Planning a L5S, advice welcome

[JTM]

Hi all,

I'm starting to plan a warmoth L5S and thought I could use some advice from the connoisseurs.
What I want is to get something with a warm, woody jazz tone but that can have some bite when needed and that avoids muddiness.

So here are the specs as I currently imagine them:

-Walnut hollow body with flame maple top ( for the looks ), two f-holes, recessed tune-o-matic with strings through body.
-Warmoth conversion 25" neck, fat back ( I like them + good tone ). Wood : I was thinking wenge.
-Fingerboard : not sure there, I'm hesitating between Pau Ferro, ebony and indian rosewood. If I could get brazilian rosewood I would but they can't export to europe.
- Pickups: I was thinking maybe a pair of Benedetto PAF ?

For the finish I'll probably try a hand rubbed sunburst with tru oil.

Let me know what you guys think

JT

 

[jackthehack]

Sounds good; go ebony board on the wenge neck.

 

[confederatewk]

id recoment to try using a solid body, with a softer top like lets say maple body with a alder/mahogony top, along with whatever neck is your preference.....this would be tone down from a shredding machine, but along with it, id recomend some lace mid scale pickups not too hot not too cold...then maybe use somthing to increase your sonic expression like a sustainer for the holow body type tone, but with the playability and non-muddiness of a holow body??

maybe?

 

[guitlouie]

Are you seriously saying that a sustainer added to a solid-bodied guitar will make it sound like a HOLLOW BODY?  I guess now I have heard it all...I'm done...I'm outta here...Goodnight Ladies and Gentlefellows...

 

[confederatewk]

i meant a sustainer pedal

and yes, in my experience it can get very very close if not, very acurate tones like a holowbody

 

[dudesweet157]

A sustainer might help you get the crazy, overdriven, squealing feedback of a hollow body played through a raging amp, but the guy wants a "warm, woody jazz tone" not Ted Nugent. 

To the OP, I think your choice of Walnut and Maple is a good one.  Wenge with an Ebony fretboard is always awesome.  You'll get the fat mids of Wenge with the extra snap and clarity of Ebony.  I too would go for PAFs.  Just choose your favorite brand and don't go overwound as they'll kill your clean tone.

-Rose

 

[confederatewk]

i was more talking about lover sustainer volumes

if u use a sustainer pedal and use lower controls on the pedal it doesnt give u a overdrive unless u got really hot pickups

 

[Kostas]

...Warmoth conversion 25" neck, fat back ( I like them + good tone ). Wood : I was thinking wenge.
-Fingerboard : not sure there, I'm hesitating between Pau Ferro, ebony and indian rosewood. If I could get brazilian rosewood I would but they can't export to europe.
JT

JT,

Warmoth does not offer  25" scale necks as standard option. I don't know if they do it as a custom order but they offer 24 3/4" and 25 1/2".
You can order brazilian rosewood. I live in Greece and I have ordered brazilian rosewood.

 

[JTM]

Thanks for your comments guys.
I'll ask them about the 25" scale, I thought it would be a good compromise for tone ( I'm not a massive fan of 24 3/4" unless it is setup with a very high string gauge ) vs playability.
I've ordered a strat neck a couple of days ago to the UK and they've said they couldn't export the brazilan rosewood which was my original choice, so I went for Pau Ferro.
It might depend on the coutries, maybe brazilian rosewood just doesn't pass through the customs in the UK

 

[Kostas]

Thanks for your comments guys.
I'll ask them about the 25" scale, I thought it would be a good compromise for tone ( I'm not a massive fan of 24 3/4" unless it is setup with a very high string gauge ) vs playability.

I'm interested to know if the 25" option is availiable and how much more.

 

[-CB-]

id recoment to try using a solid body, with a softer top like lets say maple body with a alder/mahogony top, along with whatever neck is your preference.....this would be tone down from a shredding machine, but along with it, id recomend some lace mid scale pickups not too hot not too cold...then maybe use somthing to increase your sonic expression like a sustainer for the holow body type tone, but with the playability and non-muddiness of a holow body??

Tone shaping - (beside pickup choice)
# 1 - neck wood, and profile - the neck (not fretboard) wood is the most resonant, and therefore most tone shaping item on your guitar.  Changing to various fretboard woods has a only a very subtle change on the overall tone.

#2 - body type , as in solid vs hollow.  When the body type is hollow, then the body wood selection matters a good deal more compared to solid body construction.

#3 - body wood (read above), on a solid body, expect only subtle changes in tone depending on the body wood.  If you choose a thicker maple neck, expect more discernible changes in tone with body type.  For more resonant, warmer necks, expect fewer changes.  Why?  In the whole thing, highs go first, if they're muted a bit already, further changes are more subtle.

down the list now (a bit of order, but no guarantees), and less tone change than changing to a new set of strings, or changing of string type/brand....

Fretboard wood selection, hollow body top wood selection, fret material selection, solid body laminate wood selection, finish type and thickness, color of the knobs....number of screws in the pickguard.... and all the other anal retentive things they discuss on the various Tele and LP forums.

For tone - choose pickups type, choose neck wood and shape, choose solid vs hollow, choose body wood.  The rest is pretty much cosmetic, it changes the tone so slightly.

 

[dennq]

Do you think Customs can tell if its really Braz. Rosewood? I dont  think so.

I dont live in the USA and I just recieved a Strat neck in Braz. Rosewood. Maybe go that way....

 

[jackthehack]

Do you think Customs can tell if its really Braz. Rosewood? I dont  think so.

Customs will check the Warmoth invoice and probably be able to decipher BR=Brazilian Rosewood from that; as I live in the US, don't know what is sent for customs declaration paperwork, but would imagine that either wood species/country of materials origin or both would be required as well in that documentation.

 

[ironfist]

super old thread bump!

I was just wondering, did anyone see that gorgeous L5S body on Warmoth's hot deals yesterday?  It's gone now, but it was a looker for sure - alder body with a beautiful flamed maple top and two f-holes. 

So, did the L5S being discussed in this thread ever get built?

 

[jackthehack]

super old thread bump!

I was just wondering, did anyone see that gorgeous L5S body on Warmoth's hot deals yesterday?  It's gone now, but it was a looker for sure - alder body with a beautiful flamed maple top and two f-holes. 

So, did the L5S being discussed in this thread ever get built?

Nope, that was one of those that probably spent 10 minutes on sale before getting snapped up...

 

[Bob Hoover Ross]

Hi all,

I'm starting to plan a warmoth L5S and thought I could use some advice from the connoisseurs.
What I want is to get something with a warm, woody jazz tone but that can have some bite when needed and that avoids muddiness.

So here are the specs as I currently imagine them:

-Walnut hollow body with flame maple top ( for the looks ), two f-holes, recessed tune-o-matic with strings through body.
-Warmoth conversion 25" neck, fat back ( I like them + good tone ). Wood : I was thinking wenge.
-Fingerboard : not sure there, I'm hesitating between Pau Ferro, ebony and indian rosewood. If I could get brazilian rosewood I would but they can't export to europe.
- Pickups: I was thinking maybe a pair of Benedetto PAF ?

For the finish I'll probably try a hand rubbed sunburst with tru oil.

Let me know what you guys think

JT

Are you building an L5S just because you like the looks of that guitar, or because you like the sound of an L5S? Because if I were trying to build something that sounded similar to an original Gibson L-5S, I'd try to replicate all those original details: solid body, maple top, maple neck (I think...or maybe they were mahogany?), ebony fingerboard, etc.

 

[JTM]

Hey,

Funny that this got ressuscitated. I did actually build the guitar ( although it's not completely finished yet ).
There is a thread in the "work in progress" section with pictures of the sunburst on the body etc. Since then I have sprayed it with waterbased nitro ( from stewmac, amazing stuff ), I just need to put it together now, I haven't found the time yet but will post some pictures when it's completed.
Btw I wasn't trying to replicate the Gibson L5S, rather I wanted to build a warmoth semi hollow jazz-ish guitar.