The Definitive Acoustic Guitar Tonewood Test

[@TheBritishPatriot]

Glad someone finally did a straight up identical guitar test with different back and sides, a lot of comparisons like this feature different body shapes or tops which makes a huge difference, having the exact same guitar makes it a much more fair comparison, yes there will still be many variables but there is a noticeable tonal difference between each of them that is most likely attributed to the wood type used. I'd love to see if you can do a vid like this but comparing laminate (layered) back and sides to all solid, with the same wood for both identical guitars.

[@royforest6035]

This comparison doesn't work for a number of reasons: The player on the left is heavier and his arm has greater Top contact and compression to the top and sides than the player on the right. The placement of the microphone would pick up different tone qualities from different positions in the room. Each player has different fret contact and pressure which influences tone. The same goes for the strumming location. And finally, no two identical guitars sound the same. That is why there are INCREDIBLE KEEPERS versus the expected standards. That is why a buyer will try out many of the same guitar before choosing which one they would like to own. In order for this to be more accurate, It would have to be the same player in the same position playing several of the same type of tonewood models. The video could then be edited to show them side by side.

[@seanhopkins3758]

nice video. I own a 2015 Breedlove all Mahogany Stage guitar. All gloss finish (not the LTD) model. It has volume and tone control in the sound hole. I use it for gigs in bars and on the street busking. Its not my most high end guitar but for a working musician it is a workhorse of a tool.

[@rzh3443]

Interesting, including the comments. Everybody hears things a little differently. There are really three basic sounds : maple, mahogany and rosewood. The others are slight derivatives from them. The use of myrtlewood and urban iron bark (Taylor 500s) added more derivatives and a sustainability angle. Plenty of good choices out there and increasingly good quality at all price ranges.

[@ex-subsailor3480]

I think it would be cool to put these through an sound analyzer, but I also think there are so many variables, that to isolate the tone wood would be very difficult. I have a Epiphone Hummingbird and have been playing with Ernie Ball strings. I switched to Elixir's and dig the guitar much more with the Elixirs. Breedlove's are know for their beautiful guitars, so that's a factor as well. I think in the end, the guitar that feels right, speaks to your ear and makes you feel good when you play it, is the best choice. Just my .02...

[@TheFeelButton]

I got to do a full comparison at the Breedlove headquarters in Bend a few years back. Fun stuff! Cheers Sean and Brian!!

[@Kenbur]

thanks. played/owned all of these woods in my guitars over the years. love the side by side listen. oh, and I agree with your comments on each. prefer the cocobolo - however, maple would have been nice to throw in - my favorite after a couple years of aging. AND strings do make a difference.

[@McFaddenSales]

Sean thanks for coming through my office! Y'all did a great job!

[@69sidewinder]

Breedlove rules. My two acoustics are Breedlove and Bedell. A few years after I bought the guitars, the two companies merged into one. It's my understanding that Breedlove now own Bedell. The Bedell is JUST AMAZING. I bought it for $150, one of their low end models. Once I heard it, I was shocked....the beauty! Everyone with knowledge of guitars who hears it or plays it raves about it. I brought it to 20th Street Guitar in NYC to have the plastic nut replaced with ivory. I told the cashier, "This guitar has such a beautiful tone, I want to do whatever I can to make her the best she can be." The cashier frowned at me and replied, "All tone is subjective." When I came back a week later to pick up the guitar, he looked at me with eyes wide and said as he handed me the guitar, "This guitar is amazing!". Yup.

[@sirkomic8474]

Amazing stuff here!

[@KarstenJohansson]

Cocobolo is interesting. All around here we have a tree called Hop Hornbeam, otherwise known as Iron Wood. They share similar features - the darker inner wood that is used for making nice looking stuff, and it is so dense it sinks in water. I wonder if anyone has made a guitar of Hop Hornbeam!

[@jcburger733]

They all sounded great. I think I liked the Koa wood acoustic the best though.

[@ianenglish123]

Australian Blackwood, Acacia melanoxylon to be precise. What makes a good tone wood, back and sides. Its porous grain and hardwood.

[@jamieclench2114]

A guitar is like fine wine, the older it gets the better the sound 🤘

[@jefftiebout1376]

Beautiful Guitars all! The cocobolo has me!

[@christopherstanford5599]

Most distinctive differences that I have ever heard in a comparison of tonewoods. Have owned breedlove myrtlewood, cocobolo, rosewood, but never walnut or koa, now I need a guitar for ever mood. 😂

[@Muddymikey]

The walnut sounded punchiest to me, loved the tone of the koa best. Of course hearing these guitars over a recorded video soundtrack is going to be different than hearing them in person. I'm sure they are all beautiful sounding in person. The quality of the wood will also make a difference in the tone I would imagine. (Loose grain/ tight grain. Knotty/ even)

[@insanedrummer89]

Can’t go wrong with Koa!

[@belthezaire]

If I were casting a movie about the young Steve Martin, I'd cast Sean Daniel as the lead. He's got a certain something, and it's not just the way he annunciates.

[@seandaniel23]

I'll take it!

[@ktm3602]

Nice try, you would both need to stum from the center of the sound hole or from the back of the sound hole to compare. that was ridiculous.

[@trusarmor4957]

Fourth! is thatah thing ?

[@mklnm]

slight difference in tone..

[@michael_caz_nyc]

I prefer the one on the right.

[@officialWWM]

Sound like guitars to me…

[@bonifacemaina6092]

Do quality of the strings matters...or string still a string

[@jeffrey3498]

Dang it, no mahogany. Interesting video though. Thanks 😎👍

[@petersheely7246]

👌👌😎

[@thestevemiller]

There were absolutely big differences between the outliers. I feel like @JimLill needs to branch out to acoustic and help us out here. This is like the opposite of the air tele. I need in my heart to see the actual EQ curve of a myrtle wood guitar compared to rosewood and mahogany and the usual suspects. Also, @JimLill, if you're still listening, I think we need to build a tele out of myrtle wood. I demand that this happen. Who's with me? Come on. I said who's with me? Hello? ANybody?

[@StupidGuitar]

Nah we don’t need Jim doing a completely unscientific study that he pawns off as thus feeding peoples already biased opinions

[@joey86bu1]

The tide pod challenge lolz.

[@joekagerer]

I'll watch till the end but this is so unscientific but entertaining. You go to the music store and they have one of these or worse you order online something you haven't even tested or heard live... The player is at the worst position to hear so when you're comparing you're at a bad position for one and the best position for the other... Then we're hearing two different players... If only we had a magical device like a spectrum analyzer that could actually definitively show the difference in the frequencies over the audio range say from 20-20k with a single player in the same settings at the same distance from the mic... 1000s of tone wood comparison videos and I can't verbalize the difference. They all sound like a guitar to me... I'm going to buy the one that looks nicest to me 😂😂😂

[@jmonni8]

They all sound the same except when they sound different. 🤷‍♂️ Side note. Not a fan of the walnut. It definitely harshed my mellow….

[@MelodyMaker]

It would appear that the English language needs more words for what you attempt to describe.

[@dellewis7887]

I believe that is abbreviated BS.

[@jamesadams1064]

Oh well. Out of my price range. I’m very happy with my Eastman.

[@robertjohnson5795]

I'm thinking about Eastman. After hearing the comparison here, I might shy away from mahogany. I think it sounds a little "dull", whatever that means.

[@RJVB]

Sorry but not sorry, the only thing definitive in this "test" is the bullshitting to keep certain viewers amused/interested/whatever. The differences we're hearing here are between the players and the tops (never mind they're all sitka) and they're biased by the introductions telling us what to expect.

[@michaelmahoney672]

$4 k guitar… I’ll stick with d28

[@joekagerer]

I feel bad for you that you're stuck with a D28 I wouldn't mind being stuck with one...😂

[@tommysixstring5094]

Cost of a D28 (and cost aside tbh) I'll stick with Larrivee.