Educate me on Wizard III Necks (and guitar necks in general)

[kartikg3]

I used to play Ibanez RGs because my heroes did, so I assumed I would like the thin shreddy necks too.
I didn’t know any better because I never bothered to try anything else in guitar shops, but once I tried a few Les Pauls and Strats it was kind of a revelation!

I'm with Satriani on this one; I much prefer a Strat-style neck. Not crazy thin and not flat on the back. A round C-shape is more comfortable for chords, and my hand doesn't cramp up anymore. I've also found that I'm not really a fan of super-flat radius fretboards. Anything flatter than 12" feels like too much. My #1 is a compound radius of 9"-12" that is just about perfect for my taste.

You just gotta try a bunch of guitars until you identify what feels best to you! It takes time but it's worth the effort when you find what speaks to you and your physiology.

This is great insight. Satriani and Vai are my heroes. Guess 2 ends of the spectrum neck wise

 

[Devin]

I hear this a lot on the internet that Wizard III necks (and thin necks in general) are great for fast playing and shredding. I am wondering the science / reason behind that?

For me it's a few things - the width of the wizard neck, the nearly flat radius, the string spacing, and finally the thinness which allows your fingers more clearance above the board in certain playing positions.

These aspects also generally allow you to get crazy low action on Ibanez guitars which can make certain things much easier to play.

 

[kartikg3]

For me it's a few things - the width of the wizard neck, the nearly flat radius, the string spacing, and finally the thinness which allows your fingers more clearance above the board in certain playing positions.

These aspects also generally allow you to get crazy low action on Ibanez guitars which can make certain things much easier to play.

Great insight! Thank you!

 

[FuzzyAce]

I'll echo what @DrewJD82 was saying. I prefer the larger necks for 'shredding' if you want to call it that. Why? Because they're comfortable for me. If my hand is comfortable and freer then playing faster will come easier. I like the deep V boatnecks that Warmoth makes, some might not. It took me years to discover that's my happy place. Of course you can't forget a good setup and quality frets goes a long ways too.

 

[kartikg3]

quality frets goes a long ways too.

Speaking of frets! I hear Wizard III has jumbo frets. I am used to playing on worn down frets.. how would jumbo frets affect playing?

 

[hemmelight]

Bigger frets are great for bending and vibrato, you’ve got more room to “grab” the string for more leverage.
However, if you press down too hard (when playing chords especially) you can actually press the notes sharp. You will get used to it, though and compensate by playing a bit lighter if it happens to you.

Fret size is mostly a feel thing, so you just gotta try it to see if you like it.

 

[Los-D]

Not sure if anyone has linked this but just in case:

List of neck types

The following is a list of neck types that Ibanez uses or has used for its electric guitar models, including the neck dimensions. The years indicate the period the neck of that description was used. Note that a neck type can change over the years. Dimensions are from tables provided by Ibanez in...

ibanez.fandom.com

 

[FuzzyAce]

Speaking of frets! I hear Wizard III has jumbo frets. I am used to playing on worn down frets.. how would jumbo frets affect playing?

I agree what @hemmelight said. It takes a minute to get used to, especially if you're coming from vintage sized or flatter style frets. I've refretted almost all my guitars with 6100 and 6000 sizes. But you don't need taller and bigger frets to play faster or easier. It's definitely a feel thing that you might love, or possibly hate? Hard to say til you try them out. I've found they give me a lot more control and articulation in the notes I play. Quicker response maybe? But that could be because I like the gold frets which are harder than nickel.

 

[norminal]

Not a III, but a profile of the original Wizard and Jem necks:

 

[Devin]

Not sure if anyone has linked this but just in case:

List of neck types

The following is a list of neck types that Ibanez uses or has used for its electric guitar models, including the neck dimensions. The years indicate the period the neck of that description was used. Note that a neck type can change over the years. Dimensions are from tables provided by Ibanez in...

ibanez.fandom.com

I wish they'd use the Viper neck more these days.....I remember a buddy of mine had an old SV420 with the viper neck and it was awesome; more like a strat/ibanez hybrid

 

[norminal]

I wish they'd use the Viper neck more these days

I’ve had a few models with the Viper. Excellent neck profile. Very comfortable.

 

[DrewJD82]

I wish they'd use the Viper neck more these days.....I remember a buddy of mine had an old SV420 with the viper neck and it was awesome; more like a strat/ibanez hybrid

I didn't know they used that on anything but the JPM!

 

[Devin]

I didn't know they used that on anything but the JPM!

I just gave it a goog and the one he had was actually the SV470 (h/s/h) but if I'm not mistaken I think all the SV models had the Viper

 

[DrewJD82]

I just gave it a goog and the one he had was actually the SV470 (h/s/h) but if I'm not mistaken I think all the SV models had the Viper

I think my best friend has an SV.....it's a thin, blue/purple S, but I don't know the exact model number, despite being the only one that has set that guitar up over the last 20 years. Now I gotta check!

 

[unix-guy]

I did decades only playing the original Wizard neck. I didn't like anything thicker and there's not much thinner.

More recently I got a Charvel DK-24 MIM and fell in love with the neck. It's thicker but still thin. The radius is more round than the fairly flat Wizard neck.

Over the last few years I got a Suhr Modern with a thinner neck, a USA DK-24, two Tom Anderson guitars (one with the Even C and one with the -.020" C), and most recently a Kiesel.

I have a large collection of guitars with the Wizard necks that sadly now mostly don't get played because the necks just feel too thin

I can shred on all of them but the Even C is about the fattest I'd go for my personal tastes.

Nobody has mentioned compound radius, but that's something to consider - they're more round closer to the headstock for better chording and flatten as you get closer to the body. Most are 10-14" or 12-16".

 

[pipelineaudio]

I'd love a 24.75" scale 7 string

 

[Los-D]

I'd love a 24.75" scale 7 string

But if you’re serious, I played one of these and thought it was very decent (I’m a LP player mainly):

AX7521

The AX7521 is a seven-string AX series solid body electric guitar model introduced by Ibanez for 1999. It was often referred to as the AX7-521. The AX7521 features a crystal cut mahogany AX-style body bolted to a maple and bubinga neck with a 22-fret rosewood fingerboard and dot inlays...

ibanez.fandom.com

 

[Los-D]

I did decades only playing the original Wizard neck. I didn't like anything thicker and there's not much thinner.

More recently I got a Charvel DK-24 MIM and fell in love with the neck. It's thicker but still thin. The radius is more round than the fairly flat Wizard neck.

Over the last few years I got a Suhr Modern with a thinner neck, a USA DK-24, two Tom Anderson guitars (one with the Even C and one with the -.020" C), and most recently a Kiesel.

I have a large collection of guitars with the Wizard necks that sadly now mostly don't get played because the necks just feel too thin

I can shred on all of them but the Even C is about the fattest I'd go for my personal tastes.

Nobody has mentioned compound radius, but that's something to consider - they're more round closer to the headstock for better chording and flatten as you get closer to the body. Most are 10-14" or 12-16".

That DK-24 neck is



Too bad it wouldn’t stay in tune consistently.

 

[pipelineaudio]

View attachment 17244


But if you’re serious, I played one of these and thought it was very decent (I’m a LP player mainly):

AX7521

The AX7521 is a seven-string AX series solid body electric guitar model introduced by Ibanez for 1999. It was often referred to as the AX7-521. The AX7521 features a crystal cut mahogany AX-style body bolted to a maple and bubinga neck with a 22-fret rosewood fingerboard and dot inlays...

ibanez.fandom.com

I'm definitely serious. I've never seen a convincing argument for somehow magically needing a long scale length just to add another string, aside from intonation, which of course is mega amplified in ukuleles, yet you don't see Jake Shimabokuro playing a 20" ukulele

 

[TSJMajesty]

Also do the width of the neck help with anything at all as a factor? Right hand picking motions perhaps?

No science here, just my own thoughts:

When it comes to width, I want a neck that allows me to play something like this, @ 138 bpm:

without too much repeated practice to land each note without choking out the other notes that need to continue ringing.

So, not too narrow/tightly-spaced strings.

Then, for soloing, I want the string spacing close enough together, so that every time I switch to a different string, the tip of whatever finger (usually the 1st) can fret the note, while at the same time, mute the string next to it. This is very important in keeping the string changes clean, and not have 2 strings sound at the same time, even if it's only for a millisecond. Cuz with high gain, that sounds like shit.

So it's kind of a happy medium between the 2. Which of course depends on how fat your fingertips are.