How much do you value neck feel?

[CharlieBman]

I'm not generally concerned about it as most necks on acoustic guitars are fine. But since I have small hands, if a neck were too thick to play chords easily, that would be THE reason to not get the guitar, regardless of how it sounded.

[TRAVISPIMA]

The feel of the neck is like initially shaking hands with a woman. You will know. Just … know … where things will lead. Are you up for the ride?

[j38guitar]

Be careful to what you think comfortable is. When I play a really thin neck I think it's comfortable but I feel it wears me out faster than a fatter neck. I can play a fatter neck for hours and hours. Especially with barred chords, a really thin neck requires more pressure from your hand.

So go play it for a few hours before you decide it's better than your current guitar. Or at least play them side by side. I find the neck on an OMJM to be super comfortable.

[hifivic]

If the neck is not right nothing else matters!

[Tleek]

Neck feel is very important to me, but im not incredibly picky. I have long hands, I wear size xl gloves usually. I like a wider nut but it’s not a deal killer. . I don’t like v necks at all and wouldn’t get a guitar with one. I also dislike the very girthy necks like you find on some vintage guitars.

[b1j]

Neck made most of the difference for me when deciding between the 50s J-45 Original and the Standard.

Then I bought two Martin MLO guitars. Go figure. I play them all without giving the neck much thought.

[ssstewart]

neck profile,string spacing, nut width have no impact on my decision. Im comfortable playing all sizes/shapes/etc. and adapt as needed.

[The Bard Rocks]

My guitars tend to be modern rather than vintage and I am comfortable on all their necks. Sometimes you have to play one a lot, say an hour, before you can tell a difference. My 100+ year old National - that's different. Awful right from the start, way too thick. Only I play slide on it and rarely do much in the way of full chords, so I get by OK.

The rest seem to be D-shaped, moderate in depth, no V's, all with 1 3/4 - 1 13/16" nuts. Each one is fine for me.

[EZYPIKINS]

Neck shape to me is very important if I'm going to play it for very long.

Last night I played my natural 50's RI J-200 for a couple hours. Though I love the tone of this one like nothing else. After a couple hours, my hands begin to cramp up.

My other J-200 a sunburst 2014 Ultimate. plays much better, but doesn't quite have the tone.

The natural one I would take to studio for sure. Live I would tend to lean for the sunburst one.
200twins.jpg

[Charlie Bernstein]

Not real important. It's like getting behind the wheel of a standard-shift car: It takes about five minutes to get used to it. I like playing mandolin and bass, so anything in between is fine by me.

1. Most important is whether I can afford it. If I can't swing it, that's life in the slow lane.

2. Next is where it was made: no sweatshop axes for this boy. Bad karma, no mojo.

3. Third comes sound. If I don't feel it, I don't buy it. (Buying online makes it hard, so I always pay attention to return policies. Learned that the hard way.)

4. Third is looks. If it hurts my eyes, forget it.

5. Feel comes last. It matters, but it has to wait in line. I've had a 1940s Gibson ES-150 baseball bat and a 1960s Gibson LG-0 pencil neck, and both were addictively playable.

[donlyn]

How much do you value neck feel?

Quite a bit.

To the point of if it doesn't feel right, it is an immediate deal breaker for me.

Be well and choose well,

Don
.

[zombywoof]

Nut width and neck depth as well as string spacing at the bridge figure in a whole lot when I approach a guitar. Those in the house range from a two out of three ain't bad take on it to as comfy as it gets.

[rllink]

I couldn't tell you anything about the necks on my three guitars other than they are all 1 11/16 at the nut and they feel the same. And that is not because of a conscious effort, that's just what feels good to me. So I guess it is important to me.

[Charlie Bernstein]

Originally Posted by Mandobart

“Neck Feel” is another one of several things the main body of the AGF cares a lot about and is pretty much invisible to me.

I play so many different instruments that are way beyond the range of “just guitars” - if I got worked up over nut width, scale, body shape, string spacing and neck feel I don’t know how I could stand playing violin, viola, ukulele, mandolin, mandola, octave mandolin, mandocello, guitar and double bass.

Yep. Same here. After answering (post 55), I started reading through the replies. I'm surprised how much it matters to so many players. Like one who say it's 80% of his decision and another who can list his ideal dimensions.

Is it a needlessly limiting fetish — like a guy I used to work with who would only date blondes — or are some hands just so used to one neck shape that a different shape throws them off? I know I make a lot of mistakes typing on this laptop because I've spend so many years typing on full-size keyboards.

Or are different necks designed for different hands? Do makers aim at different market segments that way? Likr mandolin companies that offer wider necks to attract guitar players. I sold my spaghetti-neck Gibson LG-0 to a fiddler who just hates wide necks.

Bottom line: Different strokies for different folkies!

[TheGITM]

Anything that has a tactile 'feel' that can affect performance matters. I don't care about dimensions and such. I care very much how it feels.

Same with golf clubs. Same with tennis rackets. Same with computer keyboards. Same with certain hand tools.

I can play anything (and have over the years, because at one time I had limited choices), but I can tell within a couple of minutes when playing a new guitar if I like how it feels. If I don't, I really don't care how good it sounds. There are plenty of guitars to choose from, so I'll find something else.

I can be choosey. I've earned it.