Quote:
Originally Posted by joemcg
I wonder just how much difference this makes to a beginner? Yes, there are definitely some measurements which will frustrate them (string height unplayable, small nut for big, beefy fingers) but in general I wonder if small differences like a 1 11/16 vs. 1 3/4 nut make a difference?.
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Although I've consistently seen otherwise in both my personal and teaching experience, the idea of a 1-3/4" fingerboard for beginners is far from new - FYI Epiphone marketed their circa-1955 Harry Volpe entry-level electric jazzbox (the very last new design to come out of the New York factory) with specific references to the ease of fingering afforded by the wider board. Similarly, as pickstyle virtuosity came into its own in the early/mid-1930's there was a move among some progressive makers to narrower fingerboards and slimmer neck profiles: while Gibson's 1-11/16" would emerge as the
de facto standard until the late '50s, it's a little-known fact that Martin (the touchstone for the whole "1-3/4 or death" movement) was fitting their F-Series archtops with 1-5/8" necks, and more than a few upscale late-30's New York Epis left the factory at 1-9/16" -
a specification that would not be revisited in their regular-production instruments for another quarter-century, during the Kalamazoo period. I came up in the early-60's on those ~1-5/8" Fender/Gibson speed necks, and while I own acoustic and electric instruments with various profiles/widths I'm still most comfortable (and a heckuva lot faster) on the narrower profile; frankly, it's a shame most of those mid-60's Fender acoustics sounded like total garbage, or I'd own a roomful of them - and I also suspect that, had the flattop acoustics of the 1955-1995 period been made to a standard of quality comparable to their prewar counterparts, there'd be a whole bunch of AGF'ers tripping over themselves for one of those "fast/easy-playing/comfortable" necks...
Of course, you could always score a pre-NT Taylor while they're still relatively affordable...
