Scalloped frets?

So I just heard/found out about scalloped frets. What are people's thoughts on them? I really only know the basics about them and am wondering if it might be a good investment to buy one. On that note, can you buy them like this or is it more of a mod you have to have done?

I think you can buy a scalloped neck from http://www.warmoth.com/. I've also seen articles on how to do it yourself.

I'd be interested in trying one myself. I hear you have to press very lightly though.

Originally Posted by: hunter1801So I just heard/found out about scalloped frets. What are people's thoughts on them?[/quote]
Growing up and learning guitar I was influenced by Ritchie Blackmore. I read he had a scalloped fretboard on his Strats. Then I saw him in concert & heard it live! Next, along comes YJM with his scalloped Strats. After that I had to have one. :p

So, I scalloped my strat-copy to try it out. Since then I've scalloped several other strats & strat copies. I still have two of them. My black '72 Strat & the ugly Strat copy are both here:

http://www.truthagainsttheworld.com/files/Tools/SchlegelFourElectricGuitars.jpg

You can kind of see the scallop in the pic.

Playing a scalloped neck is something you have to get used over a long period of time. Vibrato is much easier to achieve, but harder to control.

The main thing is this: the fretboard has been essentially changed to a gridwork of steel on steel. There is no wood of the fretboard under the strings for your fingers to rest or graze upon to "find their location". This means if you press too hard you will immediately bend the string sharp. Many people find this very frustrating and difficult to control.

They wind up trying to play barre chords and find that one or two of the notes in the chord are sharp because they are pressing them down slightly harder than the other notes of the chord. Typically, the wood of the fretboard keeps your fingers from doing this.

Also, notice Malmsteen's amazing, gorgeous, wide "violin-like" vibrato. That is a direct result of mastery of the scalloped fretboard. The steel on steel does make the strings "sing" differently than a non-scalloped guitar.

I've found it also makes you much more precise in your finger placement. This can result in being able to play much faster and more cleanly. Which is very hard, but worth the effort. It's definitely carried over to my playing on non-scalloped guitars.

The other thing it helps with is learning to only apply enough pressure to make the notes sound properly. Any more is wasted effort on a normal guitar. Any more on a scalloped guitar will make you sound terrible! (notes played too sharp in pitch, sloppy mechanics, etc.)

For those with full access I've got a series of lessons in which I explain & demonstrate different necks & fretboards (including the scalloped necks) here:

http://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=653
[QUOTE=hunter1801]
On that note, can you buy them like this or is it more of a mod you have to have done?

Both. Although, I'd recommend buying one unless you are prepared to ruin a few necks climbing the learning curve. :)

DIY:

http://www.projectguitar.com/tut/scal1.htm

Buy it:

http://www.warmoth.com/Guitar/necks/Scalloping.aspx

Hope this helps, have fun!

Would you say you have to be more of an advanced player to begin using them properly? I know the touch sensitivity and other things will take a while getting used to. Also, since you use scalloped frets like you mentioned, do you find that you prefer them over normal, or the other way around? Or does it just depend on what you are playing?

Originally Posted by: hunter1801Would you say you have to be more of an advanced player to begin using them properly?[/quote]
In my opinion, yes.

I would never, never, never recommend to a beginner, or anyone for that matter, to scallop a guitar if it was their only guitar. And especially if they only had the means to own only one guitar.

I've also been asked, "Would it improve a beginners playing long term to have a guitar with a scalloped neck?"

My reply is that I can't say definitively that is true. If I had to guess one way or the other, I would lean toward, "No, it would not help." The reason is that it is very helpful to have the wood of the fretboard there to help guide your clumsy fingers as a beginner. And the vast majority of music & guitars one will play & encounter has no use for a scalloped instrument.

Further, it is just as possible to develop proper technique & a light touch without a scalloped neck. It was not my intended goal to achieve a lighter touch. It was a happy accident! It was my hope that it would improve my speed & accuracy. But I had little evidence beyond I had read that Malmsteen & Blackmore used it.
[QUOTE=hunter1801]
Also, since you use scalloped frets like you mentioned, do you find that you prefer them over normal, or the other way around? Or does it just depend on what you are playing?

It depends. On classical or jazz things I prefer a normal fretboard. But, I do like jumbo or bigger than average frets. I can't stand those microfret things or a neck that has very low frets.

For rock & blues I can use either, but the faster I need to go, the more I like scalloped. But, I had very specific goals & purposes years ago at widely different gigs. Playing shred for 4 hours at a rock gig is much different than playing chord charts in a big band for 4 hours. On many gigs, I took two strats, my main red strat with jumbo frets & one backup with a scalloped neck.

Having said that, all my strats have jumbo frets. So, it doesn't make much difference either way to me these days. I know playing a scalloped neck for years is one thing that helped me a lot, however.

It seems to me that they are great for single not fast shredding stuff. I'm not sure how well it would work out for a lot of "chunkier" things like power chords, or some thrash metal stuff. I've been playing for 13 years, so I'm not too worried about being a beginner, but wonder how hard it would be or how long it would take to get used to one.

Originally Posted by: hunter1801I'm not sure how well it would work out for a lot of "chunkier" things like power chords, or some thrash metal stuff.[/quote]
It can be done. But it would obviously depend upon the player being able to adjust to using a light enough touch.
[QUOTE=hunter1801]I've been playing for 13 years, so I'm not too worried about being a beginner, but wonder how hard it would be or how long it would take to get used to one.

Only one way to find out, right?! :) I've seen some people take right to it & others never get used it.

I'd say go for it since you seem to be interested enough!

What would be the best way to go about getting one? I can buy a scalloped neck like mentioned before, or maybe an entire guitar? I don't have experience buying guitars in "pieces".

I have a strat (my first guitar, so I'm not going to scalop this one) and a Jackson King V that I kinda use as my "project" guitar. If I bought a neck should I put it on this or get another guitar body?

Obviously a lot of these questions are what I would want in the end, but I'm kinda clueless as to where to start. I would like to own a scalloped guitar, but since I know nothing about them, I wouldn't know how to really get one that would be good to learn on.

Originally Posted by: hunter1801What would be the best way to go about getting one?

That depends upon your budget & how much you are willing to try to DIY.

1. You could buy a YJM strat ready to go.
2. You could buy a cheap strat copy & neck from Warmoth & DIY.
3. You could buy a cheap strat copy & neck from Warmoth & pay a local tech.
4. You could buy a neck from Warmoth to attach to your strat body & DIY (obviously keep the original neck also & change them out as desired).
5. You could buy a neck from Warmoth to attach to your strat body by a local tech.

The whole world of scalloped fretboards awaits your decision! :)

Warmoth has a scalloped Strat neck # sn7309 for $298.

Would one's perception of the action on a scalloped fretboard be that it is high? My Strat's got jumbo frets and the action "feels" high even though it is 1/32 (a tad lower than the 3/64 I normally set on my guitars).

With the jumbo frets, I barely brush the fingerboard when the note is fretted, so I'm thinking scalloped might feel similar.

I was reading some postings on a board a while ago where someone had experimented with the perception of stiff action. There was no true reconciliation between perceived bendability vs. the actual tensile resistance. Too bad I forget where that was, it was an interesting article.

Originally Posted by: RazboWould one's perception of the action on a scalloped fretboard be that it is high?[/quote]
Obviously that would vary by individual. But I could see how some might think of it that way. I've been used to it for years, so I don't.

I remember learning to play on it, too! And I did not think of it as higher action. I do remember thinking it was like walking on a tightrope. But it immediately made me more accurate & consider how much pressure I was using.

Originally Posted by: Razbo
With the jumbo frets, I barely brush the fingerboard when the note is fretted, so I'm thinking scalloped might feel similar.

My red strat has jumbos. Even being able to barely brush the fretboard is quite a bit different (at least in my estimation) than totally scalloped.

The other thing that has a big effect on how it physically feels is the missing wood on both edges of the neck. That takes some getting used to also.
[QUOTE=Razbo]I was reading some postings on a board a while ago where someone had experimented with the perception of stiff action. There was no true reconciliation between perceived bendability vs. the actual tensile resistance.

Interesting stuff!