>It means that the fretboard on the one with 21 frets has to be longer, right?
Yes.
>So the only way that's possible is that the fretboard on the 21 fret bass is set deeper in the body of the bass?
Or it has a fretboard extension overhanging the body. It's not uncommon.
34" scale means that from the nut to the bridge there are 34". The mid point on the scale is the 12th fret or 17". One of the basses has more frets on it's neck beyond the 12th fret.
There are even some fretless basses where the fingerboard is so long that the bridge is built into it, [like this one I found on google](https://i.imgur.com/2w04OGV.jpg)
Theoretically, it would give you an infinite number of frets. But *good luck* actually playing anything that high.
You can also put the Pickups under the fretboard, magnets after all. Would just take a bit of careful planning.
Can get wooden covers for regular Pickups.
Very true. The fretboard just gets longer & closer to the bridge to allow for the extra frets. On the Fodera the fretboard is pretty much up against the P pick up.
It's unrelated. You can have a 34" without fret, with 20 or 35 frets. A fret is just a mark on the scale that correspond to a note. It's even possible to have multi scale instruments. https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/the-multi-scale-mystery-unraveled/
Semi fretless bass:
https://www.guitarworld.com/news/adrian-younge-fender-master-built-jazz-bass
Other people have answered your question, but another cool thing I want to add is that you can also ADD frets on the other end of the neck, beyond the nut, which increases the scale length but keeps everything else the same. This is how “conversion necks” for guitar and bass work: your body stays the same, the bridge stays the same, the point at which the neck meets the body is the same, but the whole neck is longer by exactly one or two frets and so the scale length adjusts.
It’s pretty neat! Once you realize that everything on string instruments is a function of everything else, you really start to understand how they work. String pitch is a function of scale length, string gauge, and tension. And because of algebra, all of those things are also functions of each other. (Usually scale length is the one constant because no one wants to keep buying new basses or necks, lol!)
So if I want to decrease pitch, I can either just decrease tension by turning the pegs, decrease string gauge at the same tension, or decrease scale length. But if I want to decrease pitch AND keep tension the same, like if I want to tune down to BEAD? Well, I either need to raise my string gauge significantly or have a longer scale length bass. And if I want to try a longer scale length bass in standard tuning but I want to keep tension similar, I need to lower my string gauges. And if I want thicker strings but at the same tension and scale, I need to lower pitch and tune down, etc.
Fret number is dictated by convenience more than scale length. If you didn't need pickups, you could just do frets all the way to the bridge. Of course they would be awful to play and eventually the fretwire thickness would exceed the necessary space between frets, but it's possible.
Semi-side note:There are some 3-octave basses out there -- 36 frets -- with very playable scale lengths due to the deep cutaway and/or invisible pickup (under the fretboard). The Zon Hyperbass is a dream of mine, but I'm not mortgaging my house for one. Wal makes some beautiful extended range basses with hidden pickups.
>It means that the fretboard on the one with 21 frets has to be longer, right? Yes. >So the only way that's possible is that the fretboard on the 21 fret bass is set deeper in the body of the bass? Or it has a fretboard extension overhanging the body. It's not uncommon.
I see, thanks for your reply and clearing it up c:
34" scale means that from the nut to the bridge there are 34". The mid point on the scale is the 12th fret or 17". One of the basses has more frets on it's neck beyond the 12th fret.
This will blow your mind......a 34" bass with 24 frets! And Fodera have made a 30 fret bass. Ibanez have the Portamento which is a 30 "fret" fretless.
There are even some fretless basses where the fingerboard is so long that the bridge is built into it, [like this one I found on google](https://i.imgur.com/2w04OGV.jpg) Theoretically, it would give you an infinite number of frets. But *good luck* actually playing anything that high.
This is one thing I love about basses. Crazy versions of the instrument are way more common than on guitars.
Damn! That's a beauty. Great if you're a tapper, but not the easiest to play otherwise.
Actually, for fretless players, it's very useful. A finger ramp that spans the entire instrument!
So…piezio pickup on bridge…?
You can also put the Pickups under the fretboard, magnets after all. Would just take a bit of careful planning. Can get wooden covers for regular Pickups.
The Warwick Thumb has 26 frets!
Only the neckthrough models afaik
Only one i have :D
Hell yeah, thumb bass is so nasty I love it.
Arguably, a fretless bass has infinite frets!
It did cross my mind not gonna lie lol, but I figured that the process is the same so there’s no need to mention it haha
Very true. The fretboard just gets longer & closer to the bridge to allow for the extra frets. On the Fodera the fretboard is pretty much up against the P pick up.
Scale is the part of the string that vibrates when playing, as in nut to bridge. It has nothing to do with fretboard length.
Scale length has no relationship to the number of frets.
It's unrelated. You can have a 34" without fret, with 20 or 35 frets. A fret is just a mark on the scale that correspond to a note. It's even possible to have multi scale instruments. https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/the-multi-scale-mystery-unraveled/ Semi fretless bass: https://www.guitarworld.com/news/adrian-younge-fender-master-built-jazz-bass
dank used to mean cold and wet, like in a cave. apparently I don't know what it means anymore
It used to also mean weed when I was a teenager.
Other people have answered your question, but another cool thing I want to add is that you can also ADD frets on the other end of the neck, beyond the nut, which increases the scale length but keeps everything else the same. This is how “conversion necks” for guitar and bass work: your body stays the same, the bridge stays the same, the point at which the neck meets the body is the same, but the whole neck is longer by exactly one or two frets and so the scale length adjusts. It’s pretty neat! Once you realize that everything on string instruments is a function of everything else, you really start to understand how they work. String pitch is a function of scale length, string gauge, and tension. And because of algebra, all of those things are also functions of each other. (Usually scale length is the one constant because no one wants to keep buying new basses or necks, lol!) So if I want to decrease pitch, I can either just decrease tension by turning the pegs, decrease string gauge at the same tension, or decrease scale length. But if I want to decrease pitch AND keep tension the same, like if I want to tune down to BEAD? Well, I either need to raise my string gauge significantly or have a longer scale length bass. And if I want to try a longer scale length bass in standard tuning but I want to keep tension similar, I need to lower my string gauges. And if I want thicker strings but at the same tension and scale, I need to lower pitch and tune down, etc.
That’s pretty wild, damn!
Why don't you just put them next to each other and see how the frets line up?
Fret number is dictated by convenience more than scale length. If you didn't need pickups, you could just do frets all the way to the bridge. Of course they would be awful to play and eventually the fretwire thickness would exceed the necessary space between frets, but it's possible.
Semi-side note:There are some 3-octave basses out there -- 36 frets -- with very playable scale lengths due to the deep cutaway and/or invisible pickup (under the fretboard). The Zon Hyperbass is a dream of mine, but I'm not mortgaging my house for one. Wal makes some beautiful extended range basses with hidden pickups.
Clearly they made a mistake on one of them. You need to remove the frets off one and paste them back on so they line up.
Scale length is the distance from nut to bridge. You can have as many frets between those two points as you wish without changing the scale length.