Help Pick A Wood For Me

[avengers63]

I have some DeArmond moustache pups that I'll be using next year. I need to match a body wood for them. From what I've read, these pups are bright and jangly, and I' dlike to emphasize that without getting thin and tinny. The body will be heavily chambered and will have a burled redwood cap. I'd really appreciate any & all suggestions for a wood to match both visually and sonically.

[Rick500]

Koa? Black limba?

[kpcrash]

I almost hate to say it... basswood? Actually, if you were going to chamber it heavily, why not use mahogany and take advantage of the sturdiness naturally provided (not to mention possibly smoothing out the "tiiny" stuff)

[Prostheta]

Perhaps controversial - go down the Danelectro route? Poowood.

[avengers63]

Poowood.

I'm thinking these pups deserve a bit more than that. My goal is to have a REALLY high end axe.

My initial thought was to use sapele. But... after doing that sound comparison last week for whatshisname, the sapele ended up peeling off a lot of the highs. I'm concerned about getting these (allegedly) bright pups muddied up. Mahogany would do that too.

[Geo]

Mahogany doesn't necessarily mean "dark." I built a guitar--mahogany body, underwound P-90's, maple top and neck--a VERY bright guitar with the volume full up, very warm with the volume rolled back.

Of course your redwood top won't keep things bright, but a maple neck would probably help.

Whatever you decide, if you still need more brightness, you can use 1M pots.

[Ripthorn]

Why not just use maple and get the reverse dark/light thing going on too? If you are worried about too much in the highs, you could use soft maple. I have a solid maple guitar and I don't think it is overly bright, even though it does have a tone that will cut through a mix like butter.

[avengers63]

My initial thought was to use sapele for the neck.

I was wondering about maple. Going with that thought, the aesthetics would pull me towards a nice piece of quilted maple, but I don't want the figuring to compete with the burl. Visually, plain maple could probably be stained/dyed really close to the sapele.

There will be a lot of ebony used as well. Specifically, a cap for the headstock, the fretboard, a pickguard, and various accents. I'm a touch concerned about having too many woods on the same piece.

Is bubinga warm or bright? The chambering would go a long way to counteract the weight, so I wouldn't be afraid to use it on what will be a thick guitar (over 2").

Edited November 6, 2008 by avengers63

[Geo]

My initial thought was to use sapele for the neck.

I think that would do just as much to the highs as a sapele body. The neck probably influences the tone more than the body, since there is more neck wood than body wood between the strings' anchor points... of course that changes with each fret... oh, this is so complicated.

My projection: a sapele body, maple neck, and bright pickup will equal a fairly bright guitar.

I haven't used bubinga so can't comment on that.

[erikbojerik]

This whole question is based on whether you want to emphasize the freq response of the pickups, or balance them.

Decide that, and you've automatically narrowed your choice of woods - select among them.

[guitar_player]

If your worried about mahogany making it sound too dark maybe walnut? from what i've heard it should fit what you need

[Daniel Sorbera]

Black limba would be a good choice, but then again everyone around here knows about my obsession with the stuff

Swamp ash would be a good choice too I think, nice a balanced with good midrange.

[avengers63]

This whole question is based on whether you want to emphasize the freq response of the pickups, or balance them.

Given those two choices, I would go with emphasize.

That being said, the thought of the looks of black walnut matched up with the redwood, ebony, and gold hardware would look absolutely stunning. Maybe a nice wavy clairo. It would blend with the sapele neck nicely as well.

What are the tonal characteristics of walnut?

[kpcrash]

walnut has a tonality that makes it great for bass as it "can" accentuate the lows and highs, but typically provides a nice warm mid. I didn't even think of that when reading this the first time.

[erikbojerik]

This whole question is based on whether you want to emphasize the freq response of the pickups, or balance them.

Given those two choices, I would go with emphasize.

That being said, the thought of the looks of black walnut matched up with the redwood, ebony, and gold hardware would look absolutely stunning. Maybe a nice wavy clairo. It would blend with the sapele neck nicely as well.

What are the tonal characteristics of walnut?

To my ear, walnut is like mahogany but with more teeth.

Sharp teeth, not molars...

[onyonk]

I have some DeArmond moustache pups that I'll be using next year. I need to match a body wood for them. From what I've read, these pups are bright and jangly, and I' dlike to emphasize that without getting thin and tinny. The body will be heavily chambered and will have a burled redwood cap. I'd really appreciate any & all suggestions for a wood to match both visually and sonically.

I Think ebony is the best for fretboard, neck, top body, trusrod and back cover, and knobs like this: