Is the Luke the smallest neck MM?

[alpjr]

Hi all,
This is my first post here and I hope I'm not asking an often repeated
question, but what Music Man guitar has the smallest overall neck?
I've been looking them over and it seems most have a 1 5/8 nut which
is good for me, but what model has the least "meat" behind the fretboard?
I currently play a Fender Road Worn 50's strat and the neck is a soft v so the Luke appeals to me. Can anyone compare the MM necks to a Fender soft V neck? Unfortunately, the guitar center near me carries only the
JP model with a 1 11/16 nut width so I cannot try before I buy. Any recommendations on other models that feel small in your hand?
Thanks for any help.

 

[lenny]

Coming from Playing old Fenders all my life i have settled on the Luke and the Albert lee ...both feel very stratlike in the neck ...but different strats...and the AL has a strat/Tele feel to it as well..the Al is like the smoothest smallest neck and the Luke is a bit bigger with a slight V which feels more 60's to me(more meat behind the board because of the V).....both perform flawlessly...I get the magnetic vibe of a Strat from the AL...and i get my Piezo tones and my heavier dirt for 80's 90's rock(that processed tone) ...from my Luke which has the EMG's....thats how they feel to me ...hope it helps....I wil say the AL SSS is the guitar i use 85% of the time...i dig magnetic singles

 

[threeminutesboy]

if you have no chance to play a Luke sometime soon try an Ovation, actually the neck is very similar except that the Luke play better

I think you will not be disappointed if you move from fender to EBMM. I have played Strat for years went to EBMM and never went back (with all respect to Leo Fender of course that I still consider as a genius, but in terms of genius Dudley and BP are just few step ahead of him)

 

[alpjr]

Thanks for the fast response, very helpful! I lovd my strat so I'm not looking to replace it. I installed Dimarzio Area pickups and it is perfect for everything except the higher gain stuff. I think the description by Lenny about the EMG's on the Luke would compliment the strat perfectly. I'd love it if the Luke neck was just a bit smaller than the strat, which it probably is. It is so difficult to make these decisions without trying them out! Thank you again.

 

[lukeuser78]

It is a great neck, really small after playing a strat_ tele neck, best guitar have owned, compared to my JP its dinky!
Try one as can feel "different" at first but just so solid and reliable!

 

[straycat113]

Well from another old Fender player that has become totally immersed in EBMM guitars over the last 6 years, I love the necks on all the EBMM guitars, though I am not crazy for the JP which as you put would have the least meat behind it, but is an insanely fast neck.

 

[chemical69]

I believe it is definitely the smallest neck....

I've played/owned Silos, JP, Albert Lee, Axis etc. I've never played the Steve Morse but from the specs it should be bigger than the Luke.

 

[meanMRmustard]

I love the Luke's neck. I tried a USA DLX Strat the other day and put down in 30 seconds because I hated the neck compared to my Luke. Very comfy, very fast...youll love it!

 

[ily]

perhaps not the smaller but the best neck ever played

Luke is the perfect guitar

 

[GoKart Mozart]

perhaps not the smaller but the best neck ever played

Luke is the perfect guitar

What he said!

 

[ily]

What he said!

nothing nothing

 

[alpjr]

Thank a lot guys! I'm going to take a shot and order a Luke. Trying one is not an option so I'll just order and hope for the best. I usually order from Sweetwater but they don't carry EBMM. I'm surprised that there are many online retailers that don't carry them either. Any recommendations on where to buy? I'm just going to look them over and make sure that I can return it if it's not what I'm looking for.

By the way, I didn't really get into in my first post, but I've been playing off and on for about 30 years (I'm 42) and always played Fenders and Les Pauls with one quick stint with a PRS. So always pretty chunky necks. Only recently did I happen to pick up the Road Worn 50's which is smaller than I'm used to and it feels really good. I play some SRV and Hendrix stuff and I can actually get the thumb over the top on this guitar which I couldn't do before. Researching all of the guitar companies led me to the Music Man guitars based on what I've read about the necks and overall quality. I also play many different styles and the EBMM's seem to offer a lot of versatility.

Thanks again for the help and I will update when I finally get the Luke.

 

[meanMRmustard]

The quality is top notch the best I've seen. I had an American Strat and an American Deluxe Tele and sold both because something was just missing. The Luke is just too nice I had actually sold it a few weeks ago but called the buyer and pulled the plug because I just couldn't part ways with it "so I bought a less expensive amp to sacrifice".

It does cover alot of ground musically but the neck is hands down the best I've played it took me a day or so to get used to the soft V profile but even then it felt nicer than anything I've played before. Enjoy your purchase youll love it!!!

 

[GWDavis28]

Alpjr, where are you at??? Maybe there is a forumite close to you and has a Luke you could try, you never know man!!

Glenn |B)

 

[kbaim]

Thank a lot guys! I'm going to take a shot and order a Luke. Trying one is not an option so I'll just order and hope for the best. I usually order from Sweetwater but they don't carry EBMM. I'm surprised that there are many online retailers that don't carry them either. Any recommendations on where to buy? I'm just going to look them over and make sure that I can return it if it's not what I'm looking for.

By the way, I didn't really get into in my first post, but I've been playing off and on for about 30 years (I'm 42) and always played Fenders and Les Pauls with one quick stint with a PRS. So always pretty chunky necks. Only recently did I happen to pick up the Road Worn 50's which is smaller than I'm used to and it feels really good. I play some SRV and Hendrix stuff and I can actually get the thumb over the top on this guitar which I couldn't do before. Researching all of the guitar companies led me to the Music Man guitars based on what I've read about the necks and overall quality. I also play many different styles and the EBMM's seem to offer a lot of versatility.

Thanks again for the help and I will update when I finally get the Luke.

As did many of us. I went from strat to ibanez to musicman. Never looked back. GAVE both strat and ibanez to friends.

 

[alpjr]

I ordered the Luke today from Musicians Friend. I used the coupon code "manic" for 15% off so I got it for $1330. Seems like a good deal to me plus they have a 45 day return policy that I'm hoping I don't use I went with the blue since I've had my share of black strats over the years and my roadworn is black. I can't wait to get it! Thanks again to all who replied!
Al

 

[guitfiddle]

Nice!

Let us know when you get it. Of course you know we'll need pics too!

 

[meanMRmustard]

Very nice score! Pics and your 2 cents when it arrives!!!

 

[alpjr]

Got the tracking number tonight. Should have it Friday or Saturday. I will definitely update with some pics. I haven't been this excited about a guitar in a long time! This will be something very different than what I'm used to.

 

[alpjr]

It's here!! Arrived in 2 days from Musicians Friend and it is beautiful! Opened it up and played for just a few minutes on my little 10" Vox ac4tv and I'm very impressed. The neck is just what I was hoping it would be; almost the same soft V shape as my fender but just a bit smaller overall - perfect! I can't wait to plug in to my AC30 tonight. I took a few pics with my iPhone because I understand the "rule" around here I'll get them on here soon. Thanks again to everybody for the help!