Personally my take would be the ceramic warpig bridge and a coldsweat neck. But I live with the easier denting cause they are such damn good guitars. Since the 1980’s, basswood gained popularity and for a time was probably the most used wood for locking tremolo guitars and paired with maple necks because of how well they cut through the mix. As veneer, it can underlie fine cabinet woods in plywood. Basswood is actually not too bad. Companies who mass produce  guitars tend to use basswood, so this evidently alters the perception of basswood in the industry. This is something that holds true for most tonewoods, but especially basswood. If you compare the weight of less expensive guitars to more high-end models made of basswood, you will find that most high-end guitars weigh less and normally sound better. Though basswood may sometimes be less expensive to purchase out in the wild, this does not mean that the tone of the instrument will be worse. Basswood also can become drawer stock, hidden furniture parts, and painted items. If yes to all of the above: Don't worry about the kind of wood or how many pieces. In fact, in many cases it’s exactly what a player is looking for. It’s a common wood, used for guitar and bass bodies in a variety of styles, usually in low-end to mid-range instruments. I have played both and own a basswood-body Suhr Modern. It even makes fine turning wood. Depending on which Majesty you’re referring to in John Petrucci’s signature collection, it may have basswood and it may not. Sound-wise, Basswood has a nice, growley, warm tone with good mids. We also offer basswood in some of our bass instruments. The basswood body features a high-gloss, durable finish with stylish lines and an ergonomic scooped arm contour. 39 inch Full Size Classical Guitar Beginner Guitar Nylon Strings for Adults Mens. There are some expensive guitars that use basswood, such as the Ernie Ball Music Man Axis (formerly the EVH model), which uses basswood with a maple top. Structurally sound? The Bongo bass collection features a double cutaway basswood body, made with superior construction. Basswood is a colorless wood which is very easy to work with. But even then, some pieces of mahogany can be pretty light. Extra light weight woods, while a great complement for a bad back, can sound indistinct or muddy especially with humbucking pickups. It's actually quite nice because it's light, easy to grow and easy to machine. It will break. $65.99. At Ernie Ball Music Man we have sourced and produced dozens of prototypes and the basswood prevailed for specific instruments with its ideal weight and tonal qualities. Fender used ash for electric guitar and bass bodies more or less exclusively from 1950 to mid-1956, and to the present continues to use ash on a relatively small number of instruments. $42.79. Leave the tonewood debate to the corksniffers. Some also suggest it is popular as it is local to Indonesian manufacturers, so it allows them to save on freight costs for other woods. Basswood sounds excellent acoustically, but the wood of an electric guitar doesn’t affect its sound much, if at all because of this, mixed with the fact that basswood guitars damage too easily, they aren’t great options for electric guitars. The wood is too soft. The Ernie Ball Music Man Axis guitar is made of a lightweight basswood body and features a quilt or flame book matched maple top. No, it’s a very good material for building electric guitars and basses and has been and still is used by many top builders. The Ernie Ball Music Man JP6 guitar is made completely out of basswood. level 2 Gold Supporters see zero ads! The sound is complex with more frequencies represented. This is not always a bad thing. Basswood is very light weight and produces a fairly even and full to mid-range response throughout the entire band width. For a solid color guitar it is one of the better woods. I've owned a few bass guitars in the past that has basswood bodies and they all sound pretty decent. Ideal for loud high gain tones [when used as body material]. American basswood is derived from the northernmost to the southernmost portions of the eastern United States and as far west as North Dakota. It is native to Europe, Asia and North America. Doing that, your basswood guitar can last many, many years. I have to say that guitar sounded good, but lacked some of the subtle character I … Basswood: the principal wood used on many Japanese made instruments. Looks good? I have nothing bad to say about basswood other than the grain is pretty nondescript for trans or natural finishes. ... Basswood … Comfortable weight? It comes down to what you prefer to work with but in my own experience, it's not a bad idea to stick with water based grain filler as it's less messy and dries quickly. Basswood is a very full-bodied sounding tonewood, and it especially makes sense for us to utilize it when adding elements like maple tops to give the instrument the overall package for more cut and brightness. It is a very light and fairly soft … In industry, it plays a role as boxes and food containers. My first scratch build was basswood as my boss (John Carruthers) told me it was the best (I had planned to make a body of 1 piece, solid maple!). Even the high end, signature Steve Vai Jem models are basswood and apparently Vai is an OK guitar player from what I hear. Our design team prefers to use grain heavy wood to accentuate the look and sound of the instruments, but not all tone woods have such a nice aesthetic, basswood being one of them. Basswood. 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We also share information about your use of our site with our trusted social media, advertising, and analytics partners. Poplar - also a lightweight wood which … Basswood has been used in many high-end guitars for decades and is considered a great tone wood for instruments throughout the industry. the bass sounds totally awesome. Basswood is far from a low quality wood if a good batch of it is used. Warning: tough image for Rick lovers. For Sale: Bass Guitar Strings and Accessories, The TB Bazaar: Gear For Sale from our Sponsors, For Sale: Double Bass Amps, Strings & Accessories, Wanted: Bass Guitars, Amps, and Accessories, Wanted: Double Basses, Amps & Accessories, (You must log in or sign up to reply here.). Basswood is also one of the most suitable wood species for hand carving in our factory. The wood on any one guitar could be different for the top (soundboard) of the body, back and sides of the body, the neck, the fretboard, bracing, the bridge & the headstock. You want a fat, tight bone crushing rhythm? I've definitely tried a lot of humbuckers in my basswood guitar over the years even though mine was rosewood FB. Want to learn more about tone woods? Because basswood is inexpensive and plentiful. Basswood is typically a much lighter wood than mahogany, so a maple-neck basswood-body guitar will usually be a pound or two lighter than a mahogany-neck mahogany-body guitar. When used in guitar production linden wood is usually referred to as basswood. Find out more about the Axis guitar here. We use technologies, such as cookies, to customize content and advertising, to provide social media features and to analyze traffic to the site. TalkBass utilizes technology from Skimlinks that may give us a small affiliate commission on purchases made via links on our site. The sound is smooth, without many sharp edges. Medium weight woods fall in the middle and are the traditional preference. A lot of controversy surrounding basswood stems from the fact that it varies in quality. Thank you for your support! Basswood was a VERY popular body in the 80's when I started out. If the Majesty does have basswood it will also have a maple shield and/or top and each Majesty guitar offers mahogany through the neck of the instrument. I have to say that my basswood partscaster has very very nice acoustic/resonant qualities ... sounds great through an amp ... and weighs under 7 pounds. Here’s an excerpt from ‘Wired Guitarist” on basswood: Basswood - Does it Suck? Many, many manufacturers make guitar bodies with Agathis, as it is a cheap but sturdy wood (some say not unlike basswood – more about that later). This will yield a tone with balanced highs, mids and lows, which means this wood combination is a great clean slate to make your own tone. One step brighter than Flatwounds for recording, Compressor comparison (with sound samples). That's probably the biggest objective difference. We choose lightweight cuts of basswood because they tend to sound much better than the heavier ones. Basswood generally has very good sustain, as … Basswood’s pale white to light brown color is mostly uniform throughout the face grain of the wood, and knots and other abnormalities are very uncommon. Basswood is one of the most frequently talked about tonewoods out there and there are many factors that go into the choice of wood for our instruments here at Ernie Ball Music Man. Find out more about the Majesty guitar offerings here. Mainly because it’s such a common wood material used for guitar body building these days. Toward the end of the late 80’s, a few other types of tonewoods were mistakingly thought to be basswood which lead to a decline in basswood’s popularity. If you compare the weight of less expensive guitars to more high-end models made of basswood, you will find that most high-end guitars weigh less and normally sound better. It is, however, a matter of significant disagreement among guitarists. $42.99. Here at Ernie Ball Music Man, we ensure the best quality basswood and instill the highest level of craftsmanship for our instruments. Otherwise, if a hard finish is applied, basswood is very usable, resonant, and not that prone to denting.