Rosewood Or Mahogany

Michael Watts reflects on how the choice of the two most popular back and sides woods affects your acoustic sound

- Michael Watts

The flat-top acoustic guitar is a finely balanced system of parts and forces, each of which has a profound knock-on effect on the others. From scale length to bracing, neck carve to bridge weight, the instrument we love can be remarkably sensitive to the choices and intent that goes into its creation.

As such, there is a temptation – wherever acoustic guitarists gather – to philosophise passionately about every part of the instrument. This is useful. As something of a pontificator myself, it is comforting to know that there are places we can go. This column being one of them. That said, before addressing one of the most hotly debated and subjective topics in the acoustic guitar world, let's start with three objective truths. These will give us something to cling onto as we go: one, wood of any species is nothing more than a source of potential; two, the acoustic properties of individual pieces of wood can differ wildly within the same species and genus of tree; and three, as every guitar is different so, too, is every player

Bearing these three precepts in mind - and assuming that all hypothetical guitars I mention have soundboards voiced to bring out the best of each instrument - let's take a look at the differences that the choice of rosewood or mahogany back and sides will have on your experience as a tone-generating 21st century organism.

Fundamental Or Complex

The finest mahogany guitars that I have encountered have had several characteristics in common. The most immediate of these is the ‘fundamental’ character of the sound. You get the note itself and maybe a touch of sympathetic resonance from open strings – especially in tunings like DADGAD – but on the whole the voice is pure and unadorned. It is a sound we could describe as ‘dry’ or ‘woody’ without fear of contradiction.