Does wood make a difference?

[DreX]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

This whole response from you is just a backhanded insult to everyone who has stated their opinion in the form of preferring what their "gut level" or ears tell them on the subject. I feel like these are the kinds of posts that leave people with a sour taste in their mouth from you.

I share 'gut level' opinions all the time, the difference is that I don't pretend they're of a higher value than technically precise ones.

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

I share 'gut level' opinions all the time, the difference is that I don't pretend they're of a higher value than technically precise ones.

No, but you do seem to hold you own opinions in the highest regard in a lot of cases; to the point where all other opinions on the subject are irrelevant to you. A prime example is your stance on MIA vs import guitars.

 

[DreX]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

Someone has told the forum admins that I have "insulted" them. I apologize if you've felt personally insulted. I'm done with this thread.

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

So, going back to the original post...

We've all heard two different guitars built to the same spec with the same everything somehow sound different.

This means something in all those sames isn't exactly the same. If you list all the components of an electric guitar, the vast majority are mass produced. Assuming we're talking about a quality instrument, the mass produced components will have tight tolerances, meaning they should behave similarly from one to the next.

Several of those components, however, are made from organic materials and would seem to be the most likely culprits in the two "identical" guitars not sounding the same.

I've done no experimentation, but all that leaves me to believe different wood can sound different.

I've found this to be true for both acoustics and electrics, for country of origin, for exact same models, etc. which is why I say trust your ears.

I can hear a difference in wood and think "general" terms are good to describe them.

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

I share 'gut level' opinions all the time, the difference is that I don't pretend they're of a higher value than technically precise ones.

That is completely your opinion–you are entitled to yours like we are entitled to ours.

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

Someone has told the forum admins that I have "insulted" them. I apologize if you've felt personally insulted. I'm done with this thread.

Does this ring a bell:

It's flippant to say that such responses are just an "opinion", it's textbook anti-intellectualism. If someone asks a technical question, it's plainly obvious that they are curious about how the guitar works. They didn't ask "does my guitar sound good?" or "how should I feel about my guitar?". To suggest that a technical curiosity, or any other pursuit of of knowledge is invalid, and/or that only "gut level" judgements matter, is insulting and intimidating. Interest and curiosity is a core aspect of a person's character, so what you're really saying when you question the validity of a curiosity, is that the person his or her self, is invalid.

 

[GoldenVulture]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

Because in such cases, they have nothing to contribute to a thread such as this. The question is, plainly, "does the wood effect the amplified tone?", and responses such as "why do you care so long as it sounds good?" are not answers to the question, and yet they are ubiquitous replies in all manner of guitar forum threads that ask technical questions in search of technical answers.

Well the question was not as specific and you've not given a specific answer either.

I think the structure of the guitar is more influentual in that case. I have a 'tone wood' test rig nearly completed, its been more work than I anticipated.

- https://forum.seymourduncan.com/sho...a-difference&p=3794439&viewfull=1#post3794439 -
From this point on you've blathered on about testing and turned this into a multipage hijack like you continually do to threads here. You haven't given a relevant answer to the OP at all, just perpetrated D rex.

 

[Funkfingers]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

Record straightening time.

... the last thing you need are internet morons starting false rumors about you. Yes, I called you a moron.

25th March, 2015.

I still have a copy in my PM Inbox. I have lodged copies elsewhere.

 

[AlexR]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

OH I HAVE QUESTIONS. We don't know exactly know how the difference pieces of wood will relate to each other. Sure you might have a "bad" piece of wood, whatever we define "bad" as meaning, but suppose you have six piece body, it's only, say, 1/6th "bad" wood, so is the sound 1/6th "bad" in turn, or does that bad section of wood inflict it's "bad" characteristics on it's "good" wood neighbors by virtue of association and proximity? Or maybe it's the reverse, maybe the presence of good wood negates the contribution of the bad wood. If you have a two piece body, and one of those two halves are "bad", that 50% "bad" wood, and assuming they're book matched, possibly 100% bad wood. Couldn't the laminate body then be seen as "hedging one's bets"? What if each smaller piece of wood imparts it's own character, might a body made of many woods be said to have a lot of "character"?

Laminates wouldn't really then improve things if you are after the tone of the wood, especially as the bits get thinner. The idea of the laminate is to remove the nature of the wood and impart more of the nature of the bonding agent.

And I'm not talking bad necessarily, but incompatible with every other bit - bad for the whole might cover it better. Where they cancel out or dampen each other's natural vibrancy.
Like when you're in a room and there's one note just falls flat/dead.
Like when you're on the trampoline with others and there's that one bounce when your mate has just bounced at that right interval to suck all the energy from yours.
......another similar experience is a suspension bridge where the waves of your walking are out of time with everyone elses energy input and sucks all your walking force out.

These energy waves are what happens in the structure/pores of wood.

Incompatible is incompatible......its not 1/6 compatible or whatever example you choose to give it.

 

[beaubrummels]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

I'll just say this - your experiment is going to be a waste of time. It will tell you exactly what *those* pieces of wood sound like.

There are still going to be anomalies that can sound better or worse. Hence the term "generally" when used to describe tone woods.

+1 this

 

[beaubrummels]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

does the type of wood the body is made of make a difference when selecting a pickup?

Usually, when buying replacement pickups it's to do one of two things: 1) make it sound just like it used to, or 2) make it sound different than it used to. Controlling which way it goes requires knowing what the guitar sounded like before and knowing what each element imparted to that sound - as well as knowing what the replacement parts will impart to the sound in order to select the right replacement parts. I would say, yes, all of it makes a difference. The degree of difference you have to work out with your particular guitar through your particular amp in the particular room(s) where you play to figure it out, though. Because something that I can hear clearly may be partly because of the room where I am playing allows me to hear it, while you could be in a situation where the room absorbs or masks it. So it will make a difference, but the Internet can't answer how much for you.

...I wonder if it'll be a waste putting them in a guitar that cost less then the pickups will.

Loaded question to a degree. I bought a 1966 Fender Stratocaster for $450 and have installed a little over half as much in electronics over the last 10 years and it's my best sounding Fender. I also bought a $200-300 MIM Strat for some spare parts once and put almost as much in Duncans and wiring in it, and it became a reasonable backup for my other Strats after that. (The main reasons it's not an equal is it doesn't play or stay in tune for long - only certain songs, scales and chords work on it.) So cost isn't the only answer. Deals can be had on money gear to bring down the cost, and conversely sometimes throwing a little money into a sleeper has you walking away with a keeper.

 

[Chickenwings]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

 

[Fantom]

Re: Does wood make a difference?

that's the best looking mahogany back, maple top shovel I've ever seen. this cool video really sums it up.