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necksize vs handsize

#21
A lot of neck preferences will come from technique. If you use good technique, almost all thick/necks should be comfortable, within reason. I will play necks that some would consider chunky, but it had better be balanced. Most people who hate thin necks will wrap their thumb around the neck where most thin neck people tend to play with their thumb down the center of the neck.
 
#22
I always play with my thumb in the centre of the back of the neck - regardless of the bass. But I definitely prefer necks that are thin from front to back - not talking about how wide across the neck is - that is irrelevant to me. What you can't see from photos is the thickness of the neck from back to front and this has a big impact for me, on how comfortable the bass feels.

Once you start trying a lot of different basses, it is suprising how many different neck shapes/profile there are - of course if you just stick to basic Fenders you will probably never notice - but there is huge choice out there and in thirty years of trying basses I have noticed big differences!! :eek:
 
#23
hmm thanks for all the advice always nice to hear different opinions, i think i do palm the underside of the neck alot and i gotta work on the fingertips more i tend to use the flat part of the finger for the fact it is more comfortable but finger tips would prolly help with cleaner notes, any tips on baring i have been trying to work on the sweet emotion intro and find i cant hold the 3 strings down ith one finger no matter how hard i force my fingers haha its frustrating cause i cant seem to figure out what im doing wrong or if maybe its just my finger being stubby or something ah well
 
#25
hmm after some reading of what you all said i looked at the neck cant really tell myself if it would be concidered thin or chunky neck, i have noticed when i play i tent to wrap my hand so my thumb is aroudn the neck which works ok untill i get to 4 or 5 frets down than it cuts off the E from comfortable use and makes the A a pain the farther down the harder it is, trying the dump on the back of the neck im tryin to figure out placement it would seem directly under where im playing hurts a bit and doesnt help but out a little wider is not so bad
 
#27
Bruce Lindfield said:
It definitely sounds like you need to work on your technique first, before considering basses - one face-to-face lesson with a good bass teacher would be a good start to sorting this out!

Preferably more...?
Click to expand...

haha yes it would help and i would rather have someone to point out things to me as i learn rather than watchin vids and lookin at stuff online, but alas being unemployed for the last 9 months i am lacking funds for a teacher, also do not know of any bass teachers around this area .

that said something occured to me while i was thinkin and does it really matter which hand is more quardenated when picking, i am like 150% more quardenated with my right hand and have kinda wondered if id play better using my right hand for the fingering and left for the picking, but alas i have also noticed the righty guitars and basses are not somethign you can get to easily from what i have seen
 
#29
Bruce Lindfield said:
But that doesn't mean that some necks suit you better than others....:eyebrow:

So all the Wals and Warwicks I have tried - have had uncomfortable chunky necks. So -even a 4 string neck!

Whereas other basses I have tried with wider, but flatter profiles like Lakland,Tobias,Yamaha etc. have felt much more comfortable under my hands.

I know I could play any bass - but given the amount of choice there is - why not choose the one that feels the most comfortable..?
Click to expand...

:eyebrow::eyebrow: right back atcha!
I hear what you're saying, but I might be unusual because the first priorities for me are the tone of a bass and an acceptable setup (straight neck, no fret buzz or ridiculously dead notes, etc.). When I find a bass that meets those criteria, but has an unfamiliar (i.e. "uncomfortable") neck, I'll make myself get familiar with it. I once got a Fender Precision with a C width neck that was very shallow. I had been using B width Fender necks with "baseball bat" syndrome for years, and I felt like a baby on the new bass. But I loved the sound, and when I put a more familiar neck on it, it affected the tone adversely (less mass). So I put the original neck back on and made myself play nothing but that bass. About a year of constant gigging later, I was its master. ;)

Of course, after a few more years I was itching for something different and had to readjust all over again.

SO...

For me, having the good posture that I described earlier, is how I finally managed to bridge the gaps between different instruments that I value for their different sounds.

Another thing that helps me is using the so-called "floating thumb" technique. Actually, I usually *dangle* my thumb. Practically no contact with anything but air. (Talking about my plucking hand, of course.) To me, it would ridiculous to deem any bass unplayable because, say, it doesn't have a ramp, or the pickup is in the wrong place for me to anchor my thumb, and so on. Frankly, it amazes me when people here say those things.
 
#30
leechmaster said:
haha yes it would help and i would rather have someone to point out things to me as i learn rather than watchin vids and lookin at stuff online, but alas being unemployed for the last 9 months i am lacking funds for a teacher, also do not know of any bass teachers around this area .

that said something occured to me while i was thinkin and does it really matter which hand is more quardenated when picking, i am like 150% more quardenated with my right hand and have kinda wondered if id play better using my right hand for the fingering and left for the picking, but alas i have also noticed the righty guitars and basses are not somethign you can get to easily from what i have seen
Click to expand...

Just some basic lessons should help you. Online lessons/tabs can't give you feedback on what you're doing wrong.
 
#33
dougjwray said:
:
For me, having the good posture that I described earlier, is how I finally managed to bridge the gaps between different instruments that I value for their different sounds.

Another thing that helps me is using the so-called "floating thumb" technique. Actually, I usually *dangle* my thumb. Practically no contact with anything but air. (Talking about my plucking hand, of course.) To me, it would ridiculous to deem any bass unplayable because, ..
Click to expand...

I do exactly the same as you in terms of technique and use my RH thumb floating - for muting, double stops, artificial harmonics etc.

However - if there was no such thing as personal preference when it comes to basses, then every neck would be the same - but as I have said - in over 30 years of trying all sorts of basses there is huge variety in necks and if there was no demand - why are these experienced builders like Mike Tobias, worried about things like assymetrical neck profile etc..?
 
#34
Bruce Lindfield said:
I do exactly the same as you in terms of technique and use my RH thumb floating - for muting, double stops, artificial harmonics etc.

However - if there was no such thing as personal preference when it comes to basses, then every neck would be the same - but as I have said - in over 30 years of trying all sorts of basses there is huge variety in necks and if there was no demand - why are these experienced builders like Mike Tobias, worried about things like assymetrical neck profile etc..?
Click to expand...

I'm not saying that there's no such thing as personal preference. I'm glad there are so many choices out there.
I was just trying to share my experience to be helpful. It actually might provide *more* choice to bassists out there if more necks become playable, via the technique that we both use.
As I said, I might be unusual in this area. I mean, the color of a bass is also not a limiting factor for me!
 
#35
dougjwray said:
I'm not saying that there's no such thing as personal preference. I'm glad there are so many choices out there.
I was just trying to share my experience to be helpful. It actually might provide *more* choice to bassists out there if more necks become playable, via the technique that we both use.!
Click to expand...

Well, I have been playing for 30 years and have had lessons from some great players - all Jazz pros who have confirmed that my technique is very good and correct!

But I still feel that the necks of Warwick and Wal basses - to name just two off the top of my head - made them uncomfortable for me - despite using a Comfort Strapp and a reasonably high strap position.

Whereas - as I have said - I played a Yamaha TRB6P with a really wide neck for many years and it felt very comfortable! :)
 
#36
Regarding neck size: I agree that there is no "one size fits all". It really is a matter of preference. I like bigger P bass necks as well smaller J bass necks. As an aside, one reason I am not a guitar player (at least not a good one) is because I think the neck it too small and the strings too thin. I have been playing guitar for years and I never have felt comfortable with the instrument. However, counter-intuitively, I feel very comfortable on the banjo. :hmm:

Regarding keeping time: The best thing you can do is practice with a metronome. I have a cheap 'nome that I bought for $10. It is the single best thing you can do to improve your playing. I use it nearly everyday. There are so many exercises that you can do with it. Check out Victor Wooten playing with this 'nome I am not endorsing this model... you can do this with any model...and furthermore you don't have to do this flashy over-the-top stuff to get better...but the method is great. I love to start with an faster temp and then cut it in half and play the same bassline. Try doing this at first with an easy bass line (for example Nirvana's SMELLS LIKE TEENSPIRIT). Experiment.

I have a harder time with the metronome playing slowly. In fact, by the time I get to 40 bpm on the AND beat... I pretty much suck. But I am getting better.:)

Lastly, as you are a new bassist, don't get frustrated. This is something you will have to work on for your whole life.
 
#37
Bruce Lindfield said:
Well, I have been playing for 30 years and have had lessons from some great players - all Jazz pros who have confirmed that my technique is very good and correct!

But I still feel that the necks of Warwick and Wal basses - to name just two off the top of my head - made them uncomfortable for me - despite using a Comfort Strapp and a reasonably high strap position.

Whereas - as I have said - I played a Yamaha TRB6P with a really wide neck for many years and it felt very comfortable! :)
Click to expand...

See, if I'd liked the sound of those Warwick and Wal basses, I'd have locked myself in a room with them and practiced until I made them feel comfortable, even if it took months and I had to have food passed to me under the door. But, then, I'm not a quitter. :D JUST KIDDING! HA HA!!
We're in total agreement on technique. For the record, I've been playing for 39 years, and my technique (which is, again, the same as yours) was okayed by my teachers, Richard Davis and Jaco Pastorius.
 
#38
But I can remember going to the Bass Centre in London 10-15 years ago and there were maybe 20 different basses I really liked the sound of - but there was no way I was going to buy all of them!!:p

So in that case it came down to which neck felt best and in fact I found the (pre Gibson) Tobias to be the fastest and most comfortable....?

But eventually I felt that I had to give up on this, as its ease of use, meant that I tended to overplay in situations where a simple groove was needed - it was just too much of a temptation to throw in some flashy stuff! ;)

Now I play Double Bass mostly and go for simpler lines - but whenever I pick up BG I tend to overplay and realise it - but just can't resist!! :p
 

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