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Neck profiles. Who cares?

Joe Nerve

Joe Nerve

Oct 7, 2000
18,619
38,939
New York City
www.joenerve.com
Disclosures
Endorsing artist: Musicman basses
#1
...or actually, who doesn't care?

I used to prefer thin, sterling/jazz like necks. A few years back I was forced to play a 5 string. Not happy about it at first, but eventually got used to it. Would jump back and forth to a 4, and started playing a lot of different basses. After a while it meant nothing for me to jump from 5s with a wide necks, to my 4 string Warwick that feel like a pencil sometimes. I really have no preference anymore. Curious how others many feel the same.
 
#3
Hey Joe, fellow Bongoloid, hope everything is going well for you! :)

I've played many different neck profiles and haven't had any problems (get used to them too), but anyway I have my preferences. The neck profile I like the least from the basses in my arsenal is that of my 2006 Rickenbacker 4003. One of my students has one of those 24-fret Jazz basses made in Korea that Fender recently discontinued, and I absolutely hate that neck (great width, but horrible thickness). On the other hand, while I like the Bongo's neck profile a lot, I still haven't found another bass like the Peavey T-40 in that area. I don't like narrow necks. I don't like thick necks. The T-40's is perfect to me: Wide and very shallow.

Summarizing, this is a picture of something that I definitely don't like:

Ushapeneck.gif


And this is probably the closest representation of something I like I could find:

Flatneck.gif


But again, I can get used to any profile (I think). Just a matter of preference. BTW, I've seen that lots of players hate the feel of a gloss finish on the back of the neck and I have absolutely no problem with it (but of course, that bare wood feel of the Sterling is incredibly nice).
 
#4
I went from playing a Schecter Stiletto to a Traben Tribal sun which felt like a 2x4 compared to the Schecter. My wife got a an SX 5 String for Christams and now even the Traben feels really thin. The Schecter compared to the SX is almost like a sheet of paper. I still can't play everything on the SX that I can play on my four strings mostly because of the width difference and my muscle memory is not calibrated for five strings yet.
 
#5
It's a big deal for me. Certain neck profiles just fit my hand like a glove, and those basses are always the hardest to put down. I switched to 5-string recently and that's muddied the waters a bit, because every 4-string I pick up now feels like a toy. But my 5-string has a great-feeling neck, and that was one of the main reasons I bought it: I picked it up, the neck just melted into my hand, and that was that.
 
#6
I would have thought that differences in things like string spacing would have a much bigger effect on a player. I've owned 9 basses and never really thought about it. For example, I couldn't tell you anything about the profile on my no1 bass without it being in my hand because I honestly can't remember.

EDIT: That being said, perhaps even if you don't pay attention to to the profile of a specific bass, it may contribute to why you like or dislike a bass but "don't really know why".
 
#9
I never used to care. Until I found a bass that really felt right.

I started learning on a friend's Fender Precision, and keep in mind I was 10 years old at the time. I liked the sound but hated the neck, so I always avoided them. I didn't realize at the time that his P had a Jazz neck. When I finally tried a Precision with a P neck, I found "my bass".

D
 
#10
Originally I didn't care cause I didn't know the difference. When I first started, a bass was a bass. Then I started to learn the difference and got really picky. But after going through so many basses recently, I've found that I can adjust to almost any neck (4's and 5's only at least). Though I still do have my preferences, I don't feel quite so picky in most cases, cause if it's comfortable and sounds great, I'll play it.
 
#12
I actually sold one of the best sounding basses I've ever owned because it had a "slim" neck. I always wanted a bass with one of those tobias style assymetrical necks, I finally got one and played for a few years, it sounded great, better than my 5 string jazz, but when it came to playin' improv I was always more comfortable with a bigger neck, I didn't play better, I was just more comfortable, then after I played a Warwick Infinity with one of those bohemuth necks I realized then that I really loved the way I could anchor in and groove. Sold the fast neck and used the cash to pimp my Jazz
 
#13
i've got huge hands and long alien-like fingers, so i prefer a fat, round neck.

thin necks feel like toys in my monstrous mitts. i love how Ibanez basses sound and look, but i feel like im going to snap the neck every time i play one. my fingers also feel a bit crowded. i need a little more room.

Fender P, Musicman, Spector, and Gibson all have pretty nice chunky necks.
 
#15
I can get used to any neck, but I really like Jazz and Lakland necks. I currently own the full range from an Ibanez 4-string that feels like a pencil to a Warwick 5-string that feels like a baseball bat. I've found that for my playing, too thick is a problem but a workable one. String spacing at the bridge really is a much bigger deal for me.
 
#19
I play 6+ strings. Wide and flat is my preference, although I can adapt pretty well to some chunkier necks (like my Schecter neck, or even a Spector Euro neck)... but if you hand me a Warwick I'll probably try stab you with the headstock. Those necks (post '91 when they were made of 48 cubic feet of solid wood) are simply unplayable.
 

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