Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
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J Moose
New member
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
Poplar is kinda like the poor man's alder & they're pretty similar. Depending on the make up of the two bodies...quality & resonance of the wood, thickness of the finish, how they couple with the neck, etc. you might not notice a huge difference in tone. Then again...it might be drastic, you never know until you bolt 'em all together. I'd rather spring for a higher quality swamp-ash or alder body from Warmoth or whoever.
Poplar is kinda like the poor man's alder & they're pretty similar. Depending on the make up of the two bodies...quality & resonance of the wood, thickness of the finish, how they couple with the neck, etc. you might not notice a huge difference in tone. Then again...it might be drastic, you never know until you bolt 'em all together. I'd rather spring for a higher quality swamp-ash or alder body from Warmoth or whoever.
J Moose
New member
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
You'd have to strip off the paint & primer and get down to the bare wood. Poplar has a slightly "green" tint while alder is more "brown". Grain lines can go either way...I've seen good & poorly grained versions of each.
Really man, there's bigger stuff to tackle on Mexicasters. Pickups & better hardware will make a bigger difference then swapping a Mexi poplar body for a Mexi alder body. YMMV, but I see it as a diminishing return.
You'd have to strip off the paint & primer and get down to the bare wood. Poplar has a slightly "green" tint while alder is more "brown". Grain lines can go either way...I've seen good & poorly grained versions of each.
Really man, there's bigger stuff to tackle on Mexicasters. Pickups & better hardware will make a bigger difference then swapping a Mexi poplar body for a Mexi alder body. YMMV, but I see it as a diminishing return.
Telesexual
New member
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
I think poplar is a bit heavier on average than alder. This is probably not going to work in all cases though.
I think poplar is a bit heavier on average than alder. This is probably not going to work in all cases though.
L
Lewguitar
Guest
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
Poplar is a little lighter than alder. It's a fairly soft and very resonant hardwood. It's a great wood tone wise although screwholes get stripped fairly easily if you take your guitar apart alot to experiment with pickup changes and the like.
I don't hear it as having any kind of midrange spike at all...if anything it's a little less edgey than some heavier pieces of alder...IMO.
When Gerald Weber was trying to find woods to make his amp cabinets out of he found that the only two woods that sounded better to him than old pine were poplar and canary wood.
Poplar is not a very pretty wood...but it sounds very nice.
Lew
Poplar is a little lighter than alder. It's a fairly soft and very resonant hardwood. It's a great wood tone wise although screwholes get stripped fairly easily if you take your guitar apart alot to experiment with pickup changes and the like.
I don't hear it as having any kind of midrange spike at all...if anything it's a little less edgey than some heavier pieces of alder...IMO.
When Gerald Weber was trying to find woods to make his amp cabinets out of he found that the only two woods that sounded better to him than old pine were poplar and canary wood.
Poplar is not a very pretty wood...but it sounds very nice.
Lew
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Earwicker
New member
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
Depends on the quality of the wood - a good poplar body is better than a crap Alder. I looked at the Alder MIM spec on Fender's website a few weeks ago, and it did not inspire confidence. It seems they make the body out of about 7 small pieces of Alder (probably off-cuts from the MIAs!) and, in times of shortage, resort to "Alder cores" surrounded by God-knows-what. So it's Alder, Jim, but not as we know it! The word "Alder" looks good on the spec, but if you read the small-print...
So you'll probably get a better tone out of a really good poplar or basswood strat at that price than a bodged-up Alder job.
EW
Depends on the quality of the wood - a good poplar body is better than a crap Alder. I looked at the Alder MIM spec on Fender's website a few weeks ago, and it did not inspire confidence. It seems they make the body out of about 7 small pieces of Alder (probably off-cuts from the MIAs!) and, in times of shortage, resort to "Alder cores" surrounded by God-knows-what. So it's Alder, Jim, but not as we know it! The word "Alder" looks good on the spec, but if you read the small-print...
So you'll probably get a better tone out of a really good poplar or basswood strat at that price than a bodged-up Alder job.
EW
Earwicker
New member
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
... just to follow up, this is copied and pasted from Fender UK's website, comparing the USA and MIM strat body specs:
Standard Series (Mexico)
Body: 5 to 7-piece alder with maple or birch veneer. Sunburst models have maple veneer Note: due to periodic material availability issues, alder cores are sometimes used
American Series (U.S)
Body: Current specs: 3-piece alder for solid colours and 3-tone sunburst. White blonde and natural are 2 or 3-piece ash (Non-Veneered)
EW
... just to follow up, this is copied and pasted from Fender UK's website, comparing the USA and MIM strat body specs:
Standard Series (Mexico)
Body: 5 to 7-piece alder with maple or birch veneer. Sunburst models have maple veneer Note: due to periodic material availability issues, alder cores are sometimes used
American Series (U.S)
Body: Current specs: 3-piece alder for solid colours and 3-tone sunburst. White blonde and natural are 2 or 3-piece ash (Non-Veneered)
EW
ratherdashing
Kablamminator
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
This is correct. Poplar can be quite soft. My 95 MIM Strat's strap buttons fell out several times. I wound up buying a clip-on strap and screwing that mofo in there with 1.5" wood screws.
Also, the most reliable way to determine alder or poplar is the year of production. MIM's prior to approx. 2000 were poplar. Around this time, poplar and alder wood started to even out in terms of materials cost, so Fender switched the MIM's to alder since it would cost them the same anyway.
Lewguitar said:
This is correct. Poplar can be quite soft. My 95 MIM Strat's strap buttons fell out several times. I wound up buying a clip-on strap and screwing that mofo in there with 1.5" wood screws.
Also, the most reliable way to determine alder or poplar is the year of production. MIM's prior to approx. 2000 were poplar. Around this time, poplar and alder wood started to even out in terms of materials cost, so Fender switched the MIM's to alder since it would cost them the same anyway.
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JacksonMIA
Lemur-buckerologist
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
I guess I got the best of both worlds, so to speak, with my Predator. It's a poplar body with alder veneers. Tonally, I think it's a fair compromise. It's a well built body and probably good pieces of poplar.
I guess I got the best of both worlds, so to speak, with my Predator. It's a poplar body with alder veneers. Tonally, I think it's a fair compromise. It's a well built body and probably good pieces of poplar.
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
I have 3 MIM strats made from poplar.... at least they said it's poplar..... there is a huge weight difference between the 3 bodies... the lightest one i hate... the heaviest one is OK but the one i think is in the middle, sounds great!!!!! I also have a 99 MIM Tele Standard that i think should be poplar.... It is pretty heavy in weight, and sounds amazing!!!!
I like poplar but i prefer real quality Alder.... that being said my 88 USA Strat has at least 4 glue lines you can see in the finnish... so it was made up of small pieces... but it sounds the best out of all the Fenders i have!!! Amazing sound and really thick with teh JB in it!!!!
I have 3 MIM strats made from poplar.... at least they said it's poplar..... there is a huge weight difference between the 3 bodies... the lightest one i hate... the heaviest one is OK but the one i think is in the middle, sounds great!!!!! I also have a 99 MIM Tele Standard that i think should be poplar.... It is pretty heavy in weight, and sounds amazing!!!!
I like poplar but i prefer real quality Alder.... that being said my 88 USA Strat has at least 4 glue lines you can see in the finnish... so it was made up of small pieces... but it sounds the best out of all the Fenders i have!!! Amazing sound and really thick with teh JB in it!!!!
greendy123
New member
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
The strat I have has black colored wood I could see after I got the neck routed for a humbucker. Would you guys know what type of wood it is? I don't know if the wood is black colored because wood might have been burnt while routing or the luthier just finished it with something to seal the wood.
The strat I have has black colored wood I could see after I got the neck routed for a humbucker. Would you guys know what type of wood it is? I don't know if the wood is black colored because wood might have been burnt while routing or the luthier just finished it with something to seal the wood.
the guy who invented fire
Fuzzy. Guitars
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
As lots if guys have pointed out Poplar is a great low dollar wood...it's pretty light and sounds pretty nice. However, I have played 2 of the same model guitars with the same kinds of necks, hardware and pickups but one guitar had an alder body and the other was poplar...the poplar guitar sounded grea UNTIL I played the Alder one...IMO the alder was much much better over all...better lows, better highs stronger mids more articulate...over all it was just much better.
As lots if guys have pointed out Poplar is a great low dollar wood...it's pretty light and sounds pretty nice. However, I have played 2 of the same model guitars with the same kinds of necks, hardware and pickups but one guitar had an alder body and the other was poplar...the poplar guitar sounded grea UNTIL I played the Alder one...IMO the alder was much much better over all...better lows, better highs stronger mids more articulate...over all it was just much better.
L
Lewguitar
Guest
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
I think alder (a nice piece of alder!) is a more articulate wood than poplar and I'd rather have a guitar made from nice alder than poplar.
But I also think there are probably some poplar guitars that sound better than some boat anchor heavy or just dead sounding pieces of alder!
Lew
the guy who invented fire said:
I think alder (a nice piece of alder!) is a more articulate wood than poplar and I'd rather have a guitar made from nice alder than poplar.
But I also think there are probably some poplar guitars that sound better than some boat anchor heavy or just dead sounding pieces of alder!
Lew
tone?
New member
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
i have to agree with a post above that talked about MIM strats being made from a bunch of pieces of wood and veneer. on the other hand i dont think that there is a major rule for how to build a guitar because sometimes cheap ass guitars will have a certain mojo and sound good.
i would rather be on the safe side though and get a quality Warmoth or USACG piece of alder, one piece to be exact. the most i would stoop down to would be a two piece. Just my weirdness in this factor.
I personally think it is pathetic that the USA strats are made out of 3 pieces of wood especially for the price they go for. Just goes to show you how much they want to make that profit margin grow.
After putting together my USACG strat i dont think i will ever buy a bolt on guitar again. the cost/benifit is way out there. You can get some great pieces of wood from these guys and put the best hardware and in the end get a great guitar. and for a low price compared to these so called high end instruments.
i have to agree with a post above that talked about MIM strats being made from a bunch of pieces of wood and veneer. on the other hand i dont think that there is a major rule for how to build a guitar because sometimes cheap ass guitars will have a certain mojo and sound good.
i would rather be on the safe side though and get a quality Warmoth or USACG piece of alder, one piece to be exact. the most i would stoop down to would be a two piece. Just my weirdness in this factor.
I personally think it is pathetic that the USA strats are made out of 3 pieces of wood especially for the price they go for. Just goes to show you how much they want to make that profit margin grow.
After putting together my USACG strat i dont think i will ever buy a bolt on guitar again. the cost/benifit is way out there. You can get some great pieces of wood from these guys and put the best hardware and in the end get a great guitar. and for a low price compared to these so called high end instruments.
jerryjg
PinkElephantologist
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
I got a guitar body I dont know what the hell it is. Its a 3.2 lb. Warmoth body. Its either Basswood, Alder or Poplar. I called the people at Warmoth and they werent able to specify based on the info i provided.
Supposedly Basswood is whiter colored and can have green mineral streaks, and the wood grain may have a rougher texture than alder or Poplar. Basswood is lighter wieght generally than Alder or Poplar and has a mid heavey tone-profile, but lacks complexity.
Alder is smother in texture, and darker in color, and is balnaced in the frequency spectrum and can vary a bit as to weight, anywhere from over three pounds to just under 5 lbs.
Poplar ranges on the heavier side of Alder, and is slammed for having a lack of tone from waht little I know.I dont think it matters much if your playing at high gain with a lot of compression or distortion however.
I'd like to know what my body is made of, but will have to sell it as an Basswood body.
I got a guitar body I dont know what the hell it is. Its a 3.2 lb. Warmoth body. Its either Basswood, Alder or Poplar. I called the people at Warmoth and they werent able to specify based on the info i provided.
Supposedly Basswood is whiter colored and can have green mineral streaks, and the wood grain may have a rougher texture than alder or Poplar. Basswood is lighter wieght generally than Alder or Poplar and has a mid heavey tone-profile, but lacks complexity.
Alder is smother in texture, and darker in color, and is balnaced in the frequency spectrum and can vary a bit as to weight, anywhere from over three pounds to just under 5 lbs.
Poplar ranges on the heavier side of Alder, and is slammed for having a lack of tone from waht little I know.I dont think it matters much if your playing at high gain with a lot of compression or distortion however.
I'd like to know what my body is made of, but will have to sell it as an Basswood body.
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Dangerine49
New member
Re: Body wood: Poplar vs. Alder
From Warmoth:
Alder (Alnus rubra):
Alder is used extensively for bodies because of its lighter weight (about four pounds for a Strat® body) and its full sound. Its closed grain makes this wood easy to finish. Alder's natural color is a light tan with little or no distinct grain lines. It looks good with a sunburst or a solid color finish. Because of its fine characteristics and lower price, Alder is our most popular wood and it grows all around us here in Washington State. The tone is reputed to be most balanced with equal doses of lows, mids and highs. Alder has been the mainstay for Fender bodies for many years and its characteristic tone has been a part of some of the most enduring pieces of modern day contemporary music.
Tone-O-Meter™
Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera):
This is another standard body wood having been used by many companies over the years. Due to the grey/green color, this wood is used mostly when solid color finishes are to be applied. Its weight generally runs about one half pound more than Alder. Tonally, it is similar to Alder as well. Poplar is a closed grain wood that accepts finish well.
Tone-O-Meter™
FYI, Fender used poplar primarily for the MIM Standard line until about 2001, when the bulk price of alder consistently fell below that of poplar.
From Warmoth:
Alder (Alnus rubra):
Alder is used extensively for bodies because of its lighter weight (about four pounds for a Strat® body) and its full sound. Its closed grain makes this wood easy to finish. Alder's natural color is a light tan with little or no distinct grain lines. It looks good with a sunburst or a solid color finish. Because of its fine characteristics and lower price, Alder is our most popular wood and it grows all around us here in Washington State. The tone is reputed to be most balanced with equal doses of lows, mids and highs. Alder has been the mainstay for Fender bodies for many years and its characteristic tone has been a part of some of the most enduring pieces of modern day contemporary music.
Tone-O-Meter™
Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera):
This is another standard body wood having been used by many companies over the years. Due to the grey/green color, this wood is used mostly when solid color finishes are to be applied. Its weight generally runs about one half pound more than Alder. Tonally, it is similar to Alder as well. Poplar is a closed grain wood that accepts finish well.
Tone-O-Meter™
FYI, Fender used poplar primarily for the MIM Standard line until about 2001, when the bulk price of alder consistently fell below that of poplar.
