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OK, so I want to experiment with different guitar sizes and different top woods. To start, which do you think is my best approach and more helpful in the long run since i am not a factory who can churn out all combos quickly:

1. Build 3 guitars with the same back/side woods and sitka tops in 3 sizes (OOO, Dread and SJ)?

or

2. Build 3 guitars in the same size and back side combo and 3 different tops (sitka, engelmann and red cedar)?

or are top woods selected based on sizes? from what i have read, englemann is a good choice for OOO/OM models but not so much on dreads.

I am thinking option 2 would give me a better idea of tonal characteristics of top woods which i can translate to different sizes. Does any of this make sense? Again, I am only building for myself, friends, family and to donate but I do want to have a well rounded knowledge in case i ever get the case to build for someone.FrankC38627.5303703704

Frank,

Build for 30+ years and expect to be surprised every time

Sorry - flippant response. I suspect that unless you are an incredibly disciplined and excellently controlled builder, with so many variables (not least the variances of wood cut from the same log) in play 3 of anything is not going to tell you a huge amount.

I suspect that both routes will give you a lot of learning. Indeed you could equally take one "type" of guitar in the same woods and play with variables such as top thickness, soundhole size and placement, bracing patterns and shaping etc that would teach you lots as well.

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

along the line of what dave said, unless you have built a number of one model using the same wood combo and been able to achieve consistent results, you have no basis on which to compare a change of wood in that model alone, much less in different models.

What Dave said. There are inumerable things you can't control. The only way to really quantify anything is through comparing large numbers, and looking for a trend.Mario38627.6352199074

Same as others. Find what you and who building for like or want to play and build those. Voice them out as you go for what you want and can. Take notes and keep at it.

Hey Frank, you know what I think? As long as you build with good quality woods and use sound building techniques, your guitars are gonna come out sounding just fine -- if not just great.

Want a real challenge? Try building three identical guitars using identical woods. Then you'll have a better idea what you're up against.

Best,

Michael

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Live to Play, Play to Live

What Michael said. I've done some 'matched pair' experiments, and it's not all that easy to control everything you must to get them to sound 'identical', even using 'the same' wood for both guitars.

Guitars are really complicated beasts: that's what makes them interesting, both to build and to listen to. It also makes them hard to sort out. That's one reason we get into the long discussions here over seemingly simple questions: there really are no simple questions in this business.

Another thing that contributes to contention is that we tend to use terms differently, and particularly if we come at building from different directions. If you ask some question of a 'traditionalist' and a 'technoid' you're likely to find them breaking chairs over each other's heads in fairly short order. The funny thing is that if you presented them both with the same three guitars and asked them to rate them they'd probably agree, and if you could translate the terms they use into the other guy's language you'd find they were saying the same things.

Traditional or techie, you're either going to have to build a number of guitars before you can start to sort it out, or else you're going to have to find somebody else who has and is willing to tell you what they've learned in a way you can understand. Since I have no idea which approach you find more comprehensible, I can't tell you how to proceed.

This is not to say you won't learn anything from either of the experiments you've proposed. Just don't be surprised if what you learn turns out later to be wrong, owing to some other thing that you didn't know enough to look at, at the time. It's all grist for the mill.

Frank, build for years with many kinds of wood on many size guitars and KEEP MATICULUS NOTES. Like every one said experience.