That puzzles me because I never hear a difference on the stage. Maybe it's because I'm a Neanderthal. I literally haven't changed my EQ settings more than twice in 6 months.
Funny, I literally mess with my amp setting each and every time I flip the power switch on. I constantly fool with the pedals too.
Admittedly I do it more now, just playing myself, than I did with the band, but I still did it plenty then.
There's definitely a certain form of GAS that manifests in an urge to build a project. It's getting another guitar, but exactly the way you want it, acquired piecemeal over time, and for less money than buying a whole one. (Usually. Or at least, not spending so much all at once.)
On another forum a couple of days ago somebody started a thread about how they need a guitar to go with their spare pickup.
One of the replies said something like, "Yeah, I have this strap button that's going to be a partscaster..."
Then of course once you've begun, the build takes on a life of its own and becomes self-sustaining.
Once you're engaged - then inspired - projects do acquire momentum, don't they?
I've always felt it's less about the kind of wood than it is about the particular piece in question.
Every piece of wood really is an individual. Some aren't very musical, some are. And a few are extra special.
When a guitar happens to combine a musical neck with a musical body, it winds up being an especially good one.
Most seem to fall a bit short of that and turn out okay nonetheless.
But when a great body and a great neck match up in a way that allows their best qualities to reinforce each other, then you get magic.
AFAIK there's no reliable way of predicting how the pieces will combine until you actually put them together and try out the pairing.
I do think pieces that are just plain dead can sometimes be identified; that's why some boutique builders still do the "tap" test.
But beyond that it's pretty random - the luck of the draw.
The Warmoth neck turned out to be fantastic. My only complaint is the Graph Tech Tusq XL nut. It's just too soft. I started off with .020" at the first fret, and within a month of playing daily - and on the tremolo constantly - I wore the nut slots out to the point the 'g' is almost touching the first fret and is producing a strange harmonic.
I'm not sure if this is a fluke, or a material defect, but after a session, there is nut material visible collecting around the leading edge of the nut slots.
