Axis neck width and pickup options?

[davidp158]

I am interested in getting another Axis Super Sport guitar, and wonder if there is a wider neck option available. The Super Sport I owned played great, but the maple neck width felt very small. Although I have small hands, I much prefer big, fat, wide necks, as they give me better "leverage" for string bending and fretting strings is easier as I don't have to compress my hands as much. I miss that great guitar, but the neck just felt too dang small. I will probably go with a rosewood fingerboard this time around, and wonder if there is any (perceived or real) difference in the feel of the rosewood board width.

Some posts on this forum suggest that there may have been some changes to the neck width at the body end of the Axis to accomodate Floyd Rose style trems and strings slipping off the neck. I read some posts that some feel the neck depth/thickness also changed. Is there a manufacture date that signifies when these changes may have taken place?

I also would like to know if Ernie Ball offers the Axis with single coil pickups. I didn't see any information on the Ernie Ball web site, so I'm hoping someone will chime in on these questions. If they don't offer single coils, I'll go back to the P90s that my former Super Sport had.

thanks for your time,
Dave
dave@pixelstogo.com

[SteveB]

Dave,

The Axis only comes with humbuckers. The Axis Super Sport can have humbuckers or MM90's. I don't think the neck has been changed to make it wider.
Someone official will undoubtedly confirm this shortly.

[lock-ny]

but the axis supersport buckers can be split, you should also give a silouette special a try, the necks are a tad wider and the petrucci si the widest of the all -

[Eddie Van Halen]

1. You can't order a wider neck
2. Rosewood or Maple won't affect the thickness
3. The Axis neck has been widened to avoid string slippage
4. Axis only comes with humbuckers, Axis Super Sports come with Humbuckers or MM90s

Hope that helped

[davidp158]

Thanks for the reply. I don't care for the body shape on the other EB guitars. I wonder why EB doesn't offer the wider necks if they make them for the Silouette and Petrucci models.

dp

but the axis supersport buckers can be split, you should also give a silouette special a try, the necks are a tad wider and the petrucci si the widest of the all -

[davidp158]

Thanks for the reply.

You state that the Axis neck has been widened. Does this also apply to the Super Sport? Is there a year that the wider neck became available? I prefer MM90s.

thanks,
dp

1. You can't order a wider neck
2. Rosewood or Maple won't affect the thickness
3. The Axis neck has been widened to avoid string slippage
4. Axis only comes with humbuckers, Axis Super Sports come with Humbuckers or MM90s

Hope that helped

[John C]

The Silhouette Special and the Axis necks are the same width at the nut, but the Silo Special neck is 1/16" wider at the heel - the Axis is 2 3/16" wide at the heel and the Silo Special neck is 2 1/4" wide at the heel. If I'm not mistaken the Axis neck was only widened at the heel on the treble side - the EVH neck replicated all the wear and tear on Eddie's #1 Kramer, "5150" (I don't think it replicated the neck on the Frankenstrat, I would have to look up an old magazine article tonight to verify). That change probably happened with the transition from EVH to Axis, so all the Sports/SuperSports would have the current neck. The Luke is also 2 3/16" wide at the heel, as are vintage Fenders.

The Pettruci is the only EBMM guitar with a wider neck at the nut.

[davidp158]

John,

Thanks for the detailed reply. I really dig the Axis guitars, but wish EB would offer a wider neck. Its a great guitar for players that like a small neck. The feel is fantastic, but my left hand would cramp up if I played it for a full night gig, as its just a bit too small for me.

Dave

The Silhouette Special and the Axis necks are the same width at the nut, but the Silo Special neck is 1/16" wider at the heel - the Axis is 2 3/16" wide at the heel and the Silo Special neck is 2 1/4" wide at the heel. If I'm not mistaken the Axis neck was only widened at the heel on the treble side - the EVH neck replicated all the wear and tear on Eddie's #1 Kramer, "5150" (I don't think it replicated the neck on the Frankenstrat, I would have to look up an old magazine article tonight to verify). That change probably happened with the transition from EVH to Axis, so all the Sports/SuperSports would have the current neck. The Luke is also 2 3/16" wide at the heel, as are vintage Fenders.

The Pettruci is the only EBMM guitar with a wider neck at the nut.

[John C]

John,

Thanks for the detailed reply. I really dig the Axis guitars, but wish EB would offer a wider neck. Its a great guitar for players that like a small neck. The feel is fantastic, but my left hand would cramp up if I played it for a full night gig, as its just a bit too small for me.

Dave

I have the opposite problem - small hands and tendonitis on top of it! That's why I've moved to EBMM; I love the neck on my Silo Special, and one of these days either an Axis or the new Steve Morse Y2D may make it to me to cover the humbucker bases.