Rosewood vs Mahogany on a Dreadnought Guitar

[William2]

I am wondering if there is some consensus on a wood type working better based on a guitars body size. I have a Larrivee D-40 and I'd have to say it is probably the most easily responsive instrument for plucking effort I own for a 14 fretter. And it has such clarity of voices within a chord. I don't know if it is the wood, the scalloped bracing, or its weight (the lightest of my instruments). My D-40R takes more effort but has a great sustain. My D-03R equals the D-40 in voice clarity and has a better sustain. I have read that non-scalloped bracing contributes to better sustain. And I've read comments saying non-scalloped bracing is better for finger style and not better for fingerstyle LOL. Back when I bought my Waterloo Jumbo King, I chose the rosewood version. My dealer was surprised thinking mahogany is better for big instruments and rosewood better for smaller sized instruments. Any thoughts on body size and wood type?

[eded]

I think lots of folks will have opinions.... My experience is that regardless of size, mahogany/spruce are typically the guitars that sound best in my hands.  There are outliers.  I have had a maple Taylor that was spectacular and I have played rosewood guitars that were really nice, but the guitars I end up keeping are almost exclusively mahogany.

I have also found that how a guitar sounds in someone else's hands has very little to do with how it will sound in my hands. 

Ed

[teh]

Ed's right. How a guitar feels and plays will sound different to each of us based on our personal preferences and skill levels. This may seem to be a biased comment, but I would give the edge to scalloped bracing for a better experience with fingerstyle playing. Having said that, I play fingerstyle on my three unscalloped guitars (Dread, parlor and 12 string LV).

Since I don't have two identical guitars with the same specs and wood combinations, I can only offer an opinion. I think a lot of the compatability and responsiveness that occurs between different body shapes and wood types are as a result of the builder based on their experience and knowledge. Jean Larrivee has spent the better part of six decades finding the best wood supplies and creating the best designs including body shapes, bracing patterns, aesthetics and value added touches. My guess is that he mixed wood shavings into John, Jr. and Matthew's baby food because they share those same skills.

Earlier today, my son sat across from me and played my Larrivee LSV-03 (Moonwood spruce/Walnut) and my 00-24 (All mahogany) unamplified. Both guitars have a satin finish, scalloped bracing and a 12 fret neck but the LSV has a Venetian cutaway and 25.5" scale and the 00-24 has a 24.9" scale with no cutaway. My son commented that the 00-24 was a lot "punchier" than the LSV and I could hear it too.

Moving on, my 49 year old spruce/rosewood Martin D-35 with unscalloped bracing has a sound of its own. I think the 1/4" wide top braces accentuate the bass and drew me to this guitar over the 5/16" bracing on the D-28. Five years ago, I acquired a used Alvarez Artist dreadnought with a solid spruce top and a laminated mahogany back and sides. I call it my "poor man's" D-18 since I only paid $200 for it and this guitar certainly hits above its weight class.

[B0WIE]

No consensus. When you see all the options, remember, it's because they're suiting different people. We don't all have the same tastes, we don't play the same way, etc. There used to be this misconception that rosewood was "better" because it's more expensive and makers often add in cosmetic upcharges with it. But, you see less of that sentiment now that information is shared so widely. Still, traditional thoughts are tough to break when it comes to the acoustic community. Back and side woods in general still get far too much emphasis.

Also, you can't generalize a back wood across brands. One maker's rosewood guitar will be bright and dry and another will have a mahogany guitar that's dark and rich. You can only compare them within the same model and make a safe assumption that Indian rosewood will be richer and darker while mahogany will be clear and bright by comparison.

[StringPicker6]

Not to brag, but put any guitar in my hands (and I mean ANY guitar), and I can get mediocre to muddled scratchy sounds that can terrify a cat from 50 feet away.  I have the same extraordinary skill when it comes to any string brand.  No autographs, PLEASE.   

[John Lee Pettimore]

Rosewood vs Mahogany, they can both be great.  I love my Sitka on Rosewood dread.  I've noticed that it's clarity of voice and projection improves with Ernie Ball Bell Bronze strings vs Martin PB 2.0 SP.   I'm sure I'd love it with Mahogany back and sides too.

Love my Sitka on Mahogany OM and my Cedar on Rosewood Grand Auditorium too. 

Yep.  I love 'em all!