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Well, I had an old archtop lying around, and being an advocate for the whole 'no guitar should ever die' bit, I decided to test an idea I had. Fretless guitars are interesting, but they lack sustain and bite. Sure, there are a few guitars with glass fretboards, but they're all electric! I wanted to hear what an unamplified acoustic guitar with a glass fretboard would sound like.
I've added a short video to give you an idea of what it sounds like. Cheers guys!
Please excuse my poor playing in the video above...there are no markers, and it's not like a fiddle where one can simply stay in one position and get perfect intonation...I just gambled with what my ear and experience dictated.
The name of the song is 'Vette', and the style is jazz manouche, or "gypsy jazz", as it's called here in the states. Look up Django Reinhardt if you'd like to hear it played the way it's supposed to be.
Thanks to everyone who took part in the Art of Sound voting!
I've added a short video to give you an idea of what it sounds like. Cheers guys!
Please excuse my poor playing in the video above...there are no markers, and it's not like a fiddle where one can simply stay in one position and get perfect intonation...I just gambled with what my ear and experience dictated.
The name of the song is 'Vette', and the style is jazz manouche, or "gypsy jazz", as it's called here in the states. Look up Django Reinhardt if you'd like to hear it played the way it's supposed to be.
Thanks to everyone who took part in the Art of Sound voting!
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Signing UpStep 1Get a gee-tar and remove the frets!
Unfortunately, I didn't really plan on documenting the steps to this...mostly because I wasn't sure it would even work in the first place! Sorry for no action shots of removing them.
Much information is available online for removing frets, but it's really quite simple. Take some end nippers, and grab and pull out slowly from the edges. On older guitars (like this one, it was sitting in a Northern Ontario basement for 20 years...) they *may* be glued in, in which case, you'll have to steam the frets to loosen the glue. Of course, if you're putting a sheet of glass over it, it really doesn't matter how well you do it anyways.
Much information is available online for removing frets, but it's really quite simple. Take some end nippers, and grab and pull out slowly from the edges. On older guitars (like this one, it was sitting in a Northern Ontario basement for 20 years...) they *may* be glued in, in which case, you'll have to steam the frets to loosen the glue. Of course, if you're putting a sheet of glass over it, it really doesn't matter how well you do it anyways.
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That turned out great, I own the same guitar as you!
Pacifica's are great starter guitars :)
has a missing finger.
He plays guitar left-handed. In an industrial accident at the age of 17 on his last day of work in a sheet metal factory, he lost the tips of the middle and ring finger of his right hand. After attempting to learn to play right-handed,[6] Iommi strung his guitars with lighter strings and made thimbles to extend his fingers.
Wiki power, though easy changeable. This fact I can confirm.
You're only shortening the scale length by pressing down, and the string itself isn't being pulled along the length of the glass, it's just your finger moving to different sections.
But to answer your question: Look on youtube, and decide for yourself. They show them with and without distortion. I personally despise the sound a fretless electric ANYTHING makes, be it double bass, fiddle, etc. It just sounds poor.