Arched bodies

[Doog]

I worked yesterday (Christmas) 1p to 1a. Anyway it was my first shift with Dr. A. since she left for maternity leave. She's my fave doc to work with. Okay you're asking why the hell is this in the Warwick bass forum? Well Dr A's husband is a bassist, and she tells me his new gits, and I tell her mine to pass on to him. So we're getting there.

I told Dr. A about the Dolphin, and the arched body. Out of nowhere she asked what does that do to the sound? I realized I had never thought of that. Does the arched body have an affect on the sound of the bass? It seems to make sense that it might, would a Dolphin SN sound the same if it was slab bodied?

 

[warwickhunt]

I worked yesterday (Christmas) 1p to 1a. Anyway it was my first shift with Dr. A. since she left for maternity leave. She's my fave doc to work with. Okay you're asking why the hell is this in the Warwick bass forum? Well Dr A's husband is a bassist, and she tells me his new gits, and I tell her mine to pass on to him. So we're getting there.

I told Dr. A about the Dolphin, and the arched body. Out of nowhere she asked what does that do to the sound? I realized I had never thought of that. Does the arched body have an affect on the sound of the bass? It seems to make sense that it might, would a Dolphin SN sound the same if it was slab bodied?

If I'm right you are purely referring to the concave/convex shaping of the bass. In that case it shouldn't in any obvious way make any difference to the tone, there may be more mass in the centre of the bass or NT laminate construction techniques may mean that it has a different tone from a single slab but essentially it shouldn't affect the tone. I'd add that there are people still arguing if the wood chosen affects the tone never mind construction, pups, shape etc.

IMHO I'd say that Warwick do it for reasons of playability and comfort and certainly for me it is one major attraction.

 

[rusty]

^^^^^^^

+1

as above. No difference in sound, especially with a multi layered instrument.

Cheers

Rusty

 

[maddrakkett]

Exactly. I love the contour of my Thumb NT and Thumb DB. It looks and feels "sexy" (NHS). But it's for ergonomics, not tone.

 

[elpelotero]

The only thing I could possibly say is that there may be certain modes within the wood that are excited as opposed to if it weren't carved. (If you don't know what modes are, don't worry, I can't explain them well). However, this is somewhat arbitrary because even two pieces of the same wood carved the same will have different modes. In essence, if there's something, I doubt we could hear it.

 

[wireman]

I wouldn't qualify the Dolphin SN an archtop design. It's true this particular model features tone chambers, but IMHO an archtop always has a seperate top layer whereas the Dolphin set neck is a solid body with cavities. Today I visited a colleague who experimented with Afzelia wood on one of his own guitar projects. While selecting his chunk of body woods he almost ruined his back on a hefty slab of Afzelia. It was the heaviest piece of wood he ever laid his hands on.
So I guess Warwick HAD to reconsider the design elements; dolphin body/set neck design and afzelia wood.

 

[Doog]

The Dolphin SN does have a curved body. I didn't say an arched top, the whole thing is curved.

 

[Florin]

Anything in the construction of the bass have an influence in sound. So... The contoured body is for ergonomics for sure, but it has an influence in tone too.

 

[Andrew O]

is the katana contoured, i didn't notice when i played one.

 

[maddrakkett]

is the katana contoured, i didn't notice when i played one.

It's not contoured like a Thumb or a Streamer is, but it does have "a sculpted upper bout" (the area where your forearm rests is "scooped out") that is clearly unlike the other Warwick models.

 

[Doog]

Here's a shot of the contour, or arch, I'm talking about. From behind, as if sighting down the neck, the entire body is curved top to bottom:

 

[Doog]

A close up of the back, you can clearly see the ekanga veneer does not run straight across but meets at an angle:

 

[Doog]

A last piccie ofthe arch, sorry for the multiple posts, but everytime I try to post a number of pics in 1 post they come out in random order so it's hard to comment on any of them and have it make sense. This last pic is because Bella looks so cute next to the bass.

 

[warwickhunt]

Have Warwick changed the construction technique for all of the contoured bodies or is it just the Dolphin SN that has this offset centre joint?