Are jazz bass necks too small?

[Ekulati]

Small in which dimension? You have to specify that before anyone can accurately/helpfully comment.

 

[Real Soon]

I have to do some adjusting any time I switch basses, frankly. Whatever I pick up has a weird neck till I get a day or two of practice with it, then I wonder why I ever played any of the others.

That said, right now my Washburn Taurus's neck feels like a radio antenna compared to the 7-string bass I was just working on prior, and yet the string spacing feels like miles. Heh

 

[somebrains]

I have never liked Jazz Bass necks.

I’m having a 5 string built now and the nut width will be 1 7/8”.

1 7/8 spacing is nice, my J5 neck is that width.
My other 5's fill a little tight.

I can play any 4 string but I favor a 1.5".

Whatever works for you.

 

[InternetAlias]

Jazz bass necks, to me, have the perfect tradeof between chunkiness and slimness. They're right in the middle, not too slim, not too chunky.

 

[Hundred proof]

Not all Jazz necks are thin ... I have an early 73 with the deep U maple neck, I'm told the new USA Geddy Lee has that same profile.

 

[fhm555]

I can play wider necks but after a night of four forty five minute sets on a P neck my left hand is sore and feels bruised, not so doing the same with a J neck.
I’m self taught so i’m sure it’s my awful technique that’s causing this, but I’m also an old dog and new tricks are not something i’m interested in if the only reward id playing a wider neck all night.
In a situation where i only need to do a song or two it’s not a problem and if i have to do it for a night i just accept up front i’m going to need a day to recover, which is why all my basses are j basses.
As for truss rods maxed, none of mine are.

 

[Nephilymbass]

A couple years ago, I was hankering for a good jazz bass. I had been listening to a lot of Led Zeppelin. I eventually found a used CS that I couldn’t say no to. The action is perfect. However, the truss is maxed and I had to get the saddles just right. The neck feels very small to me, I am used to classic Precision style necks and my Rick has a club for a neck, which I like btw. Talking with other bass players, it seems this is not uncommon with jazz basses. I am surprised it would happen with a CS being that they can choose the wood first etc. So are jazz necks just a bit too small or what? Is it uncommon for the truss to be maxed in a jazz neck?

I broke a metacarpal in my left hand when I was a teenager so I may be an exception but I absolutely hate 4 string jazz bass necks. I much prefer chunky p 4 string necks or narrower spaced 5 strings that are similar

 

[howlin]

Personally I prefer the thin Jazz necks; I switched up recently to a Precision style neck, but only because that's what the bass I wanted comes with. In my perfect world every bass would have a nice, slim neck like a Jazz.

That's why my P Bass has a Jazz Bass neck on it. Best of both worlds IMHE.

 

[BassBeginer64]

I have a silly question, does the width of the neck dictate the string spacing? I have not measured a Jazz Neck strings spacing.

 

[DanGroove]

No... as a 5’7” guy I have to say Jazz necks are Wonderful!

 

[leonard]

Sounds like you need to visit a competent luthier. Jazz bass is a time proven design and you got a bad example. A Custom Shop Jazz is worth fixing.

 

[InnerBass]

Lakland 1.5” Glaub feels really nice to me - effortless.
I have a Fender ‘57 Fullerton RI that feels like a Louisville Slugger - sounds like heaven.
I love them both

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

... Fender Custom Shop ... for when you are ready ...

 

[micguy]

6’3”, very large hands. I have P sized necks on everything, including my J. Just fits me better.

 

[Clef_de_fa]

So you never played a 6 strings ...

 

[buldog5151bass]

I've had a P neck on my jazz for the past 33 years (same instrument), so for me, yes.

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

The truss rod on a j should work as it should. I played with p style necks for 12 years, then switched to j profile necks. To me, they're perfect. You'll decide if it's too small for you.

 

[rufus.K]

No they're not too small.
Are Precision necks always too large?

 

[ultra60]

A couple years ago, I was hankering for a good jazz bass. I had been listening to a lot of Led Zeppelin. I eventually found a used CS that I couldn’t say no to. The action is perfect. However, the truss is maxed and I had to get the saddles just right. The neck feels very small to me, I am used to classic Precision style necks and my Rick has a club for a neck, which I like btw. Talking with other bass players, it seems this is not uncommon with jazz basses. I am surprised it would happen with a CS being that they can choose the wood first etc. So are jazz necks just a bit too small or what? Is it uncommon for the truss to be maxed in a jazz neck?

I've owned a couple of '62 reissues where the truss rod was maxed out. In both cases, the necks had to be clamped and the truss rod adjusted. I thought I'd heard that this was fairly common. The '62 is one of my favorite jazz neck profiles.

 

[Jim Carr]

...found a used CS... However, the truss is maxed and I had to get the saddles just right... ...it seems this is not uncommon with jazz basses. I am surprised it would happen with a CS being that they can choose the wood first etc. So are jazz necks just a bit too small or what? Is it uncommon for the truss to be maxed in a jazz neck?

Contact Fender CS, or better yet, send it to one of the folks who heat treat warped necks. My favorite is Warpednecks.com here in Denton, TX. I've had 5 instruments necks treated by them—no association, just a satisfied customer. My instruments so treated have all remained "straightened," and their truss rods work fine.

About Jazz necks, I have had 6 jazzes. Only one had serious neck issues, and it was a '68.