cytania Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 Weird question time. Obviously the tiny dot markers on the side of the neck are a great help fretting accurately but what about the big abalone/pearl dots on the front. Most the time the neck is angled so you can't see them. Anyone with bass necks 'sans front dot' able to confirm they are unnecessary? Or is it more subconscious? Is their function just as a bit of bling to dazzle the audience with? Quote
EssentialTension Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 [quote name='cytania' timestamp='1327358231' post='1510075'] Weird question time. Obviously the tiny dot markers on the side of the neck are a great help fretting accurately but what about the big abalone/pearl dots on the front. Most the time the neck is angled so you can't see them. Anyone with bass necks 'sans front dot' able to confirm they are unnecessary? Or is it more subconscious? Is their function just as a bit of bling to dazzle the audience with? [/quote] I've had basses without them, they aren't essential but neither are the side dots. Quote
LukeFRC Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 my warwick doesn't have them. I don't miss them. Quote
Thatguy59 Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 I find them useful, but only really on other peoples instruments, I find it much easier to follow someone who's playing a bass/guitar with fret markers on the front. Quote
charic Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 Makes it easier to show the guitarist riffs Quote
Darkstrike Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 Don't have much use for them. If I'm ordering a bass special, it'll only have side dots, unless I want some kind of inlay for aesthetics, like blocks. Quote
Fat Rich Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 Status basses generally don't have front markers, maybe because a lot of Status players specify LEDs so their basses light up like a Christmas tree. I like a completely blank fingerboard, it's only a problem when I'm teaching people what notes to play. Quote
LawrenceH Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 I've got an aerodyne without any front markers, and I've never noticed it being a problem. Pretty sure I use the side dots for reference as well. Quote
icastle Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 I had to go and see if all of mine had front markers or not. Pretty safe to say that I don't need them... Quote
chrismuzz Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 It it pretty unneccessary when you have side dots... plus it looks better without! But like many above have said, it makes it easier to show somebody else which frets you're playing Quote
BigRedX Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 (edited) If you have the side dots then IMO the only reason to have front dots is for aesthetic purposes or to to aid teaching another musician so they can easily see which frets you are playing. Too much front of fingerboard decoration can be distracting. I have a Traben Phoenix with flame inlays all the way up the fingerboard. There are more flames at the 11th fret than the 12th so occasionally I find myself playing a semi-tone out. Edited January 23, 2012 by BigRedX Quote
neepheid Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 Unnecessary? Probably. However... I think that fingerboards without front markers look unfinished, a bit like no-one could be bothered to put them in. I don't mind where they are, and I'm a sucker for things like crown inlays. If I bought a bass with no front markers I would find some way to add them. I also do look at the front dots while I'm playing. That's because I'm not very good or confident, and it's a another in a long list of bad habits of mine. So sue me. Having said that, I passed the audition for my first band with a Warwick Rockbass Corvette which has no front markers, so I guess I've been known to get by successfully on occasion. Quote
Dread Bass Posted January 23, 2012 Posted January 23, 2012 Only time i find them useful is if i am doing a large shift from playing fingerstyle to tapping up at the dusty end. Most of my basses dont have them and i have never missed them. Quote
Mornats Posted January 24, 2012 Posted January 24, 2012 I've got basses with and without front markers and find that I just use the top markers anyway. My 5 string and my fretless lack front markers (the fretless has no fret lines either) and neither are less easy to play than my basses with them. I still have to look at what I'm playing too so if it's not a problem for then it shouldn't be for most! Saying that, the pearl blocks on my Overwater look very lovely indeed. Quote
leftyhook Posted January 24, 2012 Posted January 24, 2012 My Wal doesn't have front dots........I totally forgot about that. Get to know your bass better young man! Quote
KingBollock Posted January 24, 2012 Posted January 24, 2012 I have a Bass on which the side dots are difficult to see, I actually need to get around to sorting them out. Occasionally, when jumping around on the fretboard a lot I get a bit lost, even though the front markers are perfectly apparent, I just don't use them. If I were to order a custom build or were to build my own, I would have something fancy around the 12th fret, for aesthetic reasons, but not bother with any others. But the side dots would be LEDs. Quote
4000 Posted January 24, 2012 Posted January 24, 2012 I remember the first time I played my Wal live, the stage was pretty dark and I couldn't see the markers, side or front. Because it sat differently than what I was used to I had a tendency to be slightly out so I really had to concentrate on what I was doing far more than usual. If your side markers are really clear (LEDS work for me!) then fair enough; same if you never look at your markers, or if you always play a similar type of bass that more or less sits in the same place. I do look at my markers and find front markers useful in most instances (I can see them BTW; not keen on basses that sit away from me so I can't). I used to change basses every other gig and the reference helped. Quote
Prime_BASS Posted January 24, 2012 Posted January 24, 2012 I play with my bass reasonably high and I can see the frony dots. However I don't think I need them or the side dots to help me play. They are useful on the odd occassion I've become completely lost. Quote
Lfalex v1.1 Posted January 24, 2012 Posted January 24, 2012 3 Warwicks 1 Vigier 1 Status (ordered without front markers) All without front markers. Never missed them. I don't like lined fretless much either. Quote
LiamPodmore Posted January 24, 2012 Posted January 24, 2012 My Squier has no fretboard inlays, it does have the side dots but to be honest i could play without those too. I never really see my fretboard unless i'm intending to look at it it, so whether it has inlays or not makes no difference to me. Although, i would never get a maple neck without black dots or blocks, just for aesthetic purposes. Liam Quote
ezbass Posted January 24, 2012 Posted January 24, 2012 I prefer a blank front just from a Purley aesthetic POV especially on a MM as I'm not a fan of their oversized dots (I had the dots filled in when I had my SUB defretted). Quote
Mylkinut Posted January 25, 2012 Posted January 25, 2012 I never use them, but they sure do look good Quote
KuzBass Posted January 25, 2012 Posted January 25, 2012 For me they are not really a must, but are a preference. If I would be ordering the custom bass, I will order with the face dots most probably. In fact apart from teaching and dark stages, I have noticed that when playing some tapping (like solo bass stuff) for me it is slightly easier to orient myself on a fretboard with the face dots (especially when "jumping" from one position to another). The difference I guess is very minimal, but when playing live, everything counts. There is also an issue of where those marks to be on the fretboard - classic (middle), upper part or lower part of the fretboard, but I guess this is the matter of a taste. I've never had a bass with LEDs, but I was thinking of a simpler solution like for instance one of the Wood & Tronics optional extras - Fluorescent neck-side markers (glow in the dark by stored light energy). Quote
ras52 Posted January 25, 2012 Posted January 25, 2012 Generally I much prefer without. Although my Dean (lined fretless) has a nice little "D" inlaid at the 12th, which is nice. So they have no utility value for me, and their aesthetic value is of course highly subjective. Quote
Immo Posted January 25, 2012 Posted January 25, 2012 Let's be honest. The front fret markers simply look good. Especially the block inlay. Without markers the neck looks... naked. Quote
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