Warmoth chambered bodies anyone?

DLC86

DLC86

Fractal Fanatic
Hi all,
I'm gonna order parts for my second warmoth guitar soon, it will be a Tele with alder body and black korina flat top, two PAF style pickups and (I think) a floyd rose rail tail bridge.

Basically my intention is to make it sound more like a Les Paul than a Tele. So you'd say, 'why don't you buy a Les Paul then?'
Because I've never bonded with its neck, scale and ergonomics, I prefer a comfortable (for me) guitar which can possibly produce that sound.
Plus I can always go back to a tele-ish sound with a split or parallel coil switch, when needed.

I still haven't decided on the body type though, chambered or solid?
I've read a bunch of discussions on various forums and it seems there isn't a general consensus on that.
Some say (as warmoth states) the chambers really enhance tone, sustain and resonance, some say they don't have an audible effect, some others say they kill the tone. Then some say they make the guitar sound brighter, others say they make it darker.

What's the truth? Anyone here having experience with those?
And eventually do you think the chambers would help in reaching the goal of 'a Tele that sounds like a Gibson'?

Thanks in advance
 
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Hmmm... You are trying to emulate a 24 - 3/4" scale, solid body, made of mahogany, glued on neck guitar, with a 25-1/4" scale, chambered body, made of alder and black korina, with a bolt-on neck (ignoring the different body shape). Can't imagine how you could go wrong here ;o)
 
I'll second that. Some will argue that the scale length, set neck and bridge are more important than the type of wood when it comes to what makes a LP sound like a LP. Anyway, what OP is planning to build will sound nothing like a LP, for better and for worse.
 
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You're right guys, I know it will never be the same, but obviously I don't expect it to sound EXACTLY like a Les Paul, just something that gets me in the ballpark but has its own personality.
Furthermore I quite like what I hear from Teles with PAF style pickups.

Anyway, let's forget about the Tele vs LP argument. What do you think about chambered bodies?
 
I always feel like it's a crapshoot to interfere with wood, a natural material. You have no idea if they are coring through the best sounding parts of your body, or the worst. So therefore, if it makes sense from a weight perspective (if you're wearing this guitar for hours a day) do it, but don't do it thinking it will "enhance tone, sustain and resonance" or to make a tele sound like a Les Paul.

I must add that I don't think any tele with a Floyd will ever get in the ball park of a Les Paul. Heck, I've played a ton of non-traditional Les Pauls that don't get in the ballpark of a Les Paul. Also, from personal experience, you will not find split humbuckers that sound like a Tele. Not that it won't be a beautiful sounding instrument, just that it won't be a Tele, and it won't be a Paul. It will be its own thing.
 
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Totally agree with Admin. I have a chambered body guitar, and a friend of mine has a few (two of them from Warmoth). They sound a little different acoustically (than a solid body), and that affects how they sound amplified. I would characterize them as sounding a bit more like an acoustic guitar. A little more scooped sounding with thinner or more transparent midrange. But they do sound very good; it just depends on your definition of good. Solid body guitars IME have a thicker sounding midrange. But as Admin said, it is all a crapshoot because every piece of wood is different. I had twin 1975 LP's at one time and they sounded nothing alike. Acoustically they were two totally different animals and that was reflected in how they sounded amplified. BTW I have a Warmoth Tele I built: mahogany body with a flamed koa top (gorgeous guitar). It has Kinman noiseless P90's. My goal was to move toward a Les Paul tone with P90's as far as I could given the obvious physical differences. I was not trying to nail that tone, but just to have some of it. It does not sound like an LP, but it sounds awesome and is one of my favorite guitars. BTW, if you are going with Warmoth, I highly recommend their roasted maple necks (leave it unfinished). They are awesome to play. Also recommend stainless steel frets; they last a long time.
 
Admin M@ said:
I always feel like it's a crapshoot to interfere with wood, a natural material. You have no idea if they are coring through the best sounding parts of your body, or the worst. So therefore, if it makes sense from a weight perspective (if you're wearing this guitar for hours a day) do it, but don't do it thinking it will "enhance tone, sustain and resonance" or to make a tele sound like a Les Paul
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Thanks for your reply! So I'll better go safe and buy a solid body since I don't have too many problems with the weight, I was just curious about the sound of chambers but it seems it's kind of a Russian Roulette. I don't want to rely on my luck when spending 1500$ on a guitar
(even though they offer 30-day satisfaction warranty on chambered bodies but it would be a PITA to ship it back and forth from the EU).
Admin M@ said:
I must add that I don't think any tele with a Floyd will ever get in the ball park of a Les Paul. Heck, I've played a ton of non-traditional Les Pauls that don't get in the ballpark of a Les Paul. Also, from personal experience, you will not find split humbuckers that sound like a Tele. Not that it won't be a beautiful sounding instrument, just that it won't be a Tele, and it won't be a Paul. It will be its own thing.
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As I said I'll be fine even with a Tele-with-Paf sound, with all the tools available in my ax8 I'll have no issues sculpting the sound the way I want and get it in the ballpark.
Anyway the rail tail bridge is not a true floyd rose, it's just an enhanced (and gorgeous) version of a 6-screw tremolo.
 
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Randall d said:
Totally agree with Admin. I have a chambered body guitar, and a friend of mine has a few (two of them from Warmoth). They sound a little different acoustically (than a solid body), and that affects how they sound amplified. I would characterize them as sounding a bit more like an acoustic guitar. A little more scooped sounding with thinner or more transparent midrange. But they do sound very good; it just depends on your definition of good. Solid body guitars IME have a thicker sounding midrange. But as Admin said, it is all a crapshoot because every piece of wood is different. I had twin 1975 LP's at one time and they sounded nothing alike. Acoustically they were two totally different animals and that was reflected in how they sounded amplified. BTW I have a Warmoth Tele I built: mahogany body with a flamed koa top (gorgeous guitar). It has Kinman noiseless P90's. My goal was to move toward a Les Paul tone with P90's as far as I could given the obvious physical differences. I was not trying to nail that tone, but just to have some of it. It does not sound like an LP, but it sounds awesome and is one of my favorite guitars. BTW, if you are going with Warmoth, I highly recommend their roasted maple necks (leave it unfinished). They are awesome to play. Also recommend stainless steel frets; they last a long time.
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Thanks! Your post made me lean even more towards the solid body, last thing I want is a mid-scooped guitar.
SS frets are the main reason why I chose to buy from warmoth again, I have an 8 year old warmoth strat and the frets are still like new.
And a roasted maple neck is exactly what I'm going to get ;)

PS: I'm not sure I'll leave the neck unfinished though, AFAIK unfinished necks are more susceptible to temp and humidity changes.
 
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My Anderson Hollow Drop top sounds glorious. Not real sure how to describe what it does to the tone.. perhaps haunting mids? sorry had to.
 
DLC86 said:
PS: I'm not sure I'll leave the neck unfinished though, AFAIK unfinished necks are more susceptible to temp and humidity changes.
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I have not noticed my unfinished roasted maple neck to be any more susceptible to temp and humidity changes than any of my finished necks. Warmoth states that their roasted maple neck does not require a finish to be covered by their warranty. Something about the sugars in the wood caramelizing to protect the wood. They feel so good compared to a finished neck (no stickiness at all). Yeah, I really like the Warmoth stuff. I have built three for myself and seven for other people. They have all turned out to be top notch instruments. But I will say that I have had them all into a tech to have the frets leveled just to be sure. Warmoth does not guarantee the frets to be level.
 
Randall d said:
I have not noticed my unfinished roasted maple neck to be any more susceptible to temp and humidity changes than any of my finished necks. Warmoth states that their roasted maple neck does not require a finish to be covered by their warranty. Something about the sugars in the wood caramelizing to protect the wood. They feel so good compared to a finished neck (no stickiness at all). Yeah, I really like the Warmoth stuff. I have built three for myself and seven for other people. They have all turned out to be top notch instruments. But I will say that I have had them all into a tech to have the frets leveled just to be sure. Warmoth does not guarantee the frets to be level.
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That's good to know. Does it require any particular treatment for cleaning/maintenance being unfinished?
And also, any of you having experience with their modern construction (aka double truss-rod) necks? Are they worth it?
 
I go with Vintage Modern truss rods. With the Modern Construction I think having that much metal and that much less wood can't be a good thing, but I have not tried one. No special treatment for the unfinished roasted maple. Play it and wipe it down when you are done, just like any other neck.
 
Last I heard Warmoth arbitrarily dunk all their necks in a stabiliser (Nelsonite). So even unfinished necks should be good and stable without worrying too much about further treating them.
 
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