Wood Descriptions
Back and Side Wood
Brazilian Rosewood (Dalbergia nigra)
Highly sought after by generations of luthiers and players for its unmatched beauty. Brazilian helps to impart warmth and darkness to the tone of the guitar. Tonal differences between Brazilian and Indian Rosewoods are subtle and consideration should be based on aesthetics, rarity, future value, and collectibility.
Our Brazilian Rosewood is graded in tiers:
Tier 2: This is what is standard on any guitar with Brazilian as standard. Can have knot holes, color is not as deep/rich, slab cut, etc.
Tier 1: The good stuff. Deep/Rich color and limited imperfections.
Master/Reserve/Vault: The most desirable. The rarest and best pieces that you cannot find anymore. Straight grain, crazy figure, rich color, etc… All of this is in our Vault and only available on Vault Guitars, not for public request.
Cocobolo (Dalbergia retusa)
Cocobolo can be seen in a kaleidoscope of different colors, ranging from yellow, orange, red, and shades of brown with streaks of black or purple. Sapwood is typically a very pale yellow. Colors are lighter when freshly sanded/cut, and darken with age. Cocobolo has excellent turning properties. Rich and complex tone like BRW but more compressed. Bright and glassy without being brittle. Clear and pronounced.
East Indian Rosewood (Dalbergia latifolia)
Like Brazilian, Indian Rosewood keeps the guitar at the warm, dark end of the tonal spectrum. While not as visually striking as Central & South American Rosewood, Indian Rosewood has an elegant appearance and should not be considered inferior to Brazilian on any account. Our EIR is sourced from the Yogi family in India. We have worked with the same family for 4 generations.
Koa (Acacia koa)
Although Koa is naturally quite abundant on the islands of Hawaii, most Koa forests have been cleared for grazing pastures; and since young Koa seedlings are edible for grazing animals, most new trees are prevented from growing to lumber-harvestable size. As a result, mature Koa trees are either scarce, or in hard-to-access mountainous locations, and the price of Koa is likely to only increase further in the future.
Koa is widely considered to be the most beautiful and useful of Hawaii’s native hardwoods, and along with Monkey Pod and Mango, it is the most common Hawaiian species to be imported into the lower 48 United States.
Visually, Koa has been compared to Mahogany, while in terms of working and mechanical properties, it has been compared to Walnut. Because of its nearly equal tangential and radial shrinkage, (its T/R Ratio is only 1.1), Koa tends to be quite stable regarding environmental changes in humidity.
Koa is a gorgeous wood with well defined curly and flamed grain patterns as found in instrument quality Maple. It falls in the middle of the tonal spectrum, giving the instrument a brightness of tone without sacrificing warmth. It is slightly less round m tone than the Rosewoods.
Color can be highly variable, but tends to be medium golden or reddish brown, similar to Mahogany. There are usually contrasting bands of color in the growth rings, and it is not uncommon to see boards with ribbon-like streaks of color. Boards figured with wavy and/or curly grain are also not uncommon.
With the tree endemic to Hawaii only, and with supplies dwindling, Koa is likely to be rather expensive. Also, boards of highly figured and/or curly Koa can command fantastic prices and are extremely rare.
Mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla)
An exceptional tone wood when chosen for proper density and integrity. Similar to Koa for in its ability to add advantage snap and in a sparkle to the instrument, a definite advantage in a traditionally boomy dreadnought. Mahogany has been underappreciated because of its historical use in simpler, therefore less expensive, guitars.
Maple
European or German Maple is the favored wood for the construction of Jazz guitars because of its bright dry tone. Maple gives the guitar a cool precise tone with very distinct differences from Rosewood guitars.
Sycamore
Similar to Maple, Sycamore has a fine and even texture. The grain is interlocked. The wood of Sycamore trees is predominantly sapwood, with some darker heartwood streaks also found in most boards. (Though it is not uncommon to also see entire boards of heartwood too.) The sapwood is white to light tan, while the heartwood is a darker reddish brown. Sycamore also has very distinct ray flecks present on quartersawn surfaces—giving it a freckled appearance—and it is sometimes even called “Lacewood.” Overall, Sycamore works easily with both hand and machine tools, though the interlocked grain can be troublesome in surfacing and machining operations at times. Sycamore turns, glues, and finishes well.
Walnut (Claro)
Claro Walnut, native to California and Oregon, features a rich blend of chocolate browns and purples with complex figure and curl. Tonally, it lies between Rosewood and Mahogany—clear and responsive with warm overtones and a well-balanced EQ curve. It offers excellent note separation and midrange presence, making it suitable for both strumming and fingerstyle.
Top Wood
Adirondack Spruce (Red Spruce)
Harvested primarily in the northeastern U.S., Adirondack Spruce is known for its strength, stiffness, and loud, clear tonal profile. It provides excellent headroom and dynamic response, ideal for bluegrass and flatpicking. Its creamy color and pronounced grain lend it a vintage aesthetic. Over time, it opens up with use, making it a favorite for serious players.
Cedar
Western Red Cedar, primarily sourced from the Pacific Northwest of the United States and Canada, is a soft, resonant tonewood known for its warm, rich sound. Its color ranges from light amber to reddish-brown, often with a straight, tight grain and occasional streaks or color variation.
Cedar offers a quick response and excellent sensitivity to a light touch, making it ideal for fingerstyle playing and classical guitar. It produces a sweet, warm tone with strong overtones and a slightly compressed dynamic range, which gives it a smooth, mellow character. Cedar tops do not require as much playing-in as spruce and tend to sound “open” from the start.
Though softer than spruce, cedar excels in expressive, nuanced playing and pairs beautifully with a wide range of back and side woods to enhance tonal warmth and complexity.
European Spruce (German or Italian Spruce)
Sourced from the high altitudes of the Alps, European Spruce is the traditional top wood for classical and steel-string guitars. It has a creamy white to golden hue and fine, uniform grain. Tonally, it offers a balanced voice with shimmering highs and controlled bass, and excels at subtle expression and dynamics, making it ideal for fingerstyle and classical genres.
Redwood
Offers a complex, mellow voice with outstanding responsiveness and a wide dynamic range. Their reddish-brown hues and tight grains make them visually captivating. Tonally, they are articulate, ideal for light fingerstyle playing. We offer regular redwood, sinker, and striped sinker. Sinker means that it had been submerged in water for a period of time. Depending on the environment and length of time, sinker can develope a distinct striping of various colors that make it more desirable.
Sitka Spruce
Sitka Spruce is the most commonly used top wood in steel-string guitars, harvested from the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. With its strong fundamental tone, wide dynamic range, and excellent clarity, Sitka is extremely versatile. It features a creamy color with tight grain lines and is suitable for all playing styles, from light fingerpicking to aggressive strumming.