A Primer on Guitar Body Woods

As you wander down the guitar buying lane learning more about the guitars construction we’ve put together a easy to understand primer on woods and the characteristics of each specific type and  combination.

Basswood:

Basswood has tight grains but is a very soft wood. Of all the guitar woods, it is one of the least expensive. Because this is such a soft wood it is so easy to sand, easy on the factory’s router bits, and is so easy to finish. This softness also dampens and smoothes sharp highs, which offsets the tinny sound that so often associated with the knife-edged tremolo contacts of the guitar bar and also encourages a weaker low end. Basswood is very low in mass overall and is lightweight but not because of large pores. This wood does not resonant deep, breathy sub-lows and because of the reduction of these outer frequencies it leaves the mids pronouncing in a hypothetical response curve. It is great for the guitar range, and used often for the lead guitar, because of the “out front” sounds. A strong fundamental tone is caused because of the complex overtones that are muted along with the highs.

Production notes: A tan colored, more uniform basswood is used in Japanese factories like Ibanez and then factories in Asia seem to use more of the flawed yellowish basswood. These two make a huge difference in the tone. More sound is produced from the clearer and darker Basswood while more of the undesirable tone qualities are produced by the Poplar, the yellowish lower grade of Basswood. The reduced dynamics of the outer frequencies are emphasized by a hard tail.

Alder:

Alder is like Basswood in that is it light weight and has soft tight pores but it has a huge swirling grain pattern with harder rings and sections. So this pictures Alder as a Basswood type texture but much harder rings scattered throughout the design of the Basswood which adds to the complexity of the tones and the stiffness of the wood. Alder keeps more of the highs that Basswood softens down, but it also gives it room for some lows. This causes you to have a wider spectrum of tones, which give the perception of a little less mids than the Basswood.

Production notes: There is not much difference at all between the production and factories of Alder and Basswood.

Swamp Ash:

Swamp Ash has large, open pores with soft and hard layers inside each ring of the tree. This is not to be confused with the Northern “hard Ash”. So the skeleton is a very basic rigid skeleton with open and softer pores through and through. The entire frequency spectrum is very resonant all across. It has strong lows, pronounced mids, and clear bell-like highs. Because of the combing away of the mid frequencies, the sound of each guitar will vary much more than the Alder or Basswood. Basswood and Alder are more consistent and sound more alike, as compared to the two Ash bodies that are most likely to sound more differently. The higher up you go on the tree, the heavier the piece will be therefore causing it to be dead or lifeless with a dull sound, because the wood is more uniformly dense and harder. The sweetness of the soft open pores is lost and all that is left is the compressed sound of a, non-responsive wood that is more stiff, and without all the brightness and sustain of the wood that is harder or the soft wood openness.

Production notes: The mass produced factory guitar from Asia should be weighed and checked for openness of the grain if the finish will allow. The Ash that is used in the bigger factories has a higher ratio of pieces that are not as up to standard than the smaller boutique builders, or the other United States builders. This is probably the result of it being a United States wood.

Mahogany:

Mahogany has more density and uniform grain pattern than Swamp Ash and is also open grained with large pores. The density is consistent within the ring and from one ring to the next ring, so the solidity is inherent in its makeup, not in a “skeleton” with sections that are soft in between. The mids are compressed a little because of its constant density, and this is considered a thick sound, because even with this it still produces good lows and low mids. Being responsive to the dynamics, without the mids popping out, it’s more of a “wall of sound”. It is not midrangey because those guitar frequencies are resonated very well; but these are not as responsive to them as an Ash or Alder. Also more upper midrange frequencies are combed away for the nasal sound. This is a great balance of overtones and fundamental for higher register soloing. The higher notes are thicker and richer than the Ash or Alder.

Production notes: There are so many different types of Mahogany, and unless it sparkles like some of the United States and Japanese guitars it will have a sound very common from one piece to the next. If the mahogany is a much nicer piece it will have an iridescence to it that is usually combined with what appears to be wide stripes, almost as if it has been pieced together with one inch strips. This wood is the staple of many DOS guitars because of its performance qualities and great sound. By matching the highest quality mahogany body with varieties of maple tops we deliver some of the greatest sounding guitars on the planet.

Walnut:

Walnut is a much darker wood like Ash grains, but the density is uniform like the mahogany. The tone is brighter because it is harder and denser, but the grains are open which make the complex midrange seem to be compressed in some frequencies, but in other dynamic. The rhythms have a nasal response while the notes that are solo just jump out. There are a lot of features that are an advantage of the other main guitar woods. It has solid lows and snappy attack like the Ash, but the highs are smooth like the Mahogany, and the mids are textured like the Alder. Some of the drawbacks are that it is heavier, and the sound is more stubborn. It can’t respond to random pickup changes because the pickups have to be well suited to the guitar. A guitar body of Walnut will dictate the signature tone of the guitar more than the other main woods. A piece that is heavy will dampen the mids to produce an overly lifeless and nasal sound, therefore it needs to be open grained and light enough to resonate the frequencies of the main guitar.

Production notes: Once again beware of heavy pieces because the extra weight adds nothing that is good to the sounds except maybe more sustain. Sustain is more abundant in the Walnut already.

:

Koa is oilier than Walnut or Mahogany. It is denser than Mahogany but duller then Walnut, because of its actual makeup. It is compared to the Rosewood because of the oiliness, and that dampens some of the highs in the attack but then the density makes up for that a small bit. Think of the highs as not jumping out like the breaking of glass but present but not compressed. These are more omnipresent and are found more in the upper midrange than in the highs. This will result in a less expensive sound for those that are into playing hard picking blues or give off a very musical sound for someone interested in the fundamentals.

Production notes: Koa is expensive with drastic price fluctuations and are very rare. It is often a high cost upgrade and figured Koa is rarer, and cut for tops and very expensive.

Korian:

This can be considered somewhat of a “super-mahogany” or “mahogany deluxe” because it s grains and sound are somewhat alike. It is also said that the midrange is sweeter and more responsive. Even though the grains look like the material itself is less dense. Due to higher moisture content rather than higher density would cause this piece to weigh more than a same-sized mahogany piece.

Production notes: This is so rare and expensive that it is rarely used. The price of these Korian guitars usually reflects that these are rarer than the garden variety Mahoganies plus more of an extra markup.

Soft Maple:

This is not as hard as hard maple and is used only in Korea. It is a little heavy, the upper midrange is brighter, and the lows have a dull sound. The snappy highs are absent because the pores are so tight and the highs get compressed. With the right pickups, you can redeem some qualities, if you like the brassy, piercing upper midrange sound for a dry, combed rhythm or bridge sound.

Production notes: This is loved by the Korean factories because it is abundant and cheap for them for some reason. It is much harder on router bits than basswood. They seem to not be as concerned with the clean, sharp cuts over there, which indicates they do not compensate with sharpening and replacing bits frequently.

Hard Maple:

This wood is loud, it “shouts”, with strong upper midrange, highs that are bright, and very tight lows that are tapered off. This pickup makes good lows and you will find them in a Hard Maple body, but they will not interact with a loud half stack.

Production notes: This is very hard on tools and is very heavy. Factories rarely use it. It does make a good slim bodied guitar.

Spruce:

To the touch, it is very soft and is very stiff for its density overall. It is another wood that had a hard skeleton and soft mean, like the Alder. So it will produce a tremendous resonant and open midrange due to the solid body while keeping high frequency attack, and continuing with good low end breathe. The sound wouldn’t be heard as having less midrange as the Basswood because of the overall low density. There will be clear highs and lows along with the mids will be just as powerful and dynamic. This is probably the most frequency body material accepted.

Production notes: Because its softness requires a heavy finish or composite “shell” like the Parkers, it is rarely used. Since there are many unique construction methods and synthetics used in the Parker, it isn’t the best one to represent the sound of a Spruce body. Veneer caps or a top would work well and would offset some of the sound that is compressed sound you would get with neck through construction.

Lacewood:

Lacewood is a real multi-dense wood. The skeleton is rum colored and hard like the Koa or Walnut. It is like the Adler because of its grayish tan interior portions. Different tones are augmented by the dual densities, while they comb others out. It is much brighter than the Alder, and much richer than the solid maple.

Production notes: This lacewood is very hard to finish, because the sections absorb the finish so much differently. The best finishes to use are the oil finishes and the heavy poly finished. The softer nitrocellulose or acrylic lacquer does not work as well. Do not use the lacquer finishes because they will sink over time telegraphing the grain.

Extended Range notes: This is another wood that is suited very well for extended lows. A good skeleton for keeping the lows tight is proved by the dual density. Because of the warmth of the softer section there is a less tradeoff to the higher strings.

Body tops:

The decay and resonance are more like the bottom wood but the tops seem to create a situation where the attack of the notes will be more like the top wood. The degree of is sound effect are dictated by the thickness and carve of the top. The unit that is glued will be more rigid and will also increase sustain.

Maple top on Basswood:

The even highs and clean attack of Maple will very well make up for the Basswood’s inherent reduction of those frequencies. The overall result is more frequencies covered than with either piece alone but the lows will still taper off. The dynamics are not reduced except for the upper register. This is where they are least present in Basswood alone the so high response improvement is more compressed, but not as crisp and responsive in the attack as with the Swamp Ash.

Maple top on Mahogany:

The Maple adds crispness to the mahogany which is the staple of vintage construction, but the lows and low mids of the mahogany are still just as apparent. Some of the upper mids are combed out with the Maple, but this is not because the Maple is lacking in these areas. This is because it is very different from mahogany in its handling of the upper midrange. Some of the upper midrange frequencies are cancelled out because of the fighting going on in that range between the two pieces. This is part of the “smoothness” that is associated with the most of Dot On Shaft’s guitars in particular the Carparelli S1, S2 and S3 types.

Maple top on Alder:

This maple top on the Alder takes the Alder to a closer tone to the solid Swamp Ash, but no dynamics. The openness of the resonance of the Alder comes through with the brightness and sharper attack of the Maple on the top end. The same affect is on the Alder as on the Basswood. The upper mids of the Maple still come through as the Alder doesn’t suppress upper mids.

Maple top on Swamp Ash:

This is a very good compliment to the Swamp Ash but it also reduces the open, airy dynamics of the solid Ash. The expanded midrange is muted but it really doesn’t combs out any of the sections because they all work very well together. A little more rock and country compressed “scream” is added to the sound at the expense of the Ash’s complicated lows and low mids.

Rosewood tops:

These add more sustain, and will laminate itself by the virtue of the density. The oiliness of the rosewood tops will dampen the attack and the higher treble frequencies. So with the Rosewood overlaying the Mahogany it will really be smooth, but the Rosewood overlaying the Ash will keep some open midrange resonance. The Rosewood over the Alder or Basswood will be a huge sustain boost with very little effect on the tone except the high mid combing from the lamination, since the high dampening from Rosewood is redundant.

Koa tops:

The plain or figured Koa tops will have a similar sound to the Maple tops with the one exception of being that it won’t fight Mahogany backs so much in the upper midrange. Even though the Maple resonant more upper mids, a Koa top on Mahogany will have less combing and compressing of these frequencies.

Walnut tops:

Walnut tops are like Koa, in that the tops have just a little less frequency than Maple, but have less compression and combing with Mahogany backs.

Lacewood tops:

This is hard “Swiss cheese” type skeleton, with soft pieces inside the “holes.” It is more likely to take on the tone of the back wood because of it combination of hard and soft sections. It will start to apply its own tone signature to the body only when it is thicker. It is like drilling one-half inch holes in the Koa and filling them with Alder wood plugs. This has a very good top end and sustain from the skeleton that is harder, and a heavily combed midrange and low end form the softer, smaller sections throughout.

Neck woods:

Maple:

Maple is the most common electric guitar neck wood because of its uniform grain and it is strong and stable. It also had less reaction from environmental changes than the other hardwoods. The tone of the maple is highly reflective, and focuses more energy onto the body wood. The bolt-on Maple necks are less of a factor on the tone of the guitar and emphasize the body wood.

Mahogany:

Stable necks are made from this even density and the open pores make the neck more responsive than a neck made of maple. This Mahogany compresses the highs and attack a little and absorb more of the string vibrations than the Maple.

Koa:

This tone is somewhere between the Maple and Mahogany with a sweeter top end.

Rosewood:

This is oily and heavy wood and the Rosewood neck will make perfect sustain while also smoothening out the highs. Brighter top end generally comes with a greater sustain but this is not true of the Rosewood. This Rosewood mutes the frequency overtones that are high, and makes a fundamental that is strong and still has the complexities of mid and low mid overtones.

Wenge:

This is strong, stiff, and stable and trims some high overtones like Rosewood does, during the same time it resonant more fundamental mids and low mids because of its multi-density “stripes” combing away a bit more of the mid and low mid overtones.

Fret board Woods:

More important than the neck wood, the fret board is the place where your strings start from. It is the “bridge” on the other side. Fret board differences are as drastic as the differences between the hard tail and a tremolo.

Maple:

They are very dense and bright and highly reflective. When they are used on a fret board, the Maple encourages tremendous amounts of overtone that are higher and tight. They have almost filtered away bass favors variations and harmonics in pick attack.

Rosewood:

This is the most common wood to make the fret board. It is naturally oily, and works great for any surface that humans are going to be in contact with. The sound is much richer in fundamental than Maple due to the stray overtones that are absorbed in the oily pores. Combined with a mahogany body and neck it produces that much sought after sweet smooth tone which DOS guitars have become known for.

Ebony:

Ebony has a crisp, snappy attack with the density of Maple, but more brittle grains, and pores that are oilier, and a fundamental tone that is much stronger than the Maple. It has a large amount of percussive overtones in the pick attack, that mute out quickly to foster long, great, sustain.

Pao Ferro:

Put very simply, Pao Ferro is a wood that is between Rosewood and Ebony, and the tone is also. The attack is snappier than the rosewood, and has good sustain, and is much warmer sounding than Ebony. Some think of Pao Ferro to represent their favorite of the two.

Extended Range notes:

Basswood is not stiff enough for a well-defined, tight low end with a shorter scale. Low notes will have a good harmonics, and a fundamental that is good, but the overall tone will be midrangey.

Alder has slightly deeper lows and a tighter low end than Basswood.

Swamp Ash’s open pores help resonant tones that are low, and also is tiff enough for a crisp low end without becoming muddy. The overtones becoming higher are more apparent in the lower registers, for a sharper attack and good harmonic content.

Mahogany’s overall thick sound and warm lows make extended lows very full and they can produce muddiness in the signal. The low notes are very strong and seem to be overbearing for a pickup sometimes. A crisp, bright and active pickup that thins out the low end could possibly be a good combination.

The Walnut’s combed midrange dynamics and tight low end make it very suited for extended range. It doesn’t get muddy unless it is a poor specimen with yellowish orange and soft areas.

Like Walnut, a Mahogany alternative is Koa. It has less muddiness with a tighter low end and the dampened higher overtones will produce a fundamental that is stronger than Walnut at the cost of a sharper attack.

Korina is like Mahogany in responding to the extended lows. There is also no muddiness in the extended range because of the soft Maple’s dull lows. It is also a great alternative to Basswood if that is one of your big concerns. The bright upper mids will be compensated by the pickups.

Hard Maple will have lows that are the tightest for the extended range and the low notes will have a sharp attack with plenty of harmonics and perfect sustain.

Spruce is way too soft to avoid getting mushy but is also capable of reproducing extended lows. A neck through, a laminated top, or both of these will provide the rigidity needed while still highlighting the Spruce’s good points. Any laminated top one-eighth of an inch or thicker will improve the low end tightness. The muddiness will be tightened by the existence of the lamination. All the same qualities are the same in the laminate top descriptions.

Neck Through Notes:

Excellent sustain is produced by the neck through construction method. The tone of the guitar is strongly influenced by the neck wood because it occupies the center, which is the most important part of the body. A figured wood top will usually cause a nasal, thinner quality to the sound. Your side woods make up way less of the tone than on the set neck or bolt on guitar. First, you have to estimate what the neck wood’s tone is like as a body wood, then counteract or accentuate that with your side woods. Therefore a Hard Maple neck through will be bright and cutting. Use Basswood or Spruce sides to warm it up. But if you like those features then Ash or Soft Maple sides is for you. This effect is very, very different than the laminated top sound. A maple neck through with Basswood wings is nothing like the maple top on Basswood. This maple neck through with Basswood wings sounds more like a Maple body. The softer woods are better to use on the sides because they add back some low end resonance that is missing in the construction method, while dampening the highs.

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