Are bolt on neck joints rubbish?!

[StickyDBRmf]

Oh and yeah I picked out the Danelectro and the Chapman Stick because of their color. I'm serious. The D. was in the local guitar . .shop and the Stick I ordered talking to Yuta Chapman (Emmetts wife) and deciding on light or dark bamboo. Even thought the most important decision about what it sounded like was the pickup. I should have ordered torqoiuse linear inlays and a Stickup. I ordered black and the PASV4.  The pickup is a bolt-IN so I can put W/e/T/F/I/W in there. Bolt Me In.

[Ricky 4000]

18 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

There are lots of things that are great about it, but it is a design based entirely on economy rather than strength.

 

Aye. According to Carol Kaye, soon as the Fender bass came out in the 1950s, pros were shimming the neck pocket to taste. 👍

[Boodang]

1 hour ago, EssentialTension said:

 

Not often at all and never at the 24th fret because I dont have one.

 

If memory serves, that's a six-note chord, which I could arpeggiate anywhere on my four string neck, if required.

 

For example in first inversion: E-G-Bb-D-F-C = Em7b5b9b13

Yep, for a minute there I thought I was on pianochat!!

[itu]

8 hours ago, Doddy said:

I never said anything about the price of big pieces of wood being the same as smaller pieces. I don't know where you got that from.

 

Sorry, but I'm going to take advise from the various luthiers I've spoken to, and from my own playing experiences, and say that there is nothing irrational about talk of woods or construction. They all make a difference to the sound of an instrument, no matter how subtle.

Bolt-on neck can be put together from shorter wood strips, and the warping can be handled a bit easier. Also the bolt-on neck can be shimmed, which is not an option with a NT. Well, the bridge is...

 

The comments, or rather descriptive words, are not possible to use everywhere. My Quantum SPi had far more compressed sound than my fretless NT, or Passion II. I do understand that there is a need for simple words. There just isn't a list of terms that is comprehensive and mutually accepted.

 

You are right that instruments vary a lot. Sometimes I wish woods would be more even in quality. We are able to find the subtle details, because the variation is there.

[Bassfinger]

6 hours ago, EssentialTension said:

 

In 50 years of playing I've never broken a neck and nor have I ever been hindered by a bolt-on.

Same here. A lot of bad workers blaming their tools out there.

[rushbo]

On my rare forays up the dusty end of my bolt-on neck, I can't say I've ever been hindered by the join. Hindered by unfamiliarity with the terrain perhaps, but never the build of the instrument. 

 

My preference would always be for a bolt on, and that's not just because I'm a Precision bass fanboy. I enjoy tinkering with basses and having the ability to swap bits around is a real boon. And unlike everyone else on here, I have bust a neck beyond repair. After a lot of swearing and a browse through the pages of eBay I was able to give the bass a new lease of life with a new neck fairly easily.

 

I've had some lovely basses with set necks, including a gorgeous Spector 5 string, and I can't say that made any difference to how I played it. Would I buy an instrument with a set neck today? Yep. If I liked the instrument, I'd buy it regardless of how the long pointy thing is connected to the funny looking, jigsaw piece shaped thing.  However, I have to admit that a nicely done neck to body join is a very sexy thing indeed. 

 

Find an instrument you love to play and play it. My main bass is a combination of an Indonesian Squier P/J body with a left handed, Mexi Fender  neck. Every time I see it, I find it incredibly difficult to not pick it up and have a twang on it.  Resale value: £0.00. Sh!ts I could give: 0. 

Edited March 8, 2022 by rushbo

[Greg Edwards69]

2 hours ago, rushbo said:

My preference would always be for a bolt on, and that's not just because I'm a Precision bass fanboy. I enjoy tinkering with basses and having the ability to swap bits around is a real boon. And unlike everyone else on here, I have bust a neck beyond repair. After a lot of swearing and a browse through the pages of eBay I was able to give the bass a new lease of life with a new neck fairly easily.

I've done the same thing as well.  I was over zealous with a trussrod that was seemingly made out of butter.  Ruined the neck.  I was able to track down a replacement and was as good as new.  A neck through or even set neck would have been far more expensive to fix.

Edited March 8, 2022 by Greg Edwards69

[Boodang]

My latest build from my local luthier, a '61 spec jazz neck (well dimensions that is) and a lovely set joint!

Edited March 8, 2022 by Boodang