Through the body neck versus bolt on.

[Andychn]

I have both kinds; bolt on and neck through. In my opinion…
The biggest difference is how well the rake of the neck matches the body/bridge geometry. In other words it’s easier to setup a neck-through to consistent action height i.e. the distance from the top of the fret to the bottom of the string for the length of the neck. Assuming the frets are all even, relief is correctly adjusted and the nut is correct… of course. For a neck through there is no rake at all; negative or positive. A bolt on may need to be shimmed which, if you’ve ever tried to do it, you already know it is really hard to get just right. My last G&L had a method of set screw adjustment for it, but the vast majority of bolt on basses do not… and if it’s a mass manufactured <$2k bass, chances are when you buy it retail, it’s not spot on… and not all luthiers know how to shim a neck just right. Sometimes the guitar maker overcomes the problem by using a custom adjusted zero fret, like a Framus.
In my experience, it’s typical for most bolt ons to be off and setups try to overcome the issue with relief and bridge adjustment, but it’s just not the same. When you have consistent action the length of the neck (as all of my basses have) the bass is an absolute joy to play. Otherwise if I can’t get it just right… well… I just SELL it.
Resonance or sound wise it’s a wash, IME.

 

[DigitalMan]

Yes! It is

You might find that the “reply” feature helps add context to your posts.

 

[EncoremMP]

You might find that the “reply” feature helps add context to your posts.

I did

 

[Smooth_bass88]

I wouldn't feel comfortable using a neck-throug-body bass (deduct more points for tilt-back headstock) at my gigs. Between being knocked around in a vehicle, stuffed int an overhead bin on an airplane, being knocked of its stand on a crowded busy stage, and just generally being tossed around as part of every day gigging, a Fender style bass is far less likely to suffer some kind of damage

 

[woodyng2]

Neckthroughs, bolt ons, and set-necks-they’re all cool!
I’ve owned many of each type. I’ve really enjoyed every set neck bass I’ve owned,
but currently don’t have any in my collection of 7. (3 bolts, 4 NT).
I used to think Rickenbackers unique sound was because of the NT construction, but my set neck Ricks sounded pretty much the same.

 

[logdrum]

Tone wise -- neck throughs are more rounded and sometimes I feel too rounded they are what I would described as constipated sounding, I think it is important that they becks have stringers , quarter sawn and at least 2 piece neck-body, anything to reduce neck twist, like carbon rods and ebony fretboards

 

[ardgedee]

Does the "whale hump" (never heard that term, but it is a good descriptor) actually improve stability? I had wondered this, but never heard anybody say one way or the other.

Usually they're constructed to reinforce the lower section of the neck. In this case (Ibanez BTB865SC) from the 12th fret up.

 

[BassicJazzy]

I wouldn't feel comfortable using a neck-throug-body bass (deduct more points for tilt-back headstock) at my gigs. Between being knocked around in a vehicle, stuffed int an overhead bin on an airplane, being knocked of its stand on a crowded busy stage, and just generally being tossed around as part of every day gigging, a Fender style bass is far less likely to suffer some kind of damage

I second this opinion. I was always paranoid about backing into something and breaking the neck of my '72 Rick, but I've seen acts like the Who hammer concrete and break rocks with bolt-on's, and they things stayed intact, at least for awhile? Fenders are pretty tough. Not so sure how much punishment the neck/body joint of my Ibanez SR1350B would take, The panga/purpleheart double reinforced neck would survive, but the lower density Mahogany body might break at the joint. Point: wood used has a lot to do with the strength. Don't use Balsa!

 

[ardgedee]

For a neck through there is no rake at all; negative or positive.

I'm not sure what you mean by rake. Angle of neck to body? There's nothing preventing a neck-through from being at an angle to the body: The luthier cuts the body segment of the neck blank at an angle, that's all.

 

[AK Bass Guy]

By robust are you referring to stability? The only two basses I've ever owned that had neck issues (ski jump and twisted neck respectively) were both neckthru, and higher end instruments at that. The luthier I brought them to said next time get a bolt-on, with a look in his eyes that suggested he's said this to a few warped neck(thru) customers.



I always find it interesting how professional builders that have been in the business for decades like Dingwall and F Bass always have strong takes on this, sometimes even contradictory to one another. I recall reading somewhere that George Furlanetto focused exclusively on bolt-ons because they offered more sustain than the neckthrus he used to build.

I should have been more precise. Yes, more robust as far as tuning stability because essentially the neck and body are one piece.
With that said, I agree with you that potential ski jumps and warps on a thru body neck is a big negative because they are not easy or cheap to fix.

 

[Relayer71]

I wouldn't feel comfortable using a neck-throug-body bass (deduct more points for tilt-back headstock) at my gigs. Between being knocked around in a vehicle, stuffed int an overhead bin on an airplane, being knocked of its stand on a crowded busy stage, and just generally being tossed around as part of every day gigging, a Fender style bass is far less likely to suffer some kind of damage

How so? Please explain.

Are you unbolting the bolt-on for transport? Otherwise, what makes the neck-through MORE fragile in this case?

 

[J Wilson]

BTW, FLIMSY neck through you were afraid would break? All those laminations running the length of the instrument vs a one or two piece screwed on at the foot of the neck? What? I can take that neck through and BEAT the screw on neck right off. There, I feel better . . . .

One Man's Observed, non-scientific, been there done that lived experience:

Over the many years I played lots of neck through basses, a string of 80-ish Yamaha BB's (1200, 3000, 5000, and two Alembic fives), and various screw neck basses (T40, BB1600, many Fender-shaped objects, Squiers), and even two set necks (Gibson Ripper and RDA),

The short answer: Well adjusted, fresh strings, and a good amp on loud stages, sustain of this one or that one is basically even time-wise, but not tonally.

Screw ons and set necks for me have the problem of that block where the neck either screws on or enough of a heel for a glue joint to where your access WAY UP THERE on the fingerboard just seems harder than it needs to be, and also these are virtually always less than 24-fret necks, so there you go, 'no money past the 12th fret' indeed,

Neck through basses (regardless of what you've read . . . ) do have a 'down' draft angle of the neck/fingerboard relative to the body, as slight as it is on the other style basses.

As far as having the option of removing the neck being taken away by neck through construction, it was never an issue for me, and I've seen or heard of it being an issue . . . . never. Either the neck is good when it's built, or it's not going to ship: Strung up as a new original build where it's built, you know RIGHT NOW if you got it right or not. Never heard of a neck through with a ski jump.

I'd also suggest in the examples of the neck through basses I owned, they were multiple laminations topped by 1/4" ebony fingerboards in the Yamahas and the Alembics, and 1/4" of ebony is one MIGHTY stiffening component, and the multiple laminations figure into the stiffness as well, very strong, and usually pretty stable once they age past the new and green stage.

I prefer them from the standpoint that . .

A) No neck heel in the way, usually just a tapered flare into a usually thinner body.

Look ma, No Screws !

B) They're usually deeper cutaways to a 24-fret neck. So your access (SEE Rickenbacker 4000-series) to the upper frets is E-Z.

One that got away: Daion MkXX. High D, E? NO problem. Double the melody line 'up there'? No sweat.

I will say that whatever wood recipe, whether mostly all white woods like FSO's or the many possible wood menus of things like the Daion, while the length of sustain is not night and day or in some cases much different at all, WHAT they sustain is different, and you hear it in headphones or recording or very quiet gig moments. Separate neck body basses tend to lose the fundamental and 1st and second harmonics relative to a neck through, which tend to carry more of those parts of the note. It's an almost imperceptible sound, and in a few cases very obvious which is rare.

I've definitely heard that the harder/stiffer woods involved, the deep notes are more prominent.

So all that is my two cents, just on what I saw, heard, and lived.

As always, YOUR results may vary, and we all have our own preferences, which is as it should be.

 

[embellisher]

I will break with the others and delve into the supposed difference in tone.

The general consensus among those who perceive a difference is as follows.

A neck through tends to have more fundamental, longer sustain, and a more "compressed" sound.

A bolt on tends to be punchier and more dynamic.

A set neck tends to be somewhere between the two.

As an owner of all three types of construction, I find these generalities to be accurate.

Does it really make that big of a difference? YMMV, but let's look at the differences one at a time.

More fundamental is good, but my bolt on basses have plenty of fundamental.

More sustain is good, but truly, all of my basses have more than enough sustain, except for the dreaded dead spot that some bolt on instruments, especially FSOs have. My neck through and set necks do not have any dead spots. Most of my bolt ons do, but it's more noticeable on a couple of them than it is on the others.

My neck through, and every neck through I've ever owned is great for slapping, due to the compressed tone. But when I want that punchy, dynamic bolt on slap tone, I reach for my Fender, my Lakland, or one of my Nordstrands.

All of this is IME and IMHO. But there are some who agree with me on these things.

 

[Bassinthemudd]

If you really want to hear a difference, you'll want horn-through.

 

[DJ Bebop]

I've got this budget multi-scale that has a bolt-on neck. But because of how it's done it responds more like a neck through. It’s a bolt on whale hump with 5 piece neck…

 

[JimmyO]

First time I picked up a Rickenbacker, my very first thought was whoa Nelly, sustain for days. And I love how slim the body is.

 

[Andychn]

I'm not sure what you mean by rake. Angle of neck to body? There's nothing preventing a neck-through from being at an angle to the body: The luthier cuts the body segment of the neck blank at an angle, that's all.

No, not the angle to the body, the angle from the range of adjustment of the bridge to the nut. Anything off a zero rake has to be compensated for in the connection to the body. The tilt… forward and back. This pocket in the body is typically (even for higher end basses like Zon or Dingwall) CnC milled. The tolerances for that pocket are tight. In my opinion a good guitar meets and keeps the tolerances. A not so great guitar compensates for not getting it just right using relief and bridge height. Neck throughs don’t have to consider this at all. It’s the exact plane you will likely want (assuming good frets across the whole neck) from nut to bridge. What you get is the exact same amount of pressure needed from ones fingers to get the exact note wanted on every string for every fret…. And uhhh, no dead spots.. good strings… comfortable feel… and in my opinion that’s a good bass.

 

[Smooth_bass88]

How so? Please explain.

Are you unbolting the bolt-on for transport? Otherwise, what makes the neck-through MORE fragile in this case?

because if the neck or headstock gets damaged or warped it's a very easy part to replace. I never un-bolt my Fenders and Laklands. No I've ne owned a neck-through but I know people who have and they've had problems with their bass on the road

 

[2saddleslab]

Give me bolts!

 

[funkinbottom]

Bolt on.