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Wenge Neck Club

#81
6 outta 7 of my Dingwalls are wenge.
I don’t have many back picks but here is what the wenge is hiding behind.
These Super Js both have Zirocote fretboards with wenge necks.
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This beast is Wenge wenge.
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These 2 have amazing wenge necks hiding behind the BEM
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My fretless wenge neck is topped with a Killer ebony FB.
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Here are a couple more that have since moved on that were both wenge wenge.
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#85
Finger Blister said:
Old photo from the archives:
Testing the strength of a 3 piece quartersawn wenge neck.
Warwick Pro M neck balancing act.
Do not try this at home.

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Ok now that's impressive. He had strings on it and didn't even hurt the headstock? I know Warwick makes hella good basses but I can't see too many other basses holding up to that kind of pressure.
 
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#87
SharpCat said:
Ok, lets play this game backwards…

For maple necks, the world has predominantly settled on alder bodies, with maybe ash being a distant second. If you know your new build is going to have a wenge neck, what body wood are you going to use, and why?
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Ash seems to be a constant.

-Fair weight
-good consistency And resonance
-visually appealing
-ease to work with

My 2 main 6er are 1/2 ash, 1/2 alder as per Sheldon Dingwalls recommendation

I’m open to bubinga, walnut, black limba too!!
 
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#90
AB Nate said:
Definitely part of it. Sonic properties too!!!

I forgot add maple to that list. Heavy but beautiful and solid.

I can hear the bounce of bubinga. Feel the vibration through the density of maple. Catch the air of acoustic woodiness of BL or walnut!!!
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All maple a good combo for sure. Haven’t tried the others.

Just going by the same-same idea from maple, maybe a good sound could come from similar wood densities. (I’m thinking it’s like a wood version of impedance matching. ) walnut has a Janka of 1200, bubinga 2400, limba 670. So none a great match to wenge 1900. But neither is alder 590. Heh, I got nothing.
 
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#91
SharpCat said:
All maple a good combo for sure. Haven’t tried the others.

Just going by the same-same idea from maple, maybe a good sound could come from similar wood densities. (I’m thinking it’s like a wood version of impedance matching. ) walnut has a Janka of 1200, bubinga 2400, limba 670. So none a great match to wenge 1900. But neither is alder 590. Heh, I got nothing.
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it’s like a killer dish. The sum of components impacts the flavour.

I think the woods AND build style impact the vibration characteristics.
-Bolt on vs neck thru.
-Wood mass. Ie single cut or body size and even shape.
-finish… gloss or satin
-even neck thickness. Ie 4 vs 6 string. I believe in addition to the woods used the mass can also effect tension for example and resonance properties.
I’m sure there are other factors that are slipping my mind at the moment.

You can hear a lot of these properties unplugged.

All that and you plug in and the pick ups interpret them in their own fashion.

I’m a nerd. lol.
 
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#92
SharpCat said:
Ok, lets play this game backwards…

For maple necks, the world has predominantly settled on alder bodies, with maybe ash being a distant second. If you know your new build is going to have a wenge neck, what body wood are you going to use, and why?
Click to expand...
When i first put together my 1st parts bass, i just bought the first FSO body i found. Sanded it back, stained it etc chucked on the wenge neck and after finishing it, I found the combination was the best sounding bass I've tried.

And the body wood is POPLAR.

Of course, pickups, strings, passive or active etc play a part but everytime i pick up my basses, it's always my poplar body, wenge neck i pick and prefer. It's my ugliest looking of all my basses, but that sound i get from it is my perfect sound. Doesn't matter what amp I use, it's always number 1.

So is it mainly the combo of poplar wenge? It might be. But all I know is my number 2 is my poplar wenge precision parts bass and I've come to the conclusion, I could sell all my basses and just keep my two parts basses with the wenge poplar combo.

And I agree totally with all of AB Nates comments above.
 
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#94
SharpCat said:
Hmm, got a poplar P. Seems like I can only find thin J necks on eBay though. Warmoth great quality but long wait and kinda expensive.
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Yeah, my wenge are all jazz width necks. I've actually never searched for a precision width wenge neck on Ebay.

I agree 100% about the Warmoth. And super expensive for people living over here in NZ. Exchange rate then shipping.....forget it.
 
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#97
fretno said:
That’s a excellent video. The only thing I didn’t see talked about was in the case of food. Since he was making a plate if you intend to use it with food you want to use a food safe finish like walnut oil. And a natural wax. Like Bees
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He had another video on finishes where he talked about that, but you’re right that it should be mentioned.
 
#98
I have two, at present.

First is this Warmoth build. It is heavier than most of my six-strings, but sounds damn good. It was a bit of an experiment, my first wenge neck, my first use of a 2TEK bridge (wanted to try one since the 90s), heavier strings than I normally use, first use of Lace Sensors rather than conventional pickups, etc. which is kind of funny, because people will ask how one or another component sounds, but since I tried so many new-to-me parts, I have no way of knowing what any given one of them did to make this bass’ sound.

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The second is my beloved Dingwall Z3 six-string, with a wenge neck and fretboard. This bass is just an absolute experience to play. I’ve got a lot of sixes, a few fives, but none of them has a B that sends a shiver up my spine, except this one.

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I also have the parts for a Warmoth Gecko 6, with a wenge neck, waiting to be put together, as well as I’m in line for a fretless Dingwall AB2 with a wenge neck.
 
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#99
shade_1313 said:
I have two, at present.

First is this Warmoth build. It is heavier than most of my six-strings, but sounds damn good. It was a bit of an experiment, my first wenge neck, my first use of a 2TEK bridge (wanted to try one since the 90s), heavier strings than I normally use, first use of Lace Sensors rather than conventional pickups, etc. which is kind of funny, because people will ask how one or another component sounds, but since I tried so many new-to-me parts, I have no way of knowing what any given one of them did to make this bass’ sound.

View attachment 7111183

The second is my beloved Dingwall Z3 six-string, with a wenge neck and fretboard. This bass is just an absolute experience to play. I’ve got a lot of sixes, a few fives, but none of them has a B that sends a shiver up my spine, except this one.

View attachment 7111186

I also have the parts for a Warmoth Gecko 6, with a wenge neck, waiting to be put together, as well as I’m in line for a fretless Dingwall AB2 with a wenge neck.
Click to expand...
Love that Warmoth build! I'm not really into green, but I dig that and it would definitely find a spot in my lineup! 👌🏽
 

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