Electric with the fastest neck?

[Phishmonkey]

 

The Parker Flys have a neck which is conducive to fast playing - they are really thin, have a smooth composite fretboard, and slick stainless frets. The only thing that might hang things up (if it's not too thin for you - it was for me) is the painted neck...but since it has a layer of composite all along the back of the guitar, there's not really any way out of that. Having said that, as the others said, it's what fits you - but if you find one, give it a whirl.

 

 

Yeah that was my reaction, it would be perfect if it wasn't finished.

[zepfan976]

I'm with burgess

 

that said i like the gibson profile

[J2]

Thanks to those who posted serious replies.

 

Buckethead has alien fingers, he can shred on an LP, I don't have alien fingers, therefore I cannot.

 

I never knew there could be a huge difference between guitar necks until I played a Vigier Supra. My playing was far more technically accurate, smoother, and faster on that guitar. It almost felt like it was playing itself.

Big difference between that guitar and most other guitars I've played.

 

So... if I had the money today and my sole criteria for my next purchase was how fast the neck feels, I would buy a Vigier.

 

What other necks are known to be fast besides Vigier?

I've pretty much heard that certain Ibanez models have fast necks, some people feel they are even faster and more comfortable than a Vigier.

I've also heard many people say that the shape of Jackson necks (on their higher end models) lend themselves to speed.

 

I'd like to know what guitar attributes you think contribute to a faster feel, and what guitar models have the fastest feeling necks.

 

For example, an ebony board feels far faster to me as does a thin neck, and low action, but those are obvious.

What neck shape has a faster feel (e.g. U or V shaped, etc.)?

[YogurtKing]

I'm convinved "fast neck" is a marketing phrase invented by I don't know let's say Ibanez.

 

Seriously, what could possibly make a neck "fast?"

[StompBoxLover]

 

if I had the money today and my sole criteria for my next purchase was how fast the neck feels, I would buy a Vigier.

 

 

oh, a M

[Brewski]

Sorry for the larger print but I wanted my point to get across

 

Answer: Rosewood is faster than Maple. Ebony fretboard is faster than rosewood, feels smoother and slicker. I just got a guitar with an Ebony neck and can't believe the difference. Unless you have a collection with more than one neck type (see my handle) it's hard to tell.

 

Ebony is brighter so make sure you buy a pickup with low/mid output and the highs will be there.

[YogurtKing]

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry for the large print but I wanted to point out how absolutely mind-bogglingly silly it is to claim that one type of wood is faster than another. Technically, graphite necks are the fastest but the big 5 guitar manufacturers have conspired to ensure that no one ever ends up playing faster than Michael Angelo. It's in his contract.

[StompBoxLover]

 

 

 

also, Tortex is faster than nylon, Morley is faster than Dunlop, Dimarzio is faster than SD, abalone faster than MoP, Gilbert is faster than Vai and Tuesdays are faster than Thursdays.

[StompBoxLover]

Technically, graphite necks are the fastest but the big 5 guitar manufacturers have conspired to ensure that no one ever ends up playing faster than Michael Angelo. It's in his contract.

 

I knew it...

[Knottyhed]

Electric with the fastest neck for shredding? Vigier? Ibanez? Something else?

 

You're thinking about it a bit backwards. Far more important than the shape of the neck is how the guitar is setup... if the action is nice and low and the string gauge not too high then any guitar is 'fast'. Even then though the player is far more important, you can play damn fast on an acoustic if you're good enough.

 

'Shredder' guitars (Ibanez RG/Jem, Vigier, Jackson etc.) do generally have some differences - which bias them towards playing fast single note lines rather than chords. E.g.

 

-Flatter radius' to faciliate massive bends and wide vibrato. This makes chording a bit less comfortable.

 

-Wider nut/bridge spacing/fretboard making it a bit easier to keep your playing 'clean' and to do tapping/sweeping etc. Again great for single note stuff, but less comfortable chording.

 

-Thinner neck (probably to offset the wider fretboard and improve reach)

 

-Bigger, wider frets - the taller frets all a better grip on the string with the finger tip as the string won't touch the fretboard (kinda like scalloping) - so handy for vibrato/bends. It also facilitates easier hammer-on/pull-offs. The major downside is the bigger frets will intonate less well (again more a problem for chords).

 

None of these things make the guitar 'faster' per-se, but they do make it better suited to searing leads than to complex chording.

[Yngtchie Blacksteen]

The Vigier Shawn Lane model has a flat fretboard, which means that you can have the strings as low as they come, with no fret buzz. This, coupled with light strings, is a recipe for speed.

[Harry-L]

It's time for guitar manufacturers to quit using that bull{censored} marketing term.

[Brewski]

Approved - I deserved That

 

with that said - I have thick, thin, flat, C shaped, Wizard necks, whatever. Rosewood dries out, Ebony does not.

 

 

My Ibanez Wizard neck is fast, my Ibanez Destroyer II is fast, My Agile PS-970 is fast, My Maple Squier was slow and my PS-924WE is the fastest smoothest of the bunch (oh, yeah, it's Ebony)

 

Feel free to rag on me for the rest of the thread, but be objective and try some field tests yourself and get some diversity in your guitar arensal and check it out.

[Knottyhed]

Seriously, what could possibly make a neck "fast?"

 

The player

[Knottyhed]

The Vigier Shawn Lane model has a flat fretboard, which means that you can have the strings as low as they come, with no fret buzz. This, coupled with light strings, is a recipe for speed.

 

Yeh that is another point about a flat radius, you can get up the strings a bit lower. Even though you can set the individual string height on a strat or LP, if you go too low the curvature of the fretboard will cause the string to 'choke out' on bends. All the same, the reason SL played so fast was he practiced alot, not cos he was playing the SL signature model

[Knottyhed]

 

with that said - I have thick, thin, flat, C shaped, Wizard necks, whatever. Rosewood dries out, Ebony does not. My Ibanez Wizard neck is fast, my Ibanez Destroyer II is fast, My Agile PS-970 is fast, My Maple Squier was slow and my PS-924WE is the fastest smoothest of the bunch (oh, yeah, it's Ebony) Feel free to rag on me for the rest of the thread, but be objective and try some field tests yourself and get some diversity in your guitar arensal and check it out.

 

 

I've got mahogony necks, maple necks, oil-finished maple necks and a oil-finished maple/wenge laminate neck in my guitar arsenal... I can safely say the wood used has no effect. *The finish* might make a subtle difference in terms of whether the thumb tends to stick to the back of the neck or not... if you're experiencing any difference, that'll be what it is IMO. Again though that's probable a technique thing, I don't tend to rub my thumb on the back off the neck when sliding to another position so neck finish makes no difference to me.

 

[Edit] Come to think of it isn't your 'fast' IBZ wizard neck and your destroyer neck maple? Same as your 'slow' Squire...[/Edit]

[mnhhngbfs]

bc rich thin profile shaved down just a teeny tiny bit, finished with tru-oil. ebony or rosewood board.

[Tommy]

I never really understood the term "fast neck" but I can say that the necks on EBMM guitars are IMO the most comfortable necks ever made.

[zac503]

I was about to say that the Petrucci model EBMM has the tiniest neck. Fast indeed. On a side note This thread is dumb as it's all in the hands and it's all a matter of personal taste. Jacksons necks are fast as {censored} but have a noticably different feel to them than the wide flat necks of an ibanez. Go to a music shop and play ones till you like them.

 

If you can't play fast then you need to practice, not spend hours a day muling which guitar will give you a speed boost.

[J2]

Again, thanks to the guys who posted serious replies, especially the guys on page 2, you guys posted some really good points.

 

You guys touched on something that I know little about, and that's the shape of the neck and radius of the board.

 

It seems the consensus is that a flat board is the way to go to keep the action ultra low. I'm not sure what the radius was on that Vigier Supra I tried, anybody know?

 

I picked up my classical guitar the other day for the first time in many years. Before I played it I looked at the size of the neck and thought, I bet I can't play this anymore. Surprisingly, using a pick I could shred better on that guitar without warming up than I can on my current guitars. I guess it's the flat board and wide string spacing?

 

Does anybody know the differences in neck shapes between Vigier, Ibanez, and Jackson (generally speaking)? I've heard guys talk in terms of U-shaped, V-Shaped (Jackson?), and C-Shaped, what are each of these supposed to do? What is it that makes each of these guitars supposedly so easy to play?

I don't find Jacksons to be particularily comfortable.