Neck Shapes

The Greatest Playing Necks in the World—
come in many different sizes:

We have four basic categories of electric guitar neck profiles (back shapes):

• Even-Taper (formerly known as: T/A Standard)
• Happy Medium (formerly known as: Cobra & Atom Standard)
• 60’s Vibe (formerly known as: 62 Roundback)
• 50’s V

We have one live-music acoustic guitar neck profile:

• Acoustic-Bronze (standard on all Crowdsters)

Fingerboard Radius:

Before we get into the variety of neck back shapes we offer, let's touch on fingerboard radius. Fingerboard radius is the actual arch (or curve) of the fretboard surface.  This slight curve creates a comfortable playing area while also providing a "space" for string bending.  Fingerboard radius is an essential property that facilitates effortless playability, when balanced just right.  All of our fingerboards have a radius of 12 to 14-inch—a very slight conical radius—an imperceptible change from nut to neck-to-body joint. We find this radius to be the “magic number”—the best of all worlds, allowing for a comfortable fretboard arch while offering legendary Anderson silky smooth playability and unlimited string bending with low action height—really nice.

Neck Back Shapes:

Even-Taper: our most popular neck profile for our 25 1/2-inch scale-length guitars. A slim, sleek and fast silhouette with not a lot of depth change from the nut to the 12th fret. As your hand slides up to the upper frets, playing feel remains the same.

The Even-Taper is offered in two nut widths:

• 1 11/16 -inch
• 1 5/8-inch

For the technically minded:

• Even-Taper: .810-inch thick at the first fret tapering to .870 at the 12th fret*

Even-Taper Oversized: And if you prefer the feel of a bigger (deeper) neck backshape, we offer this same Even-Taper silhouette increased in depth by +.030, +.050, +.070 or +.100 of an inch.

For the technically minded:

• +.030 Even-Taper: .840-inch at the first fret to .900 at the 12th fret*
• +.050 Even-Taper: .860-inch at the first fret to .920 at the 12th fret*
• +.070 Even-Taper: .880-inch at the first fret to .940 at the 12th fret*
• +.100 Even-Taper: .910-inch at the first fret to .970 at the 12th fret*
• -.020 Even-Taper:  .790-inch at the first fret to .850 at the 12th fret*

Happy Medium: Our most popular Cobra, Atom & Bulldog neck backshape is a medium-depth backshape for the: “not too big and not too small but just right” neck feel. The taper is a “happy medium” among our other neck shapes.

The Happy Medium is offered in two nut widths:

• 1 5/8-inch
• 1 11/16 -inch

For the technically minded:

• Happy Medium: .825 at the 1st fret to .915 at the 12th*

Happy Medium Oversized: And if you prefer the feel of a bigger (deeper) neck backshape, we offer this same Happy Medium silhouette increased in depth by +.030 or +.050-inch.

For the technically minded:

• +.030 Happy Medium: .855-inch at the first fret to .945 at the 12th fret*
• +.050 Happy Medium: .875-inch at the first fret to .965 at the 12th fret*

60’s Vibe: The defining character of the 60’s Vibe is an increase in depth as your hand moves from 1st to 12 fret. It is considered a medium-depth neck with an early 60’s-style taper. Slightly deeper than the Even-Taper backshape.

The 60’s Vibe is offered in two nut widths:

• 1 5/8-inch
• 1 11/16 -inch

For the technically minded:

• 60’s Vibe: .835-inch thick at the first fret increasing taper to .960-inch*

60’s Vibe Oversized: And if you prefer the feel of a bigger (deeper) neck backshape, we offer this same 60’s Vibe silhouette increased in depth by +.020-inch.

For the technically minded:

• +.020 60’s Vibe: .855-inch at the first fret to .980 at the 12th fret*

50’s V: is a "V" backshape.

50’s V is offered in two depths:

• Small 50’s V— a slim/medium-depth neck with a soft “V” backshape. 1 5/8-inch or 1 11/16 -inch nut-width.
• Large 50’s V—a comfortable, deep “V” with a more pronounced “V” backshape. 1 5/8-inch or 1 11/16-inch nut-width.

For the technically minded:

• Small 50’s V: .860-inch at the first fret to .920-inch at the 12th*
• Large 50’s V: .910-inch at the first fret to .970-inch at the 12th*

Acoustic Bronze: a sleek, slim/medium-depth neck for a nicely balanced Acoustic Guitar feel. 1.73-inch nut-width only.

For the technically minded:

• Acoustic Bronze: .820 at the 1st fret to .890 at the 12th*

*in the pursuit of perfect hand-sanding and finishing, numbers are accurately approximate.