PRS Neck Profiles Explained: Comparing Shapes and Sizes

There are 6 main PRS neck profiles:

• Pattern
• Pattern Regular
• Pattern Thin
• Pattern Vintage
• Wide Thin
• Wide Fat

All these necks are based on the C-shape and have the following dimensions:

Neck Shape	Fretboard Width at Nut	Fretboard Width at Body	1st Fret Depth	12th Fret Depth
Pattern	1.69”	2.25”	0.875”	0.95”
Pattern Regular	1.66”	2.25”	0.84”	0.92”
Pattern Thin	1.69”	2.25”	0.83”	0.89”
Pattern Vintage	1.69”	2.25”	0.875”	0.98”
Wide Thin	1.69”	2.25”	0.81”	0.89”
Wide Fat	1.69”	2.25”	0.875”	0.95”

Which Neck Profile is the Thinnest?

The Wide Thin neck profile is the thinnest PRS neck, followed by the Pattern Thin and Pattern Regular.

Which Neck Profile is the Thickest?

The Pattern Vintage neck profile is the thickest PRS neck, followed by the Wide Fat and Pattern profiles.

Order from Thinnest to Thickness (1st-12th Fret Depth:

• Wide Thin (0.81″-0.89″)
• Pattern Thin (0.83″-0.89″)
• Pattern Regular (0.84″0.92″)
• Pattern and Wide Fat (0.875″-0.95″)
• Pattern Vintage (0.875″-0.98″)

Pattern

The “Pattern” neck profile has the same dimensions as the “Wide Fat” neck profile. This profile feels relatively thick and is thicker than the Pattern Thin, Pattern Regular and Wide Thin profiles, but thinner than the Pattern Vintage profile.

At the time of writing, only a select few guitars in the flagship Core line have the Pattern neck profile. No CE, S2 or SE guitars have this profile. Here’s a list of PRS guitars with a “Pattern” neck.

• McCarty
• Hollowbody II Piezo
• Special Hollowbody
• Studio
• Modern Eagle V
• Paul’s Guitar

Pattern Regular

The Pattern Regular profile is the only one which has a narrower fretboard with of 1.66″ which is less than on the Pattern, Pattern Thin, and Pattern Vintage profiles which have a fretboard with of 1.69″ at the nut.

The Pattern Regular neck is thicker than the Pattern Thin and Wide Thin neck profiles, but thinner than the Pattern, Pattern Vintage and Pattern Wide neck profiles.

At the time of writing, there are 4 guitars with the Pattern Regular neck profile. These guitars are in the S2 and Core line and there are no guitars with this profile in the SE line or CE (bolt-on) line. Here’s a list of PRS guitars with a “Pattern Regular” neck.

Pattern Thin

The Pattern Thin neck profile is the thinnest neck seen on American-made PRS models, the only neck profile which is thinner is the Wide Thin profile found on South Korean made PRS SE versions. The Pattern Thin neck is thinner than the Pattern, Pattern Regular, Pattern Vintage and Wide Fat necks.

The Pattern Thin neck is found on many PRS models in the Core, S2 and CE line including the Custom 24, but it is not on any PRS SE guitars.

Here’s a list of PRS guitars with a “Pattern Thin” neck.

Pattern Vintage

The Pattern Vintage neck profile is found on all McCarty 594 guitars and is not used on any other models at the time of writing. This profile is not to be confused with the Pattern profile which is found on the core-line McCarty guitar.

The Pattern Vintage neck is the thickest neck made by PRS, making it thicker than the Pattern, Pattern Regular, Pattern Thin, Wide Thin and Wide Fat profiles.

Here’s a list of PRS guitars with a “Pattern Vintage” neck.

Wide Thin

The PRS “Wide Thin” neck profile is used exclusively on guitars in the “SE line” which are more affordable alternatives to the American-made PRS guitars.

The Wide Thin profile is most closely related to the Pattern Thin neck, although it is slightly thinner towards the lower frets. The Wide Thin profile is 0.81″ thick at the 1st fret and 0.89″ thick at the 12th fret, whereas the Pattern Thin neck is 0.83″ thick at the 1st fret, and the same thickness at the 12th fret.

Here’s a list of PRS SE guitars with a “Wide Thin” neck.

• SE Custom 24
• SE Custom 24-08
• SE Custom 24 Floyd
• SE Custom 22 Semi-Hollow
• SE Standard 24
• SE Standard 24-08
• SE Mira
• SE Mark Holcomb
• SE Mark Tremonti

Wide Fat

The PRS “Wide Fat” neck profile is used exclusively on guitars in the “SE line” which are more affordable alternatives to the American-made PRS guitars. The dimensions of the Wide Fat profile are the same as those on the Pattern Vintage neck profile which is found on several guitars in the “Core line”.

Here’s a list of PRS SE guitars with a “Wide Fat” neck.

• SE Starla Stoptail
• SE Hollowbody Standard
• SE Hollowbody II
• SE Paul’s Guitar
• SE Santana
• SE Zach Myers

Check out my ultimate guide to neck shapes for everything else you need to know.