Test frets for making micro guitars and basses?

Hello tuners,

I am wondering if anybody knows of any frets that just sit on the
surface of the neck and can be used to empirically test fret
placement?

Has anyone bought something like this or fashioned something
like this themselves ?

If they bought something where did they buy? And if they made
someting themselves how did they make?

Justin

Hello tuners,

I am wondering if anybody knows of any frets that just sit on the
surface of the neck and can be used to empirically test fret
placement?

Has anyone bought something like this or fashioned something
like this themselves ?

If they bought something where did they buy? And if they made
someting themselves how did they make?

Justin

On 20 Jun 2002, at 4:13, justintonation wrote:

> I am wondering if anybody knows of any frets that just sit on the
> surface of the neck and can be used to empirically test fret
> placement?
>
> Has anyone bought something like this or fashioned something
> like this themselves ?

Movable frets were standard on viols all through the Renaissance
and baroque -- they were made of gut. You could try Charles Ogle
at violadagamba.com for information.

Judy

--- In MakeMicroMusic@y..., judithconrad@m... wrote:
> On 20 Jun 2002, at 4:13, justintonation wrote:
>
> > I am wondering if anybody knows of any frets that just sit on
the
> > surface of the neck and can be used to empirically test fret
> > placement?
> >
> > Has anyone bought something like this or fashioned
something
> > like this themselves ?
>
> Movable frets were standard on viols all through the
Renaissance
> and baroque -- they were made of gut. You could try Charles
Ogle
> at violadagamba.com for information.
>
> Judy

Thanks Judith and Rick for the info!

Justin

On Friday, June 21, 2002, at 12:28 ,
MakeMicroMusic@yahoogroups.com wrote:

> Re: Test frets for making micro guitars and basses?
>
> On 20 Jun 2002, at 4:13, justintonation wrote:
>
>> I am wondering if anybody knows of any frets that just sit on the
>> surface of the neck and can be used to empirically test fret
>> placement?
>>
>> Has anyone bought something like this or fashioned something
>> like this themselves ?
>
> Movable frets were standard on viols all through the Renaissance
> and baroque -- they were made of gut. You could try Charles Ogle
> at violadagamba.com for information.
>
> Judy

See <http://www.chouard.de/> for Hervé R. Chouard's Fret Mobile
system. I tried e-mailing him for info but got no response, so
I'll wait till I'm really in a position to order & then use the
telephone.

- Joel

--- In MakeMicroMusic@y..., Joel Rodrigues
<joelrodrigues@m...> wrote:
>
> On Friday, June 21, 2002, at 12:28 ,
> MakeMicroMusic@y... wrote:
>
> > Re: Test frets for making micro guitars and basses?
> >
> > On 20 Jun 2002, at 4:13, justintonation wrote:
> >
> >> I am wondering if anybody knows of any frets that just sit on
the
> >> surface of the neck and can be used to empirically test fret
> >> placement?
> >>
> >> Has anyone bought something like this or fashioned
something
> >> like this themselves ?
> >
> > Movable frets were standard on viols all through the
Renaissance
> > and baroque -- they were made of gut. You could try Charles
Ogle
> > at violadagamba.com for information.
> >
> > Judy
>
> See <http://www.chouard.de/> for Hervé R. Chouard's Fret
Mobile
> system. I tried e-mailing him for info but got no response, so
> I'll wait till I'm really in a position to order & then use the
> telephone.
>
> - Joel

These are fantastic instruments Joel. I wonder if you can have as
many frets as you like in the channels. I cannot see anything that
would restrict this.

I wonder how much the instruments cost.

Something worth saving for.

Justin

> "justintonation" <JUSTINTONATION@...>
>
> --- In MakeMicroMusic@y..., Joel Rodrigues
> <joelrodrigues@m...> wrote:
>>
>> On Friday, June 21, 2002, at 12:28 ,
>> MakeMicroMusic@y... wrote:
>>
>>> Re: Test frets for making micro guitars and basses?
>>>
>>> On 20 Jun 2002, at 4:13, justintonation wrote:
>>>
>>>> I am wondering if anybody knows of any frets that just sit on
> the
>>>> surface of the neck and can be used to empirically test fret
>>>> placement?
>>>>
>>>> Has anyone bought something like this or fashioned
> something
>>>> like this themselves ?
>>>
>>> Movable frets were standard on viols all through the
> Renaissance
>>> and baroque -- they were made of gut. You could try Charles
> Ogle
>>> at violadagamba.com for information.
>>>
>>> Judy
>>
>> See <http://www.chouard.de/> for HervÈ R. Chouard's Fret
> Mobile
>> system. I tried e-mailing him for info but got no response, so
>> I'll wait till I'm really in a position to order & then use the
>> telephone.
>>
>> - Joel
>
> These are fantastic instruments Joel.

My reaction exactly !

> I wonder if you can have as
> many frets as you like in the channels. I cannot see anything that
> would restrict this.

Probably only limited by the size of the fret units and how many
fit into the channels.

> I wonder how much the instruments cost.

Going through the Tuning List archives I found some posts from
Wim Hoogewerf who uses the system professionally in concerts:

Aug 1999:
"the price is at least a 1000 dollar. The guitar has to come to Germany.
Building in the FretMobile system will take a day or two. Please send a
quick note to HervÈ so he can send you detailed information. The
technical
realisation is at NASA level. Extremely trustworthy."

Dec 2000:
"Hervé Chouard, Walter Vogt's successor and actually the only
(and lonely)
producer of *the* system, told me recently that he has managed
to reduce the
cost considerately thanks to a new plastic material for the fretlets,
allowing the use of a mould."

Aug 2001:
"Frets for every string are individually tuneable within one
cent precision.
I do use the system myself since 1986. The advantage is definitely the
professional reliability: every configuration is possible, no loss of
sustain or whatsoever. Disadvantage: every tuning takes time to
set, between
20 and 30 minutes. So you need several guitars to do a whole
concert with
different tunings."

> Something worth saving for.

Yes !

> Justin
>

Cheers,
Joel

--- In MakeMicroMusic@y..., "justintonation" <JUSTINTONATION@H...>
wrote:

> > See <http://www.chouard.de/> for Hervé R. Chouard's Fret
> Mobile
> > system. I tried e-mailing him for info but got no response, so
> > I'll wait till I'm really in a position to order & then use the
> > telephone.
> >
> > - Joel
>
> These are fantastic instruments Joel. I wonder if you can have as
> many frets as you like in the channels. I cannot see anything that
> would restrict this.
>
> I wonder how much the instruments cost.
>
> Something worth saving for.
>
> Justin

the only fine-tunable guitar? this is false advertising.

wim hoogewerf has a guitar with the very same design idea, and i
believe the maker is named vogt or something. perhaps someone could
contact wim and get him over here.

on wim's there are limitations to the closeness of the frets due to
the structures holding the fretlets in *underneath* the fingerboard,
as i recall . . .

--- In MakeMicroMusic@y..., Joel Rodrigues <joelrodrigues@m...> wrote:

> Dec 2000:
> "Hervé Chouard, Walter Vogt's successor

whoops -- appears i was right *and* wrong!

Paul,

{you wrote...}
>the only fine-tunable guitar? this is false advertising.

Careful! Beyond the "oops" that you followed with, it could also be an example of less-than-superior research - like more than one "Stretch" band! :)

Cheers,
Jon