Two other changes that were more important to the tone of the instrument also occurred in the early 1970's. From 1960 until late 1970, the two pickups on the Jazz Bass were spaced apart. The bridge pickup was then moved closer to the bridge, creating a spacing of . Many players believe that this change contributed to a somewhat brighter tone from the bridge pickup. According to Fender itself, this change happened in 1972. However, Fender's own history is clearly incorrect as there are unquestionably examples of Jazz basses made in late 1970 that use the 4" pickup spacing.Both 3.6" and 4' spacing are found in Jazz basses made in 1971, and there are even a few Jazz basses made in 1972 that use the older 3.6" spacing. Around the same time, Fender began using ash for most of the instrument bodies. Prior to the early 70's, most Jazz basses had bodies made of alder, except for those that were finished in a clear or("natural") finish - for those basses ash was nearly always the wood of choice. In the early 70's ash bodies became increasingly common and by 1974 ash bodies were the rule, rather than the exception. Ash is generally thought produce a somewhat brighter (and correspondingly less warm) tone than alder. By the mid-1970's the combination of 4" pickup spacing and the use of heavier ash bodies with maple fingerboards combined to produce a notably brighter tone than that produced by Jazz basses from the 60's.