Mahogany vs. Rosewood: THE FINAL BATTLE

[retsofekaj]

I prefer mahogany for the way it looks on back and sides, but not really for tops.

I also prefer rosewood for the way it looks on back and sides.

In conclusion: wood grain is pretty.

[bufflehead]

I'm flexible in these matters. My guitars all contain one of the following combinations:
**spruce top with mahogany B/S
**cedar top with mahogany B/S
**mahogany top with mahogany B/S.

[Guilty Spark]

Originally Posted by beatcomber

I recently acquired my first rosewood guitar, an OM-28, and I'm still getting familiar with its character. I'm enjoy the lush, layered overtones and ringing sustain, but it sounds less "woody" and warm than mahogany-backed guitars, which typically have a richer, fuller midrange and a stronger fundamental tone.

Try some monel strings if you haven't already done so.

[fjblair]

Why are people calling mahogany "hog"? Do you call rosewood "rose" or just "wood"?

[beatcomber]

Originally Posted by Guilty Spark

Try some monel strings if you haven't already done so.

I was actually planning to do that. I have used them on hog guitars (with both spruce and hog tops) and liked them a lot, but I have no idea how they will sound on my OM-28. I keep reading that monels + rosewood is disappointing, but I guess I need to find out for myself.

Of course, back in the early '30s it was pretty likely that the original OM-28 came with monels, so it might actually be an appropriate choice.

[Bob from Brooklyn]

Originally Posted by fjblair

Why are people calling mahogany "hog"? Do you call rosewood "rose" or just "wood"?

Because they're not sure how to spell mahogony

[Kittoon]

Originally Posted by Brooklyn Bob

Because they're not sure how to spell mahogony

Ha! -You beat me to it!
- Perhaps at some level “Hog” brings out a repressed element of somehow being connected with the “Hells Angels”?

[abelville]

I like a lightly built solid wood guitar that sparks my interest at the time. Which, ensures GAS security.

[Gordon Currie]

Originally Posted by fjblair

Why are people calling mahogany "hog"?

No idea, but I never ever saw or heard this - been playing since 1966 - before joining the AGF. I'm inclined to believe it is an AGF thing.

I'm not sure what the current score is for this 'battle' but I will never own a mahogany instrument again. It doesn't work for the sound I like and the styles I play.

I hear others play mahogany and sometimes it sounds great. Just not for me.

[Hank T. Tone]

This may sound like a copout, but it's not: I love 'em all.

I love maple because it projects.

I love rosewood because it's versatile.

I love mahogany because I bind with it like it binds with me; best guitar sex I ever had.

[whvick]

So I just reread the
Original post.
So if I want a handsome king it would be prince Rosewood. But to reign and care best for the kingdom it is prince mahogany.
I hear that in another kingdom there is a King mahogany and a queen Rosewood and they lived happily ever after

[wguitar]

I'm just a common man guitar player who enjoy the looks, sound and feel of mostly rosewood and mahogany guitars that I've played. Who needs kings anyway? Budweiser has long claimed to be the "King of Beers", but does that mean it's the best ? I own a nice Taylor 514ce with rosewood inlays on the fretboard -- looks great, but doesn't affect how the guitar plays in any way. Just a sales gimmick really. Maybe that's why Taylor is one of the kings of guitar sales.

All the best!

Cheers!

[macmanmatty]

I vote for maple. It is the best all around tone wood. It can do anything if built with properly.

[Cheezeweggie]

Rosewood HPL sounds just like mahogany and koa HPL...

[Tannin]

If we are actually serious about crowning a "king of tonewoods", thern there is only one possible choice. Nothing else even comes close. All hail King Spruce the First!

Spruce supplies ~80% of all guitar tops and the top is by far the most important contributor to the overall tone. A competent luthier can make a good sounding guitar with almost any timber for the back and sides. You could make back and sides out of concrete or even papier mâché and get a half-decent guitar so long as the top was good. You can make a good neck out of any timber you like so long as it is strong enough and not prone to warping. You can make an excellent fingerboard out of at least a dozen different timbers, and probably a hundred more if you could be bothered looking for them. But there is no substitute for a quality topwood, and spruce is the near-universal first choice.