To 'midget fingers McGee' (me) thinner necks were appealing because I could get my hand wrapped farther around the neck, and my fingers could move faster.
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Why Do people prefer thinner necks?
- Thread starter SabreATK
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i prefer slimmer necks because i have tiny hands. i personally feel like i can play cleaner when playing faster phrases if i'm not struggling to hit the next note. i absolutely believe fractions of an inch can help with this.
I prefer thinner necks myself, I just like the feel of my long fingers overpowering the neck. But then again, I always prefer to be on top 
Seriously though, it's just more comfortable for me to play on thinner necks. And yes, I actually played guitar for many years before seriously picking up bass but I don't think that has anything to do with it because on the guitar I wrapped my thumb around the neck and played with a pick. On bass I play with thumb anchored on back of neck and fingers only. And I find that even though I can play just fine on thicker necks I just prefer the feel of a thinner neck.
Seriously though, it's just more comfortable for me to play on thinner necks. And yes, I actually played guitar for many years before seriously picking up bass but I don't think that has anything to do with it because on the guitar I wrapped my thumb around the neck and played with a pick. On bass I play with thumb anchored on back of neck and fingers only. And I find that even though I can play just fine on thicker necks I just prefer the feel of a thinner neck.
Huh? The thickness of the neck has absolutely nothing to do with how "beefy" the strings are.
As to comment on your statement, I usually like a little bit thicker neck on a bass. I prefer a P bass to a J bass neck. I like Warwick baseball bat necks. I love my Yamaha ATT-LTD II neck. I strongly prefer 5 string necks to 4 string, mainly because they are bigger.
On guitars, I like em' both. I LOVE my 50's SG neck. It's a thick baseball bat. However, I also love an Ibanez Wizard. It depends what I'm playing.
Hopkins
Commercial User
I prefer a thicker neck because thinner necks have a tendency to give me hand cramps. But I completely understand someone with smaller hands preferring a thinner neck. Its all personal preference.
WARNING: I quite often wrap my thumb over the neck, so those who are offended can stop reading now 
I prefer thicker necks, but am quite comfortable with thin necks. I find string spacing makes much more of a difference.
Really, I think personal preference and music style have more to do with it. When playing Tom Petty (for example), I am not exactly burning up the fretboard. Speed isn't really an issue so I go for a relaxed playing position.
I prefer thicker necks, but am quite comfortable with thin necks. I find string spacing makes much more of a difference.
Really, I think personal preference and music style have more to do with it. When playing Tom Petty (for example), I am not exactly burning up the fretboard. Speed isn't really an issue so I go for a relaxed playing position.
I have big hands but I like the thin (and narrow) neck on my Geddy J. Probably because I'm a converted guitar player. It's just a comfort thing. When I got a P it had a fat neck and I didn't like it. Then I got a Ric 4003 and it's neck was pretty fat. I learned that changing how I placed my thumb made a big difference and the larger necks were comfortable too. I think it's all about comfort overall.
On the thin neck I do tend to wrap my thumb. But deciding I had to learn to handle the bigger necks also made me a better player IMHO.
On the thin neck I do tend to wrap my thumb. But deciding I had to learn to handle the bigger necks also made me a better player IMHO.
I like variety in this area.
Years ago a colleague of mine recommended that I bring a second pair of shoes with me to work, and changing from morning to afternoon shoes at lunch time. He felt that when he did this, his feet and legs felt better and less fatigued at the end of each day, because the pressure points in each different pair of shoes are different. He was absolutely correct in this observation.
Likewise, when I gig (or used to), I would bring two P basses, one is a stock 1972 B-width neck, the other has a 1968 Telecaster bass neck which is C-width and much thicker front to back, and has jumbo high-profile frets as well. They both feel comfy to me, and after a while my hand will get tired playing either one. But then I switch to the other and the muscle extension and tendon positions change enough that it feels fresh to play again.
Look, with shoes, we sometimes wear hiking boots, sometimes sneakers, sometimes sandals. All different weight and amounts of support. And all are excellent and just right, at one time or another. Basses are kind of that way for me.
Here is my "superchunky" version:
Years ago a colleague of mine recommended that I bring a second pair of shoes with me to work, and changing from morning to afternoon shoes at lunch time. He felt that when he did this, his feet and legs felt better and less fatigued at the end of each day, because the pressure points in each different pair of shoes are different. He was absolutely correct in this observation.
Likewise, when I gig (or used to), I would bring two P basses, one is a stock 1972 B-width neck, the other has a 1968 Telecaster bass neck which is C-width and much thicker front to back, and has jumbo high-profile frets as well. They both feel comfy to me, and after a while my hand will get tired playing either one. But then I switch to the other and the muscle extension and tendon positions change enough that it feels fresh to play again.
Look, with shoes, we sometimes wear hiking boots, sometimes sneakers, sometimes sandals. All different weight and amounts of support. And all are excellent and just right, at one time or another. Basses are kind of that way for me.
Here is my "superchunky" version:
when i first started playing 13 years ago i preferred the thinner j bass necks....when i got my 62ri p bass about 2 years ago i was kind of bummed by the wider neck (1 3/4" nut).....it took about 2 or 3 months to get used to it but now i love that neck... when i play my jazz now it feels like a toy....the neck is too thin, especially at the first few frets.
I have huge man hands with long fingers. I bought a jazz bass and HATED the neck. I started out playing 5 strings because the big necks felt so good. My four stringers (a P and a J) both have P necks on them.
One issue I do have with wide, thick necks is that they are harder to play on the low strings once you get up around the 12th fret. I almost never do, but it can be a pain if you have to.
I have played 4 and 5 string basses with thin and thick necks. I prefer thin because I find that I can move up and down the fretboard faster and more comfortably. I usually do not look at the fretboard when I play so I am more concerned with string spacing. 5 string on a thin neck doesn't work well for me.
Sure it affects playability. So does fretboard radius, fretboard edge, and the other things you mentioned. How do you figure that the thickness of the neck has no affect on playability? I notice this much more than do the width of the neck.
Beefier strings??? I just don't understand what you mean, here.
No.
All IMO, of course.
When I was a beginner, I preferred thin necks, as they made it easier to finger fast passages. Three things happened to change that:
1, While in a jazz performance program in College, I learned to approach the neck with a very relaxed, open hand position, similar to a classical guitarist's. Combining that with eight to ten hours a day of play time during first year, made fingering speed much less of an issue.
2. During that period, I also discovered that I could get a more expressive vibrato and a bigger, beefier tone, off an instrument with a wider-than-average fretboard.
3. Meanwhile, over the years I had shaved a bunch of necks as part of my modding hobby, and discovered that you could kill the tone of an instrument by thinning the neck too far. Conversely, I came to realize that in many cases, basses and guitars with deep, thick neck shapes often had above-average sustain and fewer dead spots. Best of all, I experienced less hand fatigue on long gigs, when playing instruments with deep "C" necks.
The size and shape of my hands, combined with those three factors, worked together to cement my enjoyment of instruments with wide/fat neck carves. For me, it's partly about tone, and partly about what shapes seem to work for the mechanics of my hands.
1, While in a jazz performance program in College, I learned to approach the neck with a very relaxed, open hand position, similar to a classical guitarist's. Combining that with eight to ten hours a day of play time during first year, made fingering speed much less of an issue.
2. During that period, I also discovered that I could get a more expressive vibrato and a bigger, beefier tone, off an instrument with a wider-than-average fretboard.
3. Meanwhile, over the years I had shaved a bunch of necks as part of my modding hobby, and discovered that you could kill the tone of an instrument by thinning the neck too far. Conversely, I came to realize that in many cases, basses and guitars with deep, thick neck shapes often had above-average sustain and fewer dead spots. Best of all, I experienced less hand fatigue on long gigs, when playing instruments with deep "C" necks.
The size and shape of my hands, combined with those three factors, worked together to cement my enjoyment of instruments with wide/fat neck carves. For me, it's partly about tone, and partly about what shapes seem to work for the mechanics of my hands.
This is why I started the thread. Over the past 20 years of playing, my hand positioned morphed to provide the best economy of motion. I play with an open hand, thumb in middle of back of neck. The neck could be twice as thick and it really wouldnt affect my playing much at all.
Beyond a certain point, I dont think the hand gets stronger, it just learns economy of motion.
Yes, this is also obvious to me. If adapting to a thicker neck just requires proper technique, why would anyone play a thin neck? I know that thin necks feel nice to begineers, but I wonder if they encourage improper hand position and technique? If all they made were Pbase necks, everyone would adapt, Im sure.
i dont know. i dont. my necks are as fat as my luthier is willing to make them.
i've always found small necks to cramp the hand, and fat ones to feel great. i like to know im holding something with some mass, not just a twig. it's a bass, i like it to feel beefy.
i've always found small necks to cramp the hand, and fat ones to feel great. i like to know im holding something with some mass, not just a twig. it's a bass, i like it to feel beefy.
Jazzdogg
Less barking, more wagging!
I double on DB and electic bass; when I switch from DB to electric, no matter which electric bass I play, the neck and strings feel positively petite. If I played only electric bass, perhaps I'd be a little pickier.
Same for me. I currently play 5's, but have been thinking about getting a 4 as well, but I haven't found a four string I feel totally comfy with yet.
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