Basses with 40mm nut width

[Paolo85]

I own two basses with 40mm nut width. As it happens, neither is still in production. I love a ~42mm P neck, but I am starting to think that if I have to look for a "faster" neck, thinner at the nut, 40mm is right for me, I probably prefer it to the widely popular 38mm. Just I am not aware of any 40mm bass currently under production except for the Yamaha BB.

Any other bass you are aware of? Especially low-cost basses?

I am not looking to purchase one right now but I'd love this thread to become a great reference for people that feel like me

Thanks

 

[MichaelDean]

I was just thinking of posting the same question! 40mm is the sweet spot for me. 

 

The Harley Benton JJ-45OP and JP-45OP plus the Aria equivalent are 40mm. Not sure of any others.

[lemmywinks]

There's a big thread over on TB which lists nut widths IIRC.

[Paolo85]

13 minutes ago, MichaelDean said:

The Harley Benton JJ-45OP and JP-45OP plus the Aria equivalent are 40mm. Not sure of any others.

Too bad I don't like the design. HB seems to have done everything right with those!

[ezbass]

Maruszczyk Elwoods and Jakes are 40mm, possibly others in their lineup too.

[Jonesy]

40mm is a very comfy size for me too. Gibson SG's are 40mm but also short scale, if that's any use to you? The Fender Precision B neck is 40mm, so the Nate Mendal and any 70s MIJ reissues would suit you. 

 

If you're looking at HB sort of money then I think their enhanced range is 40mm, although I haven't played one myself.

[Guest]

8 hours ago, Jonesy said:

The Fender Precision B neck is 40mm

 

I thought the B neck = 1⅝", and 40mm = 1&9/16"?

 

Fender list the Nate M sig at 1.615", which is pretty much 41mm, though a little thinner than the standard modern P nut of 1.625" / 41.3mm

 

I was looking around this subject a couple of years, and got the impression that Aria Pro II used 40mm back in the 80s, but I might have been confused. Someone told me of a Korean Spector NS-94 that was 40mm. Someone else mentioned a fretless Ibanez Roadstar II.

 

Which is all a bit vague; today the Bass Centre's Power Bass p-bass is listed as 40mm / 1.57".

 

On the Maruszczyk configurator both 40mm and 38mm are standard options for the models I've played around with (Jake and Jazzus) 

 

[In my head, 40mm aka 1+9/16" is an M neck .... because in the alphabet M lies exactly halfway between J and P 😬 ]

[Doctor J]

I think I read here recently that 40mm is Sandberg's standard nut width. Neck depth is important, too. I have an old Ibanez Saber and a Hamer Chaparral, both have 40mm nut widths but are not alike at all. The slim Ibanez and chunkier Hamer make for very different feeling (and playing) necks. 

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, Doctor J said:

I think I read here recently that 40mm is Sandberg's standard nut width.

 

Someone told me that German Sandbergs are 39.5mm. I'm totally ignorant of Sandbergs, so I don't know that's true or not!

[rasher80]

The discontinued CIJ 70s P reissue (PB70-US) is definitely a 40mm nut.

[Guest]

34 minutes ago, Ricky Rioli said:

the Bass Centre's Power Bass p-bass is listed as 40mm / 1.57"

 

So is their Bruce Thomas Profile p-bass.

 

The neck profiles are listed as being a lot more shallow than the Yamaha BBs.

424 etc — 22mm / 25mm

434 etc — 21mm / 23mm

Bass Centre — 20mm / 22mm

 

The Yamaha TRBX174 and 204 PJs have 40mm nuts and 21mm / 24.4mm profiles

[Pirellithecat]

My Japanese Squier Precision from 1994(ish) has a 40mm nut - it's a nice size/neck, pretty easy to get around and comfortable.   They come up from time to time, are very well built and are around the price of a new decent Squier.    They are thinner, back to front, than the Sandberg I have, but not as thin as, say a jazz or  many of the Ibanez necks. 

[fretmeister]

Sandberg Electras are narrower than the rest.

 

The California VT / VS / TT / TM / VM, and the custom / basic /  etc etc are 39.5mm

 

The DK sig model is 38mm

 

 

[NancyJohnson]

Just weighing in as the voice of reason here, I don't think I've actually measured the nut on any bass until a couple of minutes ago.  When you're all going on about how the odd 2mm making all the difference I do wonder how you cope up the dusty end.

 

 

[MichaelDean]

Just now, NancyJohnson said:

Just weighing in as the voice of reason here, I don't think I've actually measured the nut on any bass until a couple of minutes ago.  When you're all going on about how the odd 2mm making all the difference I do wonder how you cope up the dusty end.

 

I know it doesn't make a lot of sense and the nut width has no bearing on my Dingwall. But on my 38mm shortie Jaguar and my 40mm Mustang, I find the difference is really noticeable. My left hand just isn't comfortable down the business end. Similarly, on my 42mm p bass, the spread is a little more than I'd like. The dusty end tends to be more influenced by the string spacing at the bridge, but that doesn't seem to have much of an impact for me - I can make any bridge spacing work. For others, they can't work with a narrow or wide bridge spacing. 

[Pirellithecat]

Weird isn't it!     But, for whatever reason, different profile/neck sizes make an implausible difference to how comfortable a bass feels to play .........  to me at least, could be what you're used to I guess.   I do spend more time up in the dusty areas on my Jazz Neck (38mm) profiled bass than my others (39.5, 40mm) when I'm "noodling" - it just invites you to explore!       

[Paolo85]

24 minutes ago, NancyJohnson said:

Just weighing in as the voice of reason here, I don't think I've actually measured the nut on any bass until a couple of minutes ago.  When you're all going on about how the odd 2mm making all the difference I do wonder how you cope up the dusty end.

 

 

You make a good argument but that's like the usual reminder that in a pub nobody can tell the difference between a Squier and a Fodera. If bass players were only intetested in "coping", Basschat would not exist and Harley Benton would soon become the onky bass maker in the world.

Different necks feel different to most people, and that just boils down to some 2-4mm at the nut, and probably similar differences back to front. In my case, this mostly means that I get more satisfaction from a wider neck. But it can be different depending on what I am playing. How do I cope at the dusty end? It depends, I am not a good player

[Paolo85]

53 minutes ago, Pirellithecat said:

 I do spend more time up in the dusty areas on my Jazz Neck (38mm) profiled bass than my others (39.5, 40mm) when I'm "noodling" - it just invites you to explore!       

Totally agree. The difference is not much in how you "cope", but in how the neck gives a subtle nudge to what you do. That's why I love a P neck. I can play simple, fat, slow parts and feel fully satisfied. With a thinner neck the slightly more bent muscles of my fingers seem to tell me that if I played a bit faster it would be more fun

[Gareth Hughes]

5 hours ago, rasher80 said:

The discontinued CIJ 70s P reissue (PB70-US) is definitely a 40mm nut.

And they feel great - it’s a perfect Goldilocks neck for me. The PB70-US I have is a keeper above all else.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Paolo85 said:

If bass players were only intetested in "coping", Basschat would not exist and Harley Benton would soon become the onky bass maker in the world.

 

Thats a bit unfair to the venerable Monsignor Harley Benton. My MB4 does more than merely allow me to cope - it's sound is as brilliant as my Rickenbacker at 26 times the price. Sure, the fret ends aren't as finely polished, the finish not quite as lustrous, but in terms of functionality it doesn't simply cope, it damn well excels.

 

But back to nuts...ive just measured, my Sire P5 is 40mm at the nut and is another one that gives far pricier basses a good poke in the eye.

[ead]

Squier Silver Series basses have a 40mm nut.  Js and Ps share the same neck so either flavour is catered for.

[Paul S]

From memory all the Westone basses I owned were 40mm at the nut.  Also Squier Silver Series Precision and Jazz both were 40mm.

 

Of those I have currently, a 70s Antoria Precision has 40mm nut, ditto Hondo II H1015, ditto Allparts telebass neck on my 50s P bitsa - the latter is also 'very' chunky.

[Paul S]

3 minutes ago, ead said:

Squier Silver Series basses have a 40mm nut.  Js and Ps share the same neck so either flavour is catered for.

Beat me to it!

[Jonesy]

1 hour ago, Bassfinger said:

But back to nuts...ive just measured, my Sire P5 is 40mm at the nut and is another one that gives far pricier basses a good poke in the eye.

 

 

Danger. I've always fancied the look of one of those but the Andertons site lists them as 42mm so I've written them off.

 

Oh, hello GAS!

[Jono Bolton]

8 hours ago, rasher80 said:

The discontinued CIJ 70s P reissue (PB70-US) is definitely a 40mm nut.

I regret selling mine