Randall; I am not an authority on the subject, have never owned a Brown Bass, and would not want to mislead you. As Mica stated in the Series bass question thread, in a neck-through the neck is the most influential wood for the tone. The Brown Bass has much less Maple in the neck than most Alembics; on the other hand my basses have all Maple necks. It is my guess that one contributing factor to the buttery sound of a Brown Bass would be the significant difference in neck woods, especially the abundance of Mahogany. However, the body woods do contribute as well; and it would be my guess that a bass with the mahogany, maple, walnut neck combined with an all Maple body would not sound the same as a Brown Bass. Note also that unlike most other Alembics the Brown Bass has a Myrtle body wood. I have no idea how significant this difference is, but I'm guessing there is some effect. There have been many good posts in the past, by members that know a lot more than I, on the subject of neck woods, body woods, and their contribution to tone. If you have the time I would suggest using the search template to find some of these older threads, especially looking for posts by Mica. You can also find comments from Mica on woods by reading throught the Custom Archives at the main Alembic site. One thing I find intriguing is the reverence with which some members speak of the contribution of a coco-bolo top to the sound of the bass. So while the neck woods may be the most influential, the body woods are a significant factor as well. I find it a fascinating subject and one of the pleasures of reading the posts in this forum.
