discreet Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 Plywood is strong and stable, but tends to be heavy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FinnDave Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 15 minutes ago, Teebs said: Surely Paul is a name for a guitar - as in 'Les Paul'? How about 'Presley Precision', 'Jeffrey Jazz' or 'Barry Bongo' for a bass? I'm playing Stanley Soundgear at the moment! (Or maybe it's Sidney, or Sandra, or Shirley, or Sheila, or Sonja...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FinnDave Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 15 minutes ago, discreet said: Plywood is strong and stable, but tends to be heavy. Careful, that's verging on the political! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 Alder gets my vote, seems to be more balanced across the tonal spectrum, ash is quite toppy, mahogany nice and rich in the lows. I have a bass made of pine and that`s rather nice too, a bit in the middle of ash and alder (but not the dictionary of course). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 (edited) While we're drifting past bass names, it's worth mentioning at this point that an anagram of 'Fender Precision Bass' is 'Reinforced Penis Bass' Just sayin... 🙂 Edited October 9, 2018 by Muzz 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 (edited) I haven't completely written off the whole 'tonewood' thing, but I'm absolutely certain that I personally wouldn't be able to hear, let alone describe, the tonal differences between ash or alder, or anything else for that matter. Has anyone ever correctly identified say 5 different body woods in a blind sound test? From reports I've seen from the recent SE bash, bassists of not inconsiderable experience struggled to identify completely different models of bass in a blind test, let alone what they were made from. Edited October 9, 2018 by Cato Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 (edited) There's a thread/article somewhere on the other place with a blind comparison of a chunk of scrap wood (pine, I think? plywood?) with some bits slung together vs a real bass. It's like the Zapruder film in tonewood terms...worth a look, bring your own popcorn... 😕🙂 Edited October 9, 2018 by Muzz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skankdelvar Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 (edited) @K_J First thing I'd suggest is having a look at the BassChat Build Diaries Sub-forum - loads of useful info here Woods? Mahogany, alder and ash are all popular choices. One could also use limba or korina or even pine though this can be heavy. Couple of other things: * There's a sizeable cost difference between certain tone woods (£50 vs £150 and upwards) so it might be best to choose the cheapest and most common tone wood you can find, simply because (i) you may be on a tight budget (ii) it's more widely available and easily sourced and (iii) the more expensive wood isn't going to sound three times better than the cheapest though it may look considerably prettier. * Most tone wood suppliers sell their one-piece blanks to a set size suitable for electric guitars (strats, teles, Les Pauls) rather than basses so check the dimensions as offered by the supplier. If the finished bass body is going to be larger than a conventional electric guitar you'll probably need to buy three smaller pieces and glue them together to make a single, larger three piece body. This is perfectly normal practice. If you don't like the look of a 3-piece body or the grain mismatch is too jarring you could always lay a thin veneer of nicer wood over the top and back to disguise the joins. Best thing here is to explain your project to the supplier and see what they can offer. Here are a couple of tonewood suppliers: http://www.luthierssupplies.co.uk/ https://www.touchstonetonewoods.co.uk/ ... and here's are an outfit that offers a wider range of more 'exotic' tonewoods such as bubinga, wenge, padauk and zebrano http://www.exotichardwoodsukltd.com/Wood-Shop/Tone-Woods/Body-Blanks/ Good luck with the project Edited October 9, 2018 by skankdelvar 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassbiscuits Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 (edited) 3 hours ago, FinnDave said: Careful, that's verging on the political! No you're thinking of completely inflexible and hard to work with to get a satisfactory end result Edited October 9, 2018 by bassbiscuits Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 53 minutes ago, Teebs said: Surely Paul is a name for a guitar - as in 'Les Paul'? How about 'Presley Precision', 'Jeffrey Jazz' or 'Barry Bongo' for a bass? Never got that; "Les Paul". Surely "Les" is plural, where "Paul" is singular. So shouldn't it be "La Paul" or "Le Paul" as Paul is masculine? Where's @Dad3353 ? he'll know, he's a French expert. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teebs Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 (edited) 12 minutes ago, Grangur said: Never got that; "Les Paul". Surely "Les" is plural, where "Paul" is singular. So shouldn't it be "La Paul" or "Le Paul" as Paul is masculine? Where's @Dad3353 ? he'll know, he's a French expert. Oh no! 😮 TWO cans of wormses in ONE post!!! Edited October 9, 2018 by Teebs 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skankdelvar Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 @K_J PS: Opinion may vary about the tonal qualities of exotic woods vs standard woods but some exotics have the advantage of looking more interesting. This might be a factor when the bass is being assessed by whoever's judging your efforts. Also, a simple coat of oil over a nice wood is considerably easier and less time consuming than spray finishing some uninteresting ash or alder in an attempt to vibe it up a bit. So it's swings and roundabouts, really... 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 also... how do you evaluate the tonal effect on the music that comes from the musician having positive mental attitude, coming from playing a bass that the musician believes to be the dogs do-dars? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 I've played with plenty of people who thought they were the dog's do-dars...didn't seem to help most of them, tonally, or otherwise... 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassTractor Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 35 minutes ago, Grangur said: Where's @Dad3353 ? he'll know, he's a French expert. I trust French experts only on fragrances and love making. Happily though, @Dad3353's a British expert. 😉 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 (edited) 1 hour ago, Muzz said: ...an anagram of 'Fender Precision Bass' is 'Reinforced Penis Bass' 'Precision Bass' is also 'Biceps Iron Àss'. Edited October 9, 2018 by discreet Stupid profanity filter 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeftyP Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 7 hours ago, FinnDave said: I don't think I could cope with a bass called Paul. Precision, Jazz, or a string of random numbers and letters, fine, but Paul - no. So you don't like the name Paul for a bass? I think it sounds great - but then what do you think the 'P' stands for in my forum name? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FinnDave Posted October 9, 2018 Share Posted October 9, 2018 (edited) 2 minutes ago, LeftyP said: So you don't like the name Paul for a bass? I think it sounds great - but then what do you think the 'P' stands for in my forum name? It's a good name for a bloke called Paul, but a kind of weird name for a guitar! One of my closest friends is called Paul, but I still think it's a better on a person than a lump of wood!! (I wouldn't want a bass called Dave, either!) Edited October 9, 2018 by FinnDave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 It looks as though we have scared the OP off... So just in case they come back here is a sensible answer they their question: "Tone Woods" make a lot of sense when it comes to acoustic instruments. They are all about the transfer of the vibration of the strings through the top of the instrument to the air inside the body and projecting those vibrations out. Everything about the design and construction of an acoustic instrument is about getting a good tone at a usable volume. The shape and volume of the body, the thinness of the top the way the bracing is just sufficient to stop the instrument collapsing under the tension of the strings and the top sides and back are joined together with the minimum of contact to allow the maximum resonance. No compare that with a typical solid bodied electric instrument. The body is a big solid 1.5" thick lump of wood, and more often than not on mass-produced instruments 2 or 3 separate pieces glued together in an ad-hoc manner to produce a blank big enough to be cut to the desired shape. Its main purpose is to provide a comfortable and aesthetically pleasing platform for attaching all the other component parts - neck, bridge, pickups etc. None of the tone wood properties that are so important in an acoustic instrument matter very much in a solid body. Here the overall construction is far more important. I'm not saying that the choice of wood is totally irrelevant to the sound of a solid-bodied instrument, it's just IMO the least important factor and one that is impossible to quantify. Every single piece of wood is different and two bodies cut from blanks that came from the same tree can produce two different feeling and sounding instruments. So after all that what are the important factors when picking a piece of wood for a solid bodied instrument? 1. Strength. It must be capable of holding together under the tension of the strings and being hung from a strap. TBH pretty much any hardwood will fit the bill and even some softwoods. It might be worth considering long-term wear. Have a look at any solid-bodied instrument made 40 or more years ago, and you'll see the actual wood has worn away in several places due to contact while playing. 2. Weight. Overall the average weight for a bass should be somewhere between 4kg and 4.5kg, the closer you can get it to 4kg the better. 3. Appearance. If the wood is going to visible on the finished instrument then it should be something that you find aesthetically pleasing. And that's it. Good luck with you build! 7 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MoJo Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 15 hours ago, LeftyP said: So you don't like the name Paul for a bass? I think it sounds great - but then what do you think the 'P' stands for in my forum name? Player? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 (edited) On 09/10/2018 at 11:54, K_J said: Hi, I'm making a bass guitar out of carbon fibre for a project for my apprenticeship, however I need a wood body. I was wondering what is the best wood to use for the body? K_J whatever wood you end up choosing, just make sure its good for playing metal. curses..... Edited October 10, 2018 by Geek99 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 On 09/10/2018 at 13:43, discreet said: My Jazz body is Paulownia and I love it because it's light. The bass weighs 7lbs in total. Choose something light, easy to work and easy to finish. Tone considerations don't enter into it, there aren't any. If you do choose Paulownia be aware it's quite porous and needs grain filling, dependent on the finish you want. and a skip to take delivery of all the grain filler needed, and then another skip full for filling in the vast yawning chasms that will open up whenever anything liquid like say, paint, varnish, cleaner gets within 100 metres of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 (edited) 11 minutes ago, Geek99 said: and a skip to take delivery of all the grain filler needed, and then another skip full for filling in the vast yawning chasms that will open up whenever anything liquid like say, paint, varnish, cleaner gets within 100 metres of it. Worth it! My back thanks me. Thhp! Edited October 10, 2018 by discreet 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorks5stringer Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 1 hour ago, Geek99 said: whatever wood you end up choosing, just make sure its good for playing metal. curses..... Sorry, but could not resist..... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 8 minutes ago, yorks5stringer said: Sorry, but could not resist..... Yes but I have a life ... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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