The Fanned Fret Theory.
The newest and coolest innovation of bass (and guitar) design is the Fanned Fret. Instead of the frets running parallel down the fingerboard like a traditional bass, the frets are angled in a fan shape. This has several advantages; it makes the lower strings longer and the higher strings shorter, putting more tension on the low strings and takes tension off the higher ones. This puts a more even tension across the neck so each string pings the same, which gives a more homogenous feel to the bass. Putting more tension on the lower strings (particularly the low B on a 5-string) makes that string resonate much more clearly.
The way the frets are fanned also follows the natural arc of your fingers as you slide up the neck, which makes playing bass for longer periods much more comfortable.
From my own research, the fanned fret design takes little getting used to. The bass gets very comfortable after only a few hours playing, although like any new instrument it takes time to really get around it. Playing chords up towards the body of the bass is perhaps the most difficult thing at first. Once youve spent a little time on a fanned fret instrument its common to find a traditional bass cumbersome and awkward.
Theres always a fanned fret bass here at ECTOMORPH so why not drop in and see how great it is for yourself.
