Tiny frets; easier or harder to play on?my n

[Fender_Bender]

My new bass purchase from last week has really tiny “vintage” style frets. I’m wondering what the consensus is on whether they are easier or harder to play on or just different. For me it seems that I actually have to be a little more careful and attentive to fret a note properly. What say you. They actually seem smaller in real life than the photo.

 

[LadyLoveStingRay5]

I agree.

 

[chris_b]

No difference to me.

 

[UNICORN BASS]

I don't care for "jumbo" frets. Maybe it's because i started on a MIK Squier Jazz, not the smallest frets but close to it.

 

[Fender_Bender]

I did some measurements with calipers and was surprised to see that they are actually the same width as the frets on my RW jazz. They are however about ten thousandths lower @ approximately .030 in height, which would explain the feeling of almost playing right on the board.

 

[Haroldo]

I'm a fan, but that's probably because I am vintage myself.

 

[bassplace]

I prefer tiny frets. Jumbo and medium jumbo give me too much of a piano string sound with rounds. Tiny is also more comfortable

 

[bassbully]

Prefer the vintage-small frets. Don’t know if they make playing easier in my mind....I think they do? One more reason I love My Laklands neck.

 

[lz4005]

My new bass purchase from last week has really tiny “vintage” style frets. I’m wondering what the consensus is on whether they are easier or harder to play on or just different. For me it seems that I actually have to be a little more careful and attentive to fret a note properly. What say you. They actually seem smaller in real life than the photo.

Smaller frets sustain a little less and wear out sooner than bigger frets. That's about it.

 

[Figjam]

I like them. A lot. For bass more so than guitar, but sometimes on guitar.

Nicely finished fret ends are a plus.

 

[ddnidd1]

I would think someone would have to have Flawless technique to have the difference in the size of frets noticeably impact their ease of playing.

 

[LifeIsBass]

To me, taller frets seem easier to play in the sense that it feels like you don' have to press down as hard to fret a note. However, because the frets are taller, the strings are higher off the fretboard even though the action (distance from the top of the fret from the bottom of the string) is the same.

 

[bwildt]

I recently saw a youtube video of a Leland Sklar interview. He really likes small frets. He has all of his basses refretted with mandolin fretwire.

 

[Figjam]

To me, taller frets seem easier to play in the sense that it feels like you don' have to press down as hard to fret a note. However, because the frets are taller, the strings are higher off the fretboard even though the action (distance from the top of the fret from the bottom of the string) is the same.

My brain is struggling with the physics. Do you really have to press down less hard? The distance from the string to the fret is what determines how hard you have to press down. That is determined by your action, not the fret size.

 

[LifeIsBass]

My brain is struggling with the physics. Do you really have to press down less hard?

Don't know, but it definitely "seems" like it to me. If the frets are big enough, the board feels scalloped and it can feel like you're not even coming in contact with the wood if you have a light touch.

 

[Figjam]

Don't know, but it definitely "seems" like it to me. If the frets are big enough, the board feels scalloped and it can feel like you're not even coming in contact with the wood if you have a light touch.

That is all true, but the effort before that point until the point of contact should be the same.

 

[Grapevine921]

I love the feel of tiny frets. I built a telecaster and accidentally reached for the mandolin fretwire... and I loved it! My next bass build is definitely getting smaller vintage spec wire. A lot of people enjoy the huge railroad tie frets, but I like my fingers being closer to the fingerboard and "feeling" the wood when I'm fretting.

 

[Doctor J]

On a bass, small frets, on a guitar, tall and narrow.

 

[DD Gunz]

I greatly prefer smaller frets. Although, the only bass I have with them is a Road Worn Precision. It's hard to explain, but that bass has an amazing neck and I think a lot of that is the smaller frets. I find them anything but hard to play. My RW is capable of insanely low action.

I like them so much I am having them put on a custom build.

 

[dfoehr]

I prefer vintage fret wire.

 

[Dana R Gregory]

I definitely prefer smaller frets. Much easier to play and no intonation problems at all. I don't like the large jumbo frets like the ones used on the Fender American Std Precision Bass.