Stainless Steal Ftets

[Al M]

Does anyone have any opinions on stainless steal fretts? I am told they simply don't wear out and give a twangier sound but some say they're almost too bright sounding? What do people here think?

[King Knall]

I've heard people say that they prefer the regular frets. Apparently some prefer to change worn frets than get stainless steel frets.

[pawel]

I have also heard people say they prefer SS frets...

[lloop9]

I love SS frets! Not only do they resist wear, Its easier to bend strings or vibrato as they are so slick. FWIW, I dun find them brighter than NS frets either.

And they really shine

Do give them a try, U might like them.

[dangomles]

I think stainless frets make the tone a bit brighter

[JESTER700]

I love 'em. All my guitars will eventually have them. Smooth as butter; no wear.

[eelblack2]

SS frets are awesome. I love my guitars that have them. I do find they add a little high end snap to the tone tho, so I like to have a mix of guitars with and without them.

[whatshisname]

The difference in tone is negligible. If you have two guitars, and one has a bit more snap, are you 100% SURE that it's because of the frets? Impossible. There are WAY too many other things to consider.

I've had plenty of guitars that had more snap than others, and they didn't have SS frets. I've had others, where they were brighter than guitars with SS frets. I think this is a case of people buying into what they read/are told. No offence, anyone.

They'll never wear out, and feel super smooth. Good enough for me.

[JESTER700]

While I won't say it's impossible the steel frets add some snap or brightness, it's not enough to notice a difference when I swapped one neck for another - (the same kind of neck - maple Carvin, ebony board, abalone inlays). Now MAYBE there was a subtle difference I just didn't catch from memory that might've been there if I'd recorded a bit of "before & after". MAYBE the steel fretted neck had maple/ebony that was slightly darker and thus balanced out the steel's brightness. Or maybe not.

My point is, IF there's a sound difference, IMO it is far outweighed by the difference in feel & wear. That's not to say everyone will agree with me that steel is an improvement in these areas; to each his own. But I would definitely say that anyone considering a new neck, a refret, or a new guitar in which fret material is an option would be silly to not make an effort to try a guitar with steel frets to see if they're to his taste.