Re: Is red spruce the best wood for the top?
I think it often appears to be an attractive proposition to suggest that there is some strict hierarchy in tonewoods... red spruce is better than englemann... which is better than sitka, or Brazilian rosewood is better than Madagascan... which is better than East Indian... etc. etc.
It is certainly the subject of a lot of marketing.
The reality is not necessarily so cut and dried. Not by a long way. An instrument is the product of numerous variables, and they key is how well they come together. This is why judging by specification, and not by the finished instrument, can lead you seriously astray. Same with finishes. Varnish vs. lacquer..... and so it goes.
Gibson F5 'Harvey' Fern, Gibson F5 'Derrington' Fern
Distressed Silverangel F 'Esmerelda' aka 'Maxx'
Northfield Big Mon #127
Ellis F5 Special #288
'39 & '45 D-18's, 1950 D-28.
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