Wood vs. HPL - does it matter?

kbuchholtz

For a guy who doesn't record or play professionally, just more into jamming and playing at home with a friend, is there a huge noticeable difference in a wood vs HPL acoustic? I've seen Seagulls all wood and Martins with laminate back and sides, Taylor's with rosewood back and sides. All roughly the same price. What's the difference? Will a casual player like me notice a big difference in sound or quality? I know wood rules all, but are there good or bad woods? Good HPL?

Thanks.

mccreadyisgod

I've been really impressed by the HPL stuff Martin is using these days. It's a lot better than most of the plywood that's out there, and I get the feeling that it will age pretty consistently. The two biggest advantages of HPL over hardwood are price and strength. The price is pretty obvious. The strength issue, though, often gets overlooked. A laminate guitar will generally be more resistant to things like temperature and humidity changes, getting knocked around from general use, and heavy gigging. If you want to take your guitar camping in the woods, or throw it in the trunk of a car in hot summer/cold winter temperatures, laminate will have some serious advantages.

Of course, a well-selected and -tuned piece of solid tone wood will almost always sound better. The general consensus is that solid-wood guitars will be investments that will pay off over time, when the wood cures and ages and breaks in. If you have ever played a vintage solid-wood guitar (at least 30 years old, here), then you will know that they just have a certain liveliness that newer guitars just don't. That solid wood becomes richer and more resonant. But, as I mentioned above, this takes some serious time, all the while making sure to protect the guitar from temperature and humidity changes. You've heard of "babying" a guitar; maintaining a solid-wood acoustic means treating it much the same as a small child.

My particular opinion (and the idea that Martin has used) is that the soundboard of a guitar, the top, should be a solid piece of tone wood, but you can use laminate/HPL to construct the back, sides, and even neck of the guitar to make the best of both. Every Martin I've played with a solid top and HPL back/side/neck construction has sounded lively, rich, and still had a solid feel like it would last through some abuse. Then again, it will never sound the same as a 1930s Martin, no matter how long it ages. But it also feels like a guitar you can play and travel with, rather than keeping in a humidified safe room all its life. It's sort of like the difference between a Maserati and a Subaru Outback; the Maserati is sexier, more collectible, worth bragging about, and represents a higher level of craftsmanship, but the Subaru is a car you can drive 500,000 miles through every sort of adventure.

The usual disclaimers apply here... there is some consensus, but this is mostly an opinion-based question. Your mileage may vary, opinions are like assholes, etc, etc.

kbuchholtz

Wow thanks so much for your thoughtful and helpful reply. I appreciate the time you took to respond i think youve sold me on a martin you should get a commission