Michael Watts Fret Explainer (with Casimi)

[K Trespass]

Hi,

If you are thinking of a fan fret or just want to hear a bit of great tone you might enjoy this:





Enjoy,

Greg

[Guitars44me]

Great stuff! Thanks for posting this and thanks to MW for the video!!!

I recently had a lovely FF (my FIRST) for a few days. It was not the right axe for me, but I was Pleased that I could play bottleneck Slide on it with out much difficulty at all!

I even laid it down and GENTLY played lap style on it and that was not too difficult for me either. I did have to pay attention...

Of course one intonates with vibrato for Slide anyway. Still.....

Monster axe in the Video, and MW ALWAYS RIPS!

Cheers

Paul

[K Trespass]

Thanks Paul. The guitar in the video is pretty special.

I am not much of a slide player but interesting to see how you adjusted. Echoes some of MW’s comments in the video about nuanced changes of technique.

Originally Posted by Guitars44me

Great stuff! Thanks for posting this and thanks to MW for the video!!!

I recently had a lovely FF (my FIRST) for a few days. It was not the right axe for me, but I was Pleased that I could play bottleneck Slide on it with out much difficulty at all!

I even laid it down and GENTLY played lap style on it and that was not too difficult for me either. I did have to pay attention...

Of course one intonates with vibrato for Slide anyway. Still.....

Monster axe in the Video, and MW ALWAYS RIPS!

Cheers

Paul

[Michael Watts]

Originally Posted by Guitars44me

Great stuff! Thanks for posting this and thanks to MW for the video!!!

I recently had a lovely FF (my FIRST) for a few days. It was not the right axe for me, but I was Pleased that I could play bottleneck Slide on it with out much difficulty at all!

I even laid it down and GENTLY played lap style on it and that was not too difficult for me either. I did have to pay attention...

Of course one intonates with vibrato for Slide anyway. Still.....

Monster axe in the Video, and MW ALWAYS RIPS!

Cheers

Paul

Thanks for your kind words Paul, great to hear from you!

Originally Posted by K Trespass

Thanks Paul. The guitar in the video is pretty special.

I am not much of a slide player but interesting to see how you adjusted. Echoes some of MW’s comments in the video about nuanced changes of technique.

Thank you so much for posting, you beat me to it! It's a superb guitar and I look forward to doing a few more videos with it in the next month.

If there's any particular topic you'd like me to address guys then let me know by DM or over my website or social media.

All the best

Michael

[Wolfram]

Great video, Michael, as always - thanks Greg for posting.

Originally Posted by Guitars44me

Great stuff! Thanks for posting this and thanks to MW for the video!!!

I recently had a lovely FF (my FIRST) for a few days. It was not the right axe for me, but I was Pleased that I could play bottleneck Slide on it with out much difficulty at all!

I even laid it down and GENTLY played lap style on it and that was not too difficult for me either. I did have to pay attention...

Of course one intonates with vibrato for Slide anyway. Still.....

Monster axe in the Video, and MW ALWAYS RIPS!

Cheers

Paul

It's a common misconception that slide can't be played on a multiscale guitar. There's absolutely no reason why not - if anything it can be even more comfortable as the fan of the frets tends to follow the sweep of your arm and the natural straight position of your slide finger.

I make slides for a living and I have a few multiscale acoustic and electric instruments - I'm a big fan(! )- my main guitar is a 25.25" - 26" fan-fret. I don't keep separate guitars for slide - they're all setup with a comfortable fingerstyle action (a great slide does not need heavy gauge strings or a high action).

Cheers,
David

[CarolD]

Interesting video. Absolutely floored by Casimi guitars. Wish a guitar was even a thought in my head when I was in South Africa in November. I don’t know if they let people into their shop, but how cool! What I didn’t get from this video (and sorry, I’m a beginner ) is what is the advantage of a fan fret?

[Guitars44me]

"I don't keep separate guitars for slide - they're all setup with a comfortable fingerstyle action (a great slide does not need heavy gauge strings or a high action)."

Me either. It requires a light touch but I can even lay a low action axe down and play lap slide. It helps to have extra hard frets, just in case I get carried away!

I agree with Wolfram. The stereotype of high action for Slide is NOT necessary.

Cheers

Paul

[TomB'sox]

Originally Posted by CarolD

Interesting video. Absolutely floored by Casimi guitars. Wish a guitar was even a thought in my head when I was in South Africa in November. I don’t know if they let people into their shop, but how cool! What I didn’t get from this video (and sorry, I’m a beginner ) is what is the advantage of a fan fret?

The big advantage is you can have a long scale on the bass side and a shorter scale on the treble side. With the longer bass scale, you can tune down to say dropped D or DADGAD and maintain good string tension on the bass strings so they still ring true while the short scale on the treble strings allows for those to really shine. Some people say playing them is easier to for some chords, but the main thing is the string tension on both sides of the fretboard.

[CarolD]

Originally Posted by TomB'sox

The big advantage is you can have a long scale on the bass side and a shorter scale on the treble side. With the longer bass scale, you can tune down to say dropped D or DADGAD and maintain good string tension on the bass strings so they still ring true while the short scale on the treble strings allows for those to really shine. Some people say playing them is easier to for some chords, but the main thing is the string tension on both sides of the fretboard.

Thank you for the explanation! That makes sense. Though you would be able to tune down on a regular fretted long scale neck... Is it so you can have an overall shorter scale guitar that you can have the benefit of down-tuning? And sorry, I’m trying to work it out in my head and I’m kind of thinking out loud

[Michael Watts]

Originally Posted by CarolD

Thank you for the explanation! That makes sense. Though you would be able to tune down on a regular fretted long scale neck... Is it so you can have an overall shorter scale guitar that you can have the benefit of down-tuning? And sorry, I’m trying to work it out in my head and I’m kind of thinking out loud

Hi Carol,

Thanks for watching!

The main advantage of a fan fret to my mind is the sound. That comes from the marriage of a long scale on the bass end and a short scale on the trebles.

Yes some people find them easier to play (I don't) and others have reported improved intonation (maybe in lower tunings where they keep the bass nice and tight) but that has not been a noticeable part of the fan fret experience for me.

I hope that helps.

All the best

Michael Watts

[jaymarsch]

Originally Posted by Wolfram

Great video, Michael, as always - thanks Greg for posting.



It's a common misconception that slide can't be played on a multiscale guitar. There's absolutely no reason why not - if anything it can be even more comfortable as the fan of the frets tends to follow the sweep of your arm and the natural straight position of your slide finger.

I make slides for a living and I have a few multiscale acoustic and electric instruments - I'm a big fan(! )- my main guitar is a 25.25" - 26" fan-fret. I don't keep separate guitars for slide - they're all setup with a comfortable fingerstyle action (a great slide does not need heavy gauge strings or a high action).

Cheers,
David

Thanks, David. I was always told that I would need a new nut for my guitar if I wanted to play slide to raise the action and accommodate the slide. I guess it really comes down to learning good technique instead!

Best,
Jayne

[AcousticDreams]

As usual Michael, you explanations are crystal clear and well thought out. Covering all angles and possibilities.

Your videos are a great help to all of us novice Acoustic players!

Thank you so much for all of your efforts. They make a difference.

Your incredible fingerstyle techniques and the tone you produce on each and every note, is an inspiration to me personally to become a better guitar player.

Bravo.

[Guitars44me]

Jayne, I was told that I needed a high Nut and action too. But as I usually do, I decided to do it my own way....

And it IS completely doable! I find I have an easier time with the lightest weight slide I can find.

Go for it!

Paul

[Wolfram]

Originally Posted by jaymarsch

Thanks, David. I was always told that I would need a new nut for my guitar if I wanted to play slide to raise the action and accommodate the slide. I guess it really comes down to learning good technique instead!

Best,
Jayne

Hi Jayne,

It's actually a combination of technique and the slide itself - on an acoustic guitar, it's vital to consider the slide as a tone-generating part of the instrument, not just a means of playing the notes.

The two main characteristics to consider with a slide are the mass and the surface. While the material the slide's made from does make a difference, mass and surface quality are by far the most important. Case in point: my Raven and Aurous coated slides use exactly the same hand-polished stainless steel core; the coatings are only between 2/1000ths and 3/1000ths of a millimetre thick, yet completely change the tone and character of the slide!

From the point of view of action and playability, you need the slide to make a really strong contact with the string. It needs to be heavy enough (if it's too light, the slide itself will vibrate in contact with the string and require additional pressure to make good contact) and smooth enough (if the surface is not perfectly smooth, again it will not make good contact and will require additional pressure.) It's that additional pressure that's your enemy - push the strings down too far and you'll fret out (hit the frets with the slide) and you'll have to raise the action and/or switch to heavier-gauge strings to compensate - but choose a well-made slide that has enough mass and a polished surface to make excellent string contact and you can play happily on any guitar.

For example, look at Martin Simpson. He plays astonishing fingerstyle and slide on the same guitars. One tip from him which can help: replace the top string with one of higher gauge to help support the slide. This can be useful if you play a lot, but is by no means obligatory (I rarely do this, and I play slide on guitars set up for fingerstyle with 12-gauge strings).

In short, if you want to try playing slide, just go for it!! But don't skimp on your slide or it'll fight you all the way.

Cheers,
David

[jt1]

Originally Posted by Michael Watts

Thanks for watching!

Michael,

As always, wonderful stuff. Thanks so much for doing what you do.

And, let's talk about the real revelation here. Like nearly everyone of the male persuasion, you not only look better with a beard and very little hair on your head, you also play and talk much better.

I miss you, my friend. May the zombies return to their origin so that we can once again hang at guitar events.