Fret

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nut

(in the background, coloured white) and first four frets

A fret is any of the thin strips of material, usually metal wire, inserted laterally at specific positions along the

. Frets usually extend across the full width of the neck. On some historical instruments and non-European instruments, frets are made of pieces of string tied around the neck.

Frets divide the neck into fixed segments at intervals related to a musical framework. On instruments such as guitars, each fret represents one semitone in the standard western system, in which one octave is divided into twelve semitones. Fret is often used as a verb, meaning simply "to press down the string behind a fret". Fretting often refers to the frets and/or their system of placement.

Explanation

Pressing the string against the fret reduces the vibrating length of the string to that between the

fingerboard.

Frets make it much easier for a player to achieve an acceptable standard of intonation since the frets determine the positions for the correct notes. Furthermore, a fretted fingerboard makes it easier to play chords accurately.

A disadvantage of frets is that they restrict pitches to the

, thus lowering or raising the string tension and pitch. However, except for instruments that accommodate extensive string pulling, like the sitar, much less influence on intonation is possible than on unfretted instruments.

Since the intonation of most modern western fretted instruments is

of the distances of two consecutive frets to the bridge is ${\displaystyle {\sqrt[{12}]{2}}}$ (the twelfth root of two), or approximately 1.059463.^[1] Theoretically, the twelfth fret should divide the string in two exact halves. To compensate for the increase in string tension when the string is pressed against the frets, the bridge position is adjusted slightly so the 12th fret plays exactly in tune.

microtonal

frets between semitones.

Many instruments' frets are not spaced according to the

system).

Variations

Fan frets (also fanned frets, slanted frets), or

employed a slanted fret, but it was not multi scale, or fanned. Novax Guitars among others offers such guitars today. The appearance of angled frets on these modern instruments belies the antiquity of this technique.

Scalloped fretboard:

. Scalloped fretboards have not found widespread popularity because tonally accurate play requires a much lighter fretting hand than most guitarists can achieve, and often significantly heavier strings as well.

Fat frets: on older guitars (especially the Fender Stratocaster), frets were typically made out of thin wire, and some electric guitar players replaced that with thicker wire, for "fat frets" or "jumbo frets". Fat frets make bending easier, and they change the feel of the guitar. As well, large frets, offering more metal, remain playable much longer than thin frets. A side effect of a thicker fret is a less precise note, since the string is held over a wider surface, causing a slight inaccuracy of pitch, which increases in significance as frets wear.^[2]

Semi-fretted instruments

It is also possible to find semi-fretted instruments; examples include the Malagasy kabosy and the Afghan Rubab. Semi-fretted versions of guitars and other fretted string instruments, however, are usually one-off, custom adaptations made for players who want to combine elements of both types of sound. One arrangement is for the frets to extend only part of the way along the neck so that the higher notes can be played with the smooth expression possible with a fretless fingerboard. Another approach is the use of frets that extend only partway across the fretboard so that some courses of strings are fretted and others fretless, for example Ryszard Latecki's Latar.

Fret intonation

Instruments with straight frets like guitars require a special compensation on the saddle and nut. Every time a string is fretted it is also stretched, and as it stretches the string rises in pitch, making all fretted tones sound sharp. When the saddle is positioned properly, however, the fretted tones all sound sharp to the same degree as long as the distances between the frets are correct. With the right nut compensation, the pitch of the unfretted string can be raised by the same amount. As a result, when the tension of the strings is lowered, the pitches of all notes, both fretted and unfretted, become correct.

Fret wear

On instruments equipped with steel strings, such as

, frets are eventually bound to wear down as the strings cut grooves into them. When this happens, the instrument may need refretting (the frets are removed and replaced) or, in less severe cases, "fret dressing" (the frets are leveled, polished, and possibly recrowned). Often, a few fret dressings can be performed on a guitar before it requires complete refretting.

Tied gut frets, used on instruments such as the lute or viol, wear quickly, and must be replaced regularly.

Fret buzz

Fret buzz is one of the many undesirable phenomena that can occur on a guitar or similar

• Low action
• Improperly installed fretbars
• Strings too loose
• Improper
  guitar neck

Fret buzz is evident in some famous recordings; an example is "

and the low tension of the strings is used to create fret buzz by the bass player in order to create a dirty sound.

History

It is not known when frets were first used. An early example from about the 3rd century C.E. was discovered in 1907 in the Niya ruins in Xinjiang, China, a broken lute's neck with two gut frets intact.^[4] The neck and pegbox of the lute are similar to the lute painted on the wall in the Dingjiazha Tomb No. 5 (384–441 A.D.^[5]), which also has frets. Buddhist artworks from the 6th-10th centuries C.E. in the Mogao Caves (558-907 C.E.) and Yulin Caves (618-907 C.E.) appear to have frets. Some long lutes in the Utrecht Psalter (c. 850 C.E.) in France also appear fretted, as do citoles from Spain in the Cantigas de Santa Maria (c. 1280).

See also

• Open chord

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Frets.

Look up fret in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (June 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

• Konrad Schwingenstein: Intonation of stringed instruments with straight frets, http://www.pepithesecond.com
• Calculating Fret Positions – An article on calculating fret positions for any equal tempered instrument on Liutaio Mottola Lutherie
• How to replace frets – Photo story
• Installing the Frets in a Fretted Stringed Musical Instrument – An article on fret installation for a new instrument on Liutaio Mottola Lutherie
• Dressing the Frets in a Fretted Stringed Musical Instrument – An article on fret dressing on Liutaio Mottola Lutherie
• Fix Guitar String Buzz – Article about guitar string buzz problems and fixes on Guitar Repair Bench
• Re-fret Bound and Unbound Fretboards – Article about removing, installing, leveling, crowning, and dressing guitar frets on Guitar Repair Bench