New deer antler nut.

[cassius987]

Here's the new deer antler nut I finally had installed on my 4003FL:



I got it from Woody Cross, then my luthier here in town installed in and set it up. I had it set for medium nut action so the action at the nut wouldn't be as low as a fretted bass, making the action across the fingerboard much more even as I have the neck dead straight and the bridge set very low. Basically, the action "gradient" is much less now, and I actually like it being a bit higher up at the nut because it lets me play a little harder.

I don't normally think nuts influence the tone but my luthier said, "It has more of a 'pop' than the old nut," when he was handing it to me to play. I agree. And my bandmates noticed it tonight too. It cuts through the mix with a little more of that Ric aggression actually. With the Circle K rounds on my 4003FL, my bandmates were saying it finally sounds like the perfect hybrid of fretted and fretless tones, but I still get to be more expressive without those "speed bumps"...

Also, it's pretty! So that's cool.

[bartyclue]

Terrible ted Nugent thinks it's cool as well

[FretlessOnly]

That's cool; very much so. But, I would add, and Joshua, you know how I am, but on fretless bass, you should strive to make every note speak. Open notes generally don't speak; fingered notes do. Nuts don't matter in that context.

To be sure, I do use open notes in a fretless context, but generally only for pedal tones/chords that involve root/octave and/or seventh and/or fifth and/or third. So, in that context, I've got at least two or three fingers doing something, so I need that open note or two.

[cassius987]

John, not sure if you noticed, but my main goal with the nut was to raise the string action close to the headstock to even it out overall.

I use open notes when they work for the song; I'm not always aiming for people to know the bass is fretless. There's a weird appeal to me in playing fretless in such a way that it comes across like a very well-played fretted.

[FretlessOnly]

Well, I did read that, and that's a very purist approach to the use of a nut. My sanctimoniousness was ill-placed.

So, in that context, I say bravo, my brother. And it looks cool too.

[cassius987]

Well, I did read that, and that's a very purist approach to the use of a nut. My sanctimoniousness was ill-placed.

Maybe not; my luthier was initially shocked I wanted higher action at the nut but later said, "You know, fretted basses are academic to setup, but a fretless is more like art, and totally up to the individual, and having done this I see that now." I'm paraphrasing but that's essentially what he said. I think he saw when he did what I said what I was aiming for, a nearly flat gradient across the fingerboard that makes wide jumps across the register less of a shock.

[FretlessOnly]

Purist is in the ear of the player. You implied that the sole reason you chose that nut was to even out your string height, not to impart some "tone of the bone" to your open notes. My comment was in reference to the open notes, which your comment suggested that you eschew.

I recall a lesson I had with Bruce Gertz back in the late 90s. He had just subbed in for a gig with some well-known cats who had been playing for about 50 years. Even though Bruce has an international pedigree, he was a bit nervous about this one. Come along a ballad and an A-7 D7, he played a closed A on the E string and let it growl (this was on upright). The pianist looked slowly over his shoulder at Bruce and nodded gently: "mmmmmhmmmm."

My off-topic tome aside, I've done similar things to my FLs; especially my Warwick, which has an adjust-a-nut, or whatever it's called. My strings are almost dead flat across that neck. Makes playing in the lower register a bit of a burden. Bass should be a burden.

[woodyng]

I am glad to see you got it installed and like it,joshua! my friend and luthier in memphis for years routinely replaced the plastic nuts on all my basses that he sets up with bone,but last year he was given the antler material and decided to try it out on some guitars he was building,about the same time i decided to have my 4000 refretted and set up with flats. i liked it so much i had him replace the nut on the cii as well. Really i don't know that it makes a gnat's *** difference in tone,but i AM loving the tone i get with both basses now.

[rickenbrother]

Glad you like it, Joshua. Now go make some more great music with it!

[cassius987]

Woody, I was kind of wondering if I could buy a few more nut blanks down the road some time?

I'm not sure if it changes the tone either, but I like it a lot. And I really like how the bass is sounding lately--whatever the cause.

[woodyng]

joshua-pm sent.

[iiipopes]

I am a fan of bone. But it has to be on the right instrument. The first thing I did on the Gibson J-45 I purchased a few years ago was to put a bone saddle and pins on it to get more "pop" or "zing" and sustain out of the mahogany body. But I left the nut alone so open position chords were more even string-to-string, whether fretted or not.

My fanned fret bass has a bone nut and bone intonation shims at the nut for the lower strings and that helps get a better tone throughout the neck with the HB-1 pickup. As a matter of fact, this bass has so much sustain, I've had to do the vintage Fender treatment and put a block of foam rubber under the bridge cover with the new Fender flats to get more of an upright-ish decay for the dance band I'm in.

Conversely, I have a beater acoustic guitar that I had to put a tusq saddle and ebony pins in because with the body being Phillipines mahogany plywood, it was too bright, and bone and corian made it harsh.

I've left the nuts stock on my Ricks.

[bluegrassmoker]

nice pic i like bone and antler nuts much better than stinky plastic i like the way it ages too.

The more porous the more sound-ous