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Flat 'radius' For Me?


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So i got to thinking about the way I set up my guitars. When I was younger and would send my guitars out to the shop to be set up and stuff and the guitars would come back with perfect action. However the last time this happened was when I needed a fret level and recrown and even though the guitar came back perfect i felt that it played all wrong. I play metal and I pick like a beast, fast and with force. Perhaps it's not the most refined technique ever but it works for me. With a normal low action, the lower strings just slap the frets during speed picking and palm muting and aren't very musical at all. So I sort of set the high strings where they should be and then raise the low end to what would be considered a high action. This past year I fitted a Kahler 2300 to one of my guitars and set the radius by feel of each string and what I thought it should feel like being played and how it sounded. I noticed that this "radius" is more or less like a slope rather than a curve. So what would it be like if I just took out the radius and made a flat fretboard where I could just apply the slope? Would this really change the feel of the guitar all that much since I set the actions all funky any way? Maybe a partial radius from say the fourth string to the first string where it's like a rounded slope on those strings or maybe the other way around to add action to the lower ones? I mean I play fine with radiused boards but why even bother if I don't really use them like normal players? Advice, discussion and info much appreciated. :D

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I'm not even going to attempt to read that massacre of the english language :D

a radius is used to improve playability, theres a reason 99.9999% of guitars (bar classical) have them.....

Massacre? I've seen much worse on forums. For those who are TLDR, he wants to know if he can use a flat fretboard, which would work (like a classical)

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If that setup works for you, then go for it. Your mileage may vary. No radius is universal, although the playability reasons for having radiused fingerboards are known and have been discussed to the nth degree.

So you're talking about an offset radius, right? I can't see why that wouldn't be feasible or impractical if it does the job it's supposed to do. Back profiles can be assymetrical after all. This slope vs. curve you're describing may be an artifact of string gauge increasing across the board, coupled with a slightly higher low string action. This re-radiusing however, would need to be done at the fingerboard level, not by sanding and recrowning the frets. You'll run out of fret material! You would need to pull the frets, re-radius the fingerboard (which the fretwire follows the curve of) and then refret to get anywhere.

Personally, I don't think your "technique" demands a specific setup and perhaps that despite this theory about assymetry being valid to a degree, I don't think a unique setup is what you need. If you pick hard, then a slightly higher action will improve your sound by removing any buzzes from excessive string deflection. You say you do this, which is good. I do think however, that you are still a normal player but you're looking for a unique fault or improvement where you won't really find it, and if you achieved this aim, I don't think you would be truly happy with it.

By the way - changing your trem system will change the feel of the instrument, especially if you go from floating to cam trems. The "problems" you're feeling might be from something you're not expecting to be fair. How many instruments do you own/play, to provide an objective comparison on what does and does not work?

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I'm not even going to attempt to read that massacre of the english language :D

a radius is used to improve playability, theres a reason 99.9999% of guitars (bar classical) have them.....

Massacre? I've seen much worse on forums. For those who are TLDR, he wants to know if he can use a flat fretboard, which would work (like a classical)

The spelling in post one is 100% perfect and the only grammatical error is the 'i' is not capatilized. Jeez Borge, sensitive B)

Youse had beter nowt reed none of dah crap i post on satdee arvo otherize ya'd call it a bludbath :D

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I was just thinking to myself that it ws better than the average question asked here and then I read the second post :D

while we are at it ,I'm ?!!!!!!, surely if you want to be perfect it should be I am? :D

Edited by joshvegas
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Flat fretboards aren't very common on electric guitars and basses, but there are a few guys floating around that have them. Seems more common on basses. Most of the guys that have them seem to like them. It's purely a matter of personal opinion. I've never had the chance to try it, but I would like to.

As to the OP's question. I don't think a flat board will do exactly what you're looking for. It's normal for the low strings to need to be set higher. This is a function of the string displacement, and not the fretboard radius. One thing you might try is going to heavier strings. Heavy strings don't move as far when they vibrate, so you can often set the action lower.

Edited by fookgub
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I did a flat radius on my 8 string and I really do like how it feels and Plays to the point that Ill be doing most of my builds like that from now on. I say give it a go

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I did a flat radius on my 8 string and I really do like how it feels and Plays to the point that Ill be doing most of my builds like that from now on. I say give it a go

what is the radius for? to me it helps fretting barre chords in high tension steel strings.

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You should consider a compound radius. You could have the fretboard arch near the top have it decrease until it's flat around the 9th fret, or so. It would make playing a lot easier in general.

A completely flat radius will make it more difficult to play chords. Even if you don't plan on playing many chords, it might not be good idea to have a setup that will hinder your playing in any way; that's just backwards. A very low radius might do you a little better. There's no harm in trying a flat one though(except maybe in your wallet, if you end up not liking it).

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You should consider a compound radius. You could have the fretboard arch near the top have it decrease until it's flat around the 9th fret, or so. It would make playing a lot easier in general.

A completely flat radius will make it more difficult to play chords. Even if you don't plan on playing many chords, it might not be good idea to have a setup that will hinder your playing in any way; that's just backwards. A very low radius might do you a little better. There's no harm in trying a flat one though(except maybe in your wallet, if you end up not liking it).

I have to ask, sorry. Why are classical guitars´fretboards flat? I played one for some time and given the required position of the hands relative to the legs and all, it is more comfortable. And, in classical music you spend a lot of time playing chords, and almost none pulling the strings. I thought that was one of the reasons.

its the thicker strings under much less tension they are easy to barre without the curve. I think...

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Sorry about the sort of run together nonsense in the first post. In response to Prostheta: It's not that I want to modify a guitar I own but perhaps for a new build. As for what I own and play now, it's sort of a mash up. I have an LTD Explorer and a Washburn Dimebag (low quality) signature both with tune-o-matics, an Ibanez S with a floyd low-pro in it, and the LTD KH-202 that I modified for the Kahler, as well as my first guitar which has a Fender style bridge. I do not like the feel of floyds that much in comparison with the tune-o-matic. The Kahler to me feels like a mix between the two and I love it. I'm not trying to reinvent the wheel here or anything but maybe an asymmetrical radius would work, however that's maybe a bit more work than I would want to tackle.

A friend of mine was raving about compound radius' and I can see how that would have an advantage as well. I could sort of set the action higher and perhaps compensate the lower strings using the nut so it has a lower action around the first couple frets. That's just a guess and is probably wrong, but a thought none the less. Then again, if Metal Matt did the flat fretboard thing and likes it, it might be worth investigating.

Edited by Sand Paper
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I recently tried hand planing a compound radius on my last build. It was really easy and came out absolutely perfect. I doubt a machine could do as accurate. I would guess that an asymmetrical curve would be equally as easy. The key is aligning the plane with the edge, not the middle line, of the FB. William Cumpiano 'splains it real good in his book.

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