Why Tonewoods Really Matter

It’s a topic beaten into companionship with fields of dead horses and well pounded ground: tonewoods. There are myriad opinions on the subject and three times as many YouTube videos covering the differences. We’re not going to add to that pile of goodness- and some of it is good. We’re going to talk about why tonewoods are really important- the bottom line and what, we think, truly matters.

Is rosewood brighter than mahogany? Sure. Is cedar more mellow than spruce? Yep. Does it matter, tonally, that the wood on your top was harvested during a blood moon that occurs once every 100 years? Here’s the twist: maybe.

You see, how a tonewood compares to another is irrelevant. Not when you’re searching for a tone and are narrowing down your options, but, in the end, when you pick a guitar, it doesn’t matter. What matters is how that guitar, that specific combination of woods, scale length, size, shape, neck, and all the otherwise mundane things that come together to make that very instrument, makes you feel.

Note, I didn’t say “them.” I said “you.” How that guitar makes you feel. No matter if you are a weekend player or a performing artist, it’s that feeling that allows you to create music that others may feel- even if you’re the only person listening. There’s a middleman between the guitar and the audience and that middleman is you. If you feel like your guitar is “meh,” you’ll do “meh” things with it. If you feel your guitar is amazing, you’ll feel amazing and do amazing things with it. So, in the most basic terms, love your guitar.

This is where tonewoods come in. Yes, they make a particular sound and tone; that is a big part of what you connect with. There are other components though. How the guitar looks matters. Beyond the overall design, the colors, grain, and figuring all make you feel a certain way too. Some people like different and bold, others prefer reserved and classic. It’s whatever you like and that will, essentially, inspire you. 

Then, there’s the story. Every piece of wood has a story. Sometimes, they are boring stories. Sometimes it’s wood from a tree that was replanted after a forestry operation clear cut the land. Other times, though, it sat at the bottom of a tannin filled river for a thousand years or was witness to significant historical events. Occasionally, it will come from reclaimed church pews from a small church in Northern Ireland, having been part of so many celebrations and somber goodbyes. Whatever their journey, they all have stories.

To some people, the story doesn’t matter. To others, it’s all that does. It’s up to you where you land on that spectrum and how much you’re willing to spend- good stories are expensive. We’re just saying that, in the end, it doesn’t matter- except for how you feel about it. It’s the guitars you can’t stop looking at, playing, or thinking about that drive us- it is, admittedly, a bit of an obsession that guitar players know all too well. But it’s that slight obsession that feeds inspiration and it’s that inspiration that feeds music.

So, do tonewoods matter? Of course, but not just in the way most people think about them. They matter so much more than just the way they sound. They matter because of the way they make you feel.