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  #16  
Old 12-30-2017, 06:22 AM
lowrider lowrider is offline
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It's hard to call mutenye under-rated since as far as I know it's only used for two Martin Road Series models, but those two models clearly outshine the same guitars made with sapele. Before I bought my GPRSG, I played four different versions and two of the sapele versions. The mutenye version made the sapele version sound muffled and weak.

And mutenye is a beautiful wood. It looks like spun gold in the sun.
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  #17  
Old 12-30-2017, 06:23 AM
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Under Rated:
Cedar tops. Sound is fantastic but it seems the majority of fingerpickers still get spruce
Sapele bodies. Great sound and great wood. Apparently viewed as inferior mahogany.

Over Rated
Redwood tops. Most disappointing guitar I played was the most gorgeous sinker redwood PS at a Taylor roadshow. It sounded like it was still full of mud. Gave me a terrible impression. Thud. Dead. muted. no resonance, no sustain, nothing.
Ovangkol body. Briefly owned an old Taylor 410 that was totally lifeless. Like redwood - it gave me a bad impression.
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Last edited by fazool; 12-30-2017 at 06:30 AM.
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  #18  
Old 12-30-2017, 06:32 AM
$ongWriter $ongWriter is offline
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Default Maple..

I think maple is under rated. Simply because almost all you ever here is it's "bright" or "thin" sounding. It has much more to do with the builder. My Taylor 614 is not at all thin sounding. I also had a 614 from 2003 that had more bottom end than my Limited Edition Taylor Cocobolo dred. I also think Cocobolo is OVER RATED....I've only played maybe 6 guitars made with it...and none of them hit me....it's possible it wasn't the wood...I think it's pretty.....on a side note....have you ever noticed how much most of the pre-war Braz that Martin used looks a lot like EIR...and yet much of the 60's Braz is beautiful.....even my 54' has real pretty Braz and it sounds great....(not 40's great...but still great)...anyway...good topic!!!
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  #19  
Old 12-30-2017, 08:01 AM
gfspencer gfspencer is offline
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Amazon rosewood is underrated.

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  #20  
Old 12-30-2017, 08:21 AM
AndrewG AndrewG is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rct View Post
Guitars made of the greatest of "tonewood" can sound like crap, guitars made of the poorest "tonewood" can sound great. A great guitar is where you find it, the materials are immaterial except for the minutiae of debate.

rct
/thread.....
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  #21  
Old 12-30-2017, 08:27 AM
Goodallboy Goodallboy is offline
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I think opinions about tonewood are overrated.

It's unbelievable that someone actually believes a tonewood in underrated because they once played a bad guitar with that tonewood as it's top. If that's the level of understanding about tonewoods, taking that opinion seriously is dangerous to your overall guitar experience.
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  #22  
Old 12-30-2017, 08:27 AM
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Overated:
Any tonewood not selected by a builder skilled in the art, used to make a guitar by a builder who does not know how to properly work with it.

Underated:
Any tonewood selected by a builder skilled in the art, used to make a guitar by a builder who knows how to properly work with it.

My $.02
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  #23  
Old 12-30-2017, 08:30 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by iim7V7IM7 View Post
Overated:
Any tonewood not selected by a builder skilled in the art, used to make a guitar by a builder who does not know how to properly work with it.

Underated:
Any tonewood selected by a builder skilled in the art, used to make a guitar by a builder who knows how to properly work with it.

My $.02
^^^^^^^THIS^^^^^^^
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  #24  
Old 12-30-2017, 08:34 AM
AndrewG AndrewG is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrErikJ View Post
Underrated:

Tops: Engelmann Spruce and Western Red Cedar.
Sitka and Adirondack are great woods but I think Engelmann and cedar are a little under-utilized for steel strings. They’re especially great for fingerpicking.

Bodies: Sapele
Because of its prices I’ve heard people call it “poor man’s mahogany.” Just because something is plentiful and affordable doesn’t mean it’s poor. It has the best qualities or mahogany plus a little more sparkle and overtone. A great wood at a good price.

Honorable Mention: Carbon Fiber and lyracord
Rainsong and Ovation receive a lot of attitude that’s based more on prejudice than quality. Carbon fiber guitars are durable and toneful and the the Ovation bowl is light, reflective, and tone-neutral like a good maple. There’s a lot to like about these guitars if people can step outside their comfort zone of traditional building.

Overrated: Adirondack
Sounds great once it breaks in, which takes 55 years.

East Indian Rosewood
I love this wood but I do hope to find an alternative. We need to manage our supplies and be more open-minded in our tone preferences.
Yes, and let's not forget that Brazilian rosewood and Honduran mahogany were also once affordable and plentiful. Scarcity/cost has elevated them to ridiculous 'Holy Grail' status. I'm also itching to try the Emerald X20 carbon guitar which sounds fantastic in the demos I have heard. I love the look, the concept, the design-there's nothing remotely 'traditional' or 'heritage' related about it, which also attracts me-and I'm a dyed-in-the-wool Luddite in many other areas!
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Last edited by AndrewG; 12-30-2017 at 08:40 AM.
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  #25  
Old 12-30-2017, 08:45 AM
rdf37 rdf37 is offline
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Underated and overated is about perspective. I love sitka spruce. However addy has overpowered its way into the minds of players all over. Price gets in our head and we start to think that higher price means better. Not true. It is a matter of what you want in sound. Same with rosewood and other woods for back anf sides. They all have their pluses depending on what you want. However, I will say this...Alpine spruce has been lost in the mix. It is coming back. I have a kentucky 505 mandolin that has alpine spruce for top and it is killer. I never knw about alpine until i got this axe. Didnt even know that was what it was. So alpine is underated in my head and I am glad because when it is better known, there will be a price hike. But none of that matter to me as long as I have the sound I like coming out of whatever I am playing.
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  #26  
Old 12-30-2017, 08:59 AM
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I won't touch overrated.

Underrated:
Walnut and maple. Given the popularity and scarcity of some of the popular woods, these might become common out of necessity. The good news is that they sound very pleasing.
Torrified woods. I can't say enough good things about my torrified Adi+EIR Bob Thompson dread. Will be ordering an OM from him towards the end of the year.
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  #27  
Old 12-30-2017, 09:23 AM
SoCalSurf SoCalSurf is offline
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Overrated: Anything I can't afford.

But seriously, I think it's rather presumptuous to claim something is overrated. People like what they like.

Underrated: Tasmanian Blackwood as a body wood.
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  #28  
Old 12-30-2017, 09:25 AM
vindibona1 vindibona1 is offline
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It's simple: THE WHOLE IS GREATER THAN THE SUM OF ITS PART. Wood selection on the back, top, sides are single components that CONTRIBUTE to the whole instrument, but none can be lumped into one category.

Example: Taylor 814ce vs 814ceDLX. For the most part the components are the same... except for Adirondack bracing on the DLX. And with the simple change from Sitka bracing to Adi bracing these guitars are very different animals as is the 414ce. Also with rosewood. And let's examine the old 614's vs the new 614's. same tonewoods but different sounds.
And let's not forget that every unit that should sound identically often do not.
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  #29  
Old 12-30-2017, 09:29 AM
Johan Madsen Johan Madsen is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Guitarplayer_PR View Post
We know tonewoods are viewed differently by us. Some like certain tones and others don't. With that in mind, I'll mention which tonewoods are underrated and overrated, of course, IMHO:

Underrated: SAPELE. Lovely balanced tone with just enough sparkle to transcend

Overrated: EIR. Not that I don't like it, but it's not THAT great. I love mids with my guitars and EIR sounds too scooped for my taste. On the other hand, I love cocobolo; but I don't think it's underrated.
I totally agree about rosewood lacking mid frequencies, I personnaly think maple is very underrated, there’s just something special about maple I love, it definitely has presence in the frequency range where rosewood is lacking.
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  #30  
Old 12-30-2017, 09:35 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Goodallboy View Post
...It's unbelievable that someone actually believes a tonewood in underrated because they once played a bad guitar with that tonewood as it's top....
Well, that is a good point.

For me, I am a huge Taylor fan. Taylor is known for their ultra-consistent builds. I played one of their highest end guitars (the presentation series). It was a total dud (to me). So, I can make some assumptions:

1) I'm a Taylor fan so not biased against them/it
2) They are known for consistency so I can expect similar results from others
3) This was the best of the best so not an anomalous dud

Normally, I would agree that one shouldn't make a sweeping generalized opinion based on one experience but I think that my logic is sound.

I don't like a specific food. I tried it once and hated it. I don't need to assume it was a non-representative result.
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