Guitar Noize - guitar news, crazy guitar designs and cool guitar videos

Last August I discovered something that impressed me a lot, the Novax Fan Fret Neck probably the biggest innovation in fretboard design since the invention of the guitar. The idea is that you get the advantage of:

Accurate tuning and sparkling clarity
The scale length is optimized for each string. The fret spacing is adjusted accordingly for each string providing superior intonation and clarity.

Balanced string tension
The combination of scale lengths yields a greater tension on the low strings and a correspondingly decreased tension on the high strings for a more even feel across the neck.

Even tonal response along the entire neck
Dead spots are minimized and each string speaks with a unique harmonic voice.

Pretty cool huh? Well then I came across Greenfield Guitars and noticed that Michael Greenfield use the Novax Fan Fret Fretboard on a number of their acoustics, they are currently building one for YouTube sensation Andy McKee. The guitar to the left is actually the Don Alder G4 model, just look at that bridge!! If you haven’t heard Don’s incredible fingerstyle acoustic compositions check out his MySpace page.

Michael Greenfield has been playing guitar for over 40 years so he knows a thing or two about how a guitar should sound, feel and play. Michael constructs each guitar in his Montreal workshop and uses the finest woods available to him. In his own words: “Braces are shaped and plates voiced using knives, gouges and chisels. Fingerboards are levelled with hand planes. Necks are individually carved using spoke shaves, rasps, files, scrapers and lots of hand sanding. Archtop plates are carved and graduated using palm and then finger planes, etc. While these methods take longer, I chose to limit my yearly production and concentrate on making each instrument the best one I am capable of.”. Now that is attention to detail that no doubt produce only the finest possible guitars, in fact Michael limits his guitar construction to just 15 a year so if you see one I suggest you snap it up quickly!

Greenfield Guitars online

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