In the ongoing battle between looking cool and ease of play, how low do you let your guitar hang?

When I use my strap, I currently have the low edge of the neck about even with the top of my beltline. Thinking about maybe bringing it a little lower...

It's 52" between strap button holes on my strap. Not too low, not too high, just right.

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Tune Low, Play Hard & Floor it!

What a coincidence, I was just talking to someone about the exact same thing earlier today!

I broke my fretting hand wrist when I was a 16. The arching required of my wrist to hang and play at 'cool depth' is not an option for me as it still causes pain, tightness and swelling even after 30+ years. The best I could and still can do is hang it so the body of the guitar is centered at stomach level which is the limit of where my wrist is totally unaffected. I've had many band mates over the years actually complain about how comparatively high I hang the guitar. I even argued the point that many of the better guitarists out there hang their guitars high by choice. Yet, the vast majority of my critics still seemed genuinely annoyed. Evidently, such things are clearly a classic case of, "It is better to look good than to feel good." YMMV.

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You dig?

Martian, if it comes down to looking better or playing better, I'd say playing better is the way to go!

I'd say I keep mine around John Frusciante height, to provide an example.


It's low enough to look "cool", but not so low I have to bend my wrist unnaturally. Ugh. I've already had carpal tunnel problems, I'd rather not have it come back. If I were into shredding and playing a lot more on the upper frets, I'd probably wear it higher.

When I play bass, I usually wear it pretty high. I was definitely into the whole low-slung punk rock look for bass, until I got into Jaco back in high school. As far as I'm concerned he was the coolest bass player, and he wore his pretty high.

I hang my strat with the top contour either on, or just below my lower ribs.

I'm already cool, so I just hang it where I like it. Not cool is trying to be cool.

a little to the left.


contour basically on the rt flank area of my abdomen.

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"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present."

oogway, kungfu panda 2008

Thank you!!

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You dig?

I go along with what seems to be taught at Berklee..... It's higher than would be cool, so I can actually play the thing. I'd say that the guitar body is centered on my belt level.

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2002 mim Telecaster
Jimmie Vaughan Stratocaster
Mexican HSS Stratocaster
6 non-fender guitars
2 kids (not for sale)
1 wife (uh....no comment)

I sit when I play and I hold my guitar "classical style" because that's what I played 30 years ago.

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Bill

ok....

another thread that i thought was going elsewhere

i may need professional help

I agree with bluesky and martian. But I am a relatively old fart who is still learning and prone to carpel tunnel. Work gets in the way of ever becoming a rock star. But I have found that sitting and playing in a classical style works for me and and is "approved" by my instructor who is a shredder.

If it works for you it works for me!!

Not carpel tunnel for me (yet) but bad arthritis and the fact that the pinky on my fretting hand is 5/8" shorter than the one on my right hand. Oh. I AM an old fart.

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Bill

I don't care how it looks, I put my strap where I can play comfortably. It's just slightly above my belt-line .

Like some others that wear the guitar above the belt, I have had injuries to my wrists. Tendonitis specifically. So I lower the guitar as low as I can without provoking a return of my tendonitiss issues.

comfort over looking cool, because playing well is cooler than looking good in the long run.