The Expanding Multi-Scale Guitar and Bass Market

Established manufacturers can be slow to embrace new concepts unless they can see a large market. While, today, many large companies as well as individual luthiers now offer the multi-scale and extended-range options to meet growing demand, the road to larger market acceptance was long and arduous.

A Brief History of Multi-Scale Design Development

When luthier Ralph Novak got a U.S. Patent for his unique “Multiple Scale Fretboard” (Patent # 4,852,450) in 1989, he didn’t realize how powerful his design would be in reshaping the future fretted instrument market. “I was just trying to make a better guitar and bass. My initial prototypes, although crude and hastily constructed, proved the concept in several ways: the design had ergonomic benefits for players, tonal response was enhanced, and those crude prototypes played more ‘in-tune’ than traditional single-scale length instruments.” His multi-scale design concept (trademarked Fanned-Fret®) arose from his extensive guitar repair experience, where he was able to become intimately familiar with the effects of scale length on the tone of guitars.

When Novak first exhibited his “Novax®” guitars at a Guild of American Luthiers Convention in 1990, his unique design was looked at with curiosity and doubt by other luthiers. However, one luthier, Sheldon Dingwall, was entranced.

“We immediately formed a close bond,” Novak recalls. “Sheldon is an accomplished builder and designer, he saw the advantages of the design as applied to his own instruments. His enthusiasm and design skills impressed me and he became my first official licensee.” His innovative basses, endorsed by ace bassist Leland Sklar, continue to lead the industry with cutting-edge bass design.

Design refinements and input from players visiting Novak’s shop led to further development of the concept. In 1992, Novak won an Industrial Design Excellence Award for the concept, and in 1995 he gave a talk at a Guild Of American Luthiers convention where he discussed the relationship between scale length and tone. Varying the scale length of the bass and treble strings is the foundation of the concept. The instruments exhibited by Novak at the convention exposed a larger audience of luthiers to the concept, thereby spurring a growing interest in multi-scale design as luthiers and players were able to experience the benefits.

Subsequent exhibits at NAMM and various guitar shows often brought skepticism from players until they played the instruments.  The playing experience changed players’ perspectives from skepticism to enthusiasm.

The response from manufacturers about licensing the concept was less than enthusiastic, however. When Novak approached large manufacturers about licensing he was often rebuffed with comments like, “There’s no market for weird guitars” or “You’re nuts!”  Seeing first-hand the players’ responses, however, Novak was convinced that there was a market and persisted with development despite lack of interest from large companies.

One player of note, Charlie Hunter, recognized the benefits of applying the concept to his unique “hybrid” bass/guitar technique and commissioned Novak to build an 8-string guitar capable of performing in both bass and guitar range. The multi-scale concept is ideally suited to expanded tuning range.

While the 8-string guitar was not a new concept in itself, the incorporation of a bass scale-length and guitar scale-length fretboard was the key to making such instruments perform well. It was this “marriage” of multi-scale design with the expanded tonal range of bass and guitar that enabled these two niche markets to grow together.

Additionally, Hunter’s groundbreaking playing style was generating a cadre of inspired “copyists” as he toured with the Disposable Heroes of HipHoprisy, and later with his own trio and quartet, becoming recognized among his peers as a jazz innovator.

Charlie Hunter was active in developing and finalizing the 8-string concept with Novak. He would suggest design changes and Novak would create prototypes which Hunter would use in performance, then come back to Novak’s shop with additional suggestions. After many such prototypical instruments, the design was formalized and the Charlie Hunter 8-string was born. Availability of these instruments combined with Hunter’s innovative style and extensive tours has inspired players world-wide since 1996, further expanding the market for extended range instruments. The growth of interest in 7- and 8-string instruments has ballooned in the past decade due in large part to Hunter’s inspiring playing style and the availability of the Novax Charlie Hunter 8-string.

Recent Market Growth of Multi-Scale Design

In 2016, Ibanez/Hoshino received industry recognition for their multi-scale bass, winning MMR‘s “Electric Bass of the Year” Dealers’ Choice Award. The multi-scale concept was finally gaining widespread industry acceptance after decades of Novak’s efforts to attract large scale manufacturers to the growing player demand.

Today, the demand for “more than 6-string” guitars and expanded range bass instruments by players recognizing the benefits of multi-scale design have enlivened the fretted instrument market. These two “niche markets” have grown up together and manufacturers are now jumping in.  The performance advantage of the multi-scale concept has enabled a growing numbers of players to embrace instruments with expanded tonal range. Companies like Hybrid Guitars, Ormsby, and Dingwall Designer Basses that started as small independent shops have grown to meet the increasing demand for these unique instruments. Parts suppliers like HipShot and industry-leader GraphTech have geared up to produce multi-scale bridges, nuts, and other multi-scale accessories to meet builders’ demands.

The benefits of multi-scale design and the growing player demand have attracted many larger companies who had previously shied away from the concept to now enter this market. At the 2023 NAMM show in Anaheim you’ll see and be able to experience multi-scale offerings by dozens of renowned manufacturers large and small, as well as independent luthiers.  Dingwall, Jackson, Ormsby, Spector, Ibanez, ESP, Kiesel, Dean, Strandberg, B.C. Rich, and more will be exhibiting their multi-scale instruments at NAMM this year. Players’ fascination with altered tunings, ergonomics, and expanded tonal range have made multi-scale instruments prominent in todays fretted instrument world. Multi-scale has become the growing market segment for fretted instruments.

Ralph Novak has been actively repairing, modifying, and building custom guitars and basses for over 50 years. He won an Industrial Design Society “I.D.E.A. Excellence” award in 1992 for the multi-scale concept. 

2014 was the 25th anniversary of Novax Guitars, a company he started upon receiving U.S. Patent #4,852,450, for his multi-scale guitar design. At NAMM that year he introduced his 25th anniversary “Annie” model, which incorporates player-suggested design features and a proprietary circuit delivering unique tones.  These instruments continue to be popular for their player-friendly features. 

Currently retired from building custom instruments, Novak’s handcrafted instruments are prized by musicians worldwide.