Wood Combination...

[mullmuzzler]

I'm thinking of ordering a guitar on Warmoth site... Here are the probable specs:

- soloist body, carved top

- mahogany back, quilt maple top

- rosewood neck (angled headstock) and fretboard

- Willkinson/Gotoh trem

- locking tuners

- EMGs: 85, SA, SA w/SPC and EXG

How will the body and neck wood combination sound? Does anybody has expirience with this wood combo?

Regards,

mullmuzzler | OSSMT

[TeiscosRock]

I dunno how it would affect the EMGs, as i have no experience with them, but I would think a mahogany body + rosewood neck would make an incredibly dark sounding guitar, not to mention heavy as a you-know-what.

[duo2]

Yeah I agree. I would go for a maple neck with a rosewood fingerboard but thats just me. You may want a really heavy sound and guitar for that matter.

[mullmuzzler]

How dark? Could you make a comparison? I think that PRS Santana model has this wood combo... His tone is creamy, but, I guess, this comes from his Mesa/Boogie + Big Muff... I dunno, this sounds like a good combination. Actually, I'm in for the Dire Straits/Mark Knopfler Pensa Suhr sound (I know that the his Pensa has maple neck...).

I've tried PRS McCarthy model with a 1-piece rosewood neck and it sounded rounder than a mahogany neck, not so defined, but it is glued-in guitar (mine'll be bolt-on).

Pfeeewwwww....

mullmuzzler | OSSMT

[!!METAL MATT!!]

Well I dont think the Wood Play's A big role in sound when your useing EMG's They all sound roughly the same, that's part of the reason there so Popular because musicians can have a consistent sound from guitar to guitar

But The sound would change with each different type of emg Pickup

But Still I would go with A Maple neck But It's you guitar And Your the one that has to play it so do what your happy with!

!!METAL MATT!!

[westhemann]

Well I dont think the Wood Play's A big role in sound when your useing EMG's They all sound roughly the same,

that was wrong the first time you said it,and it s still wrong now.

emg pickups sound no more similar in different guitars than do any pickup on the market...they all have a distinctive sound,which is why people have favorite pickups that they put in all of their guitars.

put emg in a dead guitar and it is still dead..i don't know why you guys don't listen...i know all of you that say this have very limited experiences with emg pickups(even though in the debate some guys will just "invent" experiece)...and yet i have 10 guitars in my possession right now with emg pickups in them...7 of them with the zw set,and every single guitar has a distinctly different sound...different enough that anybody can hear it.

i also have 3 guitars with a jb at the bridge...and over the years have rewired all my guitars with different sets of passives and actives several times...so i cantell you with complete confidence that the opinion that emg makes every guitar sound the same is a complete and utter falsehood.

if you still can't believe it,then i am sorry that your hearing is so poor

[mledbetter]

it would stand to reason that active pups would be even more sensitive to wood's tone as they would pick up nuances of the acoustic structure that passives might not even pick up.

[westhemann]

it would stand to reason that active pups would be even more sensitive to wood's tone as they would pick up nuances of the acoustic structure that passives might not even pick up.

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i would not say that either..i would only say they are exactly the same intheir differences against passives.

guitar x passive vs guitar y passive = guitar x active vs guitar y active

[Mattia]

it would stand to reason that active pups would be even more sensitive to wood's tone as they would pick up nuances of the acoustic structure that passives might not even pick up.

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Active pickups have a much WEAKER output/picking up capacity than passive ones, really; it's the built-in preamp that boosts the signal up something wicked.

[TeiscosRock]

Could you make a comparison?

mullmuzzler | OSSMT

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I would think it would be somewhat like a Les paul only 30% heavier and a whole mess darker, and probably muddy without some major tone tweakage in the amp.

[Mattia]

Back to the original question: might want to ask Dave Myka what he thinks rosewood neck/mahogany on maple top guitars sound like. He's built several, IIRC.

[Myka Guitars]

I have built a few of these type guitars. The maple top/mahogany back combo is pretty tried and true. You will get close to an LP that way (or a PRS depending on perspective). So I think the question is about the rosewood necks. In my experience with rosewood is that you get more of a focused higher mids and high end. With the harder rosewoods like cocobolo and bolivian you get some seriously tight low end, no mud at all (les than a standard LP actually). Indian rosewood can sound more dark than the other types but not as much as a mahogany neck.

If your guitar is sounding muddy it is an issue of the guitar's everall response, resonance, and attack and not the neck wood. Muddiness comes down to guitar design in my experience. If you don't want mud but aren't sure how your parts are supposed to 'sound' before you assemble them then go with a double cutaway. They are notoriously clear and articulate (think Leslie West, LPjr all the way).

Wes is right. Pickups have little to do with it. You can't save a dead guitar but you certainly don't have to build one either. That is a matter of design choice. And that comes from experience. The best thing to do here is build that guitar and hear ir for yourself. That would answer all the questions for you

[mullmuzzler]

Yes, the guitar wiil be double cutaway style (strat, but with sharper edges). Another wood combination in mind is a solid koa body, or koa topped mahogany body (either of them with pau ferro neck and fretboard). I'm really into this wood choice for neck, cause I realy like Suhr Reb Beach model. What do you think of koa (in general and in this combo, particulary)?

mullmuzzler | OSSMT