It is currently Mon Mar 16, 2020 1:26 pm

All times are UTC - 7 hours



Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 13 posts ] 
Author Message
Post subject: Comparison of Guitar Neck Playing Ease
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 1:20 pm
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2018 7:51 pm
Posts: 27
Is the neck on the Elite HSS Shawbucker Strat as easy to chord on and play lead on as the modern C neck on the old 2014 60th Anniversary American Standard Strat?


Last edited by martycanaday on Sat Dec 29, 2018 2:31 pm, edited 4 times in total.

Top
Profile
Fender Play Winter Sale 2020
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Fretboard Playing Ease
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 1:45 pm
Offline
Rock Icon
Rock Icon
User avatar

Joined: Fri Feb 05, 2010 4:31 am
Posts: 14049
Location: Province de Québec, Canada
C shape is for the neck not fretboard.

Elite series have a 9.5”-14” compound radius fingerboard
A modern "C"-shape at the nut, the rear of the neck morphs along the length of the neck to a modern "D"-shaped profile at the updated neck heel that blends into the asymmetrica

Fender do not built American Standard Stratocaster anymore.

Or your question is ;
Is the new fender Elite series's neck is easier to play than the "old" American Standard 's neck ?


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Fretboard Playing Ease
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 2:27 pm
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2018 7:51 pm
Posts: 27
stratele52 wrote:
C shape is for the neck not fretboard.

Elite series have a 9.5”-14” compound radius fingerboard
A modern "C"-shape at the nut, the rear of the neck morphs along the length of the neck to a modern "D"-shaped profile at the updated neck heel that blends into the asymmetrica

Fender do not built American Standard Stratocaster anymore.

Or your question is ;
Is the new fender Elite series's neck is easier to play than the "old" American Standard 's neck ?


Thanks for these corrections! I knew it was the neck, I just made a mistake by not thinking! Ha! I do that alot! And, yes I was thinking about a 2014 60th Anniversary American Standard Strat! I've corrected my original post!


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Fretboard Playing Ease
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 5:41 pm
Offline
Professional Musician
Professional Musician
User avatar

Joined: Tue Feb 13, 2018 10:28 pm
Posts: 1594
Location: SoCal, US
stratele52 wrote:
Elite series have a 9.5”-14” compound radius fingerboard
A modern "C"-shape at the nut, the rear of the neck morphs along the length of the neck to a modern "D"-shaped profile at the updated neck heel that blends into the asymmetrica

This.
Virtually identical from the nut to the 7th fret. As the radius flattens, lead playing becomes a bit smoother, and bends become less sensitive to low action, while a 9.5 and 7.5" radius neck would be more prone to "fret out" on deep bends above the 12th fret.

_________________
-- Rich


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Guitar Neck Playing Ease
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 7:17 pm
Offline
Rock Icon
Rock Icon
User avatar

Joined: Thu Dec 31, 2009 10:34 pm
Posts: 10760
Location: Athens, Greece
Compound radius fretboards allow for almost effortless string bends and chords without hand fatigue.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Fretboard Playing Ease
Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2018 8:33 pm
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2018 7:51 pm
Posts: 27
CB91710 wrote:
stratele52 wrote:
Elite series have a 9.5”-14” compound radius fingerboard
A modern "C"-shape at the nut, the rear of the neck morphs along the length of the neck to a modern "D"-shaped profile at the updated neck heel that blends into the asymmetrica


This.
Virtually identical from the nut to the 7th fret. As the radius flattens, lead playing becomes a bit smoother, and bends become less sensitive to low action, while a 9.5 and 7.5" radius neck would be more prone to "fret out" on deep bends above the 12th fret.


I currently have a 2014 60th Anniversary American Standard Strat and a PRS S2 Custom 24. I do not play gigs. I played in a couple of local bands during my earlier years.

The other night I played for about 2.5 hours on my PRS, playing mostly chords to songs on Chordify and over a local FM station. My fretting hand became extremely tired and began to hurt. I rarely play more than an hour or so usually.

I waited three days and played for the same amount of time on my American Standard Strat that has a 9.5" radius, to see how my hand would fair playing alot of chords. My hand hurt a little but not as bad as it did when I played chords earlier on my PRS that has a 10" radius.

I have an option to purchase a nice 2016 Elite HSS Shawbucker Strat and will sell my American Standard Strat or PRS to pay for it, if it will be as easy as the American Standard to play while giving me more tonal range, and if it will be more suitable for diverse musical genres because of its extra tonal options. I like mellow tones when playing clean. Otherwise, I like playing with crunch and distortion. Classic Rock is my first love. I'm not crazy about excessive country twang.

I like how the pickups sound on the American Standard Strat and PRS. I just don't know how different the sound would be with an Elite with two noiseless pickups. I'm not worried about the distortion side of things. The Elite has a boost on the guitar and an S1 button. I'm wondering if I will be able to get as much of a mellow tone with the 2 noiseless pickups on the Elite as I can with the 3 single-coils that are on the American Standard.

I rarely play chords higher than a B chord so the compound radius should not bother me, unless the neck is a bigger chunk of wood. I prefer slimmer, rather than fatter necks. Thicker necks tire me more quickly.

I'm not a shredder but I love to improvise often over jam tracks. As far as my personal goals go, at 64 years of age, and being a former minister, I may seek out an opportunity to play with a church band in the near future. Would one strat be best for that, or would either be a good fit for that genre of music?


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Guitar Neck Playing Ease
Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2018 4:57 am
Offline
Professional Musician
Professional Musician
User avatar

Joined: Fri Jan 02, 2015 6:57 am
Posts: 2238
Location: UK
Comparing two guitar necks to decide if one will give more or less fatigue is a very personal thing that only you can answer as everyone plays differently, you may be more or less stressed, play more demanding chords etc. at different times. If, over many occasions, it becomes evident that one neck gives you issues then you have your answer.

There are of course many other factors; action, scale length, string gauge, string spacing, body shape, trem setting etc when comparing different types of guitars which may not relate to neck profile being an issue or otherwise.

Familiarity will also play a part. If you play one guitar much more than another the more frequently used instrument may feel more comfortable and natural.

_________________
John

After all this time I should be better.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Guitar Neck Playing Ease
Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2018 12:21 pm
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2018 7:51 pm
Posts: 27
John Sims wrote:
Comparing two guitar necks to decide if one will give more or less fatigue is a very personal thing that only you can answer as everyone plays differently, you may be more or less stressed, play more demanding chords etc. at different times. If, over many occasions, it becomes evident that one neck gives you issues then you have your answer.

There are of course many other factors; action, scale length, string gauge, string spacing, body shape, trem setting etc when comparing different types of guitars which may not relate to neck profile being an issue or otherwise.

Familiarity will also play a part. If you play one guitar much more than another the more frequently used instrument may feel more comfortable and natural.


Thanks, John!

The width of the necks of both guitars are the same. String spacing is equal. The actions of both are low, but the Fender is a tad lower. I use 9 gauge strings on the Fender and 10 gauge on the PRS. The distance from the nut to the 7th fret is about an eighth longer on the PRS than on the American Strat. I play with the guitars angled up, but when I old each horizontal to my body the distance from the Fender nut to mid-body is an inch less than the PRS.

Even in light of this data, you are right . . . it's a matter of which feels better and what I've become accustomed to. I suspect it's about action, string gauge, and time of use that mostly affects tiredness.


Last edited by martycanaday on Sun Dec 30, 2018 5:05 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Guitar Neck Playing Ease
Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2018 2:08 pm
Offline
Professional Musician
Professional Musician
User avatar

Joined: Tue Feb 13, 2018 10:28 pm
Posts: 1594
Location: SoCal, US
The 9 vs 10ga strings will certainly make a difference.
The PRS has a 25" scale length compared to the Fender 25.5, so that provides some offset with reduced string tension, but that's pretty insignificant at that point. Where you would really feel it would be comparing a Fender at 25.5 to a Guild Brian May with its 24" scale (same as if you put a capo at the 1st fret on a Strat and tuned down 1/2 step)

_________________
-- Rich


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Guitar Neck Playing Ease
Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2018 10:21 pm
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2018 7:51 pm
Posts: 27
CB91710 wrote:
The 9 vs 10ga strings will certainly make a difference.
The PRS has a 25" scale length compared to the Fender 25.5, so that provides some offset with reduced string tension, but that's pretty insignificant at that point. Where you would really feel it would be comparing a Fender at 25.5 to a Guild Brian May with its 24" scale (same as if you put a capo at the 1st fret on a Strat and tuned down 1/2 step)


So, are you saying that shorter scale length guitars provide less string tension and are easier to play and cause less stress on the fretting hand if the string gauge is the same on the two guitars?

And, are you saying that a 25.5 scale length guitar that uses 9 gauge strings would be easier to play and cause less stress on the fretting hand than a 24" scale length guitar that has 10 gauge strings on it?

And, I guess the action of a guitar would be a factor regarding string stress and stress on the fretting hand.

Happy New Year!


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Guitar Neck Playing Ease
Posted: Tue Jan 01, 2019 8:13 am
Offline
Aspiring Musician
Aspiring Musician

Joined: Fri Apr 15, 2011 4:49 am
Posts: 661
Location: Cambridge UK
Happy New Year to all! My two-penneth...

As John said, there are other factors apart from the actual guitars: I've always played standing up as I never thought it was very rock 'n roll to play seated (well, not solid guitars anyway!). If I do play seated now - like when recording - I get hand/wrist ache before long. Does it make any difference to you whether you sit or stand? Something to try, perhaps?

Of course, Strat and PRS are very different guitars, even though you imply they feel similar under the hand. I've found strap length makes a difference - mine (all Strats) are all identical now. You might try shortening or lengthening one of your straps an inch? IE: Put the (uncomfortable) guitar a bit higher or lower.

And I do recall having to sell a perfectly good Ibanez RG550 because the neck made my hand ache something rotten. I'd played (and gigged) it for many years, and all of a sudden, it seemed, it hurt! I think it says more about the (human) ageing process than the instrument! (We are similar ages).

Cheers - Peter.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Guitar Neck Playing Ease
Posted: Tue Jan 01, 2019 1:50 pm
Offline
Professional Musician
Professional Musician
User avatar

Joined: Tue Feb 13, 2018 10:28 pm
Posts: 1594
Location: SoCal, US
martycanaday wrote:
And, I guess the action of a guitar would be a factor regarding string stress and stress on the fretting hand.

They all have an impact.
Lighter gauge strings have less mass so they vibrate faster than heavier strings at a given tension (relative tension between the 1st and 6th strings is much closer than one would expect).
A shorter scale length has a shorter vibrating moment, thus higher pitch for a given tension.
Lower action goes without saying.

Now here's the catch-22:
Lighter gauge strings require less tension. If you "hit hard" and play loud, the amplitude of lighter gauge strings is greater than heavier strings due to the reduced tension, so they may be more prone to fret buzz, particularly when chording from the nut to the 5th fret.
This means that lighter gauge strings may require higher action for some players.

_________________
-- Rich


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Comparison of Guitar Neck Playing Ease
Posted: Tue Jan 01, 2019 2:00 pm
Offline
Professional Musician
Professional Musician
User avatar

Joined: Tue Feb 13, 2018 10:28 pm
Posts: 1594
Location: SoCal, US
Peter S wrote:
I'd played (and gigged) it for many years, and all of a sudden, it seemed, it hurt! I think it says more about the (human) ageing process than the instrument! (We are similar ages).

Excellent point.
The issue is muscles... In beginners, or those who don't play often, it's a matter of muscles that aren't normally used. For those cases, it's a matter of stretching, applying heat, and "working through the discomfort"
If you're cramping, then stop and try again tomorrow. Playing through cramps will not help develop proper technique.

But things change as we age. Carpal Tunnel and other repetitive motion injuries that may or may not be related to our playing can have a big impact. In 2015, I had to completely hang it up due to CTS. Fortunately, I was able to resolve the condition through stretching and sleeping with wrist braces. I caught it early enough and was able to avoid surgery (for now).

_________________
-- Rich


Top
Profile
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 13 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 7 hours

Fender Play Winter Sale 2020

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum

Search for:
Jump to: