I've been thinking about this a lot lately. Mostly because I read the stuff on Yamaha. To be able to change the molecular structure of the wood artificially and make it age is something to question but I'm not a scientist. I know for a fact my acoustic guitars and my upright bass have changed drastically over the years. They have become deeper sounding, more resonate and rich sounding. The highs have become less biting but with more ring. So I know wood ages and changes. As most do, the neck on my old Fender has been changing color. When it hit 35 years of age, one day I opened the case and freaked out. The color had changed drastically and gotten much darker. I gave it a quick look over, thought about the humidity it was stored in, then I plugged it in and swear it sounded different. All of the Alembics I own were older when I bought them so I can't really compare unless they change from now until I die. You can play a lot of factory basses that were all suppose to be made the same and hear a difference even after they are very old. I have wondered do instruments really blossom or is it our relationship with them and how we play them that blossoms? Maybe it is both. I have a really old Yamaha BB. It weighs a ton and sounds fantastic for what it is. I always thought it was the weight that gave it a great tone. Yamaha made a bass for me once. It was modeled after the BB3000AF. It was a four string fretless. I played it on two albums. I loved that bass so much. I mean really loved it. I flew to LA from Detroit to do some recording and checked the bass at the airport. When I arrived in LA and opened the case, I found the neck totally warped and twisted. It could not be fixed and was destroyed. It broke my heart. That led me to Zon and Joe built a really nice bass with a graphite neck. That was not going to happen to me again. This was all on my path to Alembic. The wood combinations and the type and thickness of the finish will all effect the tonal changes I believe in years to come. Less than an acoustic instrument for sure. but my ears change as well. All living and dead things are always changing I guess.
