Does wood make a difference?

Lukin_oz
Lukin_oz Posts: 257
edited August 2005 in Musicians and Gearheads
I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas or opinions to how much difference the different wood guitars are made out of makes a difference... i ask because i am about to install new pick ups in my strat, but am wondering if i should invest in a new strat body to complete my dream sound... i currently have a strat with a poplar body.. am wondering how this will sound in comparison to say an ash or alder body
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  • JofZ
    JofZ Posts: 1,276
    Lukin_oz wrote:
    I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas or opinions to how much difference the different wood guitars are made out of makes a difference... i ask because i am about to install new pick ups in my strat, but am wondering if i should invest in a new strat body to complete my dream sound... i currently have a strat with a poplar body.. am wondering how this will sound in comparison to say an ash or alder body

    All the tone comes from the wood. The neck, the body and the way the two are joined. There are dozens of websites and books that are literally dedicated to tonal woods and the discussions of them. Some woods are great for tone and some aren't, and some are legal to import and chop down and some aren't, some are old growth and command high dollars ( more then a home) and some are new growth that have tonal properties that are pleasing.
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  • MissYouAllDay
    MissYouAllDay Posts: 939
    Although wood may be very important, for a more dramatic change/improvement in sound a pickup change is the way to go.
    I am sure many casual guitarists cannot tell the difference between an ash strat and a poplar strat when it is plugged in. But if it was a poplar strat with hot Pickups, or humbuckers being compared to the original poplar strat everyone could tell the difference. In this way atleast pickups are more important to change in sound.
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  • JofZ
    JofZ Posts: 1,276
    MissYouAllDay wrote:
    Although wood may be very important, for a more dramatic change/improvement in sound a pickup change is the way to go.
    I am sure many casual guitarists cannot tell the difference between an ash strat and a poplar strat when it is plugged in. But if it was a poplar strat with hot Pickups, or humbuckers being compared to the original poplar strat everyone could tell the difference. In this way atleast pickups are more important to change in sound.

    But a good electric guitar sounds great unplugged :) I have never had to plug in a guitar before buying it, if it rings out acousticly it will be a keeper, plus who keeps stock pups LOL
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  • moemoe6434
    moemoe6434 Posts: 468
    the wood used make a HUGE difference!
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  • Spook Fish
    Spook Fish Posts: 241
    it's the same with Cabs and guitars, the shape and wood used propell the sonic propertys @ the pups, if the resonance of the wood shines through AND the pups are good, you've got a winner. i think the wood used is one one the single most important factors of the guitars build quality. i agree with missyouallday though too, if it's poplar with good pups, should sound pretty cool anyhow.
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