neck-through vs. bolt-on

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kopie101
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neck-through vs. bolt-on

Unread post by kopie101 » Sun Jun 06, 2004 6:58 pm

ok, street fish said this:

"From the information I've gathered (no personal experience), all else being equal, the neck-thru will give you more sustain. You should be able to get lower action because the neck-thru will be stiffer (it doesn't have the neck-joint that a bolt-on does, where the bolt-on joint acts as sort of a hinge, the neck-thru is solid from headstock to the bottom strap-button). There will also be a difference in tone, with a neck-thru the pickups are essentially mounted to the neck, where with a bolt-on you transfer the string vibrations through the neck, through the neck joint, into the body wood.

That said, all is not equal from brand to brand. Some of the best basses in the world are bolt-ons. Look at MTD, Modulus, Sadowsky, Lakland, etc. Just as many use neck-thru, such as Warwick, Ken Smith, and plenty of others. Its all about the total package. Warwicks in general have a "big" tone, and the neck-thru will just make it stronger."

and that helps a lot, but a more specific question, will a neck-through still have screws in the back to connect neck and body or is it just one piece? it seems like it would be a disadvantage to all be one piece, one type of wood, because of the need for different woods on different parts of the bass. are neck-through's not as durable (both to weather and to just handling)?

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i like tictacs
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Unread post by i like tictacs » Sun Jun 06, 2004 7:27 pm

No, a neck through will not have the screws. The wood is glued together, so you can still have a wood xyz neck and wood abc body. I've never heard of durability issues with neck throughs. the glue, or whatever compound they use, is STRONG.
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Unread post by kopie101 » Sun Jun 06, 2004 11:07 pm

so even though glue seems kinda cheap way to put something together, neck-throughs are more expensive(generally)?

kopie101
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Unread post by kopie101 » Sun Jun 06, 2004 11:45 pm

what is yours, mike? and what do you have to say about it? did you try both? which do you prefer and why?

these questions are open to anyone, im just askin mike in particular cuz hes got the corvette

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GSR
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Unread post by GSR » Mon Jun 07, 2004 2:07 pm

i know its not directly related to quality..but i think in terms of $ from most to least..

neck through
set neck
bolt on

more or less.
Andrew

kopie101
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Unread post by kopie101 » Mon Jun 07, 2004 6:57 pm

well, ive officially gone bolt-on...warwick corvette standard 4 string...just like mike's

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Unread post by i like tictacs » Mon Jun 07, 2004 7:05 pm

Sick! Do you have it yet? You're gonna love it.
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kopie101
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Unread post by kopie101 » Mon Jun 07, 2004 8:09 pm

well, i live in nashville, and youd think "music city" would have one in stock somewhere....but no, i had to order it, so i should have it in a week or so. im excited

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Re: neck-through vs. bolt-on

Unread post by street fish » Tue Jun 08, 2004 2:04 pm

kopie101 wrote: and that helps a lot, but a more specific question, will a neck-through still have screws in the back to connect neck and body or is it just one piece? it seems like it would be a disadvantage to all be one piece, one type of wood, because of the need for different woods on different parts of the bass. are neck-through's not as durable (both to weather and to just handling)?
Bolt-on

http://www.bassnw.com/New%20Exotic%20%2 ... n_5_st.htm


Neck thru

http://www.bassnw.com/New%20Exotic%20%2 ... ring__.htm
Last edited by street fish on Tue Jun 08, 2004 2:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: neck-through vs. bolt-on

Unread post by jsgksu » Tue Jun 08, 2004 2:11 pm

street fish wrote:
kopie101 wrote: and that helps a lot, but a more specific question, will a neck-through still have screws in the back to connect neck and body or is it just one piece? it seems like it would be a disadvantage to all be one piece, one type of wood, because of the need for different woods on different parts of the bass. are neck-through's not as durable (both to weather and to just handling)?
Bolt-on

http://www.bassnw.com/New%20Exotic%20%2 ... n_5_st.htm


Neck thru

http://www.bassnw.com/New%20Exotic%20%2 ... n_5_st.htm
Uh, those are the same two links...
-Jayme

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Re: neck-through vs. bolt-on

Unread post by street fish » Tue Jun 08, 2004 2:24 pm

Fixed the links.

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Unread post by street fish » Tue Jun 08, 2004 2:25 pm

You can see how the neck goes clear through the body. . . on some neck-thrus, you can see the neck wood on both the back and the front, so the pickups are literally attached to the neck.

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GSR
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Unread post by GSR » Tue Jun 08, 2004 3:49 pm

if you can get a neck thru for about the same $ as a bolt on...go for it.. but i think thats a rare occurence.
Andrew

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Unread post by street fish » Tue Jun 08, 2004 6:52 pm

GSRLessard14 wrote:if you can get a neck thru for about the same $ as a bolt on...go for it.. but i think thats a rare occurence.
Like I was saying before, I wouldn't choose one bass over another just because it is a neck-thru. Some of the best basses out there are bolt-ons. . . you have to look at the total package.

If you're talking otherwise identical, like certain Warwick models, yeah I'd go neck-thru. I would choose an older handbuilt Warwick over a new one too. But, there are bolt-on basses I would take over a neck-thru Warwick. And, there are plenty of bolt-on basses that cost more than neck-thru Warwicks.

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Unread post by GSR » Wed Jun 09, 2004 2:06 pm

mmmph
Andrew

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