Woods

[HolyWars]

What the best wood in your opinion for a KV2 or other USA Jackson. Out of these three Alder, Poplar, or Mahogany. I am on a different forums where this guy was talking about the Warrior. Here is his opinion

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played a Jackson Usa Warrior the other day at the Birmingham Music Live Event. And I have to admit it didn't really excite me. (shrug)
When I strummed it to see how it resonated it sounds lke tin foil with sustain and on a clean channel I'm sorry to say it sounded like arse. And the distortion sound for which USA Jacksons are famed for sounded pretty good but not worth the money at all. I mean close to 2000 quid for a guitar that was owned by the schecter C-1 classic for 500ish?
Maybe it's just the warrior but there were so many better guitars there.
I also played a black USA rhoads with all black hardware and seymours (Jb/Jazz). And it didn't produce any tone worth the recognition. Probably due to the lack of tone wood actually used in the construction, it was qu ite a tiny guitar and even though it sounded better than a warrior, once again not worth the price.
Sorry to all Jackson owners but it's just my personal opinion. Maybe I just need to test more of instruments applications.

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Would it just be matter of personal taste you think or just a tone opinion which he is searching for, but hasn't found in Jacksons?

[Bengal65]

Re: Woods

All the tone woods you mentioned are great. The Mahogany is a little darker mid-lows sounding than the others and is a good trade off when using a maple top, maple neck and ebony fretboard. The maple top and neck and ebony will add to the brightness. Alder, Poplar are more neutral and are the most popular woods. A Mahogany body and neck like some models in the USA line give more of a Les Paul feel while the Poplar and Alder bodied guitars give a little more to the Fender tone. I believe Alder has replaced by Poplar in the new production USA's. Of course the above is all my own humble opinion. Another source you might want to check for kicks is Warmoth's "wood description" page. www.warmoth.com [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

[HolyWars]

Re: Woods

Thank you for the link. I'll look into it.

[j2379]

Re: Woods

i dont consider alder or poplar to be tones woods. IMHO Jacksons in many ways do sound kind of dead clean, but i think thats because of the finish not the wood. the thicker the finish on a guitar the deader it will sound IMHO. like the PRS's OLD VS NEW it not that i dont like the new ones i think the older ones with the really thin finishes that you could see the peaks & valleys of the wood sounded so much more alive. other than the bigger neck heal they are basically the same guitars, ok & the new ones are CNC's but that doesnt effect tone.

[HolyWars]

Re: Woods

I just don't understand what the guy meant when he said "it sounded like tin foil with sustain". Maybe it is because I don't own a Jackson yet. Which my next pay check is what I need to put half down on a USA KV2. My brother has a Gibson Epiphone Les Paul which I can't stand it because it's way to big. I don't know. Maybe I'm being a little bit to cautious. I don't want to buy it and realize that the sound of it is not what I was looking for. You know.

[YetAnotherOne]

Re: Woods

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I just don't understand what the guy meant when he said "it sounded like tin foil with sustain".

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There's nothing to understand: he was trying to say that he's an assclown who wouldn't know a great axe if one bit him on the butt. Well, that or he's just stating that he has a subjective preference for another brand. Either way, not much worth arguing there.

[xenophobe]

Re: Woods

Put a Distortion or Super Distortion, or an 81 or 85 in there, and it would sound just fine. I haven't appreciated Jackson pickup selection since they stopped making their own, personally.

[shredmonster]

Re: Woods

I have read that of all the woods mahagony has the very best resonance and great chunk but it is dark.

I have had many different woods and I have had good luck with mahogany with a maple top to brighten it up.

I had an Ibanez Jem made of basewood and basewood in my opinion is not as well defined or clear as some of the more traditional woods.

I have not tried some of the exotics like zebra wood or lacewood. There are a lot of exotic woods out there and relaistically who can try them all?

[RR05xx]

Re: Woods

I have found that maple is good for a brighter sound. Mahogany is definately for that darker tone. I have also found that Hard Ash tends to be kinda in the middle. All three are heavy as hell.

As far as the lighter woods are concerned, I think that alder is the best sound for my tastes. I am not a fan of poplar at all.

I do not have experience with basswood or the exotics.

[YetAnotherOne]

Re: Woods

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...basewood in my opinion is not as well defined or clear as some of the more traditional woods.

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Interesting, the Wolfgangs are basswood and mine has among the clearest and most defined sounds of anything I've owned. Wood makes a difference but lots of other factors impact the sound of an electric (pickups most of all).

[j2379]

Re: Woods

zebra wood is heavy as hell, nice looking stuff but i wouldnt suggest getting a body made of it unless you consider LPs light. KOA is my favorite, its like mahogany, with the maple top already on it. Korina depending on the weight is also a great sounding wood. as is lighter peices of regular ash or swamp ash which is usually real light. walnut is also really nice but only certain types of it, some of it is way too heavy & bright sounding. general rule of thumb the heavier the wood the brighter it sounds.

[slayer]

Re: Woods

I use to have a Jackson SL2H which has an Alder body with a maple neck thru. Jackson of course puts the terrible sounding JB pickup in the bridge of this great guitar. I couldn`t get a good sound out of this guitar with that pickup. I sold it because I neaded money, but i bet a Distortion or EMG 85 would have livened it right up. Pickups can make so much of a difference and some pickups can make a great guitar sound horrible.My personal favorite combo is a mahogany body with a set mahogany neck, the low mids will crush you, especially with an EMG or Duncan Distortion or even a Gibson 500T in the bridge of course. Jack.

[Inazone]

Re: Woods

The original quote was from someone on the Megadeth forum, right? If so, I responded there already, but will add another comment. It's possible to get a good tone out of any wood, whether it's highly praised like mahogany or frequently criticized like basswood. Personal experience has taught me that basswood reacts well to mild pickups like a JB or Screamin' Demon. I consider mahogany to be similar in that regard, but for a different reason -- mahogany has a nice natural tone and a "transparent" pickup will let more of that tone through.

Alder is capable of some nice tones, but I've never sat there thinking "I sure would love a great slab of alder for a custom body". Same with poplar. Ash, on the other hand, sounds good to me, especially with lots of gain and a somewhat scooped sound. It has a very percussive vibe to it with the right pickup, even in standard tuning.

[GodOfRhythm]

Re: Woods

All-Mahogany, Mahogany with Bubinga top or Mahogany with Burly Maple top.

My dream combinations, all neckthru's, ebony fingers, mahogany necks.

[HolyWars]

Re: Woods

So your guys personal preference is Mahogany. I take it Alder is so popular because of the cheapness in the wood. Also the right pick-ups in the guitar would make it sound better. Hmmm!!! [img]/images/graemlins/scratchhead.gif[/img] Does anybody out there have the combo of Mahogany with the neck-thru-body quatersawn maple or Alder by that chance? Now I'm having second thoughts about buying a KV2.