Thread: Woods is woods .........

Originally Posted by masoth

Well then, another question; I imagine thicker material is likely to resonate nicer than a high pitched sound of thin laths. Is that likely to be right, or am I completely off base (not to be confused with bass)?

soth

On an acoustic guitar the top has to be as thin as possible without compromising structural integrity. The top has to vibrate or else the guitar will sound dead....check out a cheap plywood topped asian special against a Martin (not me..the guitar) to see what I mean. How a top vibrates is controlled by many factors......elasticity of the wood, design and construction of bracing, how thin the top is taken to etc etc.

Generally a thinner top favours bass while a thicker top favours treble....its one reason I vary thickness of my tops on bass and treble side.

A thick top will be structurally superior to a thin top but it may not sound great. An over thin top on the other hand may sound great but after a few months you may notice the upper bout forming into a large dome or the bridge tilting forward.

Cheers Martin