Fanned Fret or Multiscale Fret Guitar Reviews
Fanned Fret – Have you ever seen a guitar with a tilted fret shape? If you ever ask someone about the slanted fret, someone will answer it as fanned fret, or a multiscale fret. The next question is definitely: what is multi-scale or fanned fret?
Multiscale or fanned fret guitar is a concept where each string has a different scale length from one another. For the uninitiated, the scale on a guitar is the distance between the guitar nut and the bridge. On multiscale or fanned frets, we will have a longer scale for each lower string.
Many argue that this multiscale feature has better playability and tone than a guitar with a conventional fretboard.
The concept of the multiscale instrument is actually already commonly used in many other musical instruments, such as piano, harp, etc. When this concept is applied to instruments that use frets (such as guitars), there will be some changes in form, which are now more commonly known as Fan Frets.
According to various sources, this multiscale concept first appeared around the 16th century on musical instruments called Orphario and Bandora. It wasn’t until the 1900s that this multiscale concept was applied to modern guitars.
In general, the scale used by guitars is generally between 25.5 inches, although there are also those who use a shorter or longer scale. What is the difference? Perhaps a more appropriate question would be: what are the benefits of using a long/short scale on a guitar?
Here we will discuss some of the pros and cons, whether it’s using a short or long scale.
1. Shorter scale
Pro:
- String tension is reduced
- Easier to bend
- The high string sounds smoother
- Fingers will be easier to do positions that require stretch
Counter:
- You will need thicker strings if you want down tuning
- Sometimes low-end frequencies sound muddy or unclear
- Often requires setting intonation when down tuning
2. Longer scale
Pro:
- The low string will sound clearer and tighter
- Better intonation on low strings
- Because the tension of the strings increases, the user can use smaller strings
- When playing at high frets there will be more space (because the distance between the frets tends to be wider)
Counter:
- String tension will be heavier
- More difficult to bend
- High strings can sound too bright
- It will be more difficult to do hand stretching
Some of the points above are the pros and cons of using it, whether it’s a guitar with a short or long scale. How about multiscale? Friends must have guessed that multiscale combines the benefits of the two scales. Yup, it does. Here are some of the descriptions:
Multiscale Fret
Pro:
- String tension on high strings will be smaller so it’s easier to bend
- Because the scale on the lower strings is longer, the string tension will also be greater so we can still use smaller strings
- Because the scale on the high strings is shorter, it will automatically sound smoother
- The lower string will also have better intonation, and also sound tighter and clearer
Although it seems to answer all the problems that exist in both types of scale, this multiscale still has several shortcomings, namely:
- Some chord shapes will be more difficult to play
- You will need adjustments in playing it
- Limited options, because not many guitar manufacturers use this concept, it will automatically be harder for us to find product variants, spare parts, and service points
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Although at first, this type of guitar was difficult to obtain, over time, now many manufacturers have issued guitar products that use multiscale, such as Kiesel, Strandberg, Ax Factory, and many others.
This multiscale is arguably one of the breakthroughs that we will encounter in many modern guitars in the future because more and more guitarists want to explore their sound and playing, one of which is increasing the number of strings. And to overcome the problems that arise in the more strings (intonation and clarity), a multiscale fret is one solution. One guitarist who is synonymous with multiscale frets is Tosin Abasi (Animal As Leaders).
