# Solar Guitars - How's their necks?



## 13thDragon (Feb 3, 2019)

Hey all

New guy here, not a 7 string player (soz), but I've been instructed that this is a good place to enquire about Solar / Chapman guitars, so I'm here for some advice....

Basically Solar guitars have really caught my eye, both in terms of aesthetics and what I'm after specs wise in a guitar (Evertune!). I also really like the attitude behind them.

However there's no chance of me playing one in the flesh and the only thing that I'm wondering about is how the neck feels. I know it's likely to be thin, but how thin is it?

To put it in perspective I don't mind a slim neck but the likes of an Ibanez is too thin. The nicest neck I've ever played is that of an LTD SC500, which ESP descibe as a 'Thin U'.

So has anyone here played a Solar guitar? How does the neck feel?

The two other guitars that have caught my eye are an LTD MH-1000 Evertune and a Chapman ML1-Pro Modern. However the LTD has EMGs and would need a pickup swap (I don't like EMGs) and the Chapman doesn't have an Evertune bridge which is a huge draw on the other 2.

So any input is greatly appreciated


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## JustinRhoads1980 (Feb 3, 2019)

I am interested in knowing this as well.

Is solar more of a ESP Thin U profile or like a Jackson thin D profile. Or is it a Schecter Ultra Thin C?


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## Albake21 (Feb 3, 2019)

JustinRhoads1980 said:


> I am interested in knowing this as well.
> 
> Is solar more of a ESP Thin U profile or like a Jackson thin D profile. Or is it a Schecter Ultra Thin C?


Funny enough, I'd say none of these. I think the best way to put it would be a Thin U, but with less shoulder. It's a very round C shape.


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## Metropolis (Feb 3, 2019)

As others said, round c-shape, no flat spot in the middle. I would guess you will like Solar neck too if ESP was comfy.

OP of this NGD thread draw a picture of different neck profiles, which might tell something.
http://www.sevenstring.org/threads/ngd-solar-v2-6.328730/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/27038811948/


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## Duraesu (Feb 4, 2019)

I have a Solar and its definitely a C shape neck! Very comfy without being too thin or too thick


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## JustinRhoads1980 (Feb 4, 2019)

_velkan said:


> I have a Solar and its definitely a C shape neck! Very comfy without being too thin or too thick




I am actually really glad to hear this


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## Zhysick (Dec 13, 2020)

BUMP!

I'm interested in this. Next year 2021 I am buying a new guitar yes or yes and I am considering Solar, LTD and Schecter.

I like the LTD Thin U profile with TOM bridge and 42mm nut width BUT I have read that consistency between LTD necks are not very good (and I have experienced it also but I thought it was more of a difference between the years of manufacturing but looks like it is like that always so...)

Then there is Schecter, but in Europe its expensive and the catalogue in big shops like Thomann is not very good for what I want AND then there is...

Solar: nice specs, absolutely available in Europe AND neon colors. Yes, that's important  No, what is really important is that they specified it's a C shaped neck and I like C shaped necks. I can play V necks. I hate D necks. 

So, any more input about how the C shaped neck of a solar feels compared to the Thin U ESP necks or something else? Maybe you can compare it to a Fender Player series 'Modern C' shape.

Any input appreciated.

Cheers!


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## Metropolis (Dec 14, 2020)

Zhysick said:


> BUMP!
> 
> I'm interested in this. Next year 2021 I am buying a new guitar yes or yes and I am considering Solar, LTD and Schecter.
> 
> ...



Thin U feels little bit smaller in width and thickness, 42 vs. 43mm and about 20mm thickness at 1st fret with Solar necks. Solars have very similar string spacing compared to Ibanez. Profile is quite similar to each other, and fretboard radius too.


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## Zhysick (Dec 14, 2020)

Metropolis said:


> Thin U feels little bit smaller in width and thickness, 42 vs. 43mm and about 20mm thickness at 1st fret with Solar necks. Solars have very similar string spacing compared to Ibanez. Profile is quite similar to each other, and fretboard radius too.



Similar string spacing to Ibanez. That's a very very very important thing for me to the point I am not buying a Solar guitar then.

Thanks!!


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## Metropolis (Dec 14, 2020)

Zhysick said:


> Similar string spacing to Ibanez. That's a very very very important thing for me to the point I am not buying a Solar guitar then.
> 
> Thanks!!



In my opinion it's not too much of a difference, and I haven't measured how wide the neck is at 24th fret for example. Solars should have f-spaced bridge pickups though.

Well, I can measure it. 24th fret width is about 56mm (thin-U might be little bit less than that) and bridge spacing of my AB1.6 with Hipshot hardtail bridge is 53mm. Pretty standard measurements for a guitar like this. From higher up it has less width than modern Ibanez Wizard necks, which are 58mm. So it should feel less wide than Ibanez, actually I had one six string Ibanez at the same time with my Solar and that's how it was.


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## Zhysick (Dec 14, 2020)

Ideally I would buy a 41mm nut guitar like a Music Man, but I am not afford one so... the 42mm LTD's Thin U is on the "wider than this is not comfortable" for me.

The Wolfgang I had was probablythe best neck profile ever but the Floyd Rose and the locking nut... I just want a TOM bridge. Funny thing is I like Gibson necks which are 43mm but string spacing is small so even if the neck is not that narrow the strings are close to each other and I feel comfortable enough so the wider string spacing is what's really pulling me away from Solar guitars and that'sa shame as I like the shapes and specs of those guitars...

If I had the chance of playing one before but as I can'tI should just go the safe route and probablybuy nothing


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## Millul (Dec 14, 2020)

Well the string spacing is actually dictated by the bridge, mostly, so you should be wary of Hipshots, if that width bothers you. I tihnk TOMs have the narrowest string spacing, currently?


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## Zhysick (Dec 14, 2020)

Millul said:


> Well the string spacing is actually dictated by the bridge, mostly, so you should be wary of Hipshots, if that width bothers you. I tihnk TOMs have the narrowest string spacing, currently?



Yes, as far as I know TOMs are narrower (maybe narrowest... that'snot even a word but you understandme ), that and a narrow nut is heaven for me...


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## Musiscience (Dec 14, 2020)

This thread has just confused me so much. It made me go back to different manufacturers for the neck width measurements. The most narrow neck I played yet (JP6) turns out to be the same width as a typical RG (43 mm). Yet the RG always felt much wider to me. Why is that? Also, does this mean an ESP Horizon will feel even narrower than a JP6?!


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## Metropolis (Dec 14, 2020)

Musiscience said:


> This thread has just confused me so much. It made me go back to different manufacturers for the neck width measurements. The most narrow neck I played yet (JP6) turns out to be the same width as a typical RG (43 mm). Yet the RG always felt much wider to me. Why is that? Also, does this mean an ESP Horizon will feel even narrower than a JP6?!



For me especially Wizard, Super Wizard and Wizard HP have felt wide because the profile is so flat and D-shaped. If you have a rounder profile with less shoulders it kind of evens it out in some weird way. I have very distant memory from JP6 neck... not too far apart from thin-U.


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## Shask (Dec 14, 2020)

Zhysick said:


> Ideally I would buy a 41mm nut guitar like a Music Man, but I am not afford one so... the 42mm LTD's Thin U is on the "wider than this is not comfortable" for me.
> 
> The Wolfgang I had was probablythe best neck profile ever but the Floyd Rose and the locking nut... I just want a TOM bridge. Funny thing is I like Gibson necks which are 43mm but string spacing is small so even if the neck is not that narrow the strings are close to each other and I feel comfortable enough so the wider string spacing is what's really pulling me away from Solar guitars and that'sa shame as I like the shapes and specs of those guitars...
> 
> If I had the chance of playing one before but as I can'tI should just go the safe route and probablybuy nothing


I am the same way. I like PRS guitars, which are shorter scale, but wider spacing. It seems like I like short scale and wider spacing, or longer scale and narrow spacing. If I get longer scale and wider spacing, then the back of the neck shape is much more critical. For example, I have a few Ibanez Wizard II necks, but I sanded them down to be more round. I don't mind those, but they were custom sanded to my hand shape, lol.


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## Bender.folder (Dec 14, 2020)

JP6 neck is about the thinniest and most narrow neck I played.
Nitro wizard second to that except its rounder.

For Solar I only had 2, a V2.6 and an A2.7.

The V was one of the first series and it was the shorter scale V that is now discontinued. It was a rounded C, wider than an esp horizon but far rounder, Id say more one of those older hellraiser C1 profile, reminds of my gibson explorer 59 rounded profile. A perfect C shape nothing ESP thin u to me.

The 7 string neck just fresh received feels more modern C, 47mm at nut, round profile, 400mm radius, flatter than the 6 version but not D shaped with this odd flat spot in the middle. Its a tiny bit fatter than the KM7 I had and same as my ex blackjack C7 schecter C profile neck.

To me they're confortable and will fit most guitar players.


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## MaxOfMetal (Dec 14, 2020)

Musiscience said:


> This thread has just confused me so much. It made me go back to different manufacturers for the neck width measurements. The most narrow neck I played yet (JP6) turns out to be the same width as a typical RG (43 mm). Yet the RG always felt much wider to me. Why is that? Also, does this mean an ESP Horizon will feel even narrower than a JP6?!



A non-insignificant amount of what a neck feels like is in our heads. If you believe without a shadow of a doubt that a JP6 neck is amazingly thin, that's what your brain will say your hands are telling you. Which is a fancy way of saying that actual measurements at this level aren't very important, and you should just go into trying guitars with an open mind.


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## Zhysick (Dec 14, 2020)

Musiscience said:


> This thread has just confused me so much. It made me go back to different manufacturers for the neck width measurements. The most narrow neck I played yet (JP6) turns out to be the same width as a typical RG (43 mm). Yet the RG always felt much wider to me. Why is that? Also, does this mean an ESP Horizon will feel even narrower than a JP6?!



That's why I have never understand why people say Petrucci MM guitars has "narrow" necks, because all people say that, but the bridge is "wide spacing" (I guess is normal Fender vibrato string spacing so it's wide) and the nut is 43mm, in my book, that's wide... I just don't get it!! But I haven't played one... I specially can't understand it while other MM guitars are about 41mm nut width: that's narrow maaaaan! 



Shask said:


> I am the same way. I like PRS guitars, which are shorter scale, but wider spacing. It seems like I like short scale and wider spacing, or longer scale and narrow spacing. If I get longer scale and wider spacing, then the back of the neck shape is much more critical. For example, I have a few Ibanez Wizard II necks, but I sanded them down to be more round. I don't mind those, but they were custom sanded to my hand shape, lol.



You might be into something... because with Gibson guitars the nut is 43mm but I feel comfortable but I cannot play comfortably on an Ibanez so the scale lenght is maybe what matters there? Because the Gibson Slim tapper 60's neck is not precisely a C shaped neck. Is not thin as a Wizard but is not C, I would say almost D shaped (flat spot in the back, thin, but it is there) so... It could be that. I remember playing one PRS SE Hollowbody, a few years back, when they were flat-top with the "crescent moon" like inlay and the weird almost triangular hole for the body and that neck was very very comfortable. A bit beefy, but round and nice, quite fast... and I think it was 10" radius and I normally prefer flatter radius so...

Could be it!!



MaxOfMetal said:


> A non-insignificant amount of what a neck feels like is in our heads. If you believe without a shadow of a doubt that a JP6 neck is amazingly thin, that's what your brain will say your hands are telling you. Which is a fancy way of saying that actual measurements at this level aren't very important, and you should just go into trying guitars with an open mind.



I don't know man... I have tried several guitars in a mindset of "this should be comfortable for me, I checked the specs, I checked the measurements, I watched reviews, this might be THE guitar" and then is just... uncomfortable or then I find a perfect neck but the specs aren't ideal (like the Wolfgang with the floyd rose... I could go hardtail special BUT I don't like arched tops and yadda yadda yadda...)

I really try, but I am stupidly picky, I know I am.


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## Musiscience (Dec 14, 2020)

Zhysick said:


> I specially can't understand it while other MM guitars are about 41mm nut width



Max is probably onto something, because I had a Cutlass and didn't think it was any narrower than the JP6. On paper, it clearly is. The feel is also probably much more related to the neck carve as previously mentioned. Ibanez always feels so wide, but it's probably the thin D shape playing mind tricks on me.


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## Zhysick (Dec 14, 2020)

That's why I hate living here, because guitar shops barely have guitars: lowest end epiphone, lowest end squier and no-body-knows brands in packs and that kind of crap and a few "meh" guitars about the 500€ like maybe a Jackson or maybe a Gretsch. I defenitely need to try the guitars first!

Also I am very sensitive to the fretwire: smaller than medium is a torture to me. Medium I can play, but not for too long. Jumbo to XJ is where I find my comfort zone. If not, hand fatigue comes pretty soon and the neck carve also plays a very improtant part on this: a D shaped neck doesn't allow me to relax and play lightly because I am uncomfortable all the time... 

I should just keep the guitars I have but I want a new one... fucking GAS!


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## Millul (Dec 15, 2020)

I think, the point is that we interact with ALL of the specs and features AT ONCE, not one by one: neck shape, fretboard radius, neck thickness, frets dimensions, scale length, neck width (as defined by BOTH nut width and width at pocket, for example Ibanez is quite a bit wider than other brands at 58mm at the butt end of the neck), string spacing...so each of us might find comfortable several combinations of the above, and absolutely abysmal other combinations.
As weird as it is, 10th of a mm do make a difference for a lot of people here, and certain proportions (eg, Ibanez's flat radius + thin flat neck + width of fretboard and string spacing) seem to only exacerbate what is felt by the player.

So, a non insignificant amount of trial-and-error (and therefore money...) will be involved to find the combinations that feel better to each of us.


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## Zhysick (Dec 15, 2020)

Ah... that's why I am poor?


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