Poplar body with maple top?

[MrValentine]

how would this sound?

 

[m4rk0]

like a poplar body with any kind of top
unless this is a carved top, it won't make a difference.. personally, I doubt it if it makes a difference on a carved top either.

 

[Corey P.]

Well, W's description calls it tonally similar to Alder and marginally heavier; I believe it's a fairly soft wood as well.  Some folks think adding a Maple top adds some brightness; on a solidbody guitar or bass I don't personally hear the difference, but your mileage may very.  I think there's really no bad sounding wood W uses; most folks don't care for Poplar's natural coloring so if you're doing a clear or transparent finish on the maple you'd likely want to go solid on the Poplar, unless you're going with a finish that'd lend itself to greys or greens.

 

[Bruno]

how would this sound?

http://www.warmoth.com/Guitar/Bodies/Options/LaminateTop.aspx
Of course, in carved top thicknesses, laminate tops do significantly effect the toneality of an instrument.
So, an alder body with our 1/8” thick top will still sound like an alder body, but may have the appearance of your favorite exotic wood.

 

[stubhead]

how would this sound?

Probably a whole lot like an electric guitar, which sounds pretty much good or bad depending on how you play it.... Haven't you ever gotten your girlfriend/wife/siggie ot. drunk enough to find out what she really thinks about how all your different guitars sound? You know, the chiming detailed girthy blooming spanky growl, and all that. Kinda disappointing.... and no, you don't need a new one (girlfriend/wife/siggie ot.), they're all the same. But you do always need a new guitar. Maybe ONE OF THESE DA-AYS..... :laughing11:


(Steve Morse specified poplar only on his first signature Music Man, which sounded just like GOD.... I'm used to how alder takes finishes, but I'd buy a poplar guitar if it made me sound like Steve Morse.)

 

[tfarny]

how would this sound?

Probably a whole lot like an electric guitar, which sounds pretty much good or bad depending on how you play it.... Haven't you ever gotten your girlfriend/wife/siggie ot. drunk enough to find out what she really thinks about how all your different guitars sound? You know, the chiming detailed girthy blooming spanky growl, and all that. Kinda disappointing.... and no, you don't need a new one (girlfriend/wife/siggie ot.), they're all the same. But you do always need a new guitar. Maybe ONE OF THESE DA-AYS..... :laughing11:


(Steve Morse specified poplar only on his first signature Music Man, which sounded just like GOD.... I'm used to how alder takes finishes, but I'd buy a poplar guitar if it made me sound like Steve Morse.)

Yep, it'll sound exactly like your pickups / bridge type / effects / amp / playing style + skill = sound. More or less. Since no one wants to hear that answer, though -> it'll sound like an alder strat. Exactly like that.

 

[Cagey]

Yep, it'll sound exactly like your pickups / bridge type / effects / amp / playing style + skill = sound. More or less. Since no one wants to hear that answer, though -> it'll sound like an alder strat. Exactly like that.

You blaspheme!

I'll meet you in hell later. We'll do lunch <grin>

 

[MrValentine]

i was thinking about using this combo for a les paul body (carved of course)

 

[Strat Avenger]

One tonal difference I have heard, is a hard ash-bodied Strat (two, actually) that sounded significantly brighter than my alder-bodied Strat, and that's with the same pickups, same type of bridge, and same neck woods.

As for Poplar, I wouldn't know, but I have read that it sounds similar to basswood.

 

[Cagey]

One tonal difference I have heard, is a hard ash-bodied Strat (two, actually) that sounded significantly brighter than my alder-bodied Strat, and that's with the same pickups, same type of bridge, and same neck woods.

As for Poplar, I wouldn't know, but I have read that it sounds similar to basswood.

Tone and sustain has to do with stiffness and density. Some woods, regardless of whether they're called "hardwoods" or "softwoods" are stiffer/denser than others. Poplar, along with basswood and balsa, are technically "hardwoods", although you'd hardly get any argument about how hard they are from any experienced woodworker. They're all pretty soft woods, and if thrown in the fireplace, will burn up pretty quick. No need for carbide tools with that stuff.

Because they're not very stiff or dense, they tend to absorb vibrations rather than transmit them. The higher the frequency, the greater the effect. So, those woods will sound "warm", or in extreme cases, "dead". That is, reduced high end and articulation, graduating down to reduced mids, then to dead. They're vibration sponges.

 

[stubhead]

Good tone is just about always subtractive. If you want to hear what an electric guitar really sounds like without all the "high-deadening" things we do with 12" flab speakers and slow-latency tubes and soft wood and mushy overwound pickups and all, find a nice old 80's maple-bodied maple-necked shred guitar with a Lawrence L500XL or even better EMG's, and plug it straight into the power amp section of a good PA with tweeters and horns. Set the tone FLAT - all the way to 16K and CRANK that baby up.... there's a reason guitar players aren't allowed to play with the tweeters, it has to do with bone density and sympathetic vibrations and hounds of hell and stuff. But go ahead. Ever wonder why Pete Townsend & Eddie Van Halen play like they're stone-deaf nowadays, or why Eric Clapton has had such hideous tone the past decade or so, or why old drummers keep hitting the cymbals harder and harder and harder even though they're playing the same songs as 20 years ago. What?

 

[Jusatele]

I think it will sound just like any other piece of wood burning in the fire place, a few snaps, some crackles and hisses
:cool01: :cool01: :cool01:
now before you ask how it will sound, why don't you tell us what kind of neck,finger board, nut, pickups, electronics, bridge, amp chord, amp, amp settings, skill level, and other crap
:sign13: :sign13: :sign13:
because with out that info, we can only refer you to the chart on the warmoth site,  We will be at the same loss as you are with out all info, That chart is what we will go off of for just a question about body and Lam.

My honest suggestion,is go to Sam Ash and play a bunch of guitars,when you find one you like copy down all the detail about it you can and build one like it. that way you will know what it should sound like when finished,
And the worst mistake you can make is to substitute something to cut cost. This is not a cost cutting idea, you can buy guitars cheaper than you are going to build one. And you can screw up a build real fast, quickest way to screw one up is to try to cut Cost or a corner. It takes money and time to do this correct. By the time you finish the guitar, have good hardware and good pickups, pay a professional tech to set the neck up right for you, you could have bought it for many hundreds less.

we really want to help you get what you want
we do not do this to save money, if that is the case there are 150 dollar kits out there,
we do this because we either : use it as an artistic release, want individual guitars, have pride in building our own, just want to build a guitar once and get hooked, have ideas no one is building so we do it ourselves, and I am sure that is just the tip of the iceberg.

So, do a bit more research, make a design list of just the way you want the guitar including all hardware, (visualize the guitar) , AND THEN pull the trigger and we will help you every step we can

 

[Strat Avenger]

One tonal difference I have heard, is a hard ash-bodied Strat (two, actually) that sounded significantly brighter than my alder-bodied Strat, and that's with the same pickups, same type of bridge, and same neck woods.

As for Poplar, I wouldn't know, but I have read that it sounds similar to basswood.

Tone and sustain has to do with stiffness and density. Some woods, regardless of whether they're called "hardwoods" or "softwoods" are stiffer/denser than others. Poplar, along with basswood and balsa, are technically "hardwoods", although you'd hardly get any argument about how hard they are from any experienced woodworker. They're all pretty soft woods, and if thrown in the fireplace, will burn up pretty quick. No need for carbide tools with that stuff.

Because they're not very stiff or dense, they tend to absorb vibrations rather than transmit them. The higher the frequency, the greater the effect. So, those woods will sound "warm", or in extreme cases, "dead". That is, reduced high end and articulation, graduating down to reduced mids, then to dead. They're vibration sponges.

Yeah, that makes sense.

 

[Cagey]

Ever wonder why Pete Townsend & Eddie Van Halen play like they're stone-deaf nowadays, or why Eric Clapton has had such hideous tone the past decade or so, or why old drummers keep hitting the cymbals harder and harder and harder even though they're playing the same songs as 20 years ago. What?

Nope. Not at all. No question in my mind. Pete Townsend and Eddie Van Halen are stone-deaf (not to mention older than me, which is pretty damn old), Eric has become addle-headed and is probably surprised to wake up every day, and who knows why drummers do what they do?