There's a very interesting article in the Sept. Vintage Guitar Mag. about tone woods written by longtime luthier R.E. Brune.Among some things that he says are that what is commonly refered to as spruce in guitar making is in fact fir.He also makes some very interesting points such as wood tone can vary greatly from tree to tree of the same species and even from different parts of the same tree.Also he states how "spruce" guitars of the same make and model will vary greatly in tone and that one brand spruce guitar may sound mellow whereas another may sound bright using the same woods.He tells an interesting story of how Jasha Heifetz who was approached by a fan after a concert saying how wonderful his centuries old Guaneri sounded,with that Heifetz put it to his ear and said "That's funny,I don't hear anything."With all the discussion/arguments on the Forum regarding the signature tones of different woods I figured that a lot of members would be interested from hearing from a person who has made over 700 guitars as well as many other instruments.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

Nevin1985. Couldn't agree with you more. Mike Eldred agrees. He talks about tonewood versus pickups and electronics at the 3:00 minute mark in this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTi8ISIxX8c


I also think the quality of the tonewood matters. When you buy a more expensive model you are getting a better selection of wood. At least that is how I self justify my purchases Seriously. Richard Hoover from Santa Cruz guitars put on a clinic and talked about how important wood selection is to the tone of a guitar. Not only the type of wood but the selection of the piece of wood. The age of the wood was very important to him. Something to do with the sap crystallizing over time.

But at the end of the day it's all about your chops

+1

While the guitar is hanging from the headstock, strum the B string and then hold the bottom of the body. You'll be able to feel a "Live One" no probs

Andy

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I love the Strats where the whole body vibrates.
I read somewhere about Leo Fender putting a screwdriver tip on the bridge and the handle next to his ear to listen to the string vibrating,somebody was telling that in an interview.

Hi guitslinger: this is the bit that caught my eye. I just noticed over on Kong's Strat build thread that Bride-of-Kong posted this picture of a tree she calls (the world's largest) spruce:



Well that sure as heck ain't the tree acoustic guitar soundboards come out of. The best quality spruce, Engelmann for example, is grown at Alpine altitudes in Europe, mostly in Switzerland and Austria. It is indeed a conifer and looks nothing like that one in BoK's picture. Much skinnier, for starters. Lord knows how many guitar fronts you'd get out the one in the photo if only it was the right wood!

Presumably this is yet another name that means a different tree either side of the Atlantic - along with sycamore, poplar and many more.

For education's sake I'd be most glad if anyone cared to post a photo of what the rest of a "spruce" looks like in North America, to see the difference...?

Cheers - C

Bingo!!

There's a guy here in Vegas who's my favorite guitar player. Monster chops. His tone is freaking killer!! Blows me away..He plays a Danelectro.

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