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March 2007
Posts: 698
Location: Cork, Ireland | My first guitar, an Egmond, had one. That was an old, cheap guitar and was a joy to play but only because it was my first guitar! |
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April 2006
Posts: 2491
Location: Copenhagen Denmark | ZERO Fret is the BEST ! ...also more costly !! ( When done Properly )
However...it all depends on how Well Made the whole instrument is ..
Vic |
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March 2007
Posts: 665
Location: Tychy, Poland | on my Legend i have zero fret installed. |
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May 2008
Posts: 4996
Location: Phoenix AZ | Originally posted by LBJ:
on my Legend i have zero fret installed. How did you do that without reslotting an entire new scale fretboard? |
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Joined:
March 2007
Posts: 665
Location: Tychy, Poland | this guitar had it's headstock broken and it was strenghtened by additional, small wood block.
guitar was refretted.
pics:
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January 2002
Posts: 14127
Location: 6 String Ranch | That's one way to do it.
I never liked them but what do I know, I just used to sell jet fuel.......... |
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Joined:
December 2006
Posts: 6268
Location: Florida Central Gulf Coast | Originally posted by Mauvais Beal:
I just used to sell jet fuel... Ahh, good ol' JP-4... used it to light our "CHARcoal" in Nam!
Ooops, wrong thread... :D |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 7223
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | Ok... a little Off from the point of this thread... but..
Especially on an Ovation, why would one repair a headstock? Wouldn't replacing the neck be as cost effective? |
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July 2002
Posts: 1900
| ..I don't know, but my next O or A will be special ordered with a zero nut system and stainless steel fret wire... |
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March 2007
Posts: 665
Location: Tychy, Poland | Originally posted by Mr. Ovation:
Ok... a little Off from the point of this thread... but..
Especially on an Ovation, why would one repair a headstock? Wouldn't replacing the neck be as cost effective? maybe because i live in Poland? and there's a lot of bad things that can happen to the neck on the way?;] |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 7223
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | Originally posted by LBJ:
maybe because i live in Poland? and there's a lot of bad things that can happen to the neck on the way?;] LOL... wasn't asking you specifically, although not being someplace where getting the neck or shipping the guitar is certainly a good reason. I hadn't thought of that. However, I still have seen quite a few neck repairs on Ovations over the years, and just thought it odd. Your reason makes perfect sense. |
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March 2008
Posts: 2683
Location: Hot Springs, S.D. | Older Epiphones had a zero fret too. I've been wanting to post that for days now, but my computer's been on the fritz. It's back now, and so am I. |
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Joined:
March 2003
Posts: 555
Location: Wooster, Ohio | Have an 1978 Carvin doubleneck with zero frets. Necks were made by Honer. Zero fret European thing mostly. I think the idea makes sense.
Steve |
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January 2007
Posts: 672
Location: New South Wales, Australia | My lack of knowledge knows no bounds. I realise I've played a guitar with a zero fret but I didn't know it. It was a friend's guitar....a cheap one, dunno the brand....and I remember thinking to myself.."why does this thing have this extra fret?"
It didn't seem to do anything and the guitar was one of those that would've sounded crappy no matter who played it.
So if I was to play a higher class of guitar with a zero fret, would I notice a difference or is it something only the more knowledgeable among us would appreciate? |
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November 2005
Posts: 1126
Location: Omaha, NE | Zero frets always remind me of the cheap Sears catalog guitars I would pine for as a kid. |
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Joined:
November 2004
Posts: 4413
| This by Roger Bucknall, the man who is Fylde Guitars:-
"I could never see the sense of "stopping" the string in one fashion for open strings, and in another fashion for fretted notes. Neither does it seem logical to use different materials for the two different situations.
Holding the string in a closely fitting nut slot affects the strings vibration and exaggerates "end effects", which are one reason for difficulties in intonation, particularly on the stiffer strings. The end effects are different for each string, and also for different "partials" within the same note.
Allowing the string to rest gently but firmly against a fret for all position minimises these end effects, and reduces the need for for intonation correction at the saddle.
I first started using it after working on Martin Carthys guitar, which had been modified with a zero fret- to begin with I thought of it as a way of improving string height and string length accuracy, but bit by bit Ive come to see it more scientifically. Maccaferri and Gretsch used the idea in rough form, and a number of modern makers are beginning to see the advantages. One famous spanish maker used a similar idea, where the bone nut is shaped into two section, fret and spacer.
Although it has been used on cheap guitars, when done properly, it is not a short cut in manufacturing. Even if it was , it wouldnt be appropriate to save a small amount on an expensive guitar. To take advantage of its benefits, the angles of the strings over the zero fret need to be carefuly adjusted to be similar to the angles produced by finger pressure, the slots in the nut are shaped and smoothed to aid easy tuning, and it is very important that the zero fret is at the correct height for proper string clearance.
Its difficult and time consuming to do properly, but I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t think it worthwhile." |
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June 2007
Posts: 3084
Location: Brisbane Australia | I wonder if Air guitars have them?? :D |
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November 2004
Posts: 4413
| In Alaska they're called Sub-zero frets. |
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March 2002
Posts: 14842
Location: NJ | YouBETcha . . . |
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February 2005
Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | Like he knows. He thought there were mountains in Alaska, too... |
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November 2004
Posts: 4413
| They were falling into the sea last video I saw. |
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zero fret
