Musician Gear & Tech Discussion

Hello Mark, one thing that might help is your thumb position on your fretting hand, when I was first learning violin my orchestra teacher would stress how important your thumb position and wrist position are and I just transfered that to guitar and it is very important. For instance when playing a B minor chord at the second fret your thumb should be right at the 1/2 way point of the neck width and your wrist arched down, when playing your basic E chord your thumb will be up at the top of the neck this gives your fingers a chance to push down in more of an arched position and reduces unwanted accidental muting and gives you a grip on the neck. playing guitar to me is really about technique and that really is what works for you.

Hello All,

I'm new on the Forums here and have been enjoying what's being shared in the threads. I look forward to particiating on things going forward.

Mark, it was cool to read about your success in finding the neck that "fits". I traded off a lovely old cherry LP many years ago, simply because I had lots of trouble doing first position pull offs & hammer ons, and I use a lot of those. When I read about your using a 7 string instrument, I immediately thought about Johnny Winter, who used a Fender 12 string for years with the secondary set of strings removed. Where there's a will, there's a way, eh?

Rythm Man.... I just file 'em until I can press down on a table top and the nail *just* brushes the tabletop. Well, that's what's left after the strings rip 'em up. I've got very thin nails on my right hand and still insist on using fingers along with a pick. I do, on a positive note, get some very interesting serrated nails going sometimes.

And last, but definitely not least......Kramerguy! That's *my* A chord! <chuckle>

Play On, Brothers..........................

Hello J and Scott,
Interesting to hear all the varied experiences of technique etc.
A bit like you describe from the violin J, I too once played that sort of thing, a cello in fact, and I have pretty much transferred the hand position I learned back then onto the guitar... and bass guitar which is mostly a fretless one because I miss the cello!
I play with my thumb on the back of the neck, except interestingly with chords I learned in my teens before I started the cello... muscle memory goes back to the cradle it seems.
My finger nails are completely clipped on both hands, as I dislike the sound of a guitar picked with nails, and finger nails can break at awkward moments where a finger tip is far less likely ever to drop off!

I really believe in my wide-necked guitars; but muscle memory is a deep thing, and if you play a standard guitar and try one of my wide-necked ones; even if you have big hands that should like it, your first impression is that it has some notes in wrong places, and other notes missing from the right places!
In short what your hands are used to works better than what in theory might fit them better.
When I converted my first seven string to six... it was a lovely black Schecter Omen 7; the first hour I played it I thought, oh Christ I have completely ruined a perfect guitar for nothing; but since that first hour it has been true love!
That Schecter went to Spain on Ebay, and now after a Peavey and some others I have a superb Washburn WG587 and am converting a Legend Strat 7.

Hey Scott, you mention Johnny Winter with a converted 12 string; that is so interesting to learn of... I saw and nearly bought a German electric twelve string guitar to convert a few months back; I was only put off it because though it looked a nice width at the nut, it just ran parallel to the bridge and looked cramped for picking with fingers... okay for a plectrum I guess, but I only use fingers now both for lead and strumming... and seven string guitars give a nice change of width from nut to bridge.

Thanks for all the thoughts and reflections... and any more that come to mind, as I really want to get to the bottom of this wide-neck for big hands question because I have some thoughts of having a batch of guitars built in Korea to my own design... there is a place that will do a minimum order of 24 guitars and from your drawing.

Greeting to all from Sussex England!
Mark...................