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Your Acoustic Guitar's tone is always considered a collaborative effort. By this, we mean that multiple parts and materials come together to create a unique and distinct sound from your Acoustic Instrument. The construction, type of wood/tonewood, hardware, neck material, etc play a huge part in this, However, the wood is arguably the most important part of this mix.
Today, we take a look at the 3 most popular types of wood constructions in an Acoustic Guitar. These will include - All Solid Wood, Solid Top & Laminate Back and Sides construction & an All Laminate construction.
Let’s start by understanding more about
Laminate Body Guitars
Laminate Guitars use plywood in the construction of the guitar body. The technique varies depending on the maker, but it is usually pressed plywood being glued together and then coated with a veneer.
Even though laminate guitars are not composed of solid tonewood, they can be manufactured to look like they are, while still showing the wood's color variations and grain patterns. They can also be made for a much lower cost which results in a more affordable guitar.
At the other end of the guitar spectrum, we have
All Solid Body Guitars
This is the most premium type of guitar construction out there.
An All Solid Wood acoustic guitar consists of solid pieces of wood to construct the top, back, and sides of your guitar. This means, there are no thin layers of wood/laminate/veneer being glued together. It is one pure piece of wood.
There are various advantages of using an All Solid Body Guitar which includes authentic tonal properties, a unique maturation of the wood which results in tone development over a period of time. This is called tonewood aging.
Now there is a middle ground between Laminates and All Solid construction guitars. This is achieved by a combination of both -
Solid Top Guitars
A solid top is made up of one solid piece of wood. This piece of wood has been hand-picked, cut, sculpted, and fitted, yet it is still one piece — from the source to the instrument, However, the back & sides of the guitar will still be laminate / layered wood construction.
It’s easy to check if your guitar has a Solid Top. Just look closely at the edge of the soundhole to check for consistency in wood-grain patterns. As the soundhole is cut into the wood, you'll be able to see a cross section of the grain.
A laminated top is made up of many layers of wood & generally covered with a veneer. This is done by using heat, pressure, and adhesives to fuse these considerably thinner layers together. This is why that same consistency in wood-grain patterns will be missing here. This is also why the tonal characteristics of a Laminate or Solid-Top Guitar can never match up to an All Solid Body Guitar.
Truth is, The best guitars you ever come across will be All Solid Body Construction. These are instruments that create more and more complex & mature tones as time goes by, very similar to a well aged wine. They are a true investment for any musician who is looking for a premium quality instrument.
Simply put, All Solid Body Guitars are instruments for a lifetime.
To know more about our new range of Vault All Solid-Body Guitars, check the below links :
