Does Wood Make A Difference and Why

[metalhead384]

weight does make a difference when playing live as in your not gonna wanna strap a guitar that ways say 12 pounds on for a 1-2 hour show. You could get some back problems.

[Fran]

Yeah, but basswood is shit, you know.

[Ankhanu]

There ARE spectrogram differences... but, to the ear, they're exceptionally minute to absent. If there's a difference, but it's undetectable to human perception, does it matter?

Does the wood affect things like sustain? Yeah, somewhat, but again, it's minor in an electric instrument. The resonant vibration in the wood translates in different degrees of energy transfer/decay in the string vibration (and even a tiny, tiny bit in vibrating the pickup mounted to the body)... but, again, it's barely perceptible and completely superseded by things like construction methods, bridge/nut style, etc.



As others have mentioned, it matters in an acoustic instrument, as it is the wood itself that provides the majority of the actual sound, and how the wood vibrates dictates the sound of the instrument... but an electric instrument is largely a different story, and the electric circuit is what makes the difference (this includes effects and amp as part of the instrument).

[Nick]

Your amplified tone might not be coming straight from the wood, but there's no denying that the wood a guitar is made out of can make it feel either dead or alive in your hands, heavy or light, etc. To me interacting with the instrument has as more to do with the sound than anything, so it's important that a guitar feels quality and it reacts to my playing in a way I like.

Either way, I don't think about wood when I buy a guitar. I just play it, and if I like it then who cares what it's made out of? It does play a factor though, but like others have said there's usually more than just the wood difference between guitars, so it's impossible for me to have a preference.

[dezb1]

My melody maker (mahogany body/neck) is far louder and more resonant unplugged than my highway 1 Tele (alder body/maple neck), but plugged in bridge pickup selected on the Tele you wouldn't hear the difference... but the feel of them both make you play in very different ways.

[rps-10]

Electric Guitar Wood Myth Busted?
LIKN

[Dogma Hollow]

Electric Guitar Wood Myth Busted?
LIKN

Very interesting, thanks for posting that.

[Gabriel]

Nothing makes as big a difference as the player and his/her technique. But you can't sell that shit, so it's ignored.

This more than anything.

But regards to tone from wood, in an electric IMO it makes no difference whatsoever as long as the material is resonant and a comfortable weight.

In an acoustic the type of wood shapes the entire sound of the instrument.

[Hurb]

Electric Guitar Wood Myth Busted?
LIKN

Very interesting, thanks for posting that.

Agreed the video at the end was great too, I like that guy!

[Thomas]

When you're plugged in I think the wood makes a difference as far as the weight and how hard wearing the wood is. I had an old basswood Jag that would get a dent if you looked at it wrong. The '61 Jazz body I use is very resonant and was noticeably lighter than the Japanese one I had. It also takes a knock far better.

If I'm buying a new guitar and they have more than one of them in I'll always A/B them and if the build quality is basically the same I always go for the one that sounds best unplugged, tho as previously stated the difference could be more down to the actual construction, thickness of the paint, how many pieces the body is made out of or any combination of these.

[Josh]

Nothing makes as big a difference as the player and his/her technique. But you can't sell that shit, so it's ignored.

this.
i think it's more than just what the body's made out of though, the pickups, scale length, bridge, routes, what the fingerboard's made of, it all has to be taken into account. not just what kind wood the body's cut out of.

[paul_]

The wood in the neck absolutely makes a difference, and the style of bridge the guitar has makes a difference. Whether the neck is one-piece maple or has a separate laminated fingerboard wood (even if it is also maple) makes a difference.

Assuming those two parts are always the same on any given part-swapping experiment, body wood on a solidbody bolt-on Fender makes no difference at all.

[nyck]

I think the way the guitar is constructed makes a much bigger difference to the plugged in sound than the type of wood. It does seem like every basswood guitar i've had has had issues with shit like the strap buttons and bridges pulling out of the wood.
and we all know the what happens if you breathe too hard on the headstock of a mahogany guitar...

[Ben79]

Tried playing my guitar without the wood. Wasn't as good.