Neck-through-body (commonly neck-thru or neck-through) is a method of

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gu ...

construction that combines the instrument's

neck The neck is the part of the body on many vertebrates that connects the head with the torso. The neck supports the weight of the head and protects the nerves that carry sensory and motor information from the brain down to the rest of the body. In ...

and core of its body into a single unit. This may be made of a solid piece of wood, or two or more laminated together. The strings, fretboard, pickups and bridge are all mounted on it, with additional body side components (if any) filling out its full shape glued or mechanically attached. The technique is also used on electric

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and s ...

s. Neck-through-body construction is considerably more expensive than the traditional glued set-in neck and least costly bolt-on neck, but less than the rare and difficult "one-piece" fabrication out of a single piece of material.

History

The first electric bass guitar, the solid-body "Audiovox 736" created by

Paul Tutmarc Paul Tutmarc (May 29, 1896 – September 25, 1972) was an American musician and musical instrument inventor. He was a tenor singer and a performer and teacher of the lap steel guitar and the ukulele. He developed a number of variant types of stri ...

circa 1937, had a neck-through construction. "The Log", a prototype solid-body guitar built by

Les Paul Lester William Polsfuss (June 9, 1915 – August 12, 2009), known as Les Paul, was an American jazz guitarist, jazz, country guitarist, country, and blues guitarist, songwriter, luthier, and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid body ...

in 1941, can be considered as a forerunner of neck-through designed instrument. Les Paul built the model using a recycled 4x4 fence post as the neck and body core, and mounted the disassembled parts of an Epiphone and Gibson archtop guitar onto it. The 1952-57 Harmony H44 had this construction feature. In 1956 Rickenbacker was one of the first guitar manufacturers to use the modern variant of this technique, although this was originally restricted exclusively to semi-hollowbody guitars.Rickenbacker International Corporation
The Modern Era of the Electric Guitar
retrieved 14 June 2012

Pros and cons

Neck-through construction is significantly harder to mass-produce than bolt-on or set-in neck constructions and is primarily found on high-end guitars. It is somewhat more common in basses than in guitars. Neck-through construction allows easier access to higher frets, because there is no need for a heel — the thickened area of the neck where it attached to the body. Many musicians assert that neck-through construction provides greater sustain and allows the instrument to stay in tune longer. Repairs to the neck are usually expensive and tedious. In many cases, it is usually easier to remove the old neck completely, either by taking the wings off and putting an entirely new core in, or by converting the guitar to a bolt-on or set neck by creating a heel and affixing the new neck to the core already in place, rather than to try to repair the neck itself. However, thanks to excellent stability and reaction to string tension and pressure, neck-through guitars are often much more sturdy than many other guitars on the market.

Use

This structure is used by many companies, including

Parker Guitars Parker Guitars was an American manufacturer of electric and acoustic guitars and basses, founded by luthier Ken Parker in 1993. Parker guitars were distinguished for their characteristic light weight and the use of composite materials.

, BC Rich, Yamaha, Cort Guitars, Ibanez (primarily on basses), Jackson, Alembic, Schecter, Carvin,

ESP Guitars is a Japanese guitar manufacturer, primarily focused on the production of electric guitars and basses. They are based in both Tokyo and Los Angeles, with distinct product lines for each market. ESP Company manufactures instruments under severa ...

, and

Rickenbacker Rickenbacker International Corporation is a string instrument manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California. The company is credited as the first known maker of electric guitars – a steel guitar in 1932 – and today produces a rang ...

. Many configurations of the Gibson Firebird and Thunderbird are also built neck-through. The construction method is also popular with independent guitar builders, who can typically devote more time to such a labor-intensive neck joint than a mass-producing company could.

References

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