Design Analysis

The first step to incorporating engineering analysis into guitar design was to address an issue of vital importance to all players, the guitar's neck. The neck of a Fender guitar is subject to a number of stresses no matter who is playing it, a music legend, or the aspiring musician next door. The ultimate goal in the design of a guitar neck is to obtain and maintain balance on the fine line of playability without sacrifice to sound quality. String forces, moisture, the individual musician's adjustment preferences, combine with the orthotropic and variable nature of wood to cause complicated neck behavior.