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Is it difficult to switch to a different scale length?

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(@kopfschmerzen)
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Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 62
Topic starter  

Hello everyone,

I play not that long and have only one guitar, so I'm wondering how do you feel when you switch to a guitar with a different scale length? Say, if you used to play Strat (25,5") and then switched to LP (24,75"), or picked up a travel guitar, or something like Brian May Guitar (24") - does it feel weird to play? How much time and effort it takes to get used to a new scale length?

Thanks!


   
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(@greybeard)
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Joined: 21 years ago
Posts: 5840
 

I've got 25.5 and 24.75 plus an acoustic that I have no idea about. I don't notice any difference at all.

The width and thickness of the neck make a difference, but not the scale length.

I do notice the scale length when I change to my uke, though........................

I started with nothing - and I've still got most of it left.
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(@kent_eh)
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Joined: 18 years ago
Posts: 1882
 

A small change (like strat to Les Paul) takes a bit of getting used to (like a few minutes, not weeks or months), but like anything the more you switch back and forth, the easier it gets.

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So I looked like I was deep


   
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(@s1120)
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Joined: 16 years ago
Posts: 848
 

Ive never had a problem. I had bolth a strat and a LP, and I had more issues with going from the flatter fretboar on the LP to the more curved fretboard on the strat.

Paul B


   
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(@boxboy)
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Joined: 18 years ago
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Ditto the above.
The neck profile and fretboard radius throw me more than the scale length.
Even those factors only take a short time to adjust to.
:)

Don


   
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(@trguitar)
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Joined: 17 years ago
Posts: 3709
 

Takes no time at all to adjust.

"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --


   
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(@brian-krashpad)
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Joined: 13 years ago
Posts: 41
 

It depends on the person. Some people can have a real problem with it. Like most of the people above, it is not a big deal for me. If you have 2 guitars with different scales and go back and forth a lot it will eventually be almost to the point where it is not noticeable. I try to make a point of intentionally rotating through my guitars so that various scale lengths, fret sizes, and neck profiles do not make too much difference to me. A wide-thin neck still throws me though, as I don't have a guitar with such a neck and don't really like that profile for me.


   
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(@trguitar)
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A wide-thin neck still throws me though, as I don't have a guitar with such a neck and don't really like that profile for me.

That would be my Jackson Stealth and that one does let me know it is different. :mrgreen:

"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --


   
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(@noteboat)
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Joined: 21 years ago
Posts: 4921
 

Me, I notice. As others have noted, t's not a big deal to adjust... but since I make my living playing guitar, I want to control as much as I possibly can in my gear. I want to be sure that the frets are always where I expect them to be.

Years ago I used both typical scale lengths, mostly because the electric guitars I had then had such different tones, and I liked them all a lot (Strat, Les Paul, Firebird, ES335). But over the years I made a conscious decision to standardize on one fret length. Since my acoustic guitars are 25.4", and all my classical guitars are 650mm (about 25.6"), it made sense for me to go with just the Fender length, and I haven't really regretted that decision (although I do have a nagging hankering to find a decent semi hollow body in that scale length). Every guitar I play on a regular basis is +/- 0.1" of 25.5.

For me it comes down to a need to read. A lot of the work I do, both in teaching and performing, requires reading - either sight reading (about 5% of the studio work and 100% of the musical theater work I've done) or rhythm chart reading (most everything else I've done in the studio or as a sideman). And I'm constantly reading when I teach. Every time you have to glance away from the music, you run a risk of not returning to the same spot... if you do it once, the leader frowns. Do it twice, and they don't hire you again.

So while I could easily cope in a jam situation, I chose not to. I guess it's like other instruments... if a sax player likes 3.25 hardness reeds, they'll be able to play with 3 or 3.5, but it won't be quite the same.

Guitar teacher offering lessons in Plainfield IL


   
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(@moonrider)
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Joined: 20 years ago
Posts: 1305
 

Hello everyone,

I play not that long and have only one guitar, so I'm wondering how do you feel when you switch to a guitar with a different scale length? Say, if you used to play Strat (25,5") and then switched to LP (24,75"), or picked up a travel guitar, or something like Brian May Guitar (24") - does it feel weird to play? How much time and effort it takes to get used to a new scale length?

Thanks!

I switch back and forth all the time. It's not that hard.

Playing guitar and never playing for others is like studying medicine and never working in a clinic.

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(@kopfschmerzen)
Trusted Member
Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 62
Topic starter  

Thanks everyone! I was wondering in terms of buying a new guitar rather than switching between two of them periodically. Now it's all clear.

I have only one guitar for now, a 25.5" scale, and I did notice the difference when I tried to play a B.May's Red Special replica. It is 24" and also feels different because of different shape - I played sitting and the body was like couple of inches behind "normal" :) Anyway, I'm a beginner and had to look at the fretboard so I knew where to put fingers. I didn't pay much attention to a shape of the neck, though. Will think of it next time I try something!

Thank you!


   
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(@notes_norton)
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Joined: 16 years ago
Posts: 1497
 

I recently went from a Gibson/Epi/LTD 24.75" scale to a Parker DragonFLy 25.5" and I didn't have any difficulty with the scale difference at all. In fact, my fingers like it when playing past the 12th fret.

The challenge I had was the strings at the bridge on the Parker are a bit farther apart than on my other 3 guitars (the bridge is wider). So I picked a lot of dead air at first, but in a few weeks, it's no problem. I can switch from guitar to guitar and my fingers automatically know which one I'm playing.

Insights and incites by Notes ♫

Bob "Notes" Norton

Owner, Norton Music http://www.nortonmusic.com Add-on Styles for Band-in-a-Box and Microsoft SongSmith

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(@notes_norton)
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<...> if a sax player likes 3.25 hardness reeds, they'll be able to play with 3 or 3.5, but it won't be quite the same.

Changing reed strengths on a sax is a lot like changing string gauges on guitar. It does take an adjustment period. But reed strength is also dependent on the size of the tip opening of the mouthpiece. I play with a very wide tip opening and a huge chamber, putting a 3.5 reed on that would make it impossible for me to play. The reed just wouldn't vibrate.

Changing scale length would be more like a player who exclusively played tenor picking up a soprano. The main finger keys would be no problem, but the palm and trill keys would be difficult to find until he/she got used to them.

Fortunately, while reading music on my main axe, the sax, I don't have to look at my fingers at all. It's one of the things that are easier on the sax than they are on the guitar.

When I first picked up the flute, I had a problem. Many of the notes are fingered the same as the sax, but a few of them are different. At first I made a lot of mistakes fingering the flute like a sax, but in a reasonable amount of time, my fingers knew which instrument they were playing and used the appropriate fingering.

I think if you put the time in, changing anything within reason shouldn't be a problem.

Notes ♫

Bob "Notes" Norton

Owner, Norton Music http://www.nortonmusic.com Add-on Styles for Band-in-a-Box and Microsoft SongSmith

The Sophisticats http://www.s-cats.com >^. .^< >^. .^<


   
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 Crow
(@crow)
Honorable Member
Joined: 14 years ago
Posts: 549
 

Even going from standard six-string to bass guitar isn't a problem if you do it for a while. What I canNOT seem to do is any kind of lap guitar. Had a lovely Dobro squareneck for a few years but just couldn't get into it.

I find setup and string gauge are more challenging adjustments to make than scale length when going from guitar to guitar. I set up everything with about the same action, acoustic and electric, and string all but one with .012s. (In the past, this has had the added advantage of keeping bandmates away from my guitars. :lol: )

"You can't write a chord ugly enough to say what you want to say sometimes, so you have to rely on a giraffe filled with whipped cream." - Frank Zappa


   
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(@anonymous)
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Joined: 17 years ago
Posts: 8184
 

switching from a short scale neck to long or vice versa can be a little irritating for a while when you're playing without looking, reach up for the higher frets and suddenly you're half a step flat or sharp. it takes however long it takes for your muscle memory to adjust. most of it takes a few minutes because we're talking fractions of an inch for the most part, but you may stumble from time to time for a few days.


   
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