Any of you that also play guitar please read

Let me ask you what solid body bass body shape is the MOST COMFORTABLE to play.

It's not some objective thing.

I'm comfortable with strats, Les Pauls (not necessarily Gibson, and ESPECIALLY not the weights that Gibsons have, but definitely the shape), and Explorers and V shapes.

 

Ibanez guitars are my favorite due to thinner necks. I like Jazz basses for that same reason.

I just got an Ibanez SZ720 and it sound better than most PRS's I have played.

 

I like to play my Les Paul Studio. I keep hitting the top volume knob with my pinky on a Stratocaster. Strat is lighter. But I like the neck on the LP. I guess it's just me.

 

Sitting down-Strat for me. I've got a Les Paul [Agile/Rondo] & the shape sitting down just feels wrong. This is probably due to me playing Fender style basses-e.g. Jazz, P-bass, & StingRay.

Standing-no preference between Fender & Gibson style bodies.

 

Les Paul's are great to look at, but I was never a fan. I like my strat, very comfortable to play.

 

Best thing to do is go to a big guitar store and try a bunch on! It's really a very personal thing.

 

there's not many guitars I really find uncomfortable to play.

gibsons have a shorter scale than fenders and I strongly prefer then unless I'm downtuning a lot.

les pauls aren't that heavy especially if you get one with a chambered body.

 

Well most people like something that balances well (sitting and standing) and doesn't weigh a ton. Some people don't like guitars that are "too" light, but in general people seem to enjoy lightweight guitars.

Those things are pretty easy to achieve... when it comes to the actual shape, that's the hard part. It's hard to come up with something that's original, while not being too wacky.



That's my original design. I like it a lot because it's original, pretty non-derivative, yet kind of classy looking. The one thing I have thought about changing is the lower horn. There's not much of a horn so if you're playing sitting down, sometimes it can tend to slip off your knee. Not sure if I want to change it.

 

As far as comfort goes, I'd put a Strat above anything I've played. I love my Strat, and I'm gonna love me the Tele I'm gonna get with Strat contours.

 

I love both my strat and my Godin (mix between a tele and a LP shape), but hands down the most comfortable guitar that I have ever played was a Parker Fly. Sitting, standing, body, neck, neck heal, bridge, weight, everything is just perfect.

lowsound

 

I play Dean

 

it's all in the body contouring. I need the forearm contour and the belly contour, especially if the body is super-thick like a Les....

My fave guitar to play is a 72 Tele Deluxe RI, but that at times is bothersome because of the lack of arm contour, but is made up by the way it hangs on me... still, the forearm gets sore after serious / agressive play...

 

I like my Tele.

 

A strat for me.

 

I find that the top horn on my strat gets in the way for me, but that may be because I'm used to playing my Les Paul and having that space more open.

 

my vote goes for the MM Axis/Axis Super Sport . . . I've got a Blade strat (with SD pups) but find that the OLP MM1 that I've got is more comfy . . . and FWIW, that MM Axis IS the original!

 

strats and jazzmasters feel great to me!

 

The most comfortable body shape in my opinion is the shape Steve Klein came up with. There are quite a few homemade Kleins out there now. One of my buddies took a large-body Steinberger and cut off the upper horn to approximate the Klein shape and it balances just like the real thing.
Google results for "klein electric guitar": http://www.google.com/search?q=klein+electric+guitar&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t
and: http://buildingtheergonomicguitar.com/

Another shape that I really like is the shape that my Carvin has. It's a Holdsworth Fatboy model and it's basically like a Tele but thicker, completely hollow construction and has a little curve at the very bottom. So it's very light with highly-radiused edges, no sharp edges anywhere. Has a great balance to it and reminds me a lot of the way the Klein feels both in playability and tone.