Design your fan-fret neck.

Multi-scale fan-fret guitar neck showing fanned fret lines

Set your bass and treble scale lengths, pick a perpendicular fret, and see the fan geometry with per-string tension balance.

Neck Design

Bass Side Scale

Treble Side Scale

Strings

Perpendicular Fret

Gauge Set

Display Unit

Fan-fret geometry — to scale

Swipe sideways to see every column

# Scale Nut offset Bridge offset Tension

Overall feel

🎸 What the Perpendicular Fret Does

The perpendicular fret is the one fret that runs perfectly straight across all strings — the others fan outward from it. Lower numbers (closer to the nut) produce a more aggressive fan angle; higher numbers produce a subtler one. Most builders pick 7, 8, or 9 as a comfortable middle ground where the fan feels natural under the fretting hand.

Fan-fret multiscale guitar fretboard showing angled frets

🎸 Why the Bass Side Gets More Scale

Longer scale on the bass strings means more tension at the same pitch and gauge — which is exactly what keeps those low strings tight and defined instead of floppy. The per-string tension table above shows the balance your design actually produces, string by string.

Design visualizer, not a build file. These are ideal theoretical positions. Before cutting, confirm all dimensions against your own shop tools and templates. Strings are modelled as evenly spaced and parallel — the standard simplification for fan-fret geometry.

Want to go deeper on the tension numbers, or look up exact fret positions for a single scale? The engines behind this tool are also standalone calculators.

String Tension Calculator → Fret Position Calculator →

String Tension Calculator Fret Position Calculator Radius Matcher Intonator Setup Assistant

The Idea

What a fanned neck is actually solving

A normal guitar asks one scale length to do two different jobs. It has to keep a thin high E from feeling brittle and a thick low string from feeling like a rubber band — and it can't quite do both, which is why low tunings so often go loose and undefined.

A multi-scale neck gives each string its own length. Longer on the bass side for tension and clarity, shorter on the treble side for comfortable bending. The frets fan because they're connecting two different scales.

It's a real fix, not a fashion. It's also a commitment: angled frets, a matching bridge, and a fretting hand that needs a week or two to stop noticing. Worth knowing that going in.

Good to Know

Multi-scale questions, answered

What is a multi-scale guitar?

One where the bass strings have a longer scale length than the treble strings, so the frets sit at an angle rather than straight across.

How much fan do I actually need?

For standard tuning, half an inch to an inch of difference is plenty. Larger spreads mostly make sense for extended range or very low tunings.

Where should the perpendicular fret go?

Seven, eight or nine suits most players. Lower puts the angle where your open chords live; higher moves it up where you solo.

Is it harder to play?

For a week or so. The fan follows the natural angle of your fretting hand, so most players stop noticing sooner than they expect.

Can I convert a guitar I already own?

Not practically. It needs a new fingerboard and a bridge with individually angled saddles — effectively a new instrument.