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So what kind of guitar necks do you prefer, folks? I used to like thicker, but now I have this guitar with a slimmer neck that is quite more resonant than the similar one with a thicker neck that I have, so I am getting used to the neck.
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12-14-2017 11:08 AM
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I grew up playing super slim D necks in the 90s so now I can't handle a 50s profile. My favorite neck is the strat/tele elite. Compound radius, the neck goes from modern C to D profile.
Modern C or 60s profile does it for me.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ProLast edited by blille; 12-14-2017 at 11:42 AM.
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I like a thicker neck. My Benedetto and '53 Epi have thicker necks, and I like them a lot. Today I played my Epi ES175 for awhile, and my left hand got tired from playing the thin neck. I've never much liked thin necks, just personal preference.
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I like 'em thicker. I can play thinner necks, too, but the thick ones fatigue my hand less in a long playing session. The shape of the back of the neck might be more important...I don't like it too flat.
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I'm pretty comfortable with most neck profiles. My favorite was the "wide-fat" profile on my PRS.
I like the profile that Fender uses on their Standard series (Warmoth calls this the "standard thin"), but ideally I prefer something chunkier. I got the "boatneck" profile on my Warmoth Tele neck, and just from handling it, I'm about 90% sure that I'm going to love playing it.
Warmoth Custom Guitar Parts - Neck Profiles
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Thick necks are the only way to go. More comfortable when playing many hours and the extra mass sounds fuller. When I was at GIT they had a doctor who was a guitarist do a clinic on good playing habits, warming up, and avoid hand and wrist issues. The doctor talked about why thicker necks are easier on the hands.
So everything points thick necks.
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Medium, or thick profile, some skinny might work too... But it's got to have 1 5/8 nut width! Anything wider, I don't wanna play it. Unless it's a really thick profile. Wide and thin is the ultimate worst. 1 5/8 and 9.5 radius is perfect with any thickness.
Seriously, I sold some mighty good sounding guitars because the neck was too wide.
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Slim '60s C profile fan here, I don't feel at home on anything else and nut width must be either 1 5/8 or 1 11/16.
I sold an SG Standard because it had a round '50s and I could never bind with it, same with my Sheraton II and its fat D neck.
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My favorite neck I’ve ever played is the early 30s Gibson neck. A big fat rounded V. Especially with a 1 3/4” nut. For the record I don’t have large hands. They’re smaller than most.
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Given enough time I can adapt to just about anything but I very much prefer deeper necks with a chunky C shape verging almost on a U or D.
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+1.
Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
The samples I own run the gamut from a thin/narrow ES-150D, the 335 "slim taper" to a 335 with a 50's thicker neck. I figure if a violin virtuoso can play those little sausage thin necks I can adapt. The only issue is fatigue which if I play the middle ground like a slim taper often going down or up is less of a problem.
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Was talking with another guitarist friend about neck profile preferences lately. I have a lot of guitars, each of which have different necks. Some drastically different. I find that I like them all. I play differently on each of them. I like the change.
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60's Gibson slim necks for me. With a 1 11/16 nut and a C profile.
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have big hands so ideal for me is a late '39 or late '59 Gibson, medium C w/ 1 11/16" nut
but most of my guitars are 60's slim taper w/ 1 11/16" nut, comfortable but not ideal.
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If all necks had the same shapes, I doubt there would be that many few guitarists.
The neck shape helps determine the thumb position and, in turn, where the guitar is situated in front of the body.
Thin necks provide better mechanical advantage for those who keep their thumb in the center of the back of the neck. They are also great for chord melody playing when the thumb has to cover up to half of the strings.
Fat necks favor cupping the neck between the thumb and first finger. Most guitarists do this most of the time. That position allows you to drop your guitar to belt level.
Personally, I've had to adjust to each over the years. I know some guys are fussy, some aren't.
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I like a wider neck, and can get on fine with thick or thin from front to back. What I don't like is big "shoulders."
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Its funny, I use to like thicker necks. My old 137 had a nice plow handle of a neck that I loved.
But lately, I find that I like necks right down the middle now. Not too thick and not too thin. Both of my Johnny Smiths have the same neck. Perfection. Think of it as an L5 neck that is not as deep. The new 175 that I got from Vinny has a very similar neck. Perfection.
I don't think I will ever warm up to shallow fast necks like the JP20 neck or even Stringswingers HDA because they cramp the hell out of my hands.
My 165 is chunky but its OK because its only 24-3/4" scale.
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I keep my thumb behind the neck, classical style and hold the guitar up high. Thin (shallow) necks work best for my style hands down. I do sometimes wrap my thumb around to get a note on the sixth string, therefore a C profile with a 1 11/16 nut works best. And I sometimes play stretch chords so a 24.75 or 25 inch scale works best. Originally Posted by Marty Grass
I can adjust to different necks, but at this point I know what I like. While the early 60's Gibson neck is my favorite, the slim taper Gibson necks of the 70's through 90's work just fine (I have noticed that the 90's ones are a bit thicker than the ones of the 70's and 80's).
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I don't fret notes with my thumb, but I do go back and forth between thumb on the back and thumb hanging over the top.
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No strong preference, I'm happy playing anything really. I have quite a few guitars, with a variety of neck shapes, and can never find strong reasons to prefer any one of them.
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I am a thumb on the back of the neck type. I really like the thin necks on my Eastman AR910CE and AR371CE. The Warmouth Standard/Thin Tele neck is a bit thicker and a touch less comfortable. The new/old Peerless Monarch is both narrower at the nut and chunkier and the lest comfortable of the bunch...
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I prefer thick and asymmetric.
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Thick. I've heard that as men age their hands tend to cramp more on tight gripping tasks, and being a middle aged male my own experience goes along with this. Although I'm just as commfortable playing a thin neck or a thick neck for a few minutes, I find that I get hand fatigue and cramping much more quickly with prolonged playing on a thin neck. On a thin neck I can only play for a short time, not long enough for a full length gig. To play for hours non-stop I have to have a thick 50's style rounded C neck, ie: baseball bat. Flatness in a neck profile bugs me. So if I have to play a slim neck I prefer a Slim C and I don't like a D.
I've found that thumb position plays a huge role in cramping fatigue. If I position my thumb vertically on the back of the neck, parallel to my index or middle finger, I find that I get cramping sooner than if I abduct my thumb like a hitchhiker and point it horizontally towards the headstock when chording. Abduction of the thumb opens up the palm of my hand. Adducting the thumb (bringing the thumb closer toward the fingers) and closing the palm accelerates the cramping and fatigue.
I don't ever use my thumb to fret the 6th string. I was trained from the beginning to avoid that kind of technique.
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1981: Originally Posted by BeBob
Teacher: "Don't fret notes with your thumb like that."
Me (15 years old): "Jimi Hendrix does it."
Teacher: "When YOU revolutionize the electric guitar, you can do whatever you want. Until then, keep your thumb on the back of the neck."
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Me: Slides thumb over add9 chords around neck... Originally Posted by Boston Joe
I'm kinda glad my teacher never sweat me on things that weren't getting in the way of my playing...but I sure wish I listened to all the picking hand advice he gave me...
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