Basswood vs mahogany

[JRA]

i haven't had the experience of convincing myself that wood type matters much...recently. i did that as a youngster when i cared --- way too much! --- about 'looks'. now i'm old and i only care about 'feel'.

all the instrument woods are great! i like 'em all...but i don't prefer the heavier axes. basswood works for me.

 

[bassdude51]

I used to have 2 - G&L L-1000 basses. One was ash and the other was mahogany. The mahogany was brighter than the ash.

Wood is unpredictable.

If you have doubts about basswood, go with the 2 most popular woods, swamp ash and alder. For your deep, warm, dark sound.........you'll probably get better results experimenting with strings.

 

[FugaziBomb]

Wood barely makes a difference in solid body instruments

This

and varies a lot from regions,

Also this

and even from location in the tree it is cut from.

And this

Some want to believe that it matters a lot and that a very vague species denomination like mahogany offers particular characteristics

And THIS! I actually discovered this when I was a purchaser for a lumber mill. There are dozens of species of ash, mahogany, etc all with different grain densities.

None of what they have to say is worth consideration

And finally, this.

Hi guys, can anyone tell me how big different from each other might be those two woods? I love sound of friends SR505 which is mahogany body with bubnga/jatoba I think, even not plugged in. But watching old japanese SR probably from basswood (i think) and maple neck. I am fan of deep, warm darker sound of bass and wondering if EQ might be enough to get similar result when plugged in. Thanks.

As for the OPs question, the biggest difference in these woods is durability and hardness. Both are pretty soft and susceptible to denting, but the mahogany is still gonna hold up better than the basswood. To be honest, I'm surprised builders even use basswood at all given how easily it dents.

 

[Max Bogosity]

Blind testing consistently shows that people can't distinguish between different woods in electric instruments.

 

[Guitalia]

As for the OPs question, the biggest difference in these woods is durability and hardness. Both are pretty soft and susceptible to denting, but the mahogany is still gonna hold up better than the basswood. To be honest, I'm surprised builders even use basswood at all given how easily it dents.

Since soft woods are easier to cut, maybe builders use them because the cutting tools last longer, reducing overall production costs.

 

[BobKos]

Can't say which is better, but for your request basswood could me the one, also i think it's a little more durable than mahagony.

This is not true. Basswood will dent if you look at it wrong. VERY soft.

I also agree with Bodeeni's comment that mahogany tends to run heavier than similar alder and ash bodies. I believe that there are several different species of mahogany and some such as SR are a lighter species. I am of the basswood = MEH bass camp. Owned a few well equipped basswood instruments and they were all MEH. I won't buy any more.

 

[Leo Thunder]

This is not true. Basswood will dent if you look at it wrong.

I never look funny at my basses. I know it's my fault, not theirs

 

[kodiakblair]

Basswood will dent if you look at it wrong. VERY soft.

Poly finish. Problem solved

If folks drop by guitar forums this topic rarely comes up. The Steve Vai and Satriani Ibanez guitars were huge sellers,both basswood. It's a favourite timber of Tom Anderson,John Suhr is another fan.

 

[TheMaynorD]

I'm just here for the tonewood debate bloodbath.

Honestly, i avoid basswood after my bongo. Bongos are great basses but basswood dents if you breathe on it too hard.

If i am being picky, i avoid anything with a janka scale under 900. Or at least use it for the back with a hardwood Verneer.

I have heard claro walnut is a good substitute for mahogany that is not as easily dented?

 

[Fresh Eddie]

This is not true. Basswood will dent if you look at it wrong. VERY soft.

This has been my experience as well. Also, if you switch anything out (bridge, pickguard, install straplocks, etc.) the screw holes strip really easily, even if you are really careful.

 

[FugaziBomb]

Since soft woods are easier to cut, maybe builders use them because the cutting tools last longer, reducing overall production costs.

I'm not sure how instrument builders look at it, but I myself would not limit species selection based on tooling life at my mill. We were faced with similar issues on our CNC that cuts stone and quartz, though. The life span on our tooling was pretty abysmal. Our solution was to switch from a 20mm CNC tool to a 40mm. Though our minimum radii increased, we are now able to run the CNC twice as fast with the new tool, which not only sped up production, but also had the benefit of increasing the life span of the tool (bit) itself.

That being said, I'm sure how we approach things here is vastly different than how an instrument manufacturer does things.

 

[Rabidhamster]

I'm just here for the tonewood debate bloodbath.

Honestly, i avoid basswood after my bongo. Bongos are great basses but basswood dents if you breathe on it too hard.

If i am being picky, i avoid anything with a janka scale under 900. Or at least use it for the back with a hardwood Verneer.

I have heard claro walnut is a good substitute for mahogany that is not as easily dented?

Claro walnut is more in common with maple in weight and stiffness. Absolutely nothing like basswood other than they both came from trees and get used in musical instruments sometimes.

 

[bongostealth]

No, they do not use the same pickups, nor have they ever used the same pickups. Nor is the preamp the same. Not even the new Special Stingray uses the same neodymium pickups like Bongo, not to mention the older alnico ones (or ceramic in some instances of Stingray 5s). So you basing your dislike for Bongo on "basswood" is ridiculous to say the least. Stingrays used ash, poplar and even alder. I've had them in several wood combinations and they always sounded like Stingrays. Oh, and Bongo (single H model) has the pickup placement in the Music Man "sweet spot", meaning the same as Stingrays. Bongo HH/HS is a different story though (H closer to the bridge), so I can't be 100% sure which one you're referring to.

My claims are "ridiculous"? I did not know that you were there when I had my own personal experiences with gear! I never said the preamp was the same. In fact, if you bother to read my post, I made it clear that the preamps were different. And yes, they have at some point used the same pickups.

Check it out:
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...stingray-4-hh-stealth-black-ebony-fingerboard

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Bongo6HHSB--ernie-ball-music-man-bongo-6-hh-stealth-black

Also, why are you so sure of yourself and take this matter so seriously that you have to state that my claims are "ridiculous"?? There is nothing going on in this thread, or in the bass community period, to merit disrespect. THAT, sir, is ridiculous.

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

I'd prefer not to have a basswood body, not because of the tonal characteristics, but because it's easier to strip the wood w/ the screws. Strap buttons and the bridge scews most importantly. Alder and swamp ash seems to have a good balance of durability/weight/tone.

 

[dkelley]

I've played some basswood guitars and basses that were incredibly resonant... and some mahogany ones that were terrible. And vice versa.

I do think it's more likely that a random CHEAP mahogany instrument will sound better acoustically than a random CHEAP basswood instrument.

getting into good instruments, if they are well made and designed, then it should be more about the fact that basswood is easy to ding, which kinda sucks in the long term.

one of my higher end main electric guitars is basswood, the other higher end guitar is mahogany with maple top. totally different axes in every way. they sound incredible and sustain great and are both super expressive.

I also have cheap axes of both woods: one cheap basswood guitar sounds amazing, unplugged and plugged in, the other sounds dead and terrible. cheap mahogany guitar is vibrant and resonant, although plugged in it sounds horrible (cheap electronics I suspect).

my main fretted bass is now an sr300 - I presume it's basswood. it's extremely resonant, loud, sounds great, sustains great, and is incredibly lively when plugged in, and very expressive.

my guitarist's main guitars are made of various woods including basswood, all in teh $2k and up range. they all sound great... as expected, plugged in or unplugged.

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

Edit: I love OP's avatar pic btw!

Edit: this was ment to be an edit but ended up as a new post..

 

[TexasHeat]

I once built a bass using pre-made parts and the body was made from basswood. It was nice and light, but the big problem was the wood was so soft the screw would strip the wood. It was enough to cause me to worry about a strap button pulling out while I was using it. That would really suck.

 

[Heavy Blue]

This is not true. Basswood will dent if you look at it wrong. VERY soft.

This plus the fact that it strips so easily. I had one basswood bodied bass and I wound up doing the toothpick trick on almost every hole on it. It's kind of made me gun shy about getting another.

 

[mouthmw]

And yes, they have at some point used the same pickups.

Check it out:
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...stingray-4-hh-stealth-black-ebony-fingerboard

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Bongo6HHSB--ernie-ball-music-man-bongo-6-hh-stealth-black

Those aren't the same pickups. Stingray's is alnico, Bongo's is neodymium, like I already said. My point was, you can't base your dislike for the tone on the body wood since their electronics/pickups combo are different and are the main thing that gives them the different tone. Also, in HH variation, their pickups are not in the same position.

 

[Machiavelli]

This is not true. Basswood will dent if you look at it wrong. VERY soft.

I also agree with Bodeeni's comment that mahogany tends to run heavier than similar alder and ash bodies. I believe that there are several different species of mahogany and some such as SR are a lighter species. I am of the basswood = MEH bass camp. Owned a few well equipped basswood instruments and they were all MEH. I won't buy any more.

I've always heard this, but have owned several basswood basses and never once dented them...or any other. Am I doing something wrong?

To chime in, basswood feels cheap to me, maybe because it's in a lot of cheap instruments. But, I've had some great sounding instruments made of basswood.

Even if wood makes a difference, who's to say one sounds 'better' than another. It's all relative.