Hello! I would appreciate some experienced advice for a newbie.
I experience neuropathy in my fretting hand that makes it too painful to handle a guitar's 25.5" scale and string tension. Even Baritone ukulele is difficult despite the narrow neck. Locally, there are few Concert and Tenor models, though an abundance of Sopranos.
My assumption is that that Tenor would be best for me; I can more easily fret chords and high notes while reducing some of the strain. However, the lack of local options means I would likely need to buy an instrument unplayed and unheard (budget $400-ish), of which I am not thrilled.
Because of availability, I have been adding more Sopranos to my tests, and I was surprised that I enjoy playing them as well. The chord shapes are compressed the high notes aren't as easy for my stubby, medium-sized fingers, but they actually sound better than the larger models. (The Martin 0X sounded better than the all-solid wood Concerts and Tenors that I tried.)
My concern is for how likely it would be for the small Soprano scale to increase my neuropathy compared to the Concert or Tenor scales. I know there is no concrete answer until I try, but I am hoping that others who have practical experience with neuropathy issues will chime in about what has and has not worked for them.
I experience neuropathy in my fretting hand that makes it too painful to handle a guitar's 25.5" scale and string tension. Even Baritone ukulele is difficult despite the narrow neck. Locally, there are few Concert and Tenor models, though an abundance of Sopranos.
My assumption is that that Tenor would be best for me; I can more easily fret chords and high notes while reducing some of the strain. However, the lack of local options means I would likely need to buy an instrument unplayed and unheard (budget $400-ish), of which I am not thrilled.
Because of availability, I have been adding more Sopranos to my tests, and I was surprised that I enjoy playing them as well. The chord shapes are compressed the high notes aren't as easy for my stubby, medium-sized fingers, but they actually sound better than the larger models. (The Martin 0X sounded better than the all-solid wood Concerts and Tenors that I tried.)
My concern is for how likely it would be for the small Soprano scale to increase my neuropathy compared to the Concert or Tenor scales. I know there is no concrete answer until I try, but I am hoping that others who have practical experience with neuropathy issues will chime in about what has and has not worked for them.