built with purposeful scalloped frets can be hard to find and very expensive. Furthermore, if you remove too much wood away it can make the tone sound worse, making the tone sound thin and scrappy. Anyways I self scalloped a guitar I pulled from a trashcan on the street. Home Blog Guitar Anatomy Scalloped Fretboard? In my opinion, it doesnt feel the same at all. Ritchie Blackmores scallops are deeper on the lighter strings and taper down to almost nothing under the larger strings. JavaScript is disabled. The fingertip can swing from side to side much more easily because there is no wood creating drag on the players finger which makes bending easier to accomplish. Your purchases also help protect forests, including trees traditionally used to make instruments. This suggests that the scalloping was merely ornamental, rather than something used to achieve a certain sound. 6. Thank you, you've made my point for me - one solitary model in the whole range! To each his own!!! I loved their wild bends and vibrato, and one thing they had in common was the scalloped board. The strings can also ring out more on a fretted note which helps with sustain. I also use a small, flat file to wrap in paper and get right up against the (masked off, I do triple layers of masking tape trimmed w/xacto knife) frets. Plenty of people do. The sounding length of the string is between the top of the fret and the bridge. I agree. On top of that, Im not sure if some details like the inlays would become a problem (as in, destroyed or removed). But I dont know, again, if it would mess it all up with significant scalloping and Id always get at least one sharp note or something. Yngwie Malmsteen is the one many guitarists today associate with a scalloped fretboard. Whats The Difference. We play that guitar all the time. The words Fender, Telecaster, Stratocaster and the associated headstock designs are registered trademarks of the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. Pressing too hard on the strings will cause out of tune sounds and notes to go sharp. The good news is that there are good luthiers out there who do scalloping so you dont have to. Please try again later - we are experiencing technical difficulties. Maple fingerboards have to be refinished afterwards, and if the fingerboard is an exotic wood, realize that scalloping will eat most of that away. If they were more popular than they are, Fender would offer scalloped necks as a standard feature, in the same way that they offer maple or rosewood. Dan Laz has been playing Musical instruments since the age of 7 years old and with over 35 Years experience has developed a deep understanding of musicianship, gear and the less than obvious details that make the big differences in your Sound & Enjoyment of the instrument you select. Players who like Jumbo frets are an excellent candidate for Scalloped necks as they produced a similar effect of having less wood under the fretted finger. The scalloped neck gives you a far better grip on the string and you can use a much lighter touch. link to Easy Classic Rock Songs to Play on Guitar. The thing is also, I actually like to use the frets up to the 24th, very rarely Id like even more, but I do melodies and chords in the higher regions, which I try to be precise about anyway. Hello i need help building a1968 CBS strat neck on Musik Kraft. You must have JavaScript enabled in your browser to utilize the functionality of this website. The scallops suit my playing style very well, and when I play this guitar, my left hand is certainly more relaxed. The idea of having little or no wood between the frets of a fretted instrument isnt new in music. There's the Malmsteen style, deep and symmetric on all frets. Your purchases help youth music programs get the gear they need to make music. Half of the fretboard is scalloped from the 12th through 22nd fret. A lot of old string instruments are scalloped. 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