Russian guitar usually differs from the wood in the rest of the neck. The neck joint or heel is the point at which the neck is attached to the body of the guitar. The fingerboard is made of hardwood (ebony or rosewood are common), fitted with metal frets of brass or steel. Fret spacing almost always follows the western twelve tone equal temperament (12-tet) system. The surface of the fingerboard may be flat or curved slightly ("radiused"), although the curve on the Russian guitar is usually somewhat less than that of an equivalent western 6-string guitar. Inlayed position markers are common, and
Eleven-string alto guitar 11-string alto guitar. This design introduced two main elements. The first was to provide conventional lute tuning by tuning the first six strings a minor third higher (hence the name "alto guitar"). It is equivalent to putting a capo on the third fret of the normal prime guitar. The second element was to add five extra strings to accommodate low notes. The typical 11-string alto guitar tuning is (from low to high strings): Bb1 C2 D2 Eb2 F2 G2 C3 F3 Bb3 D4 G4. Current luthiers who build 11-string alto guitars, primarily located in Sweden, include Heikki Rousu and Roger