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How do you make a great bass guitar ?

W

wsmerwin@hotmai

Jan 30, 2008
96
0
#1
BassGen I want to thank and congratulate you for persevering through the trials and tribulations of the Tone wood or Tune the wood thread. I thought I would try to ask a similar question and see what happened.

BassGen said [a show on Treasure HD called "Guitar Picks" featured a segment on the Santa Cruz Guitar Co. Their focus when building a guitar is "tuning" the wood and tuning the tone of the wood in the guitar to achieve beautiful - and more importantly - CONSISTENT - tone.

I wondered how this might be applied to building a bass.]

Is there any way to predict what effect the wooden (or any other material) body will have on the sound of a bass guitar ? We agree wood bodies on graphite necks sound different (Steinberger). We agree thinner bodies sound different from thick bodies. We agree resonance can enhance or cripple guitar sound. WHAT ARE THE RULES ! HOW DO THESE RULES AFFECT THE WAY WE DESIGN AND SHAPE THE BASS GUITAR BODY !
 
#4
wsmerwin@hotmai said:
We agree thinner bodies sound different from thick bodies
Click to expand...

Who agrees? Not everyone, thats for sure. Why try and continue the argument from the other thread here? The tonewood discussions have gone beyond tedious, its the same old arguments with the same old people, none of which have anything new to add since the very first threads on the subject. To answer your questions the reader would first have to be on the body wood matters camp, which few are in LC.
 
#6
Ok, the Steinberger XL is different from the Steinberger Spirit which is different from the Steinberger Synapse because of the different use of wood and graphite. Generally speaking thin bodies vibrate more, are livelier, than thick bodies. Resonance causes dead notes on some guitars.

I'm not talking about "tone wood". I'm asking about techniques and practices that make a better sounding bass guitar. My experience suggests material (wood, graphite, plexiglass, Luthite) matters. I'm asking for rules (if x equals x then seek y) and how to apply them (to achieve y, you must perform a, b, and c). Let's be reasonable men and answer the question at hand.
 
#7
I probably don't agree with any of your premises...

A great sounding bass is very different from a great playing bass and it's all VERY VERY subjective...

A 24 fret 5 string bass will NEVER sound like a 20 fret 4 banger, but no one can say one is better than the other...
 
#8
wsmerwin@hotmai said:
I'm not talking about "tone wood". I'm asking about techniques and practices that make a better sounding bass guitar.
Click to expand...

OK, I'll bite :D

First you need to define and quantify "better" so we all have a solid basis with which to measure against. Are you referring to your 'better', my 'better', Musiclogic's 'better', or ? And what if my 'better' is not the same as Musiclogic's 'better' - which of the two of us has the better 'better'?

does a P-bass sound better than a J-bass sound better than a Roscoe sound better than a Fodera sound better than a Ritter? you have to agree that the answer to this question is not one of quantifiable measurement, since in reality 'better' is purely subjective, and for the most part varies with each player. I think we, as bassists, can agree that a solidly constructed bass that also uses quality electronics and hardware, and has also been properly wired-up and set-up will sound 'better' than a poorly constructed bass made with poor quality electronics/hardware and suffers from a poorly executed circuit.

so long as solid engineering principles are adheared to, the notion of which woods, construction methods, electronics, hardware, materials, finish, and strings are all subjective and part of the mojo that a skilled builder brings to life in each build.

all the best,

R
 
#10
in order for something to be improved, you first need to quantify 'better'

failing to do that, this discussion really has no way to move forward unless your intent is to focus on conjecture and mythology ... and then this thread becomes a ready candidate for relocation to the OT forum

all the best,

R
 
#13
wsmerwin@hotmai said:
Should we, as luthiers, look ....
Click to expand...

with this statement, are you implying that you are a luthier?

it would be great if you could share a thread here in the TB LC covering the build process for one of your instruments

all the best,

R
 
#16
Rodent said:
with this statement, are you implying that you are a luthier?

it would be great if you could share a thread here in the TB LC covering the build process for one of your instruments

R
Click to expand...

Sorry, I built a guitar from parts once but I am not a luthier; although I suspect many of us have a dream guitar in mind ready for execution at the hands of an expert.

Alex Watson is building an eight string bass guitar and midi controller for me. It will have fanned frets and a neck through the body design with a core of seven stringers made from Wenge (3, center and outside), Maple and Purpleheart, and veneers of an undetermined wood in between. To this we plan to add a top made from Birdseye Maple with a Purpleheart border and a back made from Spruce. I have a clear idea what the neck /core will sound like garnered from other guitars similarly constructed. I am guessing when it comes to what the body wings and cover might add to or detract from the sound of this instrument. Follow along if you like. Watson Guitars 09B033 8-string Bass Guitar

I don't want to debate the subjective. I only want to know what practices used by builders of acoustic instruments can be applied to building solid body basses. If there aren't any, I hope there is a practical and logical explanation why.
 
#19
I'm loathe to start this again, but the vibrating wood (or material of your choice) of a solid body bass must influence the sound of the instrument to some degree. If this is true, can we look at the body like a resonating chamber for the string, and channel the mechanical feedback between them (by shaving or shaping the body for example) so it would enhance the acoustical quality of the plucked string, allowing that “enhancement” to be heard through the electrical pick up ?
 

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