Guitar Body Woods

T

The Don

New member
I'm going to be ordering a custom-made guitar at some point within the next year or so and I want to sort out what I want now to save me time (and even more frusturation!) later on.

So what are the basic body woods and their tonal properties?

You know... Ash, Alder, Mahogany, etc.

All I really know is that a Mahogany/Maple Les Paul sounds a lot "bigger" and plain LOUDER than an Alder Stratocaster. This may lie in the construction of the guitar itself (bolt-on vs. set neck/neck thru) but I'm betting that the wood itself and the size/weight of the guitar has a much more significant effect on tone. My Strat has high output humbuckers in it and it cannot compete with my Les Paul in terms of volume and "thickness", period. But I still play the Strat more due to the comfort and playability of the neck.

So I'm aiming to get Les Paul-like "muscle" from a bolt-on, maple neck guitar, can it be done? With a different body wood than Alder and a tight neck joint I don't see why I can't get into its territory. Essentially I want a beefed up Satriani / Lynch lead tone with rock solid rhythm. Something solid, punchy, and able to go toe-to-toe with my Les Paul Custom!

Also, what's the deal with lesser-known (and rather expensive) woods such as Koa or Korina? What kind of tone can I expect from those woods? Ordering from a company such as USA Custom Guitars or Warmoth, what's the best choice in woods for what I am looking for?

And on a side note, plain and simple, which is the better guitar shop?
 
Re: Guitar Body Woods

IMO set/bolt neck doesn't have much influence in sound. With a tight neck pocket you achieve the same sustain. Maybe the smaller (missing tenon) and thinner neck/body-transition causes a bit less body in tone.
Just my 2 cent
 
Re: Guitar Body Woods

Thanks guys...

One question that still remains though... what about woods such as Korina or Koa - what kind of tone could I expect?
 
Re: Guitar Body Woods

Koa will deliver a tone similar to maple, though with more mids.

USA vs. Warmoth-can't say. It seems like both have great options and I know there are a few folks here who praise both. An essentially customized guitar for around 900 and up is pretty competitive vs. a MIA Fender.
 
Re: Guitar Body Woods

here's a link to Warmoth's wood descriptions:
wood descriptions

I'd suggest being a little conservative for your first build - don't go crazy with exotic materials, but rather stick to more tried and true wood combinations, or combinations that you are sure will give you the tone you want
 
Re: Guitar Body Woods

I'm really tempted to build a guitar out of korina (more acurately, have Warmoth build me a body out of korina), but the info I've gathered on the net is thin. It varies from "it sounds just like mahogany" (with a few people confusing it and calling it African mahogany, which it isn't) to "it sounds a lot like mahogany, but with a slighlty expanded upper range".

I have 2 Warmoth guitars, one of which has LP specs (24.75 mahogany neck, mahogany body with thick maple cap), except for the shape, and a mahogany strat with a maple neck and rosewood fingerboard. They're not as easy to compare, as the the strat is chambered and has a Floyd Rose. Assuming that the Floyd sucks out some lows, I would imagine that a mahogany strat with a maple neck would get close.

The difference would be no maple top, but that might not be a bad thing, as LP's can sometime be a little bright. The maple neck brings back some of that, but because the bridge is mounted directly to mahogany on the strat, it's not as bright as the Warmoth VIP, which has the bridge directly mounted to the thick maple top. The maple neck and Fender lenght will give you greater attack and spank, compared to the shorter maple neck, which cause notes to bloom.

...must get to sleep...

BTW: saw a guy playing a rare korina SG with the singer from The Black Crows on Letterman last night. Sounded good.
 
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Re: Guitar Body Woods

I think Bill Cook at Warmoth might have a korina strat - you might try asking him about it.
actually I've loved the look of koa for years - it's been used for a while for instrument wood - Taylor for instance has some beautiful koa instruments
 
Re: Guitar Body Woods

Koa is a GREAT sounding wood. I built a warmoth for a friend out of a Koa neck and
body. It is Very resonant. Maple is bright, I would not call koa bright. I think it is very balanced and maybe a little bit on the warm side. It has a sweetness to the tone.
 
Re: Guitar Body Woods

Think of Korina as very high quality mahogany. Nice and light, and therefore warm and complex sounding. Excellent wood.
 
Re: Guitar Body Woods

I know the woods I like... mahogany and maple.... and if korina is super mahogany, then I like it too! My issue is where to put everything!

Assuming it's a warmoth les paul, then I think I'd go with a korina back, maple cap, mahogany neck, and ebony fretboard.

But with a maple neck? A korina back and cap instead of maple top and a rosewood board instead of an ebony one maybe?

The gibson studio ash sounds way better than their other studio models in side by side comparisons I've done in stores, but I'm convinced that the thin finish is a big factor. I prefer ash and mahogany to alder by far, I think mahogany is in one direction and ash is in the other. Alder is just mediocre between the two.
 
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