I'm just interested to see which people prefer more. I know mahogany kinda has a bad rap, and people look down on it compared to rosewood, because it is used so frequently in cheaper guitars, but i think they both have their good and bads.

Let me know what you guys think, also leave a little reply saying why you voted that way.

"I like the shimmer and highs of a 'hog guitar"

"I like the low end on rosewood guitars, and deep sustain"

"I like the crisp attack on a 'hog guitar"

"rosewood smells nicer."

thanks for your opinions!

~Logan :ph34r:

i went ahead and gave my opinion...

i picked mahogany because its ability to cut through the mix, and really stand out. (opinion).

~Logan :ph34r:

I prefer rosewood for bass, and maple for cutting through the mix.  But that's just me.

E. Shoaf

I like the way rosewood looks, especially the 9-10 grade, the way the extra natural oil in mahogany helps it to hold up to dryer air, the way walnut "honks" in the midrange, and the way blackwood makes people turn and ask "what is that guitar?!!" 

stuco, where did you hear that mahogany has a bad rep and that people look down on it compared to rosewood? Rosewood does smell nicer.  Mahogany has actually increased in price because it is becoming extinct.  Don't be surprised if mahogany costs more than EI rosewood in a few years.

I think suprswd is right about the typical person's bias against mahogany...but I think a lot of it is out of ignorance.  There's just a general misconception that rosewood is superior.  I don't think that's generally true about the members of this forum.  While there are many rosewood fans (see my sig), mahogany gets plenty of praise around here.

As for me, I like mahogany for solo fingerstyle stuff and rosewood for serious strumming and flatpicking.

Quote from: suprswd on June 28, 2006, 07:32:02 PM
"I like the shimmer and highs of a 'hog guitar"

"I like the low end on rosewood guitars, and deep sustain"

"I like the crisp attack on a 'hog guitar"

"rosewood smells nicer."
~Logan :ph34r:

Sounds like you are describing a Blackwood Guitar    :GRN>

Drug enhanced tone wood     :TON>

phill      :mellow:

Rosewood for looks - I've always preferred the look (except for Koa!) I also am partial to the sound of rosewood (possibly because I've always played rosewood Larrivees so I know what I'm listening for (that's why I got rid of my maple 09 - I wasn't hearing that familiar sound). Maybe if I was more acquainted with the sound of mahogany, I would like it better - Is it an acquired taste?

Just my .02

Joe

I'm a guitar fan.

At the end of the day, a skilled luthier can make a fine sounding instrument out of most any tonewood.
I had a Beneteau mahogany for 15 years.  Then I decided I wanted a change, sold it and got a maple L-09.
Now I have 2 rosewoods (Larry L-09 & 00), one brazilian and a maple archtop.
Who knows -- perhaps I'll come full circle.

But all of the guitars have had appealing tone and good playability.  Had I been able to keep them all, I would have.

- Richard

L05 (mahogany) is probably the perfect do it all guitar (and might I add, it does it all very very well).

Mahogany...bad rap?
Not around here! Not at all!

Yes, I'll admit a preference for rosewood in certain circumstances, but I also admit a preference for mahogany in others.

Guess that means I'm wishy-washy???

Dan

i just meant that alot of people consider mahogany a "cheaper" wood, and rosewood is more...exquisite.

where in reality, since mahogany is used so frequently, it will soon be the more exquisite of the woods.

again, just my opinion.

hell, in a few hundread years, who knows if there will even be wood guitars!

theyre already starting to replace alot of things with plastic (or composite wood, made out of plastic and resign), to make fences and houses soon too probably.

anyways, keep the opinions coming, i wanna see which wood ends up on top.

~Logan :ph34r:

You need both.  Mahogany for warmth and the rosewood for clarity.  As far as the smell comment
my OM-03r never had any sort of woody distinctive smell that my Martin DM still has each time I
take it out of the case.  The Martin predates the OM by about 2 years.  But the smell of that OM case
still has a a nice new car smell though.  Yes you need both.

Quotehell, in a few hundread years, who knows if there will even be wood guitars

Ya never know. . . .  I think though there'll always be guitars made of wood.  There's a lot of hype right now about alternate materials, endangered woods, save the trees, etc. etc.  'Thing is, wood used for musical instruments represents a tiny slice of the natural resource pie.    Furniture - now there's manufacturing apetite for nice wood.

QuoteI know mahogany kinda has a bad rap, and people look down on it compared to rosewood. . . .

Well. . . .not really.  (I'll assume you're talking about guitars made of solid wood here, OK).  Mahogany guitars have been less expensive than guitars made of rosewood largely because mahogany has been cheaper to get and it's easier to work with.  Mahogany is not as dense as rosewood.  The bad rap comes from plywood guitars with mahogany veneer that have poor bracing.

I like mahogany guitars because of the crisp, clear and sometimes 'glassy' projection.  With the right strings, they are in a class all by themselves. 

I like rosewood guitars for their depth, overtones and responsiveness to pull-offs and hammer-ons.  Again, this has a lot to do with strings.  But there are some songs in open tunings that sound so much better on rosewood than any other tone wood largely because of the overtones and depth.  The low end is typically more chocolate than mahogany, koa or maple.

Where maple guitars sound tight and rigid (to my ears: ymmv), mahogany sounds crisp, clear and warm.  Where koa is a nice change from mahogany and rosewood, it offers not enough of either tonewood to satisfy my ears for very long.  (It's voice is somewhere inbetween rosewood and mahogany - IF you can find a koa guitar that isn't all flash and glitter). 

I much prefer rosewood for my fingerstyle folk songs.  But I do like mahogany also for different reasons.

Larrivee OM-03R (rosewood
Larrivee OM-03R twelve string (rosewood)
Martin 000-15S (all mahogany)
Martin J16C-RGTE twelve string custom (rosewood)
Taylor K12C six string (koa)

(http://www.voguehost.com/ims/u/whiskeyjack/guitar%20photos/fronts.jpg)

QuoteI like the shimmer and highs of a 'hog guitar"
"I like the low end on rosewood guitars, and deep sustain"
"I like the crisp attack on a 'hog guitar"
"rosewood smells nicer."

You obviously haven't played an SD-50 yet.   ^_^  It's got it all. 

The smell test is hard for me to measure because my rosewood dred is over 30 years old. 

For the price of the 03 series, you should look at getting a used one of each.  Have fun deciding.

out of all the -03 series, the most versitale is the L, right?

i was thinking an OM, but it lacks bass. i played a few larrivees side by side.

L-03 seems like a good deal.

bump for tomorrow morn'  :POL>

"I like the low end on rosewood guitars, and deep sustain"

I think for me rosewood is my favorite.  It just has that mellow, deep sound and played fingerstyle it's great, IMO.

Although if your a little bluesy, my MT gets with it better.

BTW, rosewood for OM and dread.  Hogs for L and SD.  Maple for Jumbo.

I really like that deep-echo and metallic-ring that rosewood has, but when it comes down to it..... I BUY mahogany. :huh:

Quote from: rounder on June 29, 2006, 07:26:34 AM
I really like that deep-echo and metallic-ring that rosewood has, but when it comes down to it..... I BUY mahogany. :huh:

I buy one of each....  :GRN>

Quote from: paralentor on June 28, 2006, 11:42:38 PM
You need both.  Mahogany for warmth and the rosewood for clarity.  As far as the smell comment
my OM-03r never had any sort of woody distinctive smell that my Martin DM still has each time I
take it out of the case.  The Martin predates the OM by about 2 years.  But the smell of that OM case
still has a a nice new car smell though.  Yes you need both.

The smell of Martin guitars is not from the back/side wood. It is from the cedar kerfing strips, and they do smell great.

I like them both and have one of each, but If I could only have one I think it would be Koa - somewhere in the middle.

Rob

Quote from: jmhyer on June 28, 2006, 09:06:23 PM
As for me, I like mahogany for solo fingerstyle stuff and rosewood for serious strumming and flatpicking.

I am actually the opposite.  I like Rosewood for Fingerstyle and Mahogany for strumming.  I love the Balance of my LV-05 when im playing with other acoustics, its sound is so distinct and cuts through the other guitars. 

OTOH NOTHING compares to Plastic...  :SHK> :ph34r: :SHK>

Quote from: Darrell111 on June 29, 2006, 10:07:13 AM
OTOH NOTHING compares to Plastic...  :SHK> :ph34r: :SHK>

I believe Tragocaster refers to it as lyracord.  A fancy name for plastic.  If I remember correctly, from when I worked in a music store back in the late 80's, it was originally for use by NASA in the space program.  Funny, Larrivee is now the one with the guitar in space.     :GRN>

http://www.larrivee.com/flash/news/articles/2005_Space%20Station/article.html

Quote from: Randy_R on June 29, 2006, 08:06:24 AM
I buy one of each....  :GRN>

JUST ONE?? :POL>

To borrow from Hangfire:

(http://www.blackwoodevil.com/Homtitl.jpg)

As you can see from my sig. I'm a mahogany guy.  For the fingerpickin blues I'm into these days it just fits the tone and feeling that I'm looking for better then the RW guitars I played while shopping around.  The Parlor is great...a bit brighter and crisper than my hog top OM...but that baby oozes funk...and has a depth and richness that I find intoxicating...man just thinking about it here at work makes my caluses itch... :wacko:.  All that said....now I would like to find and OO RW to complete my small guitar collection.  Too bad I've sworn off GAS for the next 5 years... :<>

cheers,

Blue

I love my hog OM

I love my rose Dread

'nough said.

Mahogany is my favorite all around tonewood but I do have a couple of rosewood guitars too. My next guitar will probably be walnut.

I'm partial to Mahogany myself... it just seems more crisp to my ear, if i'm playing with other acoustics i find it really sounds distinctive, where as rosewood blends in more. Just my 0.02  -_-

Who says Rosewood is better looking than Mahogany???   :GRN>

Cheers,

Blue

[attachment no longer available]

Another mahogany player here...I have a rosewood LV-09, but if I could, I'd trade it on an all hog L-05 or LV-05...I prefer the note separation with mahogany, and my 13 year old OM-05 is VERY WARM in tone, without any mud...

:WNK>

Quote from: Blue in VT on June 29, 2006, 03:43:02 PM
Who says Rosewood is better looking than Mahogany???   :GRN>

Cheers,

Blue

show off... :WNK>

That's one sweet looking hog OM Blue.  I had a Martin OM-15 for a couple of years and it didn't look as good as an OM-03MT let alone the OM-05MT.  Bet is sounds as good as it looks too..

I have three mahogany guitars and no rosewood.  Well, three and a half if you count the Kay :GRN>.  Love the sound of rosewood, but for some reason, when it comes to take them home, rosewood doesn't make the cut.

Gorgeous pictures Blue!  What camera do you use?

I really am smitten with this guitar...my parlor is fun but the OM is the bees knees...

These pics were actually taken on my Olympus camera...its about 4 years old now...only 2.7 megapixels...but it does a good job.  I think good pics are all about good light.

Blue

Blue,  beautiful hog top there.

I voted for mahogany too.  I've never owned a rosewood guitar, but would like one when the cash flow and guitar playing ability finally warrant it.  However, I'm with the pro-Mahogany viewpoint re: its tone and clarity.  I'm struck, though, by how differently people evaluate the two woods.  I guess model to model and builder to builder and style to styule and ear to ear, either might be preferable . . .

I DO, however, think that Mahogany looks better - by which I mean LARRIVEE mahogany.  The other guys' stained mahogany doesn't do anything for me, but Larrivee's natural Mahogany color is distincitve - I like the lighter color.  :GRN>

Agreed. Didn't have the opportunity A/B side by side, but look wise I much prefer a Larry mahog-OM to say an 000-15 by Martin.

Blue, I am very envious. Gorgeous mahogany!

I don't even own a mahogany guitar but put mahogany as my favorite.  I love rosewood as well though.  My parlor's a beauty and I wouldn't trade it in for any other.  My OM is sapele mahogany which isn't "really" mahogany now is it?  Eventually, I plan on adding an L-03 or, if finances allow it, an L-05.  Every L-05 I've ever played was a dream guitar.  Great sounding, feeling and looking.  Truly one of Larrivee's signature guitars.  I am not sure how much difference there is, sound wise, between the L-03 and L-05.  Anybody ever A-B'd them side by side?

to come to think of it,

i should have added some other tonewoods in the poll as well. koa blackwood and maple should be in there.

man, do i want to try out a blackwood guitar. ive heard nothing but good about em. what can they be descibed as?

...a little rosewood and a little 'hog fused together?

:SHK>

~Logan :ph34r:

Quote from: suprswd on June 29, 2006, 08:18:39 PM
to come to think of it,

i should have added some other tonewoods in the poll as well.

Yeah, you should have, then rosewood wouldn't take such a beating like right now. :<> ^_^

   I prefer Mahogany over rosewood  :GRN>but if you add Koa and blackwood to the mix that changes things. :SHK> I love my Om-03K


kdonovan

[attachment no longer available]

Quote from: suprswd on June 29, 2006, 08:18:39 PM
to come to think of it,

i should have added some other tonewoods in the poll as well. koa blackwood and maple should be in there.

man, do i want to try out a blackwood guitar. ive heard nothing but good about em. what can they be descibed as?

...a little rosewood and a little 'hog fused together?

:SHK>

~Logan :ph34r:

Koa is usually described as a mixture of mahogany and rosewood. Blackwood is more of the same but a little more to the rosewood end of the spectrum.

Unclrob coined the phrase "Koa on steroids" to describe blackwood. And I don't think he was referring to a pimply back and shrivelled testicles.

Quote from: kdonovan on June 29, 2006, 08:35:29 PM
   I prefer Mahogany over rosewood  :GRN>but if you add Koa and blackwood to the mix that changes things. :SHK> I love my Om-03K


kdonovan

Kdonovan, that is a beautiful guitar. I hope that it plays and sounds just as good as mine does. Heckova guitar!

kdonovan,  that koa is stunning.  it's the first time i've seen a koa guitar and thought that, to be honest - maybe i've never seen a picture of a back before.

i'd been living a pretty GAS-free life while i was cutting down on my Larriveeforum visits. Now L05's and koa's and blackwoods . . . . oh, it's all coming back.   :wacko:

Viva la difference! Like 'em both.

I will say that the mahogany LS-05 is easier to record -- I'm still trying to come up with a good recorded sound from the L-03R -- fault could be with low-end mike (Samson USB) and the difference in body size between LS and L (boominess). But like both in their own way for sound.

rosewoods makin a comeback  :TON>

How can you have a serious discussion about tonewoods without talking about WALNUT?  :TON> :SHK>  :rolleyes:

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v631/ronmac/Guitars/Bourgeois%20JOMC%20DLX/29ba87a5.jpg)

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v631/ronmac/Guitars/Bourgeois%20JOMC%20DLX/DSC03159.jpg)

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v631/ronmac/Guitars/Bourgeois%20JOMC%20DLX/DSC03161.jpg)

ronmac,
   That is a sweet  looking guitar.  I have never had the opportunity to play a walnut guitar. I am curious what they sound like?  Thanks

kdonovan

Well if we were talking about food the answer would probably be "it tastes just like chicken".  :GRN>

It varies some from guitar to guitar, but the consensous seems to be that it is fairly neutral sounding and allows the top wood to play a more prominent roll in defining the tone of the instrument. I'll let Dana Bourgeois (maker of this instrument, using Curly Claro Walnut) tell you what he thinks:

QuoteBack and Sides

Besides serving to form the enclosure of the soundbox, the back and sides of the guitar also act as a sympathetic resonator whose oscillations contribute greatly to the harmonic mix. When judiciously selected (with due consideration given to design criteria and the other tonewoods used in the instrument), the back and sides can have a tremendous effect on the overall tone of the instrument.....

Maple and walnut tend to be more acoustically transparent than other tonewoods, due to a low velocity of sound and a high degree of internal damping. That is to say that they allow tonal characteristics of the top to be heard without the addition of extraneous coloration and may even serve to attenuate some of the overtones emanating from the top.

The harder, denser examples of these woods, such as sugar maple and black walnut- particularly quartersawn examples-tend to lean slightly more toward the tonal direction of mahogany, while softer examples, such as bigleaf maple and claro walnut, tend toward greater tonal transparency. Curly, quilted, or bird's-eye figures do not seem to have much effect on the tone of the wood, but they can be used, like bearclaw, as an indicator of other properties. Quilted figure, for example, occurs most often in softer species and is best displayed when the wood is flat sawn-two characteristics that tend to produce higher damping properties.

[/size]

rosewoods comin back

Hmm... I had many of both(mohog and rose) and I still don't know which I prefer.

I'm not sure if I prefer one over the other. But if I had just one it would be a rosewood.

If I could have only one (perish the thought), it'd be maple.
But a nice guitar is a nice guitar ... I suspect I could be happy with most any good guitar.

- Richard

OM-03 or OM-03R...

http://www.larriveeforum.com/smf/index.php?topic=12353.0

cant really decide for myself, so someone help me out. they are both so nice...:EM>

~Logan