Understanding Guitar Tonewoods

By Author: Terry Buddell
Total Articles: 24
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Traditionally over the years guitars have been built from a carefully chosen selection of timbers noted for their inherent tonal qualities. Up until quite recently, many of these timbers have been in plentiful supply but suddenly it seems ( although we all had plenty of warning) these valued timbers are becoming scarcer by the day.
There really hasn't been much of a panic in the past about losing these timbers , after all, I expect that one mahogany tree would produce about two or three thousand guitars but of late things have started to really tighten up.
For example, take Brazilian Rosewood, all of a sudden it seems, it's impossible to get. There is apparently a whole stack of it around still but you simply cant it out of the country. An export embargo was imposed on it in the late 1960's largely as a result of overharvesting the forests.

It now finally seems that many people are only now beginning to take their guitar building timbers seriously and the great Bob Taylor of Taylor guitars clearly has centred his whole credo around the conservation and preservation of beautiful timbers.
Now we are ...
... starting to see quite a few alternative timbers popping out of the forests now the other stuff is going the way of all flesh.
For example, Sapele, an African tonewood that is sometimes called African Mahogany. This timber gives much that Mahogany does and even excels in the treble qualities. It seems that many guitar builders will be using Sapele in the future for their work.

So why has Tropical Mahogany been so sought after for guitar building?
Well, availability must be one reason of course and naturally it has good tonal qualities especially in the mid ranges and has a very pleasant range of tonal characteristics. It has really become the standard benchmark for quality guitars over the years. The harmonics of mahogany are very constant and the wood too is stable, a must for guitars.
Mahogany guitars have been the choice for many of the old time blues and roots players for many years and many older guitars that are now fully ‘seasoned' and produce wonderful overtones and ‘chewy' mid range tones are very much sought after. Smooth, balanced and stable would probably describe a Mahogany guitar and let's not forget the positive and environment friendly characteristics and woodworking abilities that have endeared it to generations of luthiers.

Another tonewood that you are like to see developing in the future will be Ovangkol.
Once again this wood was introduced out of Africa by Bob Taylor to help supplement the timbers that were become too scarce or too difficult to obtain.
This timber is a relative of rosewood and is reputed to be a great sounding timber that shares many properties with rosewood, ie brighter at the top end and fuller in the midrange and lows. One problem of course with newer timbers is that its quite one thing to claim a new timber is the bees knees but quite another to overcome natural market resistance ..it has to earn its reputation like all quality products and claim a place in the heirachy of acceptable guitar tonewoods.

However the trend for new tonewood timbers is here to stay and another ( relative ) newcomer in the range of timbers is a beautiful timber Cocabola that originates from Central Mexico.
Similar to Koa across the spectrum it is bright, fresh and full of sparkle. It does not have the fuller bass ends of rosewood or Ovangkol but with time and hard playing opens up beautifully.

Well, now, on to one of my particular favourites, Big Leaf maple and of course not forgetting Australian Maple. I built a Weissenborn acoustic lap steel guitar out of Australian Maple some two years ago now and every characteristic about it is positive. The volume of my Weissenborn is really stunning, quite loudest guitar I have ever heard, unamplified! The overtones that run thought this guitar are hair raising and the top end sparkles like a firework! The decay is slow and airy and playing this guitar really is another worldly experience.
To say I am stunned every time I play it is an understatement and I a cant wait to get home to start playing it. When you get a reaction from a guitarist who has played for twenty five years you know that the timber is good, really good.

I also own a 70's Levin Goliath guitar built by Carlsson Levin, This instrument I first saw played in Putney folk club in the 60's by a great calypso guitarist, Johnny Silvo.
The guitar then was huge, loud and just snapped back jauntily when it was played by Johnny as if eager to produce more and more great music. Little did I know that I would in the distant future own this beast!
The guitar has had a hard life and had been damaged and repaired but still wont lay down and die. If anything it is greater than ever and I have converted it to the sweetest ever slide guitar. The sound of it entrances me so much I sometimes actually forget what I am playing and just listen over and over again to certain chords..that's true love!
The table is Sitka spruce and the body Big Leaf Maple..
Heaven on Earth! Incidentally the neck is mahogany and does its fair share of contributing to it's great sound sound too.
I will continue with these articles on guitar tonewoods and publish them onto to my site the url of which is below in the authors bio.
If you are interested in more information and would like to read more guitar building and related articles why not visit me there? Who knows you might get a little entranced yourself?
Terry Buddell is freelance writer and lives on board his yacht in Gladstone, Australia.
Last year Terry, a keen blues guitar player, built a Weissenborn lap slide acoustic guitar, his first ever. Terry, amazed by the original rich tone and incredible volume of the guitar, designed a plan, built a website, wrote a book about building the guitar on his yacht.
If you are interested to learn more and read some more articles about guitar building for beginners, why not visit www.buildaweissenborn.com and find out more!