Episode 1: “Is Dense Wood Really That Good?”
Introduction
Hello. I’m Inoue, the store manager at Advance Guitars.
Lately, I’ve had more opportunities to write articles for music magazines.
As I’ve written more and more, I’ve gradually accumulated a list of topics I’d like to explore in greater depth—things I couldn’t fully cover in my articles.
Also, as I interact with customers every day and observe guitars themselves,
I often find myself pausing to wonder, “What’s the real story here?”
Is there a way I can talk about the questions and insights I have in those moments in a freer, more spontaneous way?
That’s how I started my “Solo Talk Series” on YouTube.
In this series, I cover a wide range of topics related to acoustic guitars, focusing primarily on things I personally find “interesting.”
In this article, I’ve summarized the series while providing additional context for aspects that are difficult to convey through video alone.
I hope you’ll enjoy exploring the world of acoustic guitars from a slightly new perspective.
Part 1: “Is Dense-Grained Wood Really Better?”
Is There Such a Thing as Good or Bad Grain in a Top?
As I set out to start this series, I thought it might be interesting to explore “acoustic guitar shop catchphrases,” so I came up with this topic.
That’s when I came up with the theme: “Is Dense-Grained Wood Really Better?”
The reason is that I myself have sometimes mentioned—or even included in product descriptions—that “this guitar is made from dense-grained wood, right?”
In other words, I began to wonder if dense-grained wood is simply treated as a given—as a compliment—
or, to put it a bit bluntly, if it’s just being used as a sales pitch by music stores.
So, is dense-grained wood really that good?
If it is, what exactly makes it good? I took the time to organize my thoughts on these questions and share them here.
Where is “dense-grained” wood typically used?
When it comes to acoustic guitars, my impression is that it’s most commonly used to describe body woods (such as spruce and rosewood).
I’ve also seen the term “dense” used to describe mahogany for necks and ebony for fingerboards.
In what sense is the term “dense wood” used?
I’ve never seen it used in a negative context.
It’s used as a compliment for guitars—in a “positive sense.”
To put it another way, from a music store’s perspective, you could say it’s a selling point.
What exactly is “tight-grained wood” anyway?
Since we’re talking about acoustic guitars, let’s consider spruce.
The grain of spruce is essentially the width of its growth rings.
There are some spruce varieties with a ribbon-like, wavy grain running horizontally, but we’ll set that aside for now.
“Fine-grained wood” refers to wood with narrow annual rings.
Since the width of the annual rings reflects the tree’s growth rate, fine-grained wood indicates slow growth.
A tree’s growth is influenced by climatic factors, so it varies depending on the local environment—such as temperature and hours of sunlight—as well as the species of tree.
A uniform grain pattern indicates stable growth.
So, is densely grained wood better?
Since we’re talking about acoustic guitars, let’s use Martin spruce as an example.
It is said that Martin has an 8-tier grading system for top wood.
If we assume that densely grained wood is better, then the higher the grade, the denser the grain should be.
However, judging from Martin guitars, this isn’t necessarily the case.
In fact, the width of the grain on a Martin D-28 and a Martin D-45 isn’t that different.
I’m not sure exactly what the criteria are for these eight grades, but I suspect they’re based on a comprehensive evaluation of appearance and the characteristics of the tonewood.
It seems that in some circles, a standard based on the number of growth rings per inch is sometimes used, but even if Martin were to use it, I believe it would serve only as a minimum benchmark. In reality, I think an expert can immediately discern the quality of the appearance without such a standard, so I view these figures—such as “this spruce has X number of growth rings per inch”—as nothing more than numerical values.
In other words, I don’t believe the quality of an acoustic guitar can be determined solely by whether the grain is dense or not.
To begin with, when considering the quality of wood for acoustic guitars, I think there are three main factors.
These are the physical properties (workability, rigidity, weight), acoustic properties, and aesthetic appeal.
It is the balance of these factors that allows craftsmen and us, the consumers, to subjectively judge the quality of the instrument.
Should you avoid wood with wide grain?
If we consider the opposite of the notion that “tight-grained wood is better,” wood with a wide grain pattern would be considered inferior; however, it’s impossible to establish a specific standard for how wide constitutes “bad.”
As mentioned earlier, such wood is typically culled during the initial screening process, so when it comes to the top wood used in finished acoustic guitars,
I don’t think we need to assume that wider grain necessarily means lower quality.
For example, some Gibson models from the 2010s feature grain that’s wider than usual.
Based on my experience playing them, they had a soft, vibrant, and beautiful tone, so they were all excellent choices as personal instruments.
On the other hand, I think it’s perfectly valid to find wood with a uniformly dense grain “beautiful.”
Since acoustic guitars inevitably convey less visual information than electric guitars and the like, I think it’s truly wonderful to appreciate and cherish that visual beauty as a point of praise.
Also, I believe the width of the grain plays at least some role in the wood’s function as a tonewood.
I’d like to discuss this further in the future.
Bonus (Thoughts on Guitars with Very Wide Grain)
To explore this topic, I looked into whether there are any trees with wide annual rings.
It turns out there’s a fast-growing Japanese paulownia called “Japaronia,” whose trunk reportedly grows about 40 cm in just four years.
The width of its annual rings is 10 cm. Since a dreadnought body is about 40 cm wide, I think it wouldn’t be impossible to make one with eight visible grain lines.
If I were to make one, people would probably judge it as “good” or “bad,” but I doubt any manufacturer would actually produce it...
I wonder if it would produce a loose, floppy sound??
Author: Inoue, Store Manager at Advance Guitars – Vintage Guitar Researcher
An expert who has been playing instruments since childhood and has been involved in appraising and selling over several thousand vintage guitars. He maintains strong connections with collectors and dealers overseas. Guided by the belief that “the history of a guitar can change based on a single color or stamp,” he strives to provide detailed and passionate commentary.
Qualifications and Achievements: 8 years as a musical instrument appraiser; contributor and supervising editor for Guitar Magazine and other publications
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