Talk:Fret

Fretless instruments
Why do we need to mention these in an article on frets?--Light current 02:14, 15 April 2006 (UTC)

Moved here from page:

Fretless instruments
Many fretted instruments are also available in fretless versions. For example, the bass guitar and acoustic bass guitar come in both varieties. The majority are fretted, like the vast majority of guitars, but a significant number of fretless basses are also played, in part drawing on the influence of the double bass (itself, virtually always fretless). Fretless classical guitars are rare, becuase such instruments are usually custom-made.

--Light current 03:18, 15 April 2006 (UTC)

Websters Dic defn
2.	(Mus.) A short piece of wire, or other material fixed across the finger board of a guitar or a similar instrument, to indicate where the finger is to be placed. --Light current 00:05, 13 July 2006 (UTC)

Fret is also...
...a word used in parts of eastern England to describe a sea fog from the North Sea. It's the same as the Scots word haar. 86.136.253.203 00:37, 28 April 2007 (UTC)

== there are no observstions that confirm the claims made by the author, the claims are speculative and are based exclusively on theory. There is no perspective from the musician nor the luthier especially on the claim that guitar nuts need to be adjusted.

Fret is also....
... not worrying about something. {i.e. Dont fret about whats going to happen.}

Fret Construction
Should there be a section on so-called integral frets (as found on small instruments like the ukulele and banjo-ukulele), and scalloped frets (on electric guitars, in the pattern of Malmsteem)? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Tmcw (talk • contribs) 05:37, 3 July 2008 (UTC)

History
Is it known where and when the first fretted instrument appeared? --Jerome Potts (talk) 18:53, 27 January 2009 (UTC)

A possible first example: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Egyptian_lute_players_001.jpg "Egyptian lute players. Fresco from the tomb of Nebamun, a nobleman in the 18th Dynasty of Ancient Egypt (c. 1350 BC)." SevenTowers (talk) 23:44, 18 January 2017 (UTC)


 * The History section could use some fleshing out. When, for example, did frets transition from being strings tied around the neck, to wood or metal inserts IN the fingerboard of the neck?

Fret wear
Fret wear can also occur on nylon string guitars, although it probably takes longer. I have a classical guitar I got in 1968 which has quite noticeable wear on the frets, although it doesn't seem to affect the playing. Wschart (talk) 16:50, 30 December 2009 (UTC)

Fret Buzz
I propose that the Fret Buzz article either be removed or cited, shortened and merged with this article. It is probably a good thing to mention, but I really don't feel that it needs a full article. Opinions? TooManyTooMuch (talk) 00:15, 22 January 2011 (UTC)
 * I just made that article redirect to a section of this article, basically a copy/paste of "Fret buzz" minus some how-to text. __ Just plain Bill (talk) 03:33, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

temperament considerations ignored
A fretted instrument is stuck in well temperament, so that it may play in any key without any particular note being too far from pitch. This works... acceptably for accompaniment, but performance of single-tone solos can often sound "off." Anyone familiar with the blue note recognizes this; there's also microtonal music. Experienced players partially correct for this (often unconsciously) with string bending and finger vibrato techniques. They are attempting to reach just intonation.


 * "Harmonic intervals come naturally to horns, vibrating strings, and in human singing voices."
 * "Although the explicit use of just intonation fell out of favour concurrently with the increasing use of instrumental accompaniment (with its attendant constraints on pitch), most a cappella ensembles naturally tend toward just intonation because of the comfort of its stability."
 * "Stringed instruments that are not playing with fixed-pitch instruments tend to adjust the pitch of key notes such as thirds and leading tones so that the pitches differ from equal temperament."

For decades, some luthiers have experimented with essentially cutting up frets and placing the resultant pieces where (theoretically) the note SHOULD be, rather than in the standard position of total compromise. There are also limited fixes, such as the Buzz Feiten Tuning System (really only effective to about fret 5).

Limited compromise can be achieved on a standard instrument by adjusting the tuning of each string to best suit a particular musical piece, the predominant key, the primary left-hand position for the piece, and so on.

I say all this because these factors are inherent to fretted instruments AND entirely ignored in the fret article. Weeb Dingle (talk) 18:45, 12 February 2017 (UTC)


 * Per one luthier: "In tempered tuning all chords are slightly "out", but all by the same small amount. ...the tempered scale is a compromise that enables us to play all chords and intervals, in all keys, with the same relative accuracy. It therefore follows that there is not one chord on the guitar that tunes absolutely pure. ... The only pure fretted intervals that can normally be produced on the guitar are unison and octave. In tempered tuning fifths are lowered by 2 cents compared to pure. Fourths are raised by 2 cents from pure. Thirds are raised 14 cents, and minor thirds lowered 16 cents, from pure." -- Paul Guy Guitars Weeb Dingle (talk) 11:11, 14 February 2017 (UTC)