Guitar Tops

          Here is a brief guide about the basics of guitar tops.   I will briefly 

          discuss five things to consider for your guitar top:  construction, 

          cut, wood, finish, and grain runout. 

          A Solid top vibrates much easier than a laminated top and will 

          also “age” with playing over the years.  Ageing means that the more 

          a solid top is played the easier it will vibrate and the better sound 

          it will produce.  A top must also be tightly grained to improve the 

          strength when being pulled by the strings.  

          For the cut you want a “bookmatched” top.  This starts with a single 

          piece of wood which is cut in half then opened like a book and glued.  

          This process helps to keep a consistent grain throughout the entire top.

         

seagullguitars.com

          There are a handful of woods used for guitar tops but I prefer spruce 

          (specifically sitka).  Cedar is also a great wood and is often considered 

          more “mellow”.   I like the sound of a cedar topped nylon string guitar,

          the combination of the strings and the top create a very smooth sound.  



Spruce



Cedar



          When looking at a new guitar be weary of the finish that is on your guitar.  

          A finish that is too thick will hamper the vibration and therefore the sound 

          of the guitar.   “Grain Runout” is also something to think about.  Simply, 

          this is when the wood grain is not straight when it goes down into the wood.  

          A guitar top that has grain runout will appear darker on one of the 

          bookmatched sides than the other.  This does not automatically mean the 

          guitar won’t sound good or fall apart but I would stay away from this because 

          the wood can be less strong.  Hopefully this information is helpful.

          Song to Hear -  "Neon" John Mayer

          Song to Learn -  John Mayer Acoustic "Neon" tab