You are currently viewing 25 Guitars With Thick Necks – Both Acoustic & Electric

Last Updated on April 29, 2023 by Teemu Suomala

Some of us just want a guitar neck meatier than others…and if you are one of these people, this article is a real treat!

I have researched a ton of different guitar models, gone through manufacturers’ websites, online music stores, etc., and based on that, I present you with 2 full lists of guitars with thick necks:

  • One for acoustic guitars
  • And one for electric guitars

I also reveal our favorite electric and acoustic guitar with a thick neck. Let’s get started!

This article might also interest you: Best Guitar Neck Shapes for Big Hands – Full Guide

photo reveals owner of guitaristnextdoor.com

Author: Teemu Suomala

I first grabbed the guitar in 2009. I started this website in January 2020 because I couldn’t do window installation anymore due to my health problems. I love guitars and have played dozens and dozens of different guitars through different amps and pedals over the years, and also, building a website interested me, so I decided to just go for it! I got lucky and managed to get awesome people to help me with my website.

I also got lucky because I have you visiting my website right now. Thank you. I do all this for you guys. If you have any recommendations, tips, or feedback, just leave a comment, I would love to chat with you. I have also been fortunate to produce content for several large guitar websites, such as SongsterrMusicnotesGuitarGuitar, and Ultimate Guitar.

I spend my spare time exercising and hanging out with my wife and crazy dog (I guess that went the right way…).


Guitars With Thick Necks

After doing some brainstorming and research, we decided that guitars having a neck that measures over .866″ (22mm) from 1st fret can be considered to be a guitar with a thick neck.

Also, these brands reveal the thickness of guitars neck on their website(if you have found more, please let us know, leave a comment or send me an email):

  • Ibanez
  • Cordoba
  • Schecter

I also used Wildwood Guitars and The Music Zoo websites when doing research, they are awesome because they reveal neck thickness for some models.

Note that the exact neck thickness can vary between different copies of the same models.

Acoustics Guitars With Thick Necks

PRS Limited Edition SE P20E is an affordable parlor guitar with a thick neck.

Price symbol meaning:

$= 200-800 Dollars

$$= 801-1500 Dollars

$$$= 1501-2000 Dollars

$$$$= 2000-3000 Dollars

$$$$$= 3001- Dollars

*Consider all links in this post to be affiliate links. If you purchase, at no additional cost to you, we may earn a small commission. It helps us to keep the lights on, thanks! 🙂

ModelNeck ThicknessNut WidthPrice RangeCheck Price (Affiliate links)
Guild Guitars D-40E.870″ (22.1mm) 1st fret – .900 (22.86mm) 9th fret1.6875″(42.86″)$$Sweetwater* – Thomann*
Guild Guitars M-25E.870 (22.1mm) 1st fret – .910 (23.1mm) 9th fret1.75″ (44.4mm)$$SweetwaterThomann
PRS Limited Edition SE P20E.880 (22.1mm) 1st fret – .930 (23.6mm) 9th fret1.6875″(42.86″)$SweetwaterThomann
Gibson Slash J-45 – Find More Great Gibsons Here.900 (22.86mm) 1st fret – 1.000 (25.4mm) 9th fret1.725″ (43.8mm)$$$$$SweetwaterThomann
Gibson ’50s J-50 Original.870 (22.1mm) 1st fret – .980 (22.1mm) 9th fret1.725″ (43.8mm)$$$$Sweetwater
Gibson ’50s J-45 Original.890 (22.1mm) 1st fret – .970 (22.1mm) 9th fret1.725″ (43.8mm)$$$$Sweetwater
Martin 000-28EC Eric Clapton Acoustic Guitar – Find More Great Martins Here890” (22.1mm) 1st fret, 1.00” (22.1mm) 12th fret1.75″ (44.4mm)$$$$$Sweetwater
Martin 000-28 Brooke Ligertwood Signature.880″ (22.1mm) 1st fret, 1.010″ (22.1mm) 9th fret1.6875″(42.86″)$$$$$Sweetwater
Taylor 517e Builder’s Edition Grand Pacific – Find More Great Taylors Here.870″ (22.1mm) 1st fret, .960″ (22.1mm) 9th fret1.75″ (44.4mm)$$$$$SweetwaterThomann

Find wide neck acoustic guitars here.

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Electric Guitars With Thick Necks

Fender Noventa Telecasters has a thick ’60s C neck shape. If you are after a Tele with a thick neck, it’s one great option.

Price symbol meaning:

$= 200-800 Dollars

$$= 801-1500 Dollars

$$$= 1501-2000 Dollars

$$$$= 2000-3000 Dollars

$$$$$= 3001- Dollars

ModelNeck ThicknessNut WidthPrice RangeCheck Price (Affiliate links)
Schecter Tempest Custom.866″ (22mm) 1st fret – .925″ (23.5mm) 12th fret1.653″ (42mm)$$SweetwaterThomann
Ibanez Paul Gilbert FRM 300.866″ (22mm) 1st fret, t- 0.94″ (24mm) 12th fret1.692″ (42.97mm)$$SweetwaterThomann
Ibanez Josh Smith FLATV1.866″ (22mm) 1st fret – 0.96″ (24.5mm) 12th fret1.653″ (42mm)$$$$SweetwaterThomann
Epiphone Slash Les Paul Standard.900″ (22.8mm) 1st fret – 1.01″ (25.6mm) 12th fret1.693″(43mm)$$SweetwaterThomann
Gibson Slash Les Paul Standard.870″ (22.1mm) 1st fret – .970″ (24.6mm) 12th fret1.687″(42.84mm)$$$$SweetwaterThomann
Gibson Murphy Lab 1957 Les Paul.900″ (22.8mm) 1st fret – 1.040″ (26.4mm) 12th1.6875″(42.86″)$$$$$Sweetwater
PRS Guitars SE Mira.870″ (22.1mm) 1st fret – .920″ (23.3mm) 12th1.6875″(42.86″)$SweetwaterThomann
PRS Guitars S2 McCarty Singlecut 594.890″ (22.6mm) 1st fret – .990″ (25.1mm) 12th fret1.6875″(42.86″)$$$SweetwaterThomann
PRS Guitars Hollowbody II Piezo.880″ (22.35mm) 1st fret – .960″ (24.38mm) 12th fret1.6875″(42.86″)$$$$$Sweetwater
Fender Jimmie Vaughan Tex-Mex Stratocaster.870″ (22.1mm) 1st fret – .880″ (22.35mm) 12th fret1.65″ (41.9mm)$$Sweetwater
Fender Ben Gibbard Mustang.870″ (22.1mm) 1st fret – .930″ (23.6mm) 12th fret1.65″ (41.9mm)$$SweetwaterThomann
Fender EOB Ed O’Brien Sustainer Stratocaster.900″ (22.8mm) 1st fret – .970″ (24.6mm) 12th fret1.65″ (41.9mm)$$SweetwaterThomann
Fender Richie Kotzen Signature Telecaster.930″ (23.6mm) 1st fret – .980″ (24.9mm) 12th fret1.65″ (41.9mm)$$$SweetwaterThomann
Fender Noventa Telecaster.870″ (22.1mm) 1st fret – .920″ (23.3mm) 12th fret1.65″ (41.9mm)$$Sweetwater
Fender Vintera ’50s Stratocaster.880″ (22.35mm) 1st fret – .990″ (25.1mm) 12th fret1.65″ (41.9mm)$$SweetwaterThomann
Fender Vintera ’50s Telecaster Modified.880″ (22.35mm) 1st fret – .980″ (24.9mm) 12th fret1.65″ (41.9mm)$$SweetwaterThomann

Find wide neck electric guitars here.


Best Guitars With Thick Necks

Top Acoustic – Guild Guitars D-40E

What I like

  • Bone nut and saddle
  • The neck is thick but not super wide (1.6875″ nut)
  • Solid Sitka Spruce top
  • Solid African Mahogany back and sides
  • High-quality build
  • Full and well-balanced dreadnought sound
  • Many guitars with similar features cost a lot more

What I don’t like

  • Not affordable although worth the money

Who is it for?

If you are after an acoustic guitar with all the premium features, full sound, thick neck, and high value for the money, Guild D-40E is a great option. And while it’s not cheap, it still offers all this at a lower price than many other similar guitars.

Check Today’s Price on


Top Electric – Epiphone Slash Les Paul Standard

What I like

  • Meaty neck
  • Custom Pro Humbuckers offer thick and full tones great for rock
  • Nubone nut for increased sustain
  • Usually comes with a hardshell case
  • Stunning looks

What I don’t like

  • Limited upper-fret access

Who is it for?

If you are after Les Paul which has a meaty neck, offers great rock tones, features of a more expensive guitar(nubone nut, hardshell case, etc.), and don’t mind it being an Epiphone and Slash signature model, this is a great option.

Check Today’s Price on


FAQ

Is A Thick Guitar Neck Better?

It depends. If you like a firm grip and meaty neck, then most likely a thick neck is a safe bet. But there’s no universal best neck thickness or type out there.

Does Les Pauls Have Thick Necks?

In general yes, at least thicker than with many other models. For example, 50’s neck profiles featured in many Les Pauls (basically a D shape) have really thick feel on them. And this same applies to many other neck shapes featured with Les Pauls.

Does Guitar Neck Affect Tone?

Most likely no. When an electric guitar is played through an amplifier, definitely not, since pickups pick up the vibration of the strings directly from the strings, neck wood has no effect on this.

When played acoustically, some might argue that neck can affect the sound of the guitar, but that impact is still minimal. When acoustic or hollow-body electric guitars are used, sound waves bounce around inside the body of the guitar, so the body woods affect the tone, not the neck.


Conclusion on Guitars With Thick Necks

I personally prefer slim necks because of my small hands, but I must confess that Gibson Les Paul with a meaty 50’s D neck profile has a unique feel which I also enjoy a lot. So I value guitars with thick necks too and was happy to gather all these guitars together to help players who love thick necks.

I hope that this post helped you out and if you have any questions just leave a comment.

I wish you all the best and keep rocking!

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Teemu Suomala

I first grabbed the guitar in 2009. I started this website in January 2020 because I couldn’t do window installation anymore due to my health problems. I also noticed that most guitar websites don’t do a really good job, so I decided to just go for it! I got lucky and managed to get awesome people to help me with my website. I also got lucky because I have you visiting my website right now. Thank you. I do all this for you guys. If you have any recommendations, tips, or feedback, just leave a comment, I would love to chat with you. I have been fortunate to produce content for several large guitar websites, such as Songsterr, Musicnotes, GuitarGuitar, and Ultimate Guitar. I spend my spare time exercising and hanging out with my wife and crazy dog(I guess that went the right way…). Expertise: guitar learning techniques, electric guitars, and guitar amplifiers. You can connect with me on LinkedIn or just email me.

This Post Has 3 Comments

  1. Orion

    PRS also list their neck thicknesses on their website!! 🙂

    1. photo reveals owner of guitaristnextdoor.com
      Teemu Suomala

      Hi and thanks for reminding me about that, I had totally forgotten! Have a great day 🙂

  2. E. X. Winston

    Any variation of Brian May’s guitars, either by his own company or the entire cottage industry of replicas/knock-offs, have huge necks: 1.85″ nut width and 1″ thick at the 2nd fret are typical specs, which make the offerings on this list look like toothpicks in comparison.

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