# Guitar Radius =shred faster?



## Born4metal85 (Jun 23, 2010)

My Ibanez rg 1527 has 430mm radius neck. I just saw an Agile Interceptor guitar which is 350mm. So in that case the strings are nearer to each other . Does that mean faster play?


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## technomancer (Jun 23, 2010)

radius has nothing to do with string spacing it's the curvature of the fretboard


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## MaxOfMetal (Jun 23, 2010)

technomancer said:


> radius has nothing to do with string spacing it's the curvature of the fretboard





The larger the radius, the flatter the fretboard. As for which is "better" it all comes down to personal preference.


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## Born4metal85 (Jun 23, 2010)

technomancer said:


> radius has nothing to do with string spacing it's the curvature of the fretboard



Col! THX! I've learnt something new today!!


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## Groove (Jun 23, 2010)

I think people say a larger radius is better for 'shredding' because typically a smaller one makes chording much easier which is apparently why strats grew so popular among young guitarists who were finding it hard starting out. So i guess it figures that if you have a larger radius i.e flatter fretboard, it will aid you in your ability to play faster. Why this is the case i don't know but i find it actually is true.

Getting a larger radius isn't going to automatically make you better at leads simply because it is larger, you have to have your technique down etc first but i have to admit i find the flatter radii fret board on my C-8 really has helped me speed up my playing easier than it did on the likes of my carvin and maverick, both of which have smaller radii.


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## shogunate (Jun 23, 2010)

All preference. Traditional strats have tiny radii, some like 7.5" which is insane, and I could never, ever get the true hang of it, even as a beginner It felt weird wrapping my hand and having to push different distances onto the frets  

Whereas most classical acoustic nylon strings have a completely flat fretboard, they're usually wider but to this day I fly across those things as fast as I do on electrics  

The best of both worlds for most guitarists (who find a round radius easier and comfier for chording and flat wide radii easier to shred and traverse quickly) are compound radii, which are round at the frets nearer the nut, and as you move down the neck it flattens out, so you've got both. Very comfy  It's all taste, so go forth and shred and see what makes your frets catch fire quicker


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## glassmoon0fo (Jun 23, 2010)

the radius seems faster because you can set your action and a bit lower without having the notes "fret out" when you bend or play. think of this: with a rounder fretboard, when you have the action set very low and you try to bend on the high "e", the higher bend the note, the more likely the string will contact another fret farther up the fretboard. whereas, if you have a flatter radius, you can set the action a great deal lower without this happening. then, why not go totally flat, you ask? because completely flat fretboards make it excessively hard to finger some chords without your hands getting in their own way (and yes, that is the best way i can explain it lol). a little curvature REALLY helps your hands in comfortably forming chord shapes. ive played a perfectly flat radius, and barre chords were a pain in the ass. its weird to experience, but if you get the chance, try different radii and figure out whats most comfortable for you. 

i find that for me, ibanez and agile radii are the most comfortable. jackson and kramer guitars have a flatter radius, and arent as comfy for chording, and strats typically are hard to set with the action the way i like it without fretting out down the fretboard. on that end, i have a custom neck on my strat with a 12" radius, which i think is fine for a 6 string and makes a WORLD of difference. its all about experimentation, dawg!

EDIT: ninja'd ^ lol. i took like 20 minutes to write this post cuz im eating =). oh and +1 to the compound radius option, totally forgot about that one.


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## MaxOfMetal (Jun 23, 2010)

glassmoon0fo said:


> i find that for me, ibanez and agile radii are the most comfortable. jackson and kramer guitars have a flatter radius, and arent as comfy for chording, and strats typically are hard to set with the action the way i like it without fretting out down the fretboard. on that end, i have a custom neck on my strat with a 12" radius, which i think is fine for a 6 string and makes a WORLD of difference. its all about experimentation, dawg!



Jackson guitars have a rounder radius than Ibanez on average. Jackson's tend to have a 12" to 16" radius (compound) while Ibanez are typically 15.7" to 17" o certain guitars. 

Just to add, recently Fender adopted the 12" to 16" Jackson compound radius on some of their Strats. They do own Jackson after all.


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## glassmoon0fo (Jun 23, 2010)

MaxOfMetal said:


> Jackson guitars have a rounder radius than Ibanez on average. Jackson's tend to have a 12" to 16" radius (compound) while Ibanez are typically 15.7" to 17" o certain guitars.
> 
> Just to add, recently Fender adopted the 12" to 16" Jackson compound radius on some of their Strats. They do own Jackson after all.


 
hm, good to know!


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## Born4metal85 (Jun 24, 2010)

glassmoon0fo said:


> the radius seems faster because you can set your action and a bit lower without having the notes "fret out" when you bend or play. think of this: with a rounder fretboard, when you have the action set very low and you try to bend on the high "e", the higher bend the note, the more likely the string will contact another fret farther up the fretboard. whereas, if you have a flatter radius, you can set the action a great deal lower without this happening. then, why not go totally flat, you ask? because completely flat fretboards make it excessively hard to finger some chords without your hands getting in their own way (and yes, that is the best way i can explain it lol). a little curvature REALLY helps your hands in comfortably forming chord shapes. ive played a perfectly flat radius, and barre chords were a pain in the ass. its weird to experience, but if you get the chance, try different radii and figure out whats most comfortable for you.
> 
> i find that for me, ibanez and agile radii are the most comfortable. jackson and kramer guitars have a flatter radius, and arent as comfy for chording, and strats typically are hard to set with the action the way i like it without fretting out down the fretboard. on that end, i have a custom neck on my strat with a 12" radius, which i think is fine for a 6 string and makes a WORLD of difference. its all about experimentation, dawg!
> 
> EDIT: ninja'd ^ lol. i took like 20 minutes to write this post cuz im eating =). oh and +1 to the compound radius option, totally forgot about that one.



Really really thx! Can you share yur experience with Agile? Maybe in pv message or if you can on youtube. I'm planning to sell my RG 1527 and buy an Agile 7 string. I live in Europe and here nobody has agile guitars. So I don't really have the chance try one. I'm interested in the differences between an Ibanez 7string and an agile.


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