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Vintage threads from the first ten years

Guitar tuning

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6/5/1998 2:31 PM
gus	Guitar tuning There are four patents that anyone might want to check out for entertainment. #4,295,404 #5,404,783 #5,600,079 #5,728,956 I wonder if one was to check the nut to first fret distance on stringed instruments made over the ages if the nut to first fret distance is shorter than theory.

6/5/1998 8:09 PM

How about Buzz Feitlan(?) tuning?

So what is this new tuning method/system that is supposed to keep your guitar more in tune up and down the fretboard? Does it involve the spacing of the frets, or the angle of the frets or what? I've noticed some guitar mfg's now including it with their higher priced guitars.

Are there aftermarket necks for strats and teles that use the B.F. system?

Steve Ahola

P.S. Speaking of wierd necks when I first saw Muddy Waters in 1966, his guitar had shiny "buttons" between all of the frets under the first string, perhaps to get quarter tones. As far as I could tell they were raised and not flush with the fretboard. I'd never seen anything like it and it was the inspiration for my infamous fretless guitar which never did catch on like its cousin, the fretless bass.

6/7/1998 8:28 PM

> So what is this new tuning method/system >that is supposed to keep your guitar more in >tune up and down the fretboard? Does it >involve the spacing of the frets, or the >angle of the frets or what? I've noticed >some guitar mfg's now including it with >their higher priced guitars.

Nothing is done to the frets (fortunately). The nut is move about 2mm closer to the first fret and you intonate and tune the strings with some slight offsets that are supplied to you when you have the system fitted. You have to take your guitar to an authorised dealer to have the system installed. Suhrs and Andersons have it fitted as standard I believe.

6/8/1998 7:58 AM
gus	Steve check the patents out at the ibm patent site. The first one is from the early 80s the last three are newer. They are interesting reading.

6/8/1998 6:47 PM
Steve A.	Gus: Can you post the URL for the patent site? Doc & Cosmik: Thanks for the explanation! Ever since tuners became affordable I've always wondered why some fret positions seem to be more out of tune than others... Steve Ahola

6/9/1998 8:10 AM
gus	www.patents.ibm.com. This is a fun site to visit you have to be creative in looking patents up when you dont know the number. The prs one uses lute not guitar in the title.

6/8/1998 2:10 PM

Re: Guitar tuning

The theory used to divide a fingerboard for fret placement just uses a mathematical relationship to divide the string's length. For instance, the note one octave higher would calculate to be exactly half the fundamental length. The problem arises because there is a finite distance the string must be deflected to reach the fret, and in doing so raises the string's tension and pitch. So the math is in error, because it doesn't take string tension change into consideration. The 12th fret's location should be slightly farther from the bridge than 1/2 the open string length. The worst case of this tension/pitch increase happens at the first fret. By moving the nut about 1/16" closer to the bridge (actually, to the 1st fret), more notes become closer to where they should be in actual pitch. Anderson & PRS have this compensation. Since an equal-tempered stringed instrument with discrete divisions, or increments, used to divide the string's length cannot be made to make every note ring true, there's a tuning system that Buzz Feiten recommends that places the errors at specific locations. Distributing the errors in specific locations tends to make most of the fretted notes sound "right", or as good as you can get this equal-tempered instrument to play.

I think the Anderson guitars have slightly repositioned frets (not angled!) and relocated nut. The greatest improvement over the "standard" guitar is realized by the nut relocation. Further improvements toward ideal are made with relocated frets and Feiten's tuning sequence.

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