The zero fret itself is actually compensated (...doesn't take much) and starts-out .010 taller than the balance of the fretboard before the "rub-down".
Riis
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Zero Fret ... What Does It Do?
- Thread starter Sternodox
- Start date
The zero fret itself is actually compensated (...doesn't take much) and starts-out .010 taller than the balance of the fretboard before the "rub-down".
Riis
A builder's perspective on the advantages:
tone - consistent from fretted notes to open string. Probably not noticeable to some, but for those who hear it and like it, it's immediately noticeable.
construction - easier to get right than making a nut. I just cut an additional slot and install one more fret. There's a touch more to it, but not much. The 'nut' then becomes a string spacer and as a bonus, you can make it out of whatever you want. I usually make them out of fretboard material for a cleaner look.
Disadvantages:
People tend to associate them with cheaper quality instruments. They used them because you don't have a have a well-cut nut to have a well-intonated instrument with a zero fret, so those manufacturers saved some time and money and increased consistency in their instruments by using it.
There aren't really any other disadvantages to the player by having a zero fret.
Some of my zero frets:
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tone - consistent from fretted notes to open string. Probably not noticeable to some, but for those who hear it and like it, it's immediately noticeable.
construction - easier to get right than making a nut. I just cut an additional slot and install one more fret. There's a touch more to it, but not much. The 'nut' then becomes a string spacer and as a bonus, you can make it out of whatever you want. I usually make them out of fretboard material for a cleaner look.
Disadvantages:
People tend to associate them with cheaper quality instruments. They used them because you don't have a have a well-cut nut to have a well-intonated instrument with a zero fret, so those manufacturers saved some time and money and increased consistency in their instruments by using it.
There aren't really any other disadvantages to the player by having a zero fret.
Some of my zero frets:
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IMO, Zero frets separate the issues of having the nut height correct at each string and the string spacing correct at the nut. The zero fret manages the height. The nut manages the spacing.
1) level the zero fret with all of the other frets. With leveled frets and the appropriate neck relief, if you don't have buzz at the N+1 fret, you wont have buzz at the N fret, even if N = zero. You do not need a taller zero fret in the same way that you don't need a taller first fret.
2) Cut the nut for appropriate string spacing and widths, plus deep enough to have an acceptable break angle at the zero fret, so your open notes don't warble like a sitar.
3) Done
This takes LESS skill than cutting a nut without a zero fret.
Why don't many musicians like them? Fear of the unknown?
1) level the zero fret with all of the other frets. With leveled frets and the appropriate neck relief, if you don't have buzz at the N+1 fret, you wont have buzz at the N fret, even if N = zero. You do not need a taller zero fret in the same way that you don't need a taller first fret.
2) Cut the nut for appropriate string spacing and widths, plus deep enough to have an acceptable break angle at the zero fret, so your open notes don't warble like a sitar.
3) Done
This takes LESS skill than cutting a nut without a zero fret.
Why don't many musicians like them? Fear of the unknown?
The posts by @Beej and @2groggy immediately above mine nail it. When a bass is being built, the zero fret is just another fret, so the arc of the entire fretboard is totally predictable. The nut becomes just a lateral spacer for the strings. My current #1 has a zero fret, and I like what it does for the action.
I don't know if zero frets wear any faster than regular frets, but just in case, I ordered my bass with a stainless steel zero fret (the rest of the frets are nickle), and I've never noticed any difference in the sound. (But then again, I don't really notice a difference in the sound on my non-zero-fret basses between the sounds of open strings and fretted ones.) If I order another bass from the builder, and that's likely at some point, I'll do the same thing again.
I don't know if zero frets wear any faster than regular frets, but just in case, I ordered my bass with a stainless steel zero fret (the rest of the frets are nickle), and I've never noticed any difference in the sound. (But then again, I don't really notice a difference in the sound on my non-zero-fret basses between the sounds of open strings and fretted ones.) If I order another bass from the builder, and that's likely at some point, I'll do the same thing again.
I also don't mind making regular nuts either; it's not like I dislike them, I just like the advantages that come along with them. I don't use zero frets on fretlesses either. 
After nearly 20 years of building basses, I made my first one with a zero fret last year. I was stunned at the improvement in open-note responsiveness and clarity...a certain immediacy and presence that I noticed right away. Since then, I have incorporated the zero fret design into all my new builds and see no reason not to use them except for fretless instruments.
Yeah, I figured or was afraid that it likely would be difficult to compare, but I had to ask.
That's essentially what the nut is in a zero fret setup.
A builder's perspective on the advantages:
tone - consistent from fretted notes to open string. Probably not noticeable to some, but for those who hear it and like it, it's immediately noticeable.
construction - easier to get right than making a nut. I just cut an additional slot and install one more fret. There's a touch more to it, but not much. The 'nut' then becomes a string spacer and as a bonus, you can make it out of whatever you want. I usually make them out of fretboard material for a cleaner look.
Disadvantages:
People tend to associate them with cheaper quality instruments. They used them because you don't have a have a well-cut nut to have a well-intonated instrument with a zero fret, so those manufacturers saved some time and money and increased consistency in their instruments by using it.
There aren't really any other disadvantages to the player by having a zero fret.
Some of my zero frets:
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For those reasons, it seems a bit surprising to me that Fender didn't choose to incorporate zero frets (from the beginning) instead of the more skill and labor-intensive alternative. Perhaps Fender was looking at Gibson as the mark as the top competing standard bearer and reckoned zero frets would be perceived by the market as being too inferior or shoddy; a bridge too far off the quality mark that Fender was aiming for.
This.
IOW, the nut slots function as the X-axis/lateral constraints on the strings while the zero position fret (with string tension) functions as the Y-axis string constraint.
It's two parts, each individually serving one separate and distinct mechanical function rather than one part serving two mechanical functions.
Edit: I just noticed that @2groggy and @BlueTalon already said basically the same thing above.
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I think the most likely consensus is there's not much point in changing if you already have a well-made or good nut but if you're starting from scratch or an existing nut needs to be replaced then a zero fret would be worth considering.
I think the advantages of zero fret are much more prominent on an electric guitar than on a bass. Because on guitar many times the thin strings get muted by the nut and therefor can’t fully ring. This happens less on thicker strings or at least is less noticeable.
No matter if you have a zero fret or not, an open string will always sound different than the equivalent fretted note, simply because the string is thinner.
No matter if you have a zero fret or not, an open string will always sound different than the equivalent fretted note, simply because the string is thinner.
JeezyMcNuggles
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It turns open notes into fretted notes. If you haven't noticed, your open notes sound wonky compared to every fretted note you play. A zero fret solves this problem.
A zero fret would seem to defeat the purpose of a Buzz Feiten nut unless the zero fret were similarly compensated.
FWIW, I’ve tried guitars with the Feiten compensated nut. And it does make a slight but real difference. However, I found using a “sweetened” tuning sounded every bit as good to my ears. And there’s several affordable tuners like the Peterson Strobo Stomp and the Sonic Research ST-300 that allow you to select a sweetened tuning (there are a few different ones available) if you want to use one.
I personally prefer the James Taylor setting for acoustic guitar and the general sweetened guitar and sweetened bass tunings for everything else.
One place where a zero fret could be a real godsend is if you’re building your own neck. Cutting a nut for correct intonation as well as string height isn’t easy and requires some experience and some fairly expensive files to get it exactly right. Installing a zero fret relegates the nut to a much easier task, which is handling the string spacing and the coarse string height settings. And that’s a lot easier to do than try to get all three measurements spot on at the same time on an expensive nut blank.
There has been some ongoing discussion about the differences in tone and timbre between a fretted and an unfretted note. And it’s true that there is an audible difference. But to my ears it’s a very slight difference that doesn’t seem to matter much when an unfretted note is sandwiched between dozens of fretted notes. So maybe if you’re someone gifted with golden ears it’s a big deal. But for a mere mortal like myself the differences don’t seem to be anything worth getting into a dither about. And at normal stage volume levels, or through pedals, extremely subtle differences like that are not going to be audible to even the best ears. So from a real world tone perspective, I don’t think it matters whether or not you have a zero fret. But maybe that’s just me.
I did a setup once on a bass with negative seven through zero frets due to the truss rod adjustment attempt by the player.
Hey, tell me that's not a '73-ish water-cooled 2-stroke, 3 cyl, Suzuki 750 in your avatar.
Nevermind, I know it is.
I'm a two stroke guy. But I also have a Kawasaki KZ1000...
If you're into having consistency in tone with all of your notes (and who wouldn't be?) zero frets are amazing. I love them. BUT with that said, I've never and will never make a purchasing decision based on whether or not it has a zero fret. Of my 5 basses only 1 has it. It's a very high end Elrick. But I also have NYC Sadowskys without them and I wouldn't dream of trying to tell Roger he should start using zero frets.
As with most things, the difference is subtle. There is no best. YMMV. Etc.
As with most things, the difference is subtle. There is no best. YMMV. Etc.
Buzz Feitin nut? I thought it was simply the Buzz Feitin tuning system, which simply uses his prescribed fret spacing algorithm.
What aspect of the nut is altered for Buzz's system?
If its only distance, you simply place the zero fret in the location prescribed by the BF system as it relates to nut/first fret distance, and I trust the factory has made such compensation accurately. Then the location for the nut can be decided, as it's no longer an active contributor to the proper implementation of the BF system.
Am I missing something else about the nut geometry that the zero fret defeats?
Just curious.
