Hi. I'm building a custom bass....does anyone have any advice on which type of wood would be best to use regardless of cost?
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Advice on ultimate wood for custom Bass
- Thread starter superretard42
- Start date
You are going to get hundreds of different opinions on this. The ultimate mix is for you to decide, based on your experiences.
Is there a bass you've played on that you particularly like, aesthetically speaking?
If the discussion turns to tone and wood combinations, beware of the trolls!
For aesthetic reasons, my favorite combinations:
1. figured walnut top / mahogany or Khaya
2. all mahogany
3. figured maple / mahogany or khaya (or semi-hollow sapele)
4. black acacia or koa / Spanish cedar (very light)
5. swamp ash
for necks / fingerboards:
maple / pau ferro (my favorite), bloodwood, macassar ebony
Is there a bass you've played on that you particularly like, aesthetically speaking?
If the discussion turns to tone and wood combinations, beware of the trolls!
For aesthetic reasons, my favorite combinations:
1. figured walnut top / mahogany or Khaya
2. all mahogany
3. figured maple / mahogany or khaya (or semi-hollow sapele)
4. black acacia or koa / Spanish cedar (very light)
5. swamp ash
for necks / fingerboards:
maple / pau ferro (my favorite), bloodwood, macassar ebony
I've always wondered how a slab of American chestnut would work out. The old trees were killed out by blight that struck in the 1930's, so any you find is going to be WELL seasoned. I wouldn't expect much in the way of figure, but more interested in the resonance/tone potential. Here's some info: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
My custom Pavel jazz 5 has Cocobolo, birds eye maple, hondouran mahogany,and an ebony veneer. Here are some photos from my last photo-shoot, and one in my house.
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That depends entirely on what tone tweak your looking for the wood to give. My fave is mahogany with maple top.
The carvin website has tons of good info on body/neck woods, and what kind of tonal characteristics they give a bass. Based on that I've been wanting to make a walnut body/mahogany neck custom bass for a while now.
For the body Alder (used on the vintage Fenders) Swamp ash , or mahogony . For the top cap , it's up to your preference . I'm a big fan of curly Koa .
My latest build uses Alder/ Koa still in progress
My latest build uses Alder/ Koa still in progress
I like Alder or Ash personally.
Ash if you're going for tone and looks.
As someone else said though, use your own ears and eyes.
Ash if you're going for tone and looks.
As someone else said though, use your own ears and eyes.
