Advantages of a wide neck?

Bill McNeill

What are the advantages of a wide guitar neck? I've been trying out various gypsy jazz guitars, and the one conclusion I've come to is that I don't like the classical-width neck. It's too big for my hands, particularly when I'm trying to pick up the bass strings with my thumb. I know some people really like them, though, so I'm curious why.

nuages

I own a Gitane DG250M which has a 1-3/4" neck. The neck is fairly wide but thin from front to back. I have fairly short fingers and I've grown to like it very much. I have a couple of other guitars with narrower 1-11/16" necks and now that I've gotten used to the Gitane they feel uncomfortable to play (to cramped).

Kcox

I have short fingers too, but everyone's physiognomy (or whatever) is different and I actually find the thinness of my gitane 255's neck to be a hindrance. I have a comparatively wide palm, so when I get my hand sucked up against the back of the neck the knuckle on my thumb sort of overextends somehow and becomes useless (it won't bend far enough to get it back in place) so I have to pull my hand back further, but that makes it harder for my fingers to get where they are supposed to be. I like the width of my neck, but when I finally graduate to a luthier guitar I am getting a thicker one for sure.

I was watching a boulou and elios vid the other day and their fingers are so long it made me want to cry. Some of us were just born to be rhythm players I guess (at least, that's my excuse for this financial quarter).

Kevin

Josh Hegg

Kevin,

I had a chance to talk to Boulou for a while one time and he told me this...

"When I was young my father would tie sticks in between my fingers with strings before I want to bed to stretch my reach while I was growing."

He also said "My father took a military approach to learning the guitar"


So... start stretching! :shock:

Josh

Kcox

Thanks Josh,

I guess I'd have to be a special kind of b@st@rd to say that makes me feel better, but it does help add some perspective on the seemingly otherworldly accomplishments of some really great players.

In other words, my cup is now half full and not the other thing.

Kevin