Dot markers on a Spanish guitar ?

[BigMac]

I am new to the classical guitar world. People told me to get a good Spanish guitar to start with but I noticed that there are no white dot markers along the neck and that makes it very difficult to jump to a 7th or 9th fret for a beginner! ... Any suggestions about how to resolve this problem will be greatly appreciated. :(

[NGiorgio]

Any qualified guitar technician or luthier can install the markers for you. I suppose that you could also try using tape for the markers, temporarily. If you wait long enough, you will get used to not seeing the markers.

[TheEvan]

I've always used a little dot of white-out. It rubs off easily with no damage to the finish.

[Olly]

I had that problem, so i just stuck a little white sticker on the neck by the 7th fret. Now i know ehre the 7th fret is, i took the sticker off and i can play wothout the mark

Olly

[rumbamaster]

I've had side dots professionally installed on all my guitars just like an electric guitar. This is helpful for when playing other styles of music such as jazz. It's true you can get used to playing without dots, but every now and then you will mis-calculate and hit a sour note. Although the result is not a problem during practice, it is quite embarrassing during a performance.

[BigMac]

Thank you all for those good suggestions! This msg board is really a big help.

[Dimitri]

The only problem with having these markers installed permanently is that if you happen to play with a capo (like in flamenco) you're going to have to do math in your head when you're playing. ("Hmm, dot on the 7th fret, with my cejilla on the 3rd fret... so... the new 7th fret is actually 3 frets below the dot.")

That can get confusing. Better to either learn to play without markers, or use easily moveable stickers. White out is ok, but you can't adjust white out when your on stage, between numbers :)
Dimitri

[rumbamaster]

The wierd thing is that after a while your mind is so poweful it can easily adjust the dots in your mind when you play with a capo. I use a capo all the time and never have any problem at all. I guess by this reasoning you shouldn't need dots at all...

[M. Stephenson]

Without a doubt fret markers help, but I would start trying to play with my eyes closed as soon as possible.

I have noticed that as I get more advanced, not relying on the fret markers is becoming a bigger issue. Typically when I crash and burn it is in a section that I have to look at the fretboard in order to play. Once I can play the section comfortably with my eyes closed, then I stand a much better chance of making it thru that section without a mishap.

That being said, when I sit down to record I prefer using my guitar that has a ton of fret markers. :wink: