#1938758 - 05/07/08 03:28 PM
about wood/s and tone etc
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nauc
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anyone have any good links about how different types of wood and style/shapes of guitars affect tone, sustain, pickups performance etc
thanks
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#1938766 - 05/07/08 03:36 PM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: nauc]
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mdrs
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anyone have any good links about how different types of wood and style/shapes of guitars affect tone, sustain, pickups performance etc
thanks
Great question, nauc. Much of that info is very subjective, but there are sort of guidelines and generalities that can be made. For instance, an all mahogany electric will have a warmer tone, and a maple cap on a mahogany body will add highs and clarity.
Here's some interesting reading about this stuff off of the Anderson guitarworks web site;
http://www.andersonguitars.com/toneLibInfo.html
I'll see if I have any other references that you might read for more info.
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#1938770 - 05/07/08 03:43 PM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: mdrs]
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nauc
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sweet, thanks yall
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#1938910 - 05/07/08 08:03 PM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: mdrs]
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MILLO
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you want to check out the Warmoth website as well, they have a tonewood guide, not very deep, though...
_________________________
"Without music, life would be a mistake." --from 'Beyond Good and Evil', by Friedrich Nietzsche My MySpace Space
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#1938995 - 05/08/08 01:58 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: MILLO]
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GeoffB
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I'm in the 'strap a decent pickup onto a decent piece of wood & you'll get a decent tone' camp.
G.
_________________________
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power the World will know Peace": Jimi Hendrix
Frank M:Back in the day you could have a trio with two people.
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#1939000 - 05/08/08 02:31 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: GeoffB]
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guitarzan
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don't forget that where a factory is located and what combination of letters you put on the headstock will greatly improve tone. 
seriously construction is a big part of tone. a well built guitar with good design is very important. neck angle and bridge design is just as important. wood is good but not the only thing.
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#1940091 - 05/10/08 06:28 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: guitarzan]
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guitarzan6000
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don't forget that where a factory is located and what combination of letters you put on the headstock will greatly improve tone.
guitarzan, your first sentence says it all....
By what I read from a lot of good folks on this site, is exactly that. There are so many people who think there are only TWO guitars that are any good, and all the rest suck...I think these 2 companies have brainwashed people into thinking this way, it just amazes me. They are just wood and wire. Just because certain letters are stamped on the headstock, thats what makes it sound so good. I'm not trying to preach, everyone has the right to spend their money on whatever they want...but people are crazy to spend that kind of money on a guitar IMHO. I'm glad they feel they can afford it, and if it makes them "think" they are a better guitar player, then so be it.
I STILL say I will put my HAGSTROM SUPER SWEDE up against ANY LES PAUL ANY DAY through the same amp and same player, and it'll kick it's A**!!!
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#1940095 - 05/10/08 06:43 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: guitarzan6000]
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Dr. Ellwood
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Looks like yet another case of Les Paul envy to me. I think this subject has been run into the ground, the truth is that nobody really cares what you play, or if you play at all.
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#1940096 - 05/10/08 06:43 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: guitarzan6000]
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mdrs
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I am so tired of hearing foolish statements slamming guitars that are clearly the standards that other guitars are held to.
I think it's time that we elevate the tone and maturity level of our forum, before it slips into a grade school mentality, pitting guitar companies against each other!!
This kind of stuff is just silly. Our forum deserves better.
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#1940103 - 05/10/08 06:55 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Dr. Ellwood]
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mdrs
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And, it's uninformed comments like that, meant to incite flame wars, that are driving more experienced pro level musicians from our forum. Personally, I'd like to learn something when I come here. Comments that denegrade only teach me that the poster has too much free time on their hands, or simply doesn't know what they are talking about.
The more mature guys here need to step up, and try to elevate the level of discourse on our forum.
I know that these infantile flame wars about who's guitar is better, or knocking vintage guitars, are driving me away.
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#1940113 - 05/10/08 07:29 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Hardtail]
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guitarzan6000
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FYI, I have owned several Les Pauls in my over 30 years of playing, so lets not assume "maturity" here. Sounds like according to some people if you don't own a Gibson, then you don't deserve to be a "guitar player".
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#1940121 - 05/10/08 07:40 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: guitarzan6000]
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Hardtail
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FYI, I have owned several Les Pauls in my over 30 years of playing, so lets not assume "maturity" here. Sounds like according to some people if you don't own a Gibson, then you don't deserve to be a "guitar player".
Are you the one here who's the wealthy brick layer?
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#1940126 - 05/10/08 07:54 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Hardtail]
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Fumblyfingers
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Yup I am sick of it too. I would venture to say that most of the people talking crap about it either are envious or perhaps have never even played a nice old vintage axe OR even a new big name guitar.
I am not talking picking one up in a store and noodling for a few minutes.......I am talking night after night after night ...on the road......gigging......a situation where the stamina and consistency of an instrument will really show.
I also figure that some of these mentioned guitars like Hagstroms and whatever might be very nice instruments........but who cares if they are any better or worse...this is a mine is bigger than your argument and it is stupid.
I say to all the people bagging on Gibson, Fender etc etc..... put your money where your mouth is.....go record something of yourself playing with your band and let's see how good your playing is, how good your tone is.................otherwise shut up with the knocking of fine instruments and carry on enjoying your own........just like the rest of us do.
Also......ask yourself......why is it that almost every single great guitar player you have ever seen plays most often a Gibson or Fender.....probably what........at least 80% of the time???? I said most....not all.....most. WE all know that all the guitar manufacturers make really good instruments.....Ibanez, Yamaha, Guild, Epiphone, PRS, Tom Anderson, Hagstrom etc etc etc and I am sure there are custom builders out there that make killer instruments.......but the workhorse go to guitars are very often expensive Fender and Gibsons that are made in the USA where labor is not cheap....in fact nothing is cheap anymore. Take a look at what is happening in the pizza industry where the price of flour has tripled in recent years because of any factors including transportation. Yet they are lucky if they can increase the price of a slice by 10% before people start whining.....as they always do.....because we have become a nation of whiners.
It has been said over and over but it is such a great phrase.....shut up and play your guitar!
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#1940128 - 05/10/08 07:55 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: guitarzan6000]
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mdrs
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FYI, I have owned several Les Pauls in my over 30 years of playing, so lets not assume "maturity" here. Sounds like according to some people if you don't own a Gibson, then you don't deserve to be a "guitar player".
Your comment continues the argumentative tenor you started with!!
Age, or what guitars you've owned, do NOT make you, or your comments mature. It's the content of what you say that I'm addressing.
You may have made a personal choice about your preference for one make of guitar or another. That really doesn't make that particular guitar better or worse than another. It's simply your choice.
Your decision to repetatively knock Gibsons or Fenders is the immaturity I'm addressing here. Where did anyone ever say that "if you don't own a Gibson, then you don't deserve to be a "guitar player"?????
That's just silly, and provides the perfect example of what I'm calling immaturity all too often displayed on our forum.
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#1940129 - 05/10/08 07:58 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Fumblyfingers]
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Dr. Ellwood
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"put your money where your mouth is.....go record something of yourself playing with your band and let's see how good your playing is, how good your tone is..."
Yes sir! and that's where the rubber meets the road Lister! 
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#1940130 - 05/10/08 08:00 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Fumblyfingers]
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Fumblyfingers
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OKay so you have had several Gibson's and now prefer Hag's......so what? I am glad you have found the instrument that most suits you....some people never will, they will always be looking for something better.
But please don't make comments that play into the whole Gibson and Fender are overpriced pieces of shit argument....because that is where it takes it.
Enjoy your Hag and post some clips of your playing it so we can all see how great it is.
Nobody EVER said you have to play Gibson to deserve to be a guitarist or whatever you said.....NOBODY!
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#1940139 - 05/10/08 08:14 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Hardtail]
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Bluesape
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Dunno why this crap has to keep popping up.  Yes, there are dozens of worthy brands out there now - the 50's are over! 
That said, I've just committed to the purchase of my 7th Gibson. Does the name matter? Damn right!  The name assures me that it's built right, to North American standards, by skilled and decently paid craftsmen, with medical benefits and good, safe working conditions. Ya can knock the price all ya want, but if a product can reasonably be expected to appreciate in value over time, that's gotta be worth a bit extra. 
I'm no brand loyalist, in fact, I may be one of the bigger brand whores here. Could I have bought as good an axe from Reverend, Hagstrom, Godin, Yamaha, Ibanez, PRS SE, Hamer, maybe even Epiphone? Quite possibly, but it wouldn't be a Gibson, and if it turned out to be a guitar I needed to get rid of, I'd lose my shirt on it.
I liked RobRose's Rev a lot, and am already in the market for a used one, letting the original owner eat the depreciation. I hate the notion of paying more for anything than the lowest possible price, and one will come along at a fraction of its new price.
Certain guitars command a higher value than others. It's a universal constant, and no amount of sniping here is gonna change that! 
_________________________
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#1940147 - 05/10/08 08:22 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Bluesape]
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Hardtail
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That said, I've just committed to the purchase of my 7th Gibson. Does the name matter? Damn right! The name assures me that it's built right, to North American standards, by skilled and decently paid craftsmen, with medical benefits and good, safe working conditions.
That certainly matters to me.
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#1940200 - 05/10/08 10:32 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Hardtail]
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Scott Fraser
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Guys, a guitar is a tool. Just like a screwdriver. There are fancy expensive screwdrivers & lower budget screwdrivers. The only important thing is being able to get that screw turned into the wood. You pick the tool you need for the job at hand, & for that you generally have more than one screwdriver in the tool box. I have a 1956 Strat, one of the most desirable guitars in the world. Yet for about a half dozen years I did all my gigs & recording on a $300-ish Korean-made Steinberger clone called a Blake. This was the right tool for the music I was making at that time. Is it better than the Strat? No. But is it worse? Not really, when you consider I needed a tool with a trem that goes up as well as down & could drop almost an octave, could allow me to select all three pickups, has quieter EMGs, & was something I wouldn't worry about attacking with steel rods, stones & eggbeaters. The absolute best guitar is the one that lets all the music inside you get out into the world.
Scott Fraser
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#1940213 - 05/10/08 10:58 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Scott Fraser]
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Fumblyfingers
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Well, nothing worse than graunching the head of a screw with a crappy screwdriver...now you have to get out the extractors....what are you gonna reach for .......the cheapies or the Blue Point....what are you gonna drill it with....a blunt old bit or a brand new Titanium good quality bit?
I know what you mean...some here realize that all guitars might have some real value or playability....all we are saying is that some should not bag on the name brands.
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#1940217 - 05/10/08 11:07 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Fumblyfingers]
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miroslav
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Mmmmmm....but one also can't assume that ALL guitars with a particular nameplate are automaticllly of the exact same quality (good or bad).
Bottom line...it's a guitar-by-guitar thing...IMO.
To stereotype in either direction is somewhat of a blind-eye approach.
_________________________
miroslav - miroslavmusic.com"Just because it happened to you, it doesn't mean it's important."
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#1940227 - 05/10/08 11:39 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: Fumblyfingers]
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Scott Fraser
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Well, nothing worse than graunching the head of a screw with a crappy screwdriver...now you have to get out the extractors....what are you gonna reach for .......the cheapies or the Blue Point....what are you gonna drill it with....a blunt old bit or a brand new Titanium good quality bit?
And sometimes the cheap Radio Shack driver is within arms reach while the Craftsman is out in the garage. So you grab the one at hand.
I know what you mean...some here realize that all guitars might have some real value or playability....all we are saying is that some should not bag on the name brands.
Yes, while realizing that the name brands make mistakes too & sometimes get product out the door that needs a better fret dressing, or more drying time in the kiln.
Scott Fraser
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#1940230 - 05/10/08 11:46 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: miroslav]
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mdrs
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Mmmmmm....but one also can't assume that ALL guitars with a particular nameplate are automaticllly of the exact same quality (good or bad).
And who specifically has ever said that, except for you just now?
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#1940234 - 05/10/08 11:48 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: mdrs]
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mdrs
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Not to belabor the point, some here seem to feel that there is a war between Gibson/Fender and "the other brands".
Why is this?? Who is proposing this?
Let's all try to stop this silliness. It's really very negative, and unproductive.
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#1940235 - 05/10/08 11:50 AM
Re: about wood/s and tone etc
[Re: mdrs]
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mdrs
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One other thing.
Take a minute, and re read this thread. It starts out with a GREAT question about tonewoods.
How does it end up with this silliness???
This negativity is what is driving good people away from our forum.
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