Nice ash... what to make?

[cstar]

I have some really grainy, dense, and heavy northern or black ash. I want to build a bass with it but I can't decide what to do.

Would you build a p, a j, a pj, a musicman, or a tele bass, and why?

It should be make for a really growly bass and I would like to make an ash neck with a rosewood board on any of the above basses.

Curious to hear your reasoning behind your choices. I already have a hard ash bodied jazz bass that sounds phenomenal (HUGE low end with serious growl) and I will have an East Indian rosewood precision bass completed soon, if that influences your choice at all. I'm leaning towards making something I don't have, such as a musicman or a tele, but having another nice p or j never hurts either I suppose.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Syco_bass]

I would build a chambered Musicman bass. I say Musicman because I like the body style and the pickup design. Chambered because anything heavier than 10 lbs is too heavy to heavy for me to gig with. Just my opinion.

 

[ctmullins]

You realize that there are so many more choices out there, right? Including a design of your own?

If it were me, and it will be again in a year or so, I would make a slender, ergonomic body, somewhat akin to a Ritter or a Pagelli. Slender, with lots of carving and contouring, to keep the weight down. Most of the tone is in your choice of electronics, anyway.

Chambering is also a really good idea, but that would require a drop top of some sort, or maybe a pickguard large enough to cover it.

But whatever you choose, post pics!