Sometimes a bigger tone block is not necessarily better - but sometimes it can be. It all depends if are already happy or are looking for something else. I have listened to your guitar and I cannot fault it, it already has an incredible sound. It has a lovely balance of full-bodied mid-range, treble presence, dynamic tonality and sustain. These are things that may not even be physically attainable in my Raptor project, but I do hope to bring it closer... or at least have fun trying.eMs wrote:Wow, great job! I want a brass tone block for my Wolfie!!! (the original is really thin (looks like brass), but stills sounds great so I wonder if I use a bigger one will sound even better!!!)
What makes a guitar great is when all it's parts are working together towards the sound you want - so that the total is hopefully greater than the sum of it's parts. Sometimes no matter what you do this does not happen, but when a guitar already sounds great, changing even one part can disrupt the cohesion of it's medley and you may end up with less mojo.
In my limited experience (it's ok if others disagree) the parts (in a tremolo equipped guitar) that affect the tone/sustain by strength of influence are:
1) The wood (body and neck)
2) The trem block then strings then bridge saddles then trem springs
3) The pick-ups (it can only augment or diminish whatever resonance the guitar is already producing)
4) The wiring (resistance and capacitance in a passive circuit) this colors the pick-up output
5) The amp and it's settings and special effects
Although some are more influential than others, they must all work together for the musician... and not all musicians are after the same thing.
I have modified a guitar with a plywood body that SINGS! Not because it's body was great, or the pick-ups were expensive, etc... but I somehow fluked a balance of inexpensive parts that worked together harmoniously. I rewound the stock pickups, and screwed it directly onto the body with solid wood spacers rather than springs. I tried this on another guitar and it didn't work at all.
This is why I love this hobby of mine... it's like panning for gold in a stream of rubble. Sometimes I end up with a fist full of dirt, sometimes a gem!
If you cannot contain your curiosity, then by all means try a thicker brass block but make sure your modifications can be reversed back to the original without altering or damaging the guitar (if there's no improvement).