Let's clear one thing one and for all: Tonewood: Does it really matter?

[MovingPitchers]

http://menga.net/do-tonewoods-matter-on-an-electric-guitar-at-all

This site says NO, it doesn't matter. Their logic behind it makes sense, but companies like Fender, Gibson, Musicman, etc., swear on it...otherwise they'd just make it out of other materials that may or may not cost less than getting maple, rosewood, alder, basswood, etc., from various suppliers.

I want to say no for the body, but yes for the neck. I find rosewood DOES make the sound a bit warmer since it's softer than maple, while maple DOES produce a lot brighter and snappier sound.

 

[joebar]

I really don't think so.
not on electric instruments but I could be wrong.

 

[M0ses]

Not gonna happen. As long as this forum exists, people will argue about it.
I'm in the NO camp.

 

[Wolffgang]

I agree, this is never getting cleared up. There's nearly no test you can't call subjective, no scientific method pure enough, and no way to stop people claiming they hear things.

I think it's all bollocks. I'm not going to say I think different basses sound idtnetical, but that I think fit and component tolerances have more to do with it than anything.

I'm willing to consider the affect of body wood; I don't believe it, but it might have an impact. I've never bought a bass or a guitar based on that as a factor. I think the idea of fretboard wood doing anything is insane; it's a major factor in my purchases, but only because I think ebony and maple are beautiful.

I think people's brain's are really good at convincing them their ears and eyes know what's going on.

 

[SanDiegoHarry]

Some.

 

[JustStarted10]

Depends on amp.

My friend had kick a$$ amp for some time: 10 different bass guitars = 10 different sounds. We tested 4 bass guitars on that amp. Every bass sounds different. There were Mahogany and Alder P,Alder J and Cherry PJ.

 

[Batmensch]

I'm in the "If it does indeed make a difference, it's not enough to matter" group.

 

[jking138]

I'm in the "If it does indeed make a difference, it's not enough to matter" group.

Absolutely. I can tell a jazz from a P bass but I can't tell at Maple neck from a rosewood. The pick ups, strings, amp and technique make the biggest difference everything else if far too subtle for me to really notice.
However there is a difference if we're talking extremes, for example a £100 basswood/agathis body compared to a £2000 carbon fibre kryptonite alloy bass. But even then the quality of the hardware is going to be drastically better.

 

[timonvh]

I have noticed, during outdoor gigs at lower temperatures, that a maple neck gets/feels colder than a rosewood one, enough so to influence my decision about what bass to play at such events. Ultimately this affects my tone (to stay within the thread parameters).
Timon

 

[Deleted member 261632]

I'm in the "yes-camp", to a certain degree. But each to his own

 

[cnltb]

I think the wood used on an instrument does make a difference.

 

[Zooberwerx]

Not with any consistency or degree of predictability.

Riis

 

[Fun Size Nick]

Let's clear one thing once and for all: this topic will never, ever be cleared once and for all on this forum! We'll find out what the definitive best bass for metal is first...

 

[96tbird]

As far as companies citing the virtues of the tone woods they use it's just marketing.

Maybe it will never be cleared up but what about tone glue? Multi-lam high dollar boutique jobs with all that glue: should they use hide glue? Wood glue? Poly glue? Which is THE tone glue?

Naw, I don't think it makes enough difference in a solid body either.

 

[mongo2]

How much it matters depends on the particular instrument and the ability of the listener to discern the differences.


Wait for it....

 

[Ewo]

All I can tell ya is that I've got two Sadowsky Metros, built within three years of each other, with identical specs except for body and fingerboard wood. They're the classic combinations: one alder/rosewood, the other maple/ash. So we're talking about a straightforward experiment design: in addition to the age of the instruments, scale length, body shape, and electronics (including pickup placement), the player, amp, and strings are all held constant.

The difference in voice is obvious.

That said, I gotta wonder if maybe some folks do overestimate how finely the tone can be calibrated with the wood choice.

Added: And the bottom line, I figure, is that the actual tone produced in a real-life musical situation is the complex interaction of the player, instrument, room, and mix.

 

[buldog5151bass]

I believe so. Some may be subjective, but if there was not, every bass would be made out of balsa with a top out of harder wood for the screws, or just plywood.

 

[Munjibunga]

Most of the people who work with the woods every day to produce fine musical instruments believe that wood does make a difference in tone. I do too. However, I believe that the pickups and electronics play a bigger role. That's really all you need to know.

 

[Marial]

Most of the people who work with the woods every day to produce fine musical instruments believe that wood does make a difference in tone. I do too. However, I believe that the pickups and electronics play a bigger role. That's really all you need to know.

What Munji said. They do make a difference, but it's small. I think it's probably pickups/electronics > hollow/solid body > neck/fingerboard material (especially on fretless instruments) > body woods.

 

[buldog5151bass]

So let's all buy poplar/balsa bass bodies, and save 2-3 pounds per bass.