I have a background in violin, but I've had an interest in learning the Stick for a long time. I'm thinking of finally giving it a go, but I'm still unsure which model would be the best fit for me, so I have some questions for the community that I hope will help me make an informed decision on which model to purchase!

- I've heard that the Railboard is lighter and cheaper, so possibly a better choice for beginners, but are there upsides to the regular Stick that make it more worthwhile in the long term? Is there a noticeable difference in timbre/ease of play between the two?

- What are the differences between pickups? (classic Stick comes with either Stickup or ACTV-2; Railboard only comes with EMG-RB10). I'm personally unfamiliar with how pickups work- how do they affect the instrument differently? Is there a clear best option?

- In terms of tunings, is it best to just go with the Classic tuning? What sets the other tuning options apart?

- What is meant by "string gauge" (Light, Medium or Heavy)? What should I base my choice on?

I'd appreciate opinions from people who already own either a Stick/Railboard, or anyone who knows a bit more than me on the subject. Thanks everyone!

The tunings listed on the website are just the official and the most popular tunings. Stick Enterprises can supply an instrument set up in, and supply string sets for, any possible tuning.


I am stating the obvious here but ... the best tuning for a player depends on that player. So the Classic tuning is not the best tuning for everyone.

Because you have a background in violin, i suggest you consider having a fifths tuning for the melody side of the Stick, to have fifths tunings on both sides. Then you would be able to apply the patterns and shapes you already know.
(Fifths for both melody side and bass side are not included in the list of tunings on the website.)
I am not implying this is the right tuning for you, only you know what is right for you. I am just suggesting you consider it, as well as considering all other possible tunings.

The Railboard is heavier than most if not all wood Sticks. The 10-string Railboard is 8.5 lbs while the average weight of the wood instruments is 7 lbs (see the Stick website).

The biggest difference to me between the Railboard and wood 10-string instruments is the string spacing. There is more room between the strings on the Railboard - it is not good or bad, just different. For lack of a better term, I find the sound of the Railboard (mine has the Villex pickups) to be more "focused" than my 12-string Bamboo - especially on the bass side. The sound of the Bamboo instrument is analogous to a hollow body jazz guitar to the more Fender-ish sound of the Railboard, to my ears.

I have found the tuning stability on the Railboard to be better than the Bamboo but excellent on both compared to most guitars I have played.

Picking a tuning is often a work in progress. Emmett suggested the raised matched reciprocal tuning to me for the Railboard and I really like it. The lowest string is not as thick for this tuning and it is a different playing experience than on my 12-string. The good news is you can always change the tuning with some adjustments.

Good luck with the choice! You can't go wrong - they are both fantastic instruments.

Big welcome to the Stick community. I hope you get to start your journey soon!



Yes. Railboards are about $200 cheaper when ordered new through Stick Enterprises. But Railboards are only equipped with one pickup option. So if you like that sound, then go for it.



All Stick players are as opinionated and passionate about their pickup, tunings, and string gauge preferences. At this point in your journey, I'd suggest not spending too much time on these potential options. In the end, you're going to like whatever you get. And you will get use to it, with the option to change things later.

I started with Classic Tuning in 1996, but changed to Baritone Melody a year later in order to study from Greg Howard's Stick Book Vol I. I've used Baritone Melody ever since.

I also started with Heavy Gauge strings in 1996 and recently (less than a year ago) switched over to Mediums...which I LOVE. Again, I didn't know of any "better" or "less better" options since I had never tried non-heavies until I received a new Stick order last summer, equipped with Mediums at my request. Now, I wonder what took me so long to try these Mediums.

I've had the Stickup ever since 1996. And it is my preference, probably because it's what I'm used to. This video on the SE website is the best way to hear the differences between pickups:



All the best in your journey!

just my opinion.... i would not recommend going fifths on the melody side. very few people do that ( i know of none my self ). instruction materials and lessons are going to be non existent . string selection and tuning you may have to work out on your own. i would stay with a supported 4ths tuning and then if you really can't handle it, you can change it. if you get a railboard, it might even have some setup special issues with larger gauge strings you'll end up with when doing 5ths on the melody although i can't say that with authority. with the melody being on your right hand and with the large scale difference you're not really going to have much muscle memory type advantage either from your voilin playing i would guess. you'll know the scale shapes, but to be honest , i don't think it would take very long to get comfortable with strings in 4ths scales.

I don't know what to think about fifths on the melody side. I'm not aware of any players that use it, and your violin experience may not transfer since the melody side of a Stick is typically played with the opposite (right) hand. But who knows, maybe it's a glorious frontier waiting to be discovered...this is a young instrument, after all.

Shameless plug- if you haven't already heard them, we did a two-part Tap In Time podcast series aimed at folks looking to buy their first Stick. It won't every conceivable question of an aspiring Stickist, but it might be a useful listen for you. Part 1 is a bit more philosophical, part 2 dives into some of the technical items.

https://tapintime.podbean.com/e/so-you- ... ck-part-1/

https://tapintime.podbean.com/e/so-you- ... ck-part-2/

In any case, even though it's not an insignificant expense and it's in our nature to be careful when doling it out, know this- unless there's something about the concept of the instrument that you don't get on with, you're going to like whatever configuration you purchase- a Stick is an amazing thing. You may decide later to change something, but some of the options you may be agonizing over (such as tunings or string gage) are fairly simple to change. A Stick also holds its value very well so if you find it's not for you after a while, or want to swap to a different instrument, you can get most of your investment back and call it a "rental".

Welcome to the Stick community!

+1 to that.
While waiting for the new Stick I ordered in September 2021 I was lucky enough to find a used 10 String. That arrived in Classic which I quickly changed to Baritone Melody (being a 1985 instrument that was the only change possible). Then I was lucky enough obtained a 12 string, with 'all mod cons' for adjustment. That also arrived in Classic which I used for a while (10 string Baritone equals the middle 10 of 12 string Classic) then changed to Raised Matched Reciprocal. After some time I grew to feel that 5ths wasn't for me so I restrung again to Mirrorred 4ths using the standard set from SE. Using spare strings I'd collected from earlier tunings that developed in to a variation mirrored tuning with a wider interval between the two side that better suited the sounds I wanted. Then more recently I went the whole hog and did a radical restring to uncrossed parallel 4ths! I think I have now found 'my' tuning, so hopefully when my order finally reaches production I can have it 'factory' set up that way - and discover just how far my own setup efforts have been from that ideal!

I don't think most people fiddle with their tunings as much as I have, but the potential is certainly there!

If you ask a hundred guitarists at random what tuning they use the vast majority will say EADGBE. At a wild guess probably > 95%?

For violinist maybe an even higher percentage for the standard tuning?

If you ask as few as ten Stickists at random, you're likely to get at least 3 or 4 different answers and quite possibly more. It's not impossible there might more tunings that Stickists. LOL!

PS. I've had tremendous enjoyment from all these tunings.

...absolutly true view...
....+1.....

ultradurphy,

I probably do not understand what mike.hoegeman means by the above quote. However, it is certainly possible to have large gauge strings on the 'melody' side, because the official 'dual bass reciprocal' tunings do exactly that.

Several times in this thread it has been stated that you can 'change the tuning later', but there is actually an important limitation on this:
Sticks are constructed with their fret heights 'scooped' under the large gauge strings (the largest bass strings), to help create lower action. Therefore once you have ordered a Stick with large gauge strings in a particular position, it is a problem to move those large gauge strings to another position.
Some tuning changes will not be affected by this limitation, but others will.
But anyway, you should contact Stick Enterprises for the details of this limitation.

Stick Enterprises can probably help you choose a non-standard tuning, if that is what you want. They should be able to choose suitable gauges for any custom tuning, they have done this many times in the past.

The most important parts of instructional materials and lessons apply to any tuning. You could also apply the bass side materials to the melody side if both are fifths.

*Railboards are constructed with the frets scooped big time, so those instruments you really have to be certain that the tuning you order is really the tuning you want.

Trey Gunn has used 5ths / Crafty on the melody side since I believe his guitar craft days, over 40 years now I'd say...

My Warr 12 Phalanx has 5ths / Crafty on both melody and bass sides.

My Mobius Megatar - the regular one - not the one with the angled frets*, I hope to set up in 5ths / Crafty both sides... [*my toneweaver is set up in 3rds more or less]

If one is into playing their own original compositions, t's a beautiful way to go if you ask me : )