One of the most frequently asked questions I get from people looking to make a guitar (and others generally) is: What is the best wood for making an acoustic guitar? Or alternatively, What difference does the species of wood used in the back and sides make to the sound?
These questions are not unexpected because I offer my students an excellent range of high quality Australian woods from which to make their guitars. My usual answer is that it is very subjective and difficult to answer because so many things influence the sound of the guitar and the wood selected for the back and sides is probably one of the less influential. What I can say is that by choosing a good wood for the soundboard and paying careful attention to how it is thicknessed and braced will result in a great sounding instrument. This inevitably leads to students selecting the woods that appeals most from a visual perspective and they always finish up with a great sounding guitar that they are delighted with.
But the question still lurks and so I was interested to read about the Leonardo Guitar Research Project in the Winter 2015 edition of the Journal of the Guild of American Luthiers (Garston & Walraet p23). Initiated by a debate at the Belgian Guitar Show a few years ago, a host of Europe’s best luthiers and lutherie students set out to determine if non-traditional (non-tropical) woods can make guitars that match their traditional wood counterparts for sound quality. They made large a well matched set of classical guitars to a standard Torres style design from a wide variety of tropical and non-tropical woods. The non-traditional woods include Alder, oak Walnut, Beech, Ash, Birch, Chestnut, Plane, Boxwood and Robinia. A set of guitars made from the more traditional Indian Rosewood were also made for comparison. All the guitars used European spruce of the same quality for the sound boards and braces.
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Fifteen of these guitars including 5 Indian Rosewood and 10 non-traditional woods were then subjected to a range of blind and double blind testing by discerning players and audiences. And the result?
The results from all the blind tests taken together, be they pair testing or group testing, showed that the guitarists, listeners and audiences had an equal sound preference for the tropical and non-tropical woods.
Now they did not test or report on the differences in the sounds of the various guitars. For example were they brighter or darker in tone. That was not the point of the experiment. They only set out to determine whether great sounding guitars can be made from these non-traditional woods and whether discerning listeners had a preference for one or the other.
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Aesthetics (e.g. a preference for darker woods for backs and sides and fretboards) and/or preconceptions about tonewoods (such as a belief that the best guitars are made with tropical woods) appear to exert considerable influence on sound perception.
So perhaps by selecting the wood that appeals to them most aesthetically my students are also selecting a wood that supports their sound perceptions as well.It’s the great debate that prefaces every Orangewood purchase. A lot of our fan-favorite guitars come in two options: mahogany and spruce. It’s hard to choose, because they’re both aesthetically pleasing, but there’s more differences once you look past the surface.
By the time you get through this article, you’ll have all of the information you’ll need to feel confident in the type of wood you decide on — or maybe you’ll find yourself wanting two more guitars for your collection!
Guitar Tonewood Types
Mahogany is a dark wood with a more distinct grain pattern. This gives each guitar a subtle, yet recognizable pattern that can vary between instruments. All of our guitars come with either pau ferro back & sides (on the Topanga and Melrose Collections ) or mahogany back & sides (on the Highland and Overland Collections ), meaning the whole guitar will be composed of dark wood. Our guitars with solid mahogany tops are visually striking and stand out among the competition for that reason.
Spruce is a light wood with a subtle grain pattern. This wood gives our guitars a more “classic” look, as spruce is the most popular top wood across the board for acoustic guitars. Spruce will contrast with the dark wood (pau ferro or mahogany) back & sides, which gives it another dimension of aesthetic charm. Overall, going with a spruce top is a great choice for someone chasing the prototypical acoustic look.
For beginner guitarists, it’s recommended that you choose based on the guitar's visual appeal. After all, if you love the way the guitar looks, you’re going to feel inclined to pick it up and practice more often. That’s not to say there aren’t any differences in the way the wood types sound, but the differences are relatively slight; they will be harder to notice unless the listener has experience in comparing guitar tones. What are those differences? Well, let’s get into it...
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When it comes to the tone of each top wood, there are subtle, yet defining differences that can make or break the decision making process for a musician with a trained ear. While both mahogany and spruce are commonly used on acoustic guitar tops for their rich and full sound, let’s go over what you might notice if you listen to them side-by-side.
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Mahogany topped acoustic guitars are mostly known for what musicians describe as a “smooth, subdued” sound. While some may say that mahogany is “less bright” or “warmer” than spruce, you might notice that the high-end frequencies are still very present with the mahogany guitar. However, because of the lower response of the mahogany, there is an overall mellow and soft presence to the sound.
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Spruce tops, on the other hand, project much more than mahogany. This creates that classic acoustic presence: loud and punchy. Once again, you’ll distinctly hear the highs, mids, and lows present with the spruce top, but the volume and responsiveness might make it “feel” like it is brighter than mahogany to some listeners.
Keep in mind that these terms used to describe tone are often subjective to an individual’s ears. That’s why you should judge the tone based on which sound you prefer. Take comfort in knowing that either way, you’re choosing a versatile guitar that can do it all.
Now, let’s add in a layer of complication. Say your ideal acoustic guitar tones are found in vintage spruce guitars; you’re looking for that classic spruce sound that has mellowed out with age, becoming a touch woodier and warmer. Well, your dream can come true without needing to shell out for the vintage price tag: look no further than our torrefied wood. Through a baking process called torrefaction, we imbue our solid Sitka spruce with an aged look and sound while maintaining the benefits of our modern appointments.
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The choice between mahogany and spruce can be tough when it comes to purchasing an Orangewood; they’re both beautiful sounding and incredible looking tops. It all comes down to personal preference: can you see yourself rocking the stage with the dark Ava Mahogany, or is the more classic Ava Torrefied Spruce suited to your tastes? Either way, if you end up with a guitar you love, you'll know you made the right choice! When crafting an exceptional acoustic guitar, one of the most critical decisions a luthier faces is choosing the right wood for the top or soundboard. The top wood is pivotal in defining the instrument's tonal character, resonance, and overall sonic personality. In this blog post, we'll dive into the fascinating world of tonewoods for acoustic guitars and explore how different types of acoustic guitar top woods impact the sound of the instruments you know and love.
Before we get into the specifics of various top woods, it's essential to grasp how top woods impact an acoustic guitar's sound. The top wood is responsible for transmitting the vibrations generated by the strings to the body of the guitar, setting the stage for the instrument's tonal characteristics. This crucial role makes selecting top wood a cornerstone in the art of guitar making.
A wide array of woods is used for acoustic guitar tops, each with unique properties and tonal qualities. Some of the most popular choices include:
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Spruce: Sitka spruce, Engelmann spruce, and Adirondack spruce are among acoustic guitars' most commonly used top woods. Spruce is known for its excellent stiffness-to-weight ratio, which translates into a bright, articulate, and balanced sound. Sitka spruce, in particular, is renowned for its versatility and is often used in various styles of acoustic guitars.
Mahogany: While mahogany is more commonly associated with guitar backs and sides, it is occasionally used as a top wood. Mahogany tops yield a warm, focused sound with clear note definition, making them suitable for blues and folk genres.
Maple: Maple is known for its bright and articulate sound, often imparting a crisp edge to the guitar's tone. It's commonly used as a top wood in archtop jazz guitars,
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