Guitar Tone: Does Wood Selection Really Matter?
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- Опубликовано: 2 окт 2024
- Iteration one: Maple Bridge + Maple Neck
Iteration two: Maple Bridge + Rosewood Neck
Iteration three: Rosewood Bridge + Rosewood Neck
Which is your favourite?
In this video, Will McNicol and I have an in-depth, candid conversation about tone, and how the wood choice has affected the sound of this guitar.
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Tom Sands is a luthier renowned for creating some of the most responsive guitars in the world. Since apprenticing for Ervin Somogyi, Tom has taken his talents to North Yorkshire, building custom acoustic guitars from the Tom Sands Guitars workshop. Subscribe to the channel for weekly videos, ranging from Tommy’s Tonewoods, Guitar rundowns, to beautiful live sessions from independent artists. Join the community here, we love ya x
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This was a lot of fun, still can’t get over my guitar faces in the first version of Chump Man Blues 😅
Peak Will
Excellent comparisons and observations! The fact that Blanca was well suited to the blues provided me with an insight. I play piano. There’s a wonderfully resonant instrument with gobs of sustain. 30 or more seconds isn’t a stretch for a chord to decay. That a problem, though. Pianists fight sustain with a pedal to clear a chord when it’s time for another. The quick decay of Blanca accomplishes this wonderfully. Each new measure starts of clean. This is really necessary when you use 7th chords as each dominant 7th uses a note which is not in the key. That needs to be cleared. Pieces that are less jazzy can move around easier with the sustain. Just a thought.
This is a really, really interesting video Tom. I’m listening through the room monitors to try do it justice The Rosie neck with maple bridge seems immediately rounder and smoother. The rosie/rosie combination actually sounds more strident to me and the maple maple sounds more delicate and definitely has less “bloom” Have you tried recording any of these takes into a DAW and looking at the frequency responses ? The bass end sounds great on all and really “clean” and controlled on the maple bridge. Its obvious on the blues how much warmer the rosie neck is I think.
Spectrum analysis would have been a good idea! Next time!
Even without it theres definitely an audible difference. I guess in electrics received wisdom has for a long time been that maple boards and necks are “bright” and that rosewood is “warm”. Its interesting that the stiffer materials seem to have a tendency towards less high frequency content - counter intuitively - youd expect materials that oscillate more readily (maple etc) to lose their HF energy? Maybe the maple loses more midrange frequencies due to its flexibility , and thats what were perceiving ?
Immediately liked the maple/rosewood the best without even reading it was the neck changing
I felt the same when I listened blind
rosewood/rosewood sounds amazing
Very fascinating indeed! Thank you for sharing your knowledge and this experience.
I agree with everything said. It does seem like the point of attack on the string in the all maple configuration is a slightly closer to the bridge on Topsy compared to the other two configurations and then on the blues song is even further back compared to the others. It’s also hard to tell how much the difference is because will is more at an angle in the all maple videos. I don’t think it negates any of the observations but on the blues song the all maple configuration definitely has more twang and we all know from playing that the closer you move back to the bridge the more pronounced that becomes.
Great analysis and experiment. This was a really cool experiment.
When you mentioned other ideas or variables, I do see lots of debate on bridge plate material of maple vs rosewood. I’ve always been curious to see a side by side comparison.
Thank you! Yes, any time you add or subtract mass, it’s going to make a difference, especially to the bridge
Very interesting video! I hadn't considered how much the neck material affected tone. I agree with Will, M&M brightest, M&RW a good deal warmer, RW&RW slightly warmer still. I liked the RW guitars on Topsy, but really thought the M&M guitar worked better on the blues tune.
I would have to agree
I preferred the maple/rosewood for the slower ballads and maple/maple for the faster blues piece since the notes got out of the way of each other. Really cool to hear the differences in neck and bridge material. I would say the neck makes a bigger impact than most would guess.
I was so glad we had the opportunity to do this video
Yes, it absolutely means EVERYTHING!
If you could build a guitar out of any materials, what would your spec be?
Fascinating. I had no idea the neck wood could make such a profound sound change. I suspected the bridge would have some impact but amazing to hear. Thanks for sharing your knowledge
I was especially surprised by the neck change
Explanation at the end of how the neck & bridge influences the sound was great. I had heard that before in relation to the bridge but didn’t realise the neck would affect how the whole instrument would vibrate and potentially drain the energy the guitar needs to generate sound.
I can bore people down the pub now with these facts. “Hey lads…” 🤓
🤣 let me know how that goes
I would be interested in a comparison of the weight of the different bridges.
The rosewood was significantly heavier, I’ve got it written down somewhere…
If I had the cash I would gift you a decent spectrum analyzer; you'd know what to do with it.
Yeah that would be amazing! I should have run some basic spectrum analysis, next time!
Tom, can you tell me what was the Rosewood used on the neck and bridge? I am trying to imagine what this might be like with a Maple B&S with a Redwood top (which I am hearing in my head) .. even with a super vibrant Redwood like Lucky Strike.
Thanks, John
Gig Harbor, WA
Oops, now I see it was Honduran Rosewood. Thanks😜
It’s Honduran rosewood John. 🙏
A very well thought out edited video presentation. For me the maple / maple sound is similar to the Martin style sound. Both the maple / rosewood and the rosewood / rosewood combinations would be my personal preferences. The rosewood / rosewood seems to have a warmth that adds icing to the cake.
Trevor Gore's Steel String falcate braced guitars have a bridge that is very light with a sandwich of carbon fibre and are generally made from Blackwood. This improves the efficiency of the soundboard top with an increase in volume and dynamic range. Maybe Tom you could consider building a falcate braced guitar similar to the Trevor Gore Design and do some further comparisons.
Regards, Wayne, WJ Guitars, Australia.
I knew when Tom asked Will which one he liked the most, he was going to say the rosewood rosewood.
Which is your favourite?
@@TomSandsGuitars The rosewood rosewood was my favorite as well. But that might just be because it suits Will’s playing style so perfectly. Your work is phenomenal Tom! You and Michael Bashkin inspire me so much! I start school next week at Musicians Institute of Guitar Craft in Nashville with a certificate in acoustic design. I can’t wait to start my own journey with these beautiful tonewoods! God Bless!
I found your take on the Maple Bridge very interesting. I have a 1924 A Gibson Mandolin and about 12 years ago I decided to make a one piece Hard Maple Bridge for it. I don't remember my reasoning, weight probably? It is considerably lighter than the adjustable Ebony Bridge and I find the sound superior. I make F5 style mandolins and my personal instrument has a Maple Bridge for the same reasons. The thing is, mandolin buyers want the carpet to match the curtains and I understand that. The Bridge matching the Fingerboard is a superior look. Having said that, my Maple Bridges do match my instruments as they are black with Ivoroid Binding.
I worked for a Guitar Maker for about four years so I do enjoy your videos even though I don't build them now.
Perhaps trying a mahogany neck or walnut neck with matching bridges?
This experiment is highly interesting !I was really surprised by the neck sound differences !The rose x2 is really revealing ,but I would go for the mid-rangie sound of the maple-rosewood combination !
I think it would be more interesting if you did the listen test without knowing what the configuration is. I wonder if your observations would be the same.
But awesome episode, I should say. In keeping with the high quality of all the videos on the site.
Yeah, maybe one for the future. Which did you prefer?
I think my favorite was the maple/ rosewood
🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯
Care to expand?
I preferred the tone of the Maple/Maple. Violins typically use Maple for the Bridge, Back, and Sides.
When talking about Tonewoods, it's an interesting reality check to consider the materials of the Speakers we listen on: "Loudspeaker cones are most commonly formed from paper pulp, but plastics (e.g., polypropylene) are also popular, and sheet material can be vacuum thermoformed (like melting hot cheese over a form), compression molded, positive/negative molded (or injection-molded) into the desired shape. Metal cones are also used. Other high-tech solutions that have achieved success include a sandwich construction with skins and honeycomb or foam cores.
In the last years, a number of notable composites for speaker cones and diaphragms have been introduced to the speaker industry. These include woven, cross-ply layers and non-wovens, glass fiber, carbon fiber, and aramids (e.g., Kevlar), thermoset, and thermoplastic resins."
Maybe we need a video on Speaker Paper "Tone Pulp."
I already have a personal choice on this one, Polypropylene.
This is a cool comparison and in some ways it was more interesting when I listened with my eyes closed. My overall impression was that the original configuration has a distinctive "maple guitar" tonal profile that is totally recognizable to my ears. While perhaps sounding more full and round, the Rosewood iterations did not quite sound as much (or instinctively feel) like a maple guitar.
Thanks, John
Gig Harbor, WA
I knew you’d like this video John!
Wow. Guys. That was seriously the best guitar wood comparison video that I’ve seen.
Truly fascinating, and of course only possible when you combine the talents of a world class player with a world class builder 👏👏
I thought both of your descriptions were spot on, and I found it particularly fascinating Tom to see how your opinion changed when you went from thinking which guitar suited the piece better, to which guitar you’d rather build or own. It was like you saw through the music to the underlying instrument and imagined how that would be in your hands.
I thought your comments on preference vs best were also spot on, as was your comparison to whipped cream and skimmed milk. Whilst it sounds on paper like whipped cream is the best, I know which one I’d rather have with my cornflakes in the morning :)
FWIW from my perspective the maple/maple guitar felt like I was listening to a player sitting in the front row of a crowded bar, whereas adding more rosewood gradually moved me to the back of a concert hall. Neither is better. Just different.
Also loved your theoretical analysis at the end Tom. This always sets your videos apart.
Well done guys. Fabulous
Ahhh thank you so much, glad you enjoyed the video!
So interesting! Maple and rosewood was my choice. Maybe it’s time to design an acoustic guitar where every component is magnetic (including top, back and sides) and the guitar can be put together with the client in the workshop trying out the various options! :)
I said in another comment, it would be great to come up with something modular to really test all the different components
Awesome video guys!
I obviously don't doubt either of your takes, but what i always hear about these types of comparisons are mic type/position.
Were these kept constant?
@Will - are the differences watching back the video as stark as you recall when actually playing? Also, how Topsy was the rosewood neck?
Maple continues to impress in spite of its reputation. Why don't I have any maple in the stash?
Secret Weapon: Bacon Bridge
Maple/Maple sounds just right for me each time. I guess my ear likes the separation in the notes? I do really like classical guitar pieces which I guess that would play into.
Will would make a tennis racket sound good......
We discuss the recording setup a bit deeper into the video 🙏
@@TomSandsGuitars Oh..I must have missed it somehow as I did watch to the end. Ill have another go at it then!
Great vid… has me wondering how much of the difference is actually the fretboard. On electrics I notice a big difference between a maple fretboard strat/tele with maple fretboard vs rosewood fretboard. So it would be really interesting to control for the fretboard apart from the neck.
The other thing that would be interesting to me would be a study that controls for the mass (for both necks and bridges as a starter.) Two woods of similar mass but different acoustic properties: i.e. one has a ringing type tap tone and sustain and one has a more dead tone. Would be real interesting to see how the internal friction/other acoustic properties of the wood affect the instrument.
@@NoahHormannI'm not sure if mass is a factor here, or at least a factor that can be isolated. Since guitar part dimensions are relatively strict, you may not be able to make wood mass the constant if it causes samples to grow or shrink to unrealistic, and therefore irrelevant, sizes (given the relation density creates between mass and volume, for anyone else reading). The test would have to be reconfigured to only be between woods of very similar densities that otherwise display different physical characteristics.
I’d love to come up with a way to make a completely modular acoustic guitar to text all these ideas
You should play more blues Will. You look happier. Makes me wanna play.
Welp, my guitar just throw me some cursed words.
I agree!
Ha, well funny you should say that as I've actually just finished transcribing Hey Hey by Big Bill Broonzy and it was indeed a happy time!
@@TomSandsGuitars Magnificent guitars as always Tom. Then again, I don’t even dare to dream to have one of your builds. Keep on keeping on.
@@dannyprasetya2496 thanks Danny!
@@will_mcnicol I just need one more encouragement from you to burn my guitar Will. Post away.
It appears that the recording environment changes. That will makes a massive diffenece to the sound ? Good fun but I wouldn't draw to many conclusions from what you are hearing
It depends on the microphone and the setup. If the microphone has a very narrow pickup angle, you'd have less impact from any echoing or reverberations in the space. And as a professional musician Will is probably aware of those spatial effects and how to take them into account.
If you go a bit deeper into the video, we cover this topic 🙏
@@abydosianchulac2 yup!
@@abydosianchulac2 This isn't completely true as the room sound will feedback into the instrument and as the differences are actually quite subtle it becomes difficult to attribute them to one particular thing.
@@TomSandsGuitars I have 25 years experience working as a pro audio engineer and I've also built 40+ acoustic guitars. I have some knowledge of this subject.
i just started my first acoustic build being inspired by you and some other great luthiers, keep up the good work
So much to unpick (pun intended). Could we envisage a database which considers all the variables? The luthier and client could use this to dial up different tonalities, much as a colour card shows the different paint colours. The more precise the information (also taking into account the variations within different pieces of the same tonewoods) the closer the sound of the finished guitar could be predicted. Or am I taking the art out of luthiery!
@@terrywright7893 there’s always room for science in art!
Thank you
I really did like the maple /maple for the second piece. What do you think is happening to make a more fundamental sounding guitar
Same with electrics?
Less so I think