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I'm pretty sure Ash and Alder are both woods that are used in making basses.
In all honesty, I've always wanted an Ash bass, but Alder ones seem to stick.
In all honesty, I've always wanted an Ash bass, but Alder ones seem to stick.
Nice!
FWIW, all my alder body, maple topped Dingwalls were significantly lighter than my ash Dingwall Super PJ 5.
The alder ones ran around 8 lb, and even the six string was only just 9lb. The ash Super P runs just over 9.5.
At this age, I'd like my bass to weigh 8 or under.
FWIW, all my alder body, maple topped Dingwalls were significantly lighter than my ash Dingwall Super PJ 5.
The alder ones ran around 8 lb, and even the six string was only just 9lb. The ash Super P runs just over 9.5.
At this age, I'd like my bass to weigh 8 or under.
Turnaround
Commercial User
IME ash is heavier than alder but the difference is not that significant I.e. We are not comparing concrete with butter.
It depends on what you consider as significant. 1-2lbs difference is not significant when you lift the instruments for say....5-10 minutes. But after about 2 hours, your shoulder can definitely feel it.
I too never think it was significant before I experience it myself.
Do you have any sense of what the timeline on this is? I haven't followed closely, but I feel like warmoth had more lightweight alder bodies a few years ago
I've played some killer heavy ash basses, but wouldn't gig them
...that has nothing to do with it and doesn't address the question.
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If you are buying from a guitar company that mass produces their basses...then alder would probably be a more consistent choice. The problem with light weight ash...is that there isn't a lot of it about and it's hard to source reliable supplies in large quantities. Premium grade ash isn't just expensive, it's hard to find. Alder's weight is it's natural function and it's very consistent...if a little boring to look at. I have a few premium grade ash body blanks in my store and they are amazingly light weight, probably the lightest that I've seen. At a guess, I'd say about 1/3 of maple of the same dimensions. But this lightness comes at a cost / rarity premium and it's also very fragile compared to Alder. It chips and dents very easily...so I'd need to use a lot of hard lacquer to protect it....not a wood for an oiled finish.
I have alder and swamp ash basses that weigh under 8 lbs. I have alder and swamp ash basses that way over 10 lbs.
It's 100% a case-by-case thing.
It's 100% a case-by-case thing.
mark beem
Wait, how does this song start again??
Aw man...set me up and knocked me down! I really gotta stop the pre-coffee posting....As if...
