Several [Fender] Japanese reissue models use Basswood [as body material]. Copyright © All Things Gear. Basswood is quite light, both in sound and in color. That brightness is due to the wood’s hardness, and along with being bright, Maple offers plenty of sustain, and quite an aggressive bite. , © 2020 Wired Guitarist, All rights reserved, Ernie Ball Announce 3 New BFR Models For June, Boss Reveal New 200 Series Effects Pedals, How To Set Up a Click and Backing Tracks For Your Show, ESP Release New 400 Series Metallic Fade Lineup, Avenged Sevenfold Auction Off Gear To Support Music Education. We’ll talk about neck wood and fretboard wood on other articles. It’s often used in Asian-made electric guitars, and while it has a relatively well-balanced sound it doesn’t offer much in the way of sustain or resonance. It’s a very adaptable wood, which makes it very versatile — it can be used for a range of different styles and still sound great. In this article, we’ll tackle specifically an electric guitar’s body wood. Basswood is a very “full” sounding wood, and it makes sense as adding the maple top gives the overall package more cut and brightness. Basswood is one of the most controversial woods out there. Hard ash still looks quite similar to swamp ash, despite the slight variation in sound. Generally speaking, hard maple is often considered too hard for guitar bodies, and as such it’s more often than not used in guitar necks. Alder is relatively easy to finish, but the grain isn’t all that good-looking, so it’s most often painted over. Good pieces sound very good, and bad pieces can sound truly awful. Korina isn’t a very common electric guitar body wood, but it did get a pretty big break when it featured on Gibson‘s Modernistic Series of guitars in the late 1950s. Mahogany is a little more mellow than Maple, offering a slightly thicker tone while cutting a lot of the attack found on a Maple neck. Solid basswood bodies have a fat, well-balanced tone. Basswood is found on guitars all over the world, however while abundant it’s generally found on budget or midrange guitars. In my opinion, a lot of the controversy surrounding basswood stems from the fact that it varies wildly quality wise. Mahogany is generally harvested in Africa and Central America, and its quite a hard, heavy wood. Maple is far and away the most common type of electric guitar neck wood, and for good reason. As far as weight goes, Alder is a medium weight wood, however it can come in heavier cuts too. As far as hardwoods go, Korina is fairly light and it has a very fine grain, which is often enhanced when it’s being finished to give off the appearance of long streaks. If you don’t believe me, go to your favorite forum, and ask them about basswood…. Many aren’t aware of this, but the type of wood used on your guitar can actually have a big impact on how the guitar sounds. While it’s often used in multi-wood guitars, when used on its own, Mahogany has a warm tone, but it’s a very balanced sound with a good bite when it needs it. Most often ash is used in a single-wood body, but sometimes it can be found on multi-wood guitars too. Because of their bite, Maple is an excellent choice of guitar body wood for hard rock and metal music. Generally, poplar guitars have a pretty flat frequency response. It doesn’t have too many lows to speak of, but that’s not a big problem for many people. Get all the latest reviews straight to your inbox. On a well-made guitar, basswood can yield good dynamics and definition with enough grind to give the sound some oomph. Like basswood, alder is a lightweight type of body wood with soft and condensed pores. Are you looking for a specific combination? When the ash is taken from the high portion of the tree, where it’s harder, it offers a slightly brighter tone that sounds great through a distortion pedal. It is a very light and soft wood, and it is light in color. All rights reserved. It has replaced a lot of different woods used in a range of guitars, including the aforementioned Gibson Flying V. These days, the most common guitars with Mahogany woods include the Gibson Les Paul Jr., the Les Paul Special, and the classic Gibson SG. That’s because the wood generally resonates more, is quite light, and has a very nice-looking grain. When it comes to sound, Korina is very clear while still giving a lot of warmth and offers quite a long sustain. Basswood. Mahogany is one of the most common electric guitar body woods used today. Produces a light (body wt less than 4 lb.) Poplar is technically a hard wood, but as far as hard woods go it’s relatively soft. Still, while mainly used on budget guitars, it still sounds great and is sometimes used by high-end guitar makers too — in fact, plenty of signature guitar models. It offers lows, mids, and highs, however it has a slight bump in the midrange, which helps make the sound more clear. A wide variety of guitarists during the 1980s used basswood body guitars, especially paired with bolt-on maple necks because of how well they cut through the mix. Maybe there’s something basswood flavored you want? Here are a few guitars built with an Alder body wood: Ash isn’t as often used these days as it once was, however it’s still a very popular choice for those looking for that classic Fender sound. Electric guitar body wood and neck wood: How tonewood affects your guitar’s sound, Everything you need to know about acoustic guitar body shapes. Generally, basswood doesn’t offer much in the way of low end. All Things Gear may make a commission on products sold through the links on this website. Poplar is surfacing as a relatively popular guitar body wood because of how affordable it is. Maple is generally considered the clearer of the two main neck woods. There’s a muscular midrange. Are you building an electric guitar or trying to decide which electric guitar to buy next? Check out the table below to find the perfect guitar for you. It has minimal grain. It doesn’t help that a lot of budget guitars use basswood, and for a lot of guitarists, the only experience they have with basswood is cheaper budget guitars! John Suhr, founder of Suhr guitars and a former luthier at the Fender Custom Shop has said many times that one of his favorite wood combinations for bodies is basswood with a maple top. Here are the most popular woods used in guitars. Naturally, this skews the perception of basswood held by most people as they’ve never tried a high end guitar with basswood. There are generally only two different electric guitar neck woods. Still, while mainly used on budget guitars, it still sounds great and is sometimes used by high-end guitar makers too — in fact, plenty of signature guitar models. The reason basswood is used on cheap instruments is because it’s relatively inexpensive to buy poor quality basswood, and it is very soft, making it easy on tools. What makes basswood so controversial? Maple brings in a nice amount of high-end with a good bass boost too, however when strings are plucked nice and hard there’s still plenty of mid-range. It has little grain to speak of, meaning that many guitar makers choose to paint over it or cover it up. When it is used for the guitar’s body wood, however, it offers a very bright tone. This is something that holds true for most tonewoods, but especially basswood. This in no way affects our review of a product. The electric guitar’s body wood is arguably the most important wood used in the building of a guitar, at least when it comes to the sound of the guitar.
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