Body woods..

[guitarrich]

Hi again, I know this has been asked many times; but I cant find an answer. I'm considering buying a new ASAT, classic or special.. What special sound qualities & character (if any) does swamp ash give to a solid body guitar ? I own both a Fender alder tele, and a regular 'heavy ash' tele.and both sound fine to me.. Would I be happy with swamp ash ? or notice a large contrast in sound? I also understand it is lighter in weight. If I were confortable with either wood, s.ash/ alder; it would give me more options to choose from.. natural / premier finish etc.. (dont have many dealers around,so I may have to order one ) . Thanks for your advice on this topic.. Rich

[jonc]

i personally don't find a huge difference while others think one had more mids (alder) and the other a bit more "on top" (swamp ash). i'm sure others with better ears will chime in. in the meantime these links might help:

http://www.andertons.co.uk/content/elec ... wood-guide

http://www.ratcliffe.co.za/articles/bodywoods.shtml

http://www.edroman.com/customshop/wood/main.htm

[guitar_ed]

To take this in another direction, alder is generally not considered an attractive wood. Poor gain and color anomalies. It's usually less expensive than ash. Ash has better grain and more consistent color.

As a result, alder is normally used for solid finishes, ash for transparent finishes.

Hope this helps.

edg

[suave eddie]

I also understand it is lighter in weight.

This is not necessarily true. All wood species vary greatly from one piece to the next relative to weight, hardness etc.

I'm sure there are many who disagree with me, but I believe that out of the myriad factors that contribute to a solid body electric guitar's "voice", the type of wood is the least influential.

Get the type of wood and finish that look the best to you and will create desire for you to play it.

As stated in the above post, if you choose a transparent finish that allows the grain to show, go for the ash.

[Elwood]

... I believe that out of the myriad factors that contribute to a solid body electric guitar's "voice", the type of wood is the least influential.

I'd guess the better the coupling of the string vibrations to the body, the more influence the body wood
will have on the final timbres. I'd bet that a Saddle Lock bridge transfers vibrations to the body wood (and pickup
chassis' , especially if body mounted ) more than a Dual Fulcrum bridge. If you set up a DF so that it is decked in the rear,
you can hear the body come into play once the bridge plate makes contact.

Neck through construction decouples the body (well at least the wings) more than bolt-on or glued neck guitars.
So it really depends on what kind of animal your talking about and how it's set up, (and how many pedals are
on the floor ).

[Xochitl]

I have two strats at home: one alder Fender and the other a swamp ash G&L, both with rosewood fretboards. In my little experience, I hear a difference and to my ears alder has indeed more mids whereas mids are scooped in swamp ash. To simplify (as they have different bridges and pick-ups), if I want to hear more attack on the notes, I go for the swamp ash one; if I prefer a warmer, rounder (it's all relative) sound, I go for the alder one.