The feel of playing a flat radiused fretboard ala Shawn Lane Vigier?

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C-4
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17 May 2010 11:34

I am about to order my first Vigier guitar, but have never played, nor even seen one in person before.


There are no dealers, nor anyone remotely near me.


I was considering a Shawn Lane model with the flat fretboard radius among two other Viger models.


Could anyone who used to play a radiused fretboard, then gone to a Shawn Lane model with a flat fretboard please tell me how it feels compared to a radiused fretboard?


How is it chording, bending, etc.


Any info would be gratefully appreciated.  


 


Thank you for your time.


Stephen 

Les Paul Lover
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17 May 2010 15:26

I will only be of limited help here, but if you have ever played a classical guitar, it was flat radius. I can only assume after a short transition period one would get used to it. I hope I didn't disappoint - my help was indeed rather limited. :)
Jeremy Krull
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17 May 2010 19:35

Going from a normally radiused instrument (Vigier or not) to the SL model is a very interesting change. Yes in a way it's similar to a classical nylon guitar, however the spacing is narrower obviously. The fretboard being truly flat, as well as the scale being more toward the Les Paul end of the spectrum PLUS the insanely low action makes the guitar more or less effortless to play. Personally when I've played it, it feels almost TOO easy, but that being said, it's like having an instrument you have total 100% control over that just cannot fight back :) If you like playing fast, it's fantastic. If you like the low/even action afforded by the flat radius, it's fantastic. You might want to mess with string gauges a bit, but outside of that...it's a welcome change, but something you'll need maybe a little time to get used to. -Jeremy
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