lotass Posted February 25, 2004 Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 Was watching Vai's Astoria DVD and saw his inlays on his JEM are blue neon lights, could I do this? Where exactly would you get the small neon lights? And is it fiber optics or what? Stupid question, but can someone kind of explain "fiber-optic(s)" to me? I know how to use it but im not 100% on the definition of it, Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAI6 Posted February 25, 2004 Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 First, is your question about "neon" or "fiber optics"? Steve's guitar has LED's in the neck, as does Billy Sheehan's bass. And that has been covered extensively on this board.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sethmetal Posted February 25, 2004 Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 Fiber optics are basically continuous extruded clear fibers, light can be "shot" down them fro data purposes or visual effect. I have seen a company that puts an led for each fret/each string and has scale and chords programmed in so the correct lights will light up. Good idea.(I bet you'd get laughed at if you had to have your scale blazing on stage.) The point of bringing that up is that if they could do a whole fretboard in LED's I am sure what Vai has done is very possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotass Posted February 26, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2004 alright thanks you two and ill try searching (although I hate searching forums) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevan Posted February 26, 2004 Report Share Posted February 26, 2004 I have seen a company that puts an led for each fret/each string and has scale and chords programmed in so the correct lights will light up. Good idea.(I bet you'd get laughed at if you had to have your scale blazing on stage.) Those are the Optek FretLight guitars. Pretty cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveq Posted February 27, 2004 Report Share Posted February 27, 2004 alright thanks you two and ill try searching (although I hate searching forums) You should turn up lots of info on the subject. It appears to be asked weekly lately. I'm finishing up another blue LED neck now. I have tried messing around with fiber but due to the large bending radius it doesn't seem practical. There is a way to cut it such that the light reflects off the cut but it requires a time consuming, and accurate process that I just don't have time for. The LED's are time consuming enough. Let me know if you need help getting info on it - there's plenty of info out there. One suggestion that many people overlook is to consider your power source before going too far. How long (or short in this case) are you willing to go between battery changes. If you don't mind changing them out frequently, go with a couple of 9V's, otherwise look into AAA or AA batteries - there's a big difference in battery life. It also affects the body since you'll need to make a home for your batteries. Is this for a complete build or just a neck? Are you looking to retro-fit into an existing neck? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iskim86 Posted February 28, 2004 Report Share Posted February 28, 2004 vai uses SIMS Custom Fretboard inlays, check it out here... http://www.simscustom.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ansil Posted February 29, 2004 Report Share Posted February 29, 2004 you can get free samples of fiberoptics online. by asking for them also it is possible to retrofit a fretboard but it does require some work.. unless you plan on removing it from the neck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveq Posted February 29, 2004 Report Share Posted February 29, 2004 you can get free samples of fiberoptics online. by asking for them Have you installed fiber into a guitar neck / fretboard? I have some fiber here but I have not found a reasonable way to get it to work very well. I think my only option is to do an angle cut and try to reflect the light since bending requires way too much space. I'd be interested to hear how you managed to do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ansil Posted February 29, 2004 Report Share Posted February 29, 2004 you do have to drill at an angle and since i was redoing the inlays i just made bigger inlays.. as for where ot put the fiber optic i used a dremel and routed a small channel down the side of the neck around a 1/4" from the fretboard neck glue joint.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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