Stainless Frets VS. Nickel (Sustain Difference) ?

R

robertkoa

Member
I'm talking about how with good finger vibrato and nickel you can have a note sustain all day ( John Suhr once told me you are " shaving the fret" when you do this with nickel frets).

So since there is less friction with stainless - will I lose the sustain from the string rubbing on the frets?

But I've not yet played a really good guitar with stainless, and my question is on those phrase endings ( and where you need it) can you still get a note to "ring" from just finger vibrato with stainless ( the string rubbing against the fret from finger vibrato) ?

Guys who have BOTH types can let me know on this, theoretical discussions probably won't help.

Thanks.
 
Although I have no experience with SS frets yet (getting some on my MX-2 in a week or two though) speaking in terms of science steel is a harder metal so it is going to absorb far less vibration then nickel, meaning it will naturally have more sustain than nickel. As to how much better depends on the steel.

John is right too, just think about why you get divets in nickel frets and need a leveling? That soft metal can only take so much.
 
I have both. I never really notice a sustain difference, but I have to say the SS feel great. I am going to check this out tomorrow.
 
robertkoa":f4u3i596 said:
I'm talking about how with good finger vibrato and nickel you can have a note sustain all day ( John Suhr once told me you are " shaving the fret" when you do this with nickel frets).

So since there is less friction with stainless - will I lose the sustain from the string rubbing on the frets?

But I've not yet played a really good guitar with stainless, and my question is on those phrase endings ( and where you need it) can you still get a note to "ring" from just finger vibrato with stainless ( the string rubbing against the fret from finger vibrato) ?

Guys who have BOTH types can let me know on this, theoretical discussions probably won't help.

Thanks.
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You have more sustain with the stainless
 
'Sustainless?' LOL

My experience was SS affects the attack more than the decay of a note. Some like it, some don't, that's what is cool about having options. :yes:
 
Suhr":3dthyiu1 said:
robertkoa":3dthyiu1 said:
I'm talking about how with good finger vibrato and nickel you can have a note sustain all day ( John Suhr once told me you are " shaving the fret" when you do this with nickel frets).

So since there is less friction with stainless - will I lose the sustain from the string rubbing on the frets?

But I've not yet played a really good guitar with stainless, and my question is on those phrase endings ( and where you need it) can you still get a note to "ring" from just finger vibrato with stainless ( the string rubbing against the fret from finger vibrato) ?

Guys who have BOTH types can let me know on this, theoretical discussions probably won't help.

Thanks.
Click to expand...


You have more sustain with the stainless
Click to expand...


this has been my experience as well. :yes:

A Wood
 
I don't hear a sustain difference but have noticed much less ware and longer life with Stainless!
 
craftm1":13atnkg1 said:
I don't hear a sustain difference but have noticed much less ware and longer life with Stainless!
Click to expand...
To clarify I mean when you bend a note, the additional sustain is obvious to me. It has to do with more solid contact and no shaving of material as you vibrato. At least that is my story :rock:
 
Suhr":u5dwlv7v said:
craftm1":u5dwlv7v said:
I don't hear a sustain difference but have noticed much less ware and longer life with Stainless!
Click to expand...
To clarify I mean when you bend a note, the additional sustain is obvious to me. It has to do with more solid contact and no shaving of material as you vibrato. At least that is my story :rock:
Click to expand...


bingo. bends with heavy vibrato just ring way more with stainless

A Wood
 
I LOVE SS frets..I have them on my Parker.I have a Warmoth Strat that I'm building and
im going to have them make the neck up with 6100's...When I get my next LP.
I'm going to have them put 6000 SS frets on that as well..The new EVH guitars all them.( i think)

it makes your playing cleaner sounding.you can really tell when you play your electric
with out and amp..
 
Chiming in with a noobish question.

I'm plagued by a darned Ni allergy so I can only use SS strings. I've luckily managed to find a brand
that doesn't sound like crap and feels smooth as well - Curt Mangan. Well, it's true that my tone has
gotten considerably brighter since I left the Ni-wound strings behind and, if there's something I hate
the most, that's a bright sounding guitar. Since I'm somewhat concerned that in the long run I'd have
to level and then change the frets far more often that I would with Ni strings, I was contemplating
switching to SS frets as well. Are they brighter than 18%Ni frets? If so, how much more? Thanks!

P.S. I've heard Jescar's 18% alloy to be somewhat harder than, say, Dunlop. Any opinions on that?
 
j Douglee- your comment about the stainless affecting the ATTACK of the note makes a lot of sense and also why some think stainless brighter and some don't- it's the ATTACK which some people hear as brighter possibly and some don't.

Don't think too many have pointed that out..... wonder if I can play legato with them.

Guess I'll have to try a Suhr Pro with them and see.

I thought a certain type wood on the fretboard might balance the stainless and Mahogany body for fat tones.
 
I've found zero difference in the tone to be expected with SS frets, but they're smoother to bend on and the distinction of the strings and notes seems more defined. I'm not going to look too deep into this, but the dealio is, given the choice from here on in, I'd probably opt for SS frets on any new guitar, just due to the fact they seem smoother.

V.
 
dudu":q9o584uf said:
Chiming in with a noobish question.

I'm plagued by a darned Ni allergy so I can only use SS strings. I've luckily managed to find a brand
that doesn't sound like crap and feels smooth as well - Curt Mangan. Well, it's true that my tone has
gotten considerably brighter since I left the Ni-wound strings behind and, if there's something I hate
the most, that's a bright sounding guitar. Since I'm somewhat concerned that in the long run I'd have
to level and then change the frets far more often that I would with Ni strings, I was contemplating
switching to SS frets as well. Are they brighter than 18%Ni frets? If so, how much more? Thanks!

P.S. I've heard Jescar's 18% alloy to be somewhat harder than, say, Dunlop. Any opinions on that?
Click to expand...


Yes I've read this on a website where the guy ( I can't remember which one ) mentions the specs and the hardness of both the Jescar Nickel AND the Stainless are slightly harder than most others, the Jescar Medium Jumbos are a true Medium Jumbo - beefy, which also wears longer due to the size.

There's also a gold colored alloy which is in between the hardness of nickel and stainless you might want to look into.

The Vickers hardness on Jescar Nickel is 200 , 250 for the Gold Evo (which is nickel free, and has a gold color) and 300 for the Jescar Stainless. In other words the Jescar Frets are about 15 to 20% harder than other nickel or stainless brands , and are considered tops by many boutique Brands like Suhr etc.
 
I've been a SS fret convert for a while now. :D

SS are just:

-smoother, strings feel silky and glide :thumbsup:
-prettier, never tarnish like nickel :no:
-last FOREVER it seems unlike nickel where you need to re-fret every 2 years or so YMMV :aww:
-sustain? no discernible difference really.

ALL my guitars now have SS frets. No going back. :rock:
 
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