12 string wider necks

8mileshigh · Post by **8mileshigh** » Tue Dec 20, 2005 7:46 am

Is it just me or does anyone else struggle with the wider 660/12 neck? It's probably years of conditioning, but I much prefer the standard width necks.

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Tue Dec 20, 2005 9:13 am

A 660/12 was my first Rickenbacker guitar. I enjoyed the wider spacing, and of course the tone is spectacular.

As I play my sixes and other 12s more and more, I find that the neck does feel a bit clunky. However, I have no desire to change guitars or modify my style, and to be fair, I do not need to do either. It's just the sensation of moving back and forth between my other Ricks and the 660/12.

This is most obvious when I switch between my '81 320 and the 660! It's like going from a swizzle stick to a log...

Scastles · Post by **Scastles** » Tue Dec 20, 2005 9:23 am

At first I sort of enjoyed my 660 and the wider neck. I guess because it was a different feel from my long owned 360/12, but when grabbing to play a 12 I find myself always going for the 360. Better familiarity breeds comfort.

ozover50 · Post by **ozover50** » Tue Dec 20, 2005 10:00 am

Interesting, Graham. My second Rick was a 660/12 and I bought it because I figured I'd struggle with a narrower 330 or 360 neck.

Because I don't play the 660 all that often I have to spend a lot of time getting comfortable with it. Slipping back to a 1-5/8" 6 string is a breeze afterwards.

Must try out one of the others to confirm my suspicions or otherwise......

bitzerguy · Post by **bitzerguy** » Tue Dec 20, 2005 12:45 pm

I don't struggle at all with it. In fact I really love it. I also have a '69 LP Deluxe that has a neck like a Redwood trunk compared to the 660, but my other fav, the Godin has a very narrow and thin neck.

My trick: Warm up and stretch with the LP. Move on to the the 660 and finally the Godin. After that, I can move between them quite easily and comfortably. I use this sequence every day for practice, and before every gig.

...Dean

jps · Post by **jps** » Tue Dec 20, 2005 1:54 pm

I tried a 381/12V69 before I got my 660/12, and I am happy to report the 660/12 is much easier to play, for me anyway.

soundmasterg · Post by **soundmasterg** » Tue Dec 20, 2005 3:04 pm

I wish they would make a wider 12 string neck for the 330/360 series, but I know they'd have to most likely re-jig to do that and it would cost too much. Still, theres always hope.

leftyguitars · Post by **leftyguitars** » Wed Dec 21, 2005 4:28 am

I bought a 660/12 blind because I couldn't fit my fingers in on some chords on my 360/12 or 381/12. But even the 660 is too narrow for me to play a "C" chord easily without catching the strings on each side of the "B" strings. I now play a Gibson 12 string which has a neck like a baseball bat, and I get on great with that!

valenti · Post by **valenti** » Wed Dec 21, 2005 8:00 pm

I'm still waiting for my 660-12 BBR to show up (maybe March?). It too was purchased "blind." I have an Ovation 12 and a Guild D55 6, neither of wich are Louisville Sluggers, but certainly fatter than my Gibson SG (or my 360-12). Switching back and forth between these neck widths does take some getting used to, but no different than climbing from my wife's mini-van into my G35 coupe. After a few upshifts, it feels like home.

I'll let y'all know what I think of the 660 when she arrives. With pix, of course!

dean712 · Post by **dean712** » Wed Dec 21, 2005 10:01 pm

I love my 660/12. I'm glad the neck is not any narrower. I'm primarily a bass player, but I do play rhythm guitar for recording and song ideas.

8mileshigh · Post by **8mileshigh** » Thu Dec 22, 2005 2:19 am

So it is just me then?

jps · Post by **jps** » Thu Dec 22, 2005 3:38 am

Yes.

leftyguitars · Post by **leftyguitars** » Thu Dec 22, 2005 10:15 am

Yes!!!

But then it always is, isn't it?

firstbassman · Post by **firstbassman** » Thu Dec 22, 2005 11:39 am

I'm another bass player with clumsy fingers.
I'd give anything if my 360/12 had a wider neck. The strings are just too close together for us mere mortals.
For a while I tried capoing at the 2nd fret, but eventually gave that up.
My Takamine A/E 12 has a wider neck and it is perfect!

325-at-2pm · Post by **325-at-2pm** » Sat Dec 24, 2005 7:23 pm

OK, it not just you.

I'm a guitar player and really like playing a 1960s Rickenbacker 12 string guitar more than all the others because for me the smaller more radiused neck is much easier to play.

Several members of this site know me for being a 12 string guy, and I can easily and readily compare several 1960s Ricky 12 string setups to a 660TP, 360V64-12, 1970s 360-12OS, 1960s Burns Double 6, Charvel Surfcaster 12, and a EDS-1275 Gibson 12 string neck. To me, all the others are clunky by comparison, even though I can enjoy them for what they are.

I'm mainly a guitar player, and my primary 6 string guitars are usually Gibsons that have big necks.

There is just some kind of magic with a 1960s Rickenbacker 12 string neck and fingerboard radius. For me it's just so easy and fast to play.