Hi everyone,
I have one more how-do-I-choose-my-acoustic-guitar newbie question: I've been learning for two months (more or less successfully) on my friend's guitar. The guitar has a wide neck and it was really hard in the beginning (I have rather small hands) and I still can fret a G-chord only with my pinky, middle and index fingers (but somehow it feels and sounds ok). A few days ago I had an opportunity to try a slim-neck guitar (that's the term?), and was quite dissapointed, 'cause it was really hard to be precise with the strings so close one to another. The question is, when I buy my own guitar (which is to happen in the near future) - what should I choose, a wide-neck that I'm used to (but not really convenient for a small-handed person) or a slim-neck (in which case I'll have to re-learn everything I know)?
And, maybe I miss some big picture concerning the neck thing (like maybe there is a tremendous difference that I'm not aware of?) :shock: :?:
Thanks in advace
You always got to be prepared but you never know for what
When choosing a guitar, my advice i always give is to get what you think feels the best. Also, a thin or wide neck is something that you should choose depending on your own style. Normally a thin neck is more like what is found on an electric and i seem to like it more for solos and individual notes. The wider neck seems to fit chords better for me. I have huge hands however so thats another thing you need to consider.
Hi,
I have small hands as well and you touched on the trade off. I have one guitar with a small (nut width) and one with a large one. i fret slightly cleaner with the larger one but i find it more comfortable to play the one with the larger nut width. That being said i dont think my hands are as small as yours because of the way you fret the g chord. I think if i were you i would try a few guitars out but if i were you i think i would go for one with a smaller nut width and neck.
good luck
Cheers,
Max
Hi Nadinne
There are different neck widths. As max said most electics have a 1 3/4" or are 1 11/16 neck. Acoustics have a 1 11/16" neck. There are hybrid necks for classical-acoustics that are 1 7/8 and classical that is 2". All these are at the nut. I have 3 of the 4 above, no classical. I also have small hands and can play a 2" classical neck, or the electic. I do prefer the hybrid classical 1 7/8 as my hands are small and I get good tone from this guitar. Go out and try others and play what suits you. It did not takne me long to adjust from the small electric neck to a larger 1 7/8" neck.
John M
What type of acoustic are you playing? Most of your Dreadnaughts are 1.75" at the nut. There are other things about the neck that effect the playability such as the shape of the shoulders. I have very small hands and play my Tacoma Dreadnaught without any problems. Try a lot of brands and types until you find one that fits you. A parlor guitar might be the ticket.
Tim Madsen
Nobody cares how much you know,
until they know how much you care.
"What you keep to yourself you lose, what you give away you keep forever." -Axel Munthe
Hi everyone, thank you for the advice.
What type of acoustic are you playing?
It's a Spanish guitar, steel strings, can't tell the exact neck width (really wide, in comparison with the other one I tried), customized nut and bridge (the strings had been suspended too high above the fretboard)... But I love its sound (btw it is so much better that the one with the thin neck)
A parlor guitar might be the ticket.
Pardon my ignorance, what is a parlor guitar?
You always got to be prepared but you never know for what
Without getting into the actual specifications it is smaller than a dreadnaught and larger than a 3/4 size. The neck is the same width as a dreadnaught. I would suggest you try several dreadnaughts.
Tim Madsen
Nobody cares how much you know,
until they know how much you care.
"What you keep to yourself you lose, what you give away you keep forever." -Axel Munthe
Many consider a wider neck to be a plus for fingerstyle and a narrower better for chording/strumming. One reason for the latter is that many of the more "interesting" chords also involve deadening or muting a string or two using the fretting hand. This can be easier on a tighter string spacing. But as in most things, YMMV, so choose what works for you.
-=tension & release=-
IMO, the difficulty associated with different neck widths goes away very quickly with a little practice, and you'll find most everyone who's been playing for more than a year or two can play on any width with relative ease.
Knowing that, I'd tell people to always pick based on what feels better in your hand, the spacing is just something you get used to. I've seen guys with monster hands play quickly and accurately on slimmer guitars, and I've seen tiny asian women play great stuff on giant width classicals.
Do something you love and you'll never work a day in your life...
I'd agree 100% with undercat. The reason things are tough for you is because you just started. It is very rare that someone's hands are too small to play a guitar, but rather that their hands are not used to bending in such ways, and their finger tips aren't calloused. It's always hard in the begining. I play the G chord with my pinky as well, I used to do it with my ring finger ,then switched to pinky. You could probably do it either way, you just have to work at it.
Go with whatever feels better.
With time you'll get used to the differences. My first guitar was a Japanese Strat; when I first started playing it things were terribly sloppy. One or the other "E" string was always going off the edge of the fretboard when I went to fret a note. I don't have particularly large hands, either, but I had quite a bit of difficulty cleanly fretting some chords ("a" and "d" come to mind).
I later got an acoustic with a slightly wider fretboard and the difference was like night and day. I practically stopped practicing with my Strat because it was so much easier to cleanly fret the notes.
A few months along, and I've built up enough callouses/finger strength that I don't have quite as much trouble with the Strat, though I still reach for my acoustic most of the time. Practice, practice!
As for choosing a guitar, trust your hands & your ears.
