Favourite or ideal body woods?

[Speros]

Thought it'd be cool to find out what sort of woods are preferred by people who play EBMM guitars. Personally, despite the fact that I own a basswood guitar, I'm more inclined to jump towards mahogany/alder.

Ive been curious about what an ash bodied guitar would sound like, as well as how much of a difference a mahogany tone block would make to a basswood bodied guitar? Basically like the BFR stuff I guess.

 

[roburado]

It's tough. There are many factors that go into the sound of a guitar. I used to think all I ever wanted was alder. Then, I tried the JP6. After that, I had a new appreciation for basswood even if I have an Ibanez that sounds really thin to me.

The JP13 is a good example of a basswood body with mahogany tone block and maple top. Also remember that it has a mahogany neck with rosewood fretboard. The combination sounds fantastic to me.

Of course, I like the combination of mahogany body, maple top.

It's tough to make generalizations. Music Man guitars come in various compositions. They all sound great to me.

The Steve Morse models are based on poplar. I used to think of poplar as something crappy Strats were made of. It turns out there's nothing wrong with poplar--at least in the Morse models.

The Albert Lee, the AL BFR are ash bodied. The BFR adds the mahogany tone block and maple top. Both guitars are amazing. The AL HH is mahogany with rosewood neck. It's also fantastic.

There are so many choices. Luckily, Music Man makes such great guitars. I have loads of confidence that if I order one, I'm going to like it a lot regardless of what woods go into its construction. I guess, to me, the fact that it's a Music Man outweighs the choice of woods.

 

[DrKev]

I've own a basswood, alder, and plywood bodied guitars and have owned poplar and ash bodied guitars. I can honestly say this - the grain on the ash looked nice and the plywood was super resonant. Other than that it made zero difference to me because they were all different guitars. If I had three otherwise identical guitars, that differed only in the body wood, I might have a tonal preference but I'd still decide which one goes to the gig on the basis of colour.

 

[Tollywood]

I've owned a basswood, alder, ash, and a plywood bodied guitar. I can honestly say this - the grain on the ash looked nice ...

Funny that you say that, I was thinking the same thing about ash grain.

I was also thinking that it's tough to nail down which of the woods, or which combination of woods, sounds the best. That being said, I always seem to like guitars with mahogany in them (be it a tone block or the whole body). I think neck wood plays a huge factor, too.

I will say one thing, with all due respect to the good Doctor: I am not interested in plywood bodies.

 

[DrKev]

I will say one thing, with all due respect to the good Doctor: I am not interested in plywood bodies.

He he! It was my first electric guitar, a Hohner strat copy, which I bought in 1990 and still own ('cause who the hell would buy it?).

 

[Speros]

I was also thinking that it's tough to nail down which of the woods, or which combination of woods, sounds the best. That being said, I always seem to like guitars with mahogany in them (be it a tone block or the whole body). I think neck wood plays a huge factor, too.

I agree here I think,
Its totally tough when you have to have versatility as a big part of your playing and sound.. Main body combinations with different top woods like maple, or even an ash top (would be pretty sweet) are what I'm getting more curious about. Though I'll say... Mahogany with a maple neck... Lordy.

I've gotta say, I played an Axis Super Sport the other day, and it was the most solid sounding instrument ever; basswood body; and I'm unhappy with the little tonal kinks presented by my JP6; also basswood.

Maybe it was just a mindset thing... or the fact that the axis was goddamn beautiful.

 

[JasonT]

For me, I prefer a mahogany body over ash or alder. I love the warmth and growl it provides. Of course, there's a lot more that goes into the tone of a guitar as a whole, but for me, I prefer a mahogany body as a starting point. That's why I love my Bali burst LIII - mahogany body instead of the usual alder.

 

[Stratty316]

Like Tollie said its hard to nail down what woods sound best. I have 4 guitars with 3 different wood combos (2 Axis, Axis Sport and a HHAL) and each one does so many things well. The Axis (bass/maple) is such a great balanced tone. Good mids, nice highs but not too bright and a good bottom end. The Sport (ash body) has a little more attack and is a bit brighter splitting the HB's give it a strat like sparkle that you just don't get with the standard Axis. THe HHAL (mahogany) is darker, fatter and more bottom heavy... It doesn't have the attack of either Version of the Axis... But it's glassy like a great old strat.

So, with that said which combo is the best? I guess it depends on what you want to play and what you feel like that day. I personally pick each guitar by playing it and seeing what it says to me. I try not to get too fussy about wood combos as you just can't tell until you play one.

 

[rulix]

I owned mahagony, ash, alder and poplar guitars. The latter is the best (SM-Y2D) for my taste.

 

[Speros]

Ive never owned an alder bodied guitar before, but the ones I have played are seriously goddamn amazing.

Its definitely hard to nail down which combination or whatnot is the best. I mean, it partly comes down to neck, which would probably be influenced byplaying style and stuff; but yeah.

For me, mahogany all the way. I think, anyway.

 

[Klon Solo]

I was just lectured my father on the differences between woods. And apparently, it's measurably only weight and looks that differ on an comparable electrics.

I guess it makes sense, since the signal doesn't really pass through the wood or bounce off it. He may be misinformed, but is usually right (frustrating at times, haha)

 

[Jack FFR1846]

Let's see...I've owned guitars made of:

Agathis
Poplar
Alder
basswood
basswood with maple cap
ash
mahogany with maple cap
mahogany
plywood

Some solid
Some full hollow
Some semi hollow

And I have to say that I have no favorite.

 

[Speros]

Let's see...I've owned guitars made of:

Agathis
Poplar
Alder
basswood
basswood with maple cap
ash
mahogany with maple cap
mahogany
plywood

Some solid
Some full hollow
Some semi hollow

And I have to say that I have no favorite.

While you dont have a favourite, there were differences in tone, right? I mean, of course the pickups would be different in various instruments and stuff, but each wood would've had a distinctive tone?

 

[Stratty316]

I was just lectured my father on the differences between woods. And apparently, it's measurably only weight and looks that differ on an comparable electrics.

I guess it makes sense, since the signal doesn't really pass through the wood or bounce off it. He may be misinformed, but is usually right (frustrating at times, haha)

My Axis Sport and HHAL have identical electronics and have a completely different sound based on the wood combos.

 

[Klon Solo]

My Axis Sport and HHAL have identical electronics and have a completely different sound based on the wood combos.

I still don't understand the technical aspect of it though. I honestly can't get my head around it. Off do do some research...

 

[Speros]

I did some research before, and it was actually pretty cool looking at all the different wood grain patterns, and the different aspects of top wood/body wood combinations. This link might be helpful for anyone curious about the basics of tonal qualities involved with certain woods:

Warmoth Custom Guitar Parts - Body Wood Options

Very simple start, but useful!

 

[vinniemallet]

The JP12 specs is the perfect guitar for me in my opinion, the leads really shine but the rythm keeps tight, I would love to try tthe jp13 and the koa bfr anyway.

 

[Speros]

The JP12 specs is the perfect guitar for me in my opinion, the leads really shine but the rythm keeps tight, I would love to try tthe jp13 and the koa bfr anyway.

The JP13 is amazing. A lot thicker than most of the previous models; Never had the pleasure of trying the Koa BFR though. Its amazing when you find a guitar with the perfect specs; its rare. haha.

 

[Eric O'Reilly]

I had an ash tele that was the balls! And now I love my basswood soloing type guitars, just me though. I love a good ash bright early VH sound through an old marshall, but although body woods certainly DO play a big role in tone, the pickups play a much larger role, and a good wood pickup combo is a great thing!

 

[Stratty316]

Erik, I would argue that wood is more important. 4 guitars, 3 different wood combos and all the same pickups. The Ash sport sounds different than the basswood Axis and the Mahogany HHAL. You could argue that body size makes a difference on the AL, but that doesn't account for the Axis sport. Even the Super Sport with the same wiring as the Sport and the same tonewood as the Axis sounds way different than the Axis Sport.

That being said the best wood combo depends on what sound you want to get. Also, I think that EVH's Frankenstein was ash...