lowended Posted October 14, 2009 Share Posted October 14, 2009 Hi Guys, here again with a few doubts, Im reeding about woods... sound, weight, look, etc... But the thing I do not find is info about which kind of wood works better with pick ups, I mean, I think theres some kinds where you can tell the difference easily when you change it, and another ones which if you change the pick up for another the sound is almost the same. And....what makes a bass sound even between notes and strings, the wood??? or the pick up??? Im a bit lost Thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Burpster Posted October 15, 2009 Share Posted October 15, 2009 Welcome on board! Sadly there is no one answer to your question, because 'tone' is such a subjective issue. If there are a 100 folks on here you wil get 100 different answers...... Its easiest and probably most sensible to say that ALL elements of the construction and spec of a bass wil effect its 'tone. 2 basses made from identical wood with the same electrics can sound different - that just the nature of wood, some of it is more dense than other bits and cuts. The most stable and consistant sounding basses are those made of Carbon composites because the matrerial is so stable (as well teh odd metal ones out there too) . The easiest way to change the 'tone of a solid body bass is to change the electrics as ultimately the electric signal is generated by the strings moving through a magnetic field..... change these and the tone will change instantly. Types of wood to generate types of sound is as hit and miss as the lottery.... but to give you a VERY general guideline, the more dense the wood in the build the brigther sound and longer sustain. The reality is much more confusing than that tho' (refer to para 2 above). Anyone who says difinitively that X wood with Y pick up will give Z sound, is using real salesmanship because as soon as wood is involved the whole issue gets foggy! Someone saying this about a Status or Steinberger on the other hand, may be a different issue! The even tone between strings is definately a pick up issue, although the nut and bridge can sometimes have an influence on large dia. low range strings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neepheid Posted October 15, 2009 Share Posted October 15, 2009 Warmoth have a good page on the subject of wood: [url="http://www.warmoth.com/Bass/Options/WoodDescriptions.aspx"]http://www.warmoth.com/Bass/Options/WoodDescriptions.aspx[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted October 15, 2009 Share Posted October 15, 2009 Have a look at the Factory Tour of MTD Basses where Michael Tobias talks about wood, electrics and building basses. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=52533"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=52533[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doctor J Posted October 15, 2009 Share Posted October 15, 2009 [quote name='The Burpster' post='626653' date='Oct 15 2009, 08:27 AM']Welcome on board! Sadly there is no one answer to your question, because 'tone' is such a subjective issue. If there are a 100 folks on here you wil get 100 different answers...... Its easiest and probably most sensible to say that ALL elements of the construction and spec of a bass wil effect its 'tone. 2 basses made from identical wood with the same electrics can sound different - that just the nature of wood, some of it is more dense than other bits and cuts. The most stable and consistant sounding basses are those made of Carbon composites because the matrerial is so stable (as well teh odd metal ones out there too) . The easiest way to change the 'tone of a solid body bass is to change the electrics as ultimately the electric signal is generated by the strings moving through a magnetic field..... change these and the tone will change instantly. Types of wood to generate types of sound is as hit and miss as the lottery.... but to give you a VERY general guideline, the more dense the wood in the build the brigther sound and longer sustain. The reality is much more confusing than that tho' (refer to para 2 above). Anyone who says difinitively that X wood with Y pick up will give Z sound, is using real salesmanship because as soon as wood is involved the whole issue gets foggy! Someone saying this about a Status or Steinberger on the other hand, may be a different issue! The even tone between strings is definately a pick up issue, although the nut and bridge can sometimes have an influence on large dia. low range strings.[/quote] Bravo, a nugget of logic in what is often a forest of wild conjecture! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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