Fender switched from Swamp Ash to Alder in 1956 because of the increasing cost of swamp ash and alder being cheap and plentiful on the west coast. They used to bleach it to be the color of ash. Even on a Strat, its hard to hear any difference in tone. I can get just about any type of wood you can think of. Though, in most cases, the bass will cost and weigh more than my standard wood choices.
Most exotic woods work better as tops than for the whole body.
I use exclusively straight grain maple for my one-piece necks. Guitars can use curly grain woods for their one-piece necks because they are shorter and there's not as much stress on them. Myself and a growing number of builders and players know that two thin strips of plastic don't help a neck stay straight nor does it eliminate dead spots. Well, mine aren't. My basses have a broad contact surface between and neck and the body.