Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

[Wonker]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

I'm sure no one here doubts this, but I don't know that it proves anything relevant to the thread. We're mainly discussing whether bolt-ons or neck-throughs sound different. Which one sounds better is subjective; I think they sound good in different ways.

What I'm getting at is if you blind folded 99.9% of internet guitarists that claim that they can tell a difference in tone from the neck construction of a well made guitar that they may be fooling themselves as to how good their ears really are.

 

[kramer.geetar]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

Tone comes from your fingers, not your wallet.

I too highly doubt most people could tell the difference between a bolt on, set neck or neck through in a blind test listening to the guitar being played.
All that being said, some of the best tones ever have been played on bolt ons. David Gilmour, EVH, Eric Johnson to name a few. If its good enough for them....

 

[Jessie's ghost]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

What I'm getting at is if you blind folded 99.9% of internet guitarists that claim that they can tell a difference in tone from the neck construction of a well made guitar that they may be fooling themselves as to how good their ears really are.

Maybe so; when you're talking about two different guitars, there's no getting away from the fact that you have different pieces of wood involved. Make everything else the same all you want, but different wood is different wood. Compound that with the construction techniques, and it's hard to tell what you're really hearing. It's kind of like trying to name the pickup magnet by listening to a recording.

That said, there are certain characteristics I've come to associate with different construction types. They overlap; they're hit-or-miss; not every example is typical of the overarching perceptions. They're more like probability clouds for electron energy levels, or bell curves.

 

[Jessie's ghost]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

Tone comes from your fingers, not your wallet.

I too highly doubt most people could tell the difference between a bolt on, set neck or neck through in a blind test listening to the guitar being played.
All that being said, some of the best tones ever have been played on bolt ons. David Gilmour, EVH, Eric Johnson to name a few. If its good enough for them....

You've got one leg in this thread and one leg in another.

We're not talking about money, and no one is doubting that there are great players who use bolt-ons. Some of those bolt-ons are more expensive than my neck-through guitars.

 

[some_dude]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

It's amazing, really. This is a forum where people nerd out over pickup magnets, capacitors, and pots as having monumental effects on the tone of a guitar, and yet we're summarily dismissing the impact of basic construction techniques.

I don't think people are dismissing it so much as trying to put it back into perspective.

IE; A Les Paul doesn't sound like a Les Paul because it has a glued in neck, and it won't sound like a Strat if we sank a few bolts into it.

Does the joint make a difference? Yes. Does it make a big difference? No.

 

[TravisBean]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

With acoustic guitars you can most certainly make a case for construction influencing the tone of an instrument.
Other than the specifics of electronic components and amplification, I would guess/claim the only determining factor in body construction of an electric guitar, that effects sound (not including the bridge, tuners, and nut) would be wood density and the mass/weight of an instrument.

Now if the bolts were loose................

Tone comes from your fingers, not your wallet.

indubitably

 

[TravisBean]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

IE; A Les Paul doesn't sound like a Les Paul because it has a glued in neck, and it won't sound like a Strat if we sank a few bolts into it.

And I'd be willing to bet that if you recorded a song on a Les Paul, and then removed the pick-ups and wiring from that very Les Paul, and installed them in anther solid body electric guitar of approximately the same weight, and recorded that same song on that guitar, provided that action and intonation was set up similarly on both instruments, that recorded song would sound identical from both instruments.
When Les Paul made his first Plank guitars, he said that he only added round body sides so people would know he was playing a guitar.

 

[Jessie's ghost]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

And I'd be willing to bet that if you recorded a song on a Les Paul, and then removed the pick-ups and wiring from that very Les Paul, and installed them in anther solid body electric guitar of approximately the same weight, and recorded that same song on that guitar, provided that action and intonation was set up similarly on both instruments, that recorded song would sound identical from both instruments.

Shark = jumped. Goodnight, thread.

 

[Chickenwings]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

I cant tell which one id prefer unless i played them. You tube is at best a pretty suspect way of ascertaining a guitar's sound.

 

[some_dude]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

And I'd be willing to bet that if you recorded a song on a Les Paul, and then removed the pick-ups and wiring from that very Les Paul, and installed them in anther solid body electric guitar of approximately the same weight, and recorded that same song on that guitar, provided that action and intonation was set up similarly on both instruments, that recorded song would sound identical from both instruments.

I'm not quite willing to go that far, particularily if we're talking different woods and other materials....

IE, I don't feel that a 9lb Strat is going to sound like a 9lb Les Paul just because the electronics were swapped over.

 

[TimmyPage]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

A really well made, tightly screwed in bolt on neck will sound every bit as good as a neckthrough. For me it comes down to comfort, and I've never played a neckthrough with a neck joint that I can jive with, very few set necks, but most bolt on neck joints that I've played feel fine to me.

I strongly believe that while there is a tonal difference, this is one of the matters that should come down to comfort rather than tone.

 

[TravisBean]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

I'm not quite willing to go that far, particularily if we're talking different woods and other materials....

IE, I don't feel that a 9lb Strat is going to sound like a 9lb Les Paul just because the electronics were swapped over.

I've never tried it, but if I had to bet one way or the other I'd say yes. Those Telelcaster's with humbucker's sound alot more like Gibsons than Fenders.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBllejn5fVA

 

[Jessie's ghost]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

Those Telelcaster's with humbucker's sound alot more like Gibsons than Fenders.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBllejn5fVA

But shouldn't they sound identical to Gibsons?

 

[TravisBean]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

But shouldn't they sound identical to Gibsons?

You can nit-pick nuances if you so please, but I'd still stick with my original bet if I had to. Perhaps your ears are just more refined than mine.

I had a friend back in the day who purchased an outrageously expensive SAE twenty five band per channel graphic equalizer. The guy spent days (and sometimes nights without sleep) making hairpin adjustments to his stereo.
He'd say to me........... "Can't you hear the difference?"

My point is that if you stick Gibson electronics in a Fender it's gonna sound much more like a Gibson than a Fender.
And bolts (or the absence thereof) are not gonna be one of the major determining factors in the sonic characteristics of a solid body electric
guitar.

Oh, and BTW, always buy what you like regardless of what ANYBODY says one way or the other. If you hear/feel a difference that makes you like one instrument over another, it's more important that you select what works for you than understanding why it works for you.
Merry Xmas to all.

 

[Jessie's ghost]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

Perhaps your ears are just more refined than mine.

We've reached an agreement.

 

[TravisBean]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

We've reached an agreement.

If you say so/dream on............

 

[TravisBean]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

I hear what I hear, and I don't need to prove it to you or to anyone else.

Oh, and BTW, always buy what you like regardless of what ANYBODY says one way or the other. If you hear/feel a difference that makes you like one instrument over another, it's more important that you select what works for you than understanding why it works for you.
Merry Xmas to all.

And I disagree with you how?

 

[Jessie's ghost]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

And I disagree with you how?

Way to edit your post with a magnanimous parting sentiment after the fact.

:beerchug:

 

[TravisBean]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

Way to edit your post with a magnanimous parting sentiment after the fact.

:beerchug:

I edited my post at the same time you made yours, so let's just chalk it up as a miscommunication. (7:25 & 7:24 by my computer)

 

[Jackson Distortion]

Re: Neck-through vs Bolt-on (tone-wise)

This thread makes my head hurt now.