Warmoth neck option paralysis

[aledeville]

Hi everyone

I have a Fender American Standard Jazzbass from 2006, the series after/without the S1 switch, but outstanding quality with a very good sound. However, I always loved the necks of P-Basses and at the moment I'm only playing my Stingray 5HH, which also has this kinda baseball bat style neck.

What I'd like to buy is a fat neck for beefier sound and put BEAD strings on. Therefore I want the reverse right hand, that the low B string has more space between the nut and the mechanics.

Here's what I'd like to have:
- reverse right hand
- maple neck
- maple fretboard
- black block inlays
- black bindings
- black dots (side)

So far so good.

My problems
- fret size
- finish (since this is not cheap)
- graphite rod

Concerning fret size I have absolutely no idea and absolutely no preference. I cannot think of any moment I ever though "woah, these are nice frets" or "I like the shape but not the frets". Therefore... what to choose?

And the finish:

Colourwise I'm more into the clear gloss than the vintage. My bass is olympic white with a red tortoise pickguard. A bright neck looks stellar on it I think.

The graphite rod is lighter I guess, but also 60 benjamins. Worth it?

However, the neck finish is pricey, so is it really necessary? Is no finish a bad option?

Am I making some kind of weird decision with this? It will be a hell of an expensive neck...

 

[aledeville]

No one any idea?

 

[Bass4ThePublic]

Musikraft should have a beefy neck for BEAD

 

[johnson79]

I've been looking at a Warmoth neck myself. From my research, the 6150 fret wire is probably the most "standard" that you're used to on newer Fender basses. I don't think the graphite rods are worth the upcharge, I'd stick with steel.

The finish is tricky. I've been looking at wenge so it's not needed. Warmoth requires a hard finish on maple (and others) to maintain the warranty. If you want to do satin I'd spray myself with clear poly. Anything beyond that I'd leave to them. Another option is roasted maple, which is like a $40 upcharge and does not need to be sprayed.

 

[Sid the Kid]

Reverse headstock does not have any proven effect on B string stability. Neck mass does. I’d stick with the steel rods and $60 in pocket. Roasted maple would not require a finish, saving more.

 

[Beej]

Finishes at Warmoth are cheap when compared to having it professionally finished/refinished.

 

[Gothic]

First off, a fat neck doesn't necessarily mean "fatter"/bigger sound. If that's your preference playability wise, sure but I don't know whether neck thickness affects the tone significantly.

I doubt distance from nut to peg matters much. As long as it's not at a weird angle, I think it's fine. Hundreds of five strings have the B tuning peg right near the nut. If it's a visual matter, ok, but mechanically, I don't think it'll help any. More likely make it harder to find long enough B strings

Now fret size is a matter of preference. Perhaps you can find out what you have on your basses now, and if it feels comfortable, go with that. I'm guessing it's either med jumbo or jumbo. I like em tall and kinda skinny, almost has a scalloped feel to it. But I'm ok with regular med jumbo or jumbo. The vintage-"almost no fret there" I can't stand.

Finish is totally up to you, but since it's all maple, keep in mind that they apparently do the board, too. I'd just go with the cheapest satin but it's up to you. Perhaps you like a glossy feel. Others rub that gloss right out of the back of the neck. All up to you, both visually and tactilely.
You can certainly go "raw" but maple's infamous for showing dirt and greening over time, so yeah, you probably want some kind of finish there.

The graphite rods I'd forgo entirely. A fat neck with properly dried lumber can hold BEAD just fine without warping. Hell, a regular neck can stand it just fine. Still, if you're convinced you want it, perhaps as extra "insurance", go for it. Unless you mean to have JUST the graphite rods and no truss rod. In that case, no. I'd much rather have just a truss rod and no reinforcement rods than just the graphite and no truss rod.

All in all, I'd shop for a beefy, all maple neck from ones they have in stock, if I were you. It'll probably be more economical and cost seems to be an issue for you.

 

[eastcoasteddie]

I have a Warmoth Roasted Maple neck, but a 5-string Fretless (in-line 5). The roasted is a fantastic option, a $40 up charge to save $90 on a poly finish. No brainer.
With regard to steel rods, many say to go with graphite for weight savings. I was in contact with Justin at Warmoth and he told me that,

“The graphite rods will save you approx. 5-6 oz overall. Our 5-string bass necks (other than the Gecko seris) tend to around 2.5 lbs or thereabouts with steel rods, for Maple (the weight difference between regular and Roasted is insignificant).”

and

“but what I’ve head from multiple customers is that the steel rods are a little brighter sounding, and seem to fight deadspots really well. The graphite rods are a little more mellow, and while they still help with deadspots, perhaps are not as effective. It’s still pretty rare we get anybody that has big deadspot issues, either way.”

so take it for what it’s worth and choose wisely. I went with standard steel rods myself. I love that neck!

 

[aledeville]

Musikraft should have a beefy neck for BEAD

Thanks for the headsup, I didn't know there was an other company doing the Warmoth thing. I looked into it and the necks are also around 500 after chosing what I want. And reverse headstock is not possible.

Reverse headstock does not have any proven effect on B string stability. Neck mass does. I’d stick with the steel rods and $60 in pocket. Roasted maple would not require a finish, saving more.

The reverse headstock is because of two things: 1. I like it. 2. I had B-strings that were not tapered "quick" enough which lead to a wrapping around of the thick part of the string. With the reversed headstock this is not possible anymore.

First off, a fat neck doesn't necessarily mean "fatter"/bigger sound. If that's your preference playability wise, sure but I don't know whether neck thickness affects the tone significantly.

I'm willing to try it out It's one of those things that make sense to you, no matter what.

Now fret size is a matter of preference. Perhaps you can find out what you have on your basses now, and if it feels comfortable, go with that. I'm guessing it's either med jumbo or jumbo. I like em tall and kinda skinny, almost has a scalloped feel to it. But I'm ok with regular med jumbo or jumbo. The vintage-"almost no fret there" I can't stand.

I play two 5 string stingrays, what do they have?

Finish is totally up to you, but since it's all maple, keep in mind that they apparently do the board, too. I'd just go with the cheapest satin but it's up to you. Perhaps you like a glossy feel. Others rub that gloss right out of the back of the neck. All up to you, both visually and tactilely.

Funny you mentioning it... the glossy feel is nothing for me, I'm one that peels it away with a really thin sandpaper. Therefore satin will probably be it. The roasted option is nice, but with the white body I prefer the bright colour of the neck.

Concerning the graphite rods you conviced me sustainably. I'll use the 60 dollars for the shipping

 

[aledeville]

A couple of questions surfaced while having a neck in the shopping cart:

1. I don't get the "Unique Choice" thing. What is it all about? Choosing a second wood?
2. Is it very unusual (if yes, why) to have a dark wood for the neck with a bright one for the fingerboard?
3. Am I destroying the directness of the Jazzbass with choosing a really "warm" wood for the neck? (on the tone-o-meter)

4. Am I stupid to buy a really expensive neck in kind of standardized colors or with normal woods when I could buy something like this?

 

[eastcoasteddie]

A couple of questions surfaced while having a neck in the shopping cart:

1. I don't get the "Unique Choice" thing. What is it all about? Choosing a second wood?
2. Is it very unusual (if yes, why) to have a dark wood for the neck with a bright one for the fingerboard?
3. Am I destroying the directness of the Jazzbass with choosing a really "warm" wood for the neck? (on the tone-o-meter)
View attachment 3595334
4. Am I stupid to buy a really expensive neck in kind of standardized colors or with normal woods when I could buy something like this?
View attachment 3595335

1. Unique Choice is basically You get to choose the wood grain, rather than whatever they pull off the shelf.

2. Dark neck with light fingerboard is kind of unusual, only because it has either been maple neck/rosewood or Maple neck/ maple for decades. I have seen a bunch of customs with dark necks, like walnut, rosewood, or wenge, with figured maple boards. If that’s what YOU want, then that’s fine.

3. Not really.

4. No...I bought a Roasted maple/ebony Fretless neck to bolt onto a Squier body. And it’s awesome.

 

[Gothic]

A couple of questions surfaced while having a neck in the shopping cart:

1. I don't get the "Unique Choice" thing. What is it all about? Choosing a second wood?
2. Is it very unusual (if yes, why) to have a dark wood for the neck with a bright one for the fingerboard?
3. Am I destroying the directness of the Jazzbass with choosing a really "warm" wood for the neck? (on the tone-o-meter)
4. Am I stupid to buy a really expensive neck in kind of standardized colors or with normal woods when I could buy something like this?

1.It's a specific piece of wood you get to choose. I think. Don't quite remember, don't quote me on this.
2.Dark as in color or tone? Either way...
3...I don't subscribe to the "tonewoods" theory so I couldn't care less (obviously, YMMV). For me, it's more about the looks and the feel. Myself, I love a "raw", oil finish wenge or mahogany neck. Maple does nothing for me, feel-wise but it obviously works, so... whatever, I'm cool.
4.Depends on what you want and how much you're willing to pay for -exactly- what you envision. It's your money, your tastes, do whatever you feel with'em. Personally, I'd prefer the "like this" option but that's me.

 

[aledeville]

Now you've got me going...



Edit:
I was writing down some more questions but did not hit the "Post Reply" button and in the meantime I got an sms on my phone saying that 508.86 USD have been charged on my VISA...

Well what can I say. I saved money with the roasted maple neck wood (no finish needed - very good advice) and went with the normal truss rod, took some fancy wood, black blocks, reversed headstock. Looking forward to it, I will keep you posted.

Yeah it is expensive. Hope it's not too ugly

Thanks for the support

 

[MattZilla]

Doing lots of lead bass big string bends? Doing lots of hard plucking/picking? Use stainless rounds? If "no" to all three then small banjo/mandolin frets should be fine.

 

[aledeville]

Too late brother
Took the 6150s, seem totally fine on the neck that is on it right now.

 

[BobKos]

Have to say $500 seems like alot of money till you get the neck. You WILL like it and I believe you will feel it is money well spent. If you haven't - let them install the nut. They get them very close so you have a decently playable bass out of the box. You can call them and make changes within a reasonable time window. I think 6150 frets are great personally. Roasted maple is the schnitz!

I recently bought a Fender MIA Authentic replacement neck - vintage spec. It doesn't even begin to compare to the quality of my Warmoth necks. Also FYI to the OP. There is another company - USA Custom Guitars - that does necks and bodies. They offer options Warmoth doesn't (radius, taper, etc) but don't offer some of the crazy wood options warmoth does. They also don't pay fender to license the headstock shape, so you have to cut theirs down if you want a true fender shape. Great quality and I have a vintage spec neck from them. Makes the fender neck I bought look pretty junky.

 

[aledeville]

Thanks for the heads up, but no worry, I never shed a tear concerning money that just left
When I checked the different options, the USA Custom Guitars didn't have the right hand reverse option, so...

International shipping takes a long time. And they have to make the neck first. When it's here before christmas then hell yeah. If not I'll probably wait (yeah I know).

 

[musicman556]

I'm late to the game, but excellent choices. I was going to also recommend the roasted maple neck. I recently got a Sterling Ray35 with the roasted maple neck and LOVE IT. Every bass I buy/build from now on will have a roasted neck if it's an option. First, I LOVE the feel, second (and this may just be this particular neck, and not indicative of roasted maple in general) it is one solid beast. Once I set the action and relief where I want it, it hasn't wavered AT ALL, even with some humidity swings. Oh, and it smells DELICIOUS! hahaha! Sounds great, feels great. Pretty much every Ernie/MM neck shape I've ever felt was fantastic though, soooooo.... hahaha!

I look forward to seeing your bass!

 

[aledeville]

Ok I really need you to give an update!

It took really long for the neck to get here and it took me a long time to realize that the tuners don't fit since they cannot be reversed. So that meant another 120 for four tuners, because I didn't want to have the huge bulky ones. I kind of like the Fenders made by Schaller. Funny thing is that you have to import these from the US, because Schaller does not sell them from Germany. They went a long way since it's a one hour drive from where I live to the German border...

Well then I let someone else do the fitting job with the holes in the headstock. No way I'm screwing things up - that bass has become way too expensive by now.

The neck is really like a baseball bat. I like it, however it takes more effort to play it than my Stingrays. It looks and feels fantastic. I need to adjust the pickups a tad, the B string is really dominant

Here you go with the pictures (full album: CLICK)

 

[Rabidhamster]

Wow what a great looking bass! Roasted maple was a good choice. Cool dog too!