Who doesn’t mind neck dive?

[EatS1stBassist]

This one has had me scratching my head for many years. Maybe I’m just an outlier.

Like many players, I’ve owned my fair share of basses that had some degree of neck dive. Some have had a lot and others just a small amount. Playing basses with neck dive has never been a hindrance to me; it’s basically unnoticeable while I’m playing and a non-issue while I’m not. Yet, I’ve read tons of posts from folks that treat neck dive as a nuisance. My question to the TB collective is this: Are there others that find neck dive to be irrelevant?

Never bothered me. Not an issue.

 

[pingvuiini]

Neck dive irritates me. Lately I've been lusting over Spector basses, but the strap button location at the 15th fret looks neck divey. Is it so?

 

[Element Zero]

Doesn’t really bother me. Though, none of my basses dip down, but have played others that do. Guess I’ve never experienced an extreme case like many of you to really have a super strong opinion.

What DOES bother me having a short strap horn which forces the bass towards my fretting hand making it more difficult to play down low… cough cough Spector Euro cough cough Warwick Thumb cough cough Pedulla Pentabuzz cough cough.

 

[Killing Floor]

Beats me why anyone would design a bass that had any neck dive at all.

Because the scale is pretty standard and body weight is hard to predict in large scale production. I don’t think anyone is aiming for a divey guitar. But if the slab isn’t heavy enough to counter the neck I don’t know how a factory could mitigate it altogether. They could procure denser wood but some folks would not care for the extra weight.

The real solutions are headless or a hootenanny strap.

 

[mmon77]

I'm another Warwick Thumb Bolt-on 5 player. Yes, it wants to neck dive if you don't have a good enough strap, or hold it a little more upright then some people normally would.

Do I care? Not really. I don't think it affects my playing at all. Maybe if it didn't have such a signature sound that you can't get elsewhere, I would care more. I just don't think I'm as picky as some people on TB. Weight is not really a thing I care about either.

 

[Acoustic356]

Neck dive only exists on TB. I have never owned a bass where this is a problem... and I've owned A LOT of basses.

On a side note, this isn't something that I've heard our bass heroes talk about. Some of them play basses that TBers say dive...

 

[H K]

I can’t play any bass with neck dive in a standing position. How can you play with good left hand technique if you’re using that hand just to support the neck? Talking as a right-handed player, obviously.

This.

IMO it depends a lot on the style of music one is playing. If it's "simple" stuff, like basic rock tunes and something where you're just holding one note, or one chord, for extended periods, it's really not an issue.
Even if you move your hand SOME; you can still support it with the palm of your left hand.

The real problem arises when you gotta take your hand completely off the neck, or move it around alot.
Neck dive is not a deal-breaker for me at all, but I do what I can to avoid it. Constantly having to shift your bass back up during a set is a pain, and distracts you from the playing. Having the bass horizontal when going into a tricky part of a song can completely kill it for me.

Same reason I feel my straps getting shorter and shorter; better playability and comfort, less distractions.

 

[E2942]

I rigged up the door to my automobile so that I have to hold the door closed the entire time I'm driving, but it's really only a nuisance when I'm making right hand turns.

 

[r_bnks]

Me

 

[Iristone]

A guitarist-turned-bassist who used to play acoustic or Telecaster

 

[Ric5]

Who doesn’t mind neck dive?

I don't like neck dive, but I love the look of basses that do neck dive.

 

[Pings Bass]

It matters more or less depending on the kind of music you're playing. The kind of stuff I like, I need the neck to stay in one place on it's own. IME neck divers (I own one!) make me grip the neck, which makes it hard to play runs that involve position shifts.

 

[IamGroot]

I have one of the most notorious neck dive happy basses ever created… Warwick Bolt on Thumb 5 string.

If you play the instrument higher up on the strap, the “correct” position, a lot of that issue goes away. Wider straps can also help.

And the Hipshot Ultralights I put on it made a noticeable improvement as well. But it still doesn’t balance as well is my cirrus

I played a Warwick Thumb 5 for years and never had any neck dive. Just saying.

 

[Robal]

I have a Fender JMJ Mustang with the worst neck dive of any bass I own (Fender, Guild, Hofner, Lakland, Sandberg, Alembic, Harmony). It is the only negative I have for that bass, and I wish I could get rid of it without adding weights to the bridge area, moving the strap button, putting on lighter tuners, etc. I didn't really notice neck dive until I had the JMJ bass with it.

 

[InhumanResource]

This one has had me scratching my head for many years. Maybe I’m just an outlier.

Like many players, I’ve owned my fair share of basses that had some degree of neck dive. Some have had a lot and others just a small amount. Playing basses with neck dive has never been a hindrance to me; it’s basically unnoticeable while I’m playing and a non-issue while I’m not. Yet, I’ve read tons of posts from folks that treat neck dive as a nuisance. My question to the TB collective is this: Are there others that find neck dive to be irrelevant?

I honestly have never noticed it.

 

[hieronymous]

Neck-dive is way low down on my list. But I also have come to appreciate each instrument for what it is - I have several instruments that are far from perfect, but they offer something special.

I stopped playing for about five years - when I started again, I read a story of a guy with a beautiful Rickenbacker who was standing around after a show with it just hanging on the strap - the strap came off and it hit the ground. Made me conscious of the possibility, and I basically never let go of the neck if I can help it - somehow I trained myself. Thinking about it now, that bass must not have had much neck-dive for him to just let go!

I would think a lot would depend too on how much you play and in what circumstances.

Now I have to play my current #1 and think about it. Or maybe I shouldn't if it doesn't bother me!

 

[groove pump]

For years it I didn't notice it. Then I got a bass that was 100% neck dive free. And I mean not even neck heavy. I could hang it from a nylon seatbelt strap and it would't move. Suddenly it was like the blinders had been removed and I found what I had been missing all those years. Playing became easier and the whole experience was just more enjoyable.

Same thing when I got a light weight bass. I didn't care until I discovered what I had been missing.

If you're happy with neck dive - more power to you!

Just about the same experience here. I spent a lot of years with a 10.5 lb. parts Jazz that has a Warmoth neck with the steel rods. The neck dive concentrated much of the weight onto the front of my shoulder. When I found a 9 lb. P/J with great balance, it was a complete game-changer.

 

[ctmullins]

A little neck dive doesn’t bother me.

But man, I sure do like the way my headless basses balance!

 

[perfektspace6]

I doesn't bother me that much. I will put up with some inconvenience for monster tone.

 

[Mechayoshi]

There's a terminology difference here I bet. For some neck dive counts only if whacks the ground. For others it's divey if you can get the angle you want, ie the bass naturally hangs a certain way and it's not necessary a flaw but it might now work for you regardless. Some people consider both and issue, some only one of those.


I'd like to see a poll where we distinguish the two and see who's okay with what.