Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

[Biu]

16" Jackson style or the Warmoth 10"-16" compound radius? Warmoth claims their compound radius makes you play better. Is that true? I know it's better for chording and whatnot, but I want to know which would be the best for complete solo work.

How about the wide fretboard Warmoth offers? Is this in any way advantageous for shredders?

Thanks.

 

[\m/(00)\m/]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

i dont really know

but i know flatter fret boards are better for so called "shredding" btu with that said in like those vintage necks
as well as flat freatbaords

 

[TattooedCarrot]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

Warmoth claims their compound radius makes you play better. Is that true?

Only in that the upper frets where a shredder spends most his time is flatter. The flatter the faster (generally speaking, there's always exception of course). You can order a flat radius of your choice from Warmoth for a surchgarge. So I'd have them make it to which ever radius you find most comfortable. I like Gibsons and Fenders, but prefer Gibson necks. So my last Warmoth strat neck I ordered with a straight 10.5 radius more like Gibson's.

 

[DiminisheD-7th]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

i dig the feel of flat necks more

you can land planes on my kelly's fretboard i bet!

 

[theodie]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

I love the standard 16 inch radius.

 

[tenniso]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

how do you determine a fretboard's radius anyway?

 

[TattooedCarrot]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

The fretboard radius can be found by first drawing a circle with a corresponding radius, (the "radius" is the distance from the center of a circle to its outer edge), and then cutting out a portion of that circle corresponding to the width of the fretboard. For example, if you have a 7 1/4" radius fretboard. You could tie a piece of string to a pencil, measure out a length of string to 7 1/4", and put a thumbtack on the other end of the string. Secure the tack, stretch the string, and draw a circle. By cutting out a piece of that circle the width of your fretboard, you will have an example of an arc with the same curvature as that of your fretboard radius.

 

[Zerberus]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

BTW, most USA Jacksons also have a compound radius and not a "flat" 16 Inches

 

[tenniso]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

The fretboard radius can be found by first drawing a circle with a corresponding radius, (the "radius" is the distance from the center of a circle to its outer edge), and then cutting out a portion of that circle corresponding to the width of the fretboard. For example, if you have a 7 1/4" radius fretboard. You could tie a piece of string to a pencil, measure out a length of string to 7 1/4", and put a thumbtack on the other end of the string. Secure the tack, stretch the string, and draw a circle. By cutting out a piece of that circle the width of your fretboard, you will have an example of an arc with the same curvature as that of your fretboard radius.

so how do i draw a circle with a corresponding radius if i dont know what the beginning radius is? corresponding to what? in other words, how can i take my current guitar and figure out what its radius is? does a larger radius mean a wider neck, and vice versa?

 

[nuntius]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

From personal experience (owning a "wizard" necked axe)

Sweep picking is easier on the wider board, it makes you play a different way, not necessarly good or bad, but i do find that string bending is not as comfortable on the wide thin neck, and playing in general wasnt as comfortable as my other guitars.

 

[Artie]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

so how do i draw a circle with a corresponding radius if i dont know what the beginning radius is? corresponding to what? in other words, how can i take my current guitar and figure out what its radius is? does a larger radius mean a wider neck, and vice versa?

There are probably several different ways to do this, but here's one way.
On a large piece of paper, or cardboard, draw a few "arcs" using the string-and-pencil method. Keep the pivot point the same, and keep extending the string out a bit each time. Try to draw enough arcs to cover from say, 7" to 12". Now take a stiff wire, like maybe a coat-hanger, and gently bend it across your fretboard to match its curvature.

Now, just lay the bent wire on the paper and match it up to the closest arc. If you didn't pre-label each one to begin with, just measure from that line back to the pivot point to get a pretty good approximation of your radius.

btw - radius and width are independent of each other. You could have a wide neck with either a small or large curvature.

 

[TheProphet]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

For Metal I prefer the 16 inch found on a lot of imports ... I feel that I can get bigger bends down by the nut for some odd reason

For Classic and Blues influenced harder stuff I like to keep my bends within their limits so I like a 10-12 inch radius for that

 

[tenniso]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

so does a larger radius mean the fret board is more curved than flat, and a smaller radius means a flatter fretboard?

 

[stratsandaks]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

Larger radius is flatter, smaller radius is more curved.

 

[B2D]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

I prefer a compound (the JS1000 has a compound radius neck) although i tend to lean towards a 10-12 radius. I tend not to prefer 16" because it makes chording more difficult in the lower registers but way up high its great... 10-12 is a good compromise for me.

I also tend to prefer narrower nut widths because I have small hands. EBMM Silhouette necks are PERFECT in every way shape and form for me.

 

[Biu]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

Thanks, guys. Hey, Zerb, do you know the dimensions on Jackson's compound radius necks? Is it 10"-16" as well?

I think I may be leaning toward the compound radius neck at this point because I believe my Ibanez has a 12" radius and I've played some Jacksons with the 16" radius and like them both. Hmm, would it be possible to get a 12"-16" compound radius?

I think I like wider string spacing too.

 

[Quencho092]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

classic strat radius for me, i like the rounded feel.

 

[Neeradj]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

I like the 14"/15" fretboard radius. Never played a compound radius neck though. I do like flatter fretboards, but since every player does riffing, 16" is too flat for me.

 

[SOLO GUITAR STEWIE]

Re: Which neck radius for maximum shreddage? Wide fretboard?

HEY BIU

YOU MIGHT WANT TO TRY OUT THE PARKER GUITAR NECKS THEY ARE FLATTER AND WIDER THAN IBANEZ AND THE STRING SPACING TO ME IS A BIT WIDER
WHICH I LIKE. NO OTHER NECK I HAVE EVER PLAYED ON I HAVE LIKED EXCEPT ON
MY PARKER P-44.

WWW.PARKERGUITARS.COM

MY MEASLY .02 CENTS.
CHRIS