12 fret advantage?

[Leftyb]

Another of my many dumb questions.....can anyone explain, or give me their opinion, the advantage or disadvantage of a 12 fret to the body guitar? At first I thought they were only smaller guitars, but I see manufacturers that have dreds and other bigger guitars with the 12 fret configuration.

thanks.

[milo_otis]

It places the bridge more towards the center of the top, so you'll get a warmer response from the treble strings, more bass response and likely more volume overall. It is much more comfortable (personally preference) for a small to average sized guy since the nut is also closer to you, meaning that if you do any type of possibly difficult to reach "F" bar chords, it'll be just a bit easier to get to. Those to me are all of those all huge advantages. The only disadvantage is that if you use thumb over the top style bar chords up around or beyond the 11th or 12th fret, you run out of room. The same can be said with any high register chords. ALL of this is based on my experience with Taylor, who have modified the neck to be shorter. Martin and other manufacturers modify the body to be longer, so though the tonal enhancements may carry over, the comfort doesn't.

That is just my experience. My 522ce 12-fret is without a doubt my favorite guitar (playing and sounding) and my go to for almost anything.

[Earl]

Since the neck and scale length are still the same, a 12 fret design puts the bridge location another inch or so further back into the center of the lower bout.  This position is considered to be a sweet spot for better vibration / sound and tends to give the guitar a richer, fuller, more "aged" or broken-in sound when compared to a 14-fret design.  That is the big plus.  The minus is that you only have 12 frets clear of the body, so if you need to play on the higher frets they become harder to reach (the body gets in the way) and even with a cutaway access to higher frets can be somewhat limited.  My understanding is that Martin came out with the first 14-fret designs in the late 20's or early 30's (specifically responding to banjo players who wanted to reach the upper frets more easily).  Until then pretty much all guitars were 12-frets clear of the body.  Classical guitars still are, although some hybrid nylon string guitars can have 14 frets clear, such as the Taylor nylon series and other hybrids.

12 fret design has nothing to do with scale length.  You can have 12 fret guitars with a regular scale of 25.5", or 12 frets with short scale (24.9") just as you can have 14 fret guitars with either those short or long scale lengths.

[Jersey tuning]

Well summarized Earl.  It's mostly about that warm, vintage tone.  If you like to use a capo, don't plan on capoing much beyond the fifth fret, a bit more if you are only playing cowboy chords.

[Edward]

Like so many things on an acoustic, tone is the sum of it's build so the "12-frets" as a sole criterion is not enough to "make" its voice.  But yes, the 12 or 14 fret's location of the bridge does affect the guitar's voice considerably.  If 12 frets clear of the body is an issue, one of the things that can mitigate that limitation is a cutaway body.  Just remember that there are many factors that comprise a guitar's overall timbre, and that bridge location, as well as scale length, are significant tonal factors, but overall build really is the chief determinant, IMHO.

Edward

[Earl]

Let me add that I prefer 14 fret guitars.  Most of mine are 14 frets clear, some with cutaways, some not.  I actually do use the higher frets, especially when playing Hawaiian slack-key.  When I pick up a 12 fret guitar, it take some time to re-calibrate, and some things become much harder to play if the 12 fret guitar does not have a cutaway.  When playing slide, I find the 14 fret works better since many licks and barres with the slide happen at the 12th fret, or octave.  My resonator (since departed) had 14 frets, which is hard to find.

[John]

Well summarized Earl.  It's mostly about that warm, vintage tone.  If you like to use a capo, don't plan on capoing much beyond the fifth fret, a bit more if you are only playing cowboy chords.

LOL I purchased my first Taylor guitar 512ce 12 Fret. The tone is rich and the mid range quite punchy. I often jam with with several people in a room and th 12 Fret cuts through especially during lead rigs.

[Ironhead1977]

I have an HD28vs Martin 12 fret and have played a Taylor 712 12 fret, both are killer guitars. 12 fretters do have that extra something.

[penndan]

I'm a fan of 12 fretters. Usually they have a little wider neck at the nut, which makes it easier for my fat fingers.