Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

[darkshadow54321]

That was the first question...

Second question is what woods should I use with it? It's gonna be a musicman pickup for sure, but neck woods I'm not sure about... anything except a maple fretboard!!! Don't like those.

I play hard rock/metal and I want a great punchy, articulate defined sound.

Gracias.

 

[kill your scene]

Re: Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

Mahogany bodied basses sound really good, if you're looking for dark, warm, low end and punchy mids. Gibson Thunderbirds and EB's are mahogany bodied basses, just to give you an idea.

Personally, I'm not a fan of Gibsons because I find they are a bit too muddy. If you like solid low end and a nice amount of articulation, you might want to go with the traditional bass body wood - alder. Alder is a great all-arounder and my personal favorite.

As for necks, maple are most common. Maple fretboards don't look so great, IMO, and they add a very bright sound. You should probably go with rosewood for a bit more warmth or ebony if you want a cutting tone that looks especially cool and unique.

 

[darkshadow54321]

Re: Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

Ernie Balls are mahogany bodied? It just says 'select hardwoods' on their site.... or does EB stand for something else?

 

[LesStrat]

Re: Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

"Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?"
This one does:

ESP LTD B304

 

[kill your scene]

Re: Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

Sorry, I should have clarified. When I said "EB", I didn't mean Ernie Ball/Music Man.

EB/MM basses (ala the Sting Ray) are made of poplar (as far as I know).

I meant EB as in Gibson EB basses. They're a variation of the famous "SG" guitar....

Gibson EB. A mahogany bass.

Gibson Thunderbird. Also a mahogany bass.

See my previous post for my opinion on bass body woods. Good luck!

 

[drew_half_empty]

Re: Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

that sg bass is hideous

 

[kill your scene]

Re: Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

/\/\/\ Thanks for the insight.

 

[danglybanger]

Re: Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

Gibson basses are a bit unconventional and they look that way. They were designed before there were any real standards an electric bass would follow, and clearly fender's style of bass won out over gibson's. That said I like the way my EB-0 looked and sounded.

...until crappy epiphone construction caused it to fall apart! :smack: oh well... listen to some cream to get the vibe of the gibson EB... deeper and muddier than most conventional basses, short scale too so the sound is plunky. But Jack Bruce makes it sound just fine!
dan

 

[StratTom]

Re: Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

If I ever play bass in a band I will totally rock a Gibson Thunderbird cause I think they look cool :laugh2:

 

[y2stevo]

Re: Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

that sg bass is hideous

Ditto X10

 

[darkshadow54321]

Re: Would a mahogany bodied bass sound good?

Yup, SG bass is very yucky.