Soundboards
When selecting the perfect wood for your guitar’s soundboard, I keep sonority, the instruments’ longevity and your playing experience in mind. Over the years, I’ve found that European spruce is one of the best choices for creating a guitar that sounds just right and the start and gets even better over time. I’ve hand-selected spruce from across Europe, and I’ve discovered that the lighter varieties, no matter where they come from, offer the best tonal qualities.
Every luthier has their own preference for spruce. Some seek the stiffest pieces, but I’ve learned that if the top is too stiff, your guitar won’t “sing” the way you want it to. On the other hand, if the wood is too weak, no amount of support can help it hold up over time. That’s why I take a hands-on approach: every few years, I personally visit dealers in Italy, Switzerland and Germany, where I carefully sort through thousands of soundboards to choose the best spruce and cedar tops for you. I’ve stocked up for the long haul, ensuring that the same high-quality wood will be available for years to come, giving you consistent sound in every instrument – I’m still using stock I bought in the early 2000s.
If you’re not someone who wants to wait years for your guitar to truly “open up,” there are other top woods that might be perfect for you. Western red cedar and torrefied sitka are excellent alternatives. Torrefied sitka, in particular, can deliver a fantastic sound. The process of torrification makes the wood lighter and more resonant, so you’ll get a more vibrant, open sound right from the start. While sitka can sometimes feel a little too heavy or dull, this treatment makes it much more lively and responsive. Cedar is also a great choice if you’re playing an instrument with multiple strings, like an 8 or 10 string guitar bouzouki or 12-string guitar, where the complex harmonics of European spruce might clutter the sound.
If you’re looking for a more affordable option, I offer cedrela. This unique wood has the appearance of mahogany and offers a sound reminiscent of older mahogany guitars. It has a raw, open quality giving you an instrument that sounds like it’s been played for decades, right from the beginning. It’s a robust choice that won’t need binding and will give you an exceptional playing experience.
For bouzouki and cittern, you can choose between European spruce and Western red cedar – both were the go-to choices when I worked with Stefan Sobell. But I also offer redwood, which, when selected carefully, can give you an incredible top wood with a truly raw, open sound that I believe you’ll really appreciate.
Back and sides
For many years, Indian rosewood was my go-to timber for back and sides. But, if you’ve been paying attention, you’ll know that Indian rosewood has recently been listed and then delisted as a restricted timber. This was a turning point. What does this mean for you? Well, I still love the wood and offer it as an upgrade, but this instability pushed me to explore new materials that are not only more sustainable but also offer incredible tonal qualities without compromising sound.
A few years before this, I had a shift in my thinking – and it could change how you think about your guitar, too. I began to realize that the back and sides don’t really add to the sound of a guitar. In fact, they can actually subtract from it in various ways. The reason I had always loved Brazilian rosewood wasn’t because of some magical property of the wood – it was simply because it “subtracted” less from the sound of the top. But there’s a way to get even more from the top. This realisation came after attending a course with renowned luthier Trevor Gore. It made me think about the soundboard in a completely new way. Instead of focusing on how the back and sides contribute, I wanted to maximise how much of the sound from the top could reach your ears – without being “wicked away” by the back and sides.
Around the same time, I began experimenting with side mass and its impact on tone. Through this, I found that the sonic qualities I loved about rosewoods could actually be achieved by manipulating the side mass and stiffness by laminating sides for both mass and stability.
Now, I’ve reached a point where the guitars I craft are only slightly heavier than conventional ones (thanks to the laminated sides), yet the sound you get is incredibly focused on the soundboard. It means a louder, more responsive instrument that allows the natural voice of the top wood to shine through.
So, today, my standard builds feature dignified sober mahogany back and sides. If you’re looking for something unique, I offer many other stunning timbers: wenge, pommele bubinga, Malaysian blackwood, quilted sapele, georgeous Australian woods like flame jarrah, Victorian blackwood (straight grained or with fantastic flame figure) or stunning Queensland silkwood. You can even choose Indian rosewood, Bolivian rosewood, or ziricote – all without worrying about CITES restrictions.
Curious about how each of these timbers will affect your guitar’s tone? That’s something we can discuss – it’s a vast topic, more than it is possible to cover here.
Necks
So many options – Once again, its all about mass and stiffness when it comes to necks. I’m rather partial to Fiji mahogany and New Guinea rosewood (Asian padauk) and for those who want the very best, 1908 vintage Cuban mahogany. Again, we can discuss what would be best for your instrument when you order.
Rosettes
Over the years I’ve made many types of rosette. Often I prefer a simple rosette of black and white purfling lines. Though there are so many options – slant check, crows foot, herringbone, wood rings. And recently I’ve started to use beautiful dyed maple burl.
Fretboard and bridge
I use ebony for fretboards – this wonderful timber exudes quality and class. It features on most of my instruments. But there are other options – Royal blackwood – which is the commercial name for torrefied purpleheart – another serious option – black, stiff, stable and beautiful to look at. Though I now offer two upgrades – a super hard, dense and beautiful Australian wood called Ringed gidgee, and I also have a stash of stunning old Mun ebony from south east Asia. The most beautiful and one of the most stable of ebonies.
My guitar bridges are ebony.
Binding
My binding is made from Rocklite along with fibre and wood veneer purfling lines of black and white. But, if you’d like a fancier purfling or custom binding, that is an option. Again, we can discuss this when you order.
Head veneer and backstrap
These days most of my head veneers are ebony – dark and sober to match the binding. Backstraps are the same. The backstrap is an idea I took from seeing a really nice old snooker cue – though it turned out banjo makers in the 20s and 30s had got there first. The backstrap not only looks nice, but is the best insurance policy you can get against headstocks breaking off.
Again, if you want the best, the upgrade options include Ringed gidee and Mun ebony.
Frets, nut and saddle
Every instrument comes with a hand-polished bone nut and saddle — a small detail that makes a big difference in tone and response compared to a plastic or composite material.
I use Evo Gold frets on every instrument. These frets aren’t just beautiful — they’re harder-wearing than traditional nickel silver and offer a smoother playing experience. Sadly, the manufacturer has discontinued Evo Gold… but not to worry – I stocked up well in advance, so your instrument will still feature the very best.
What about string action and intonation?
My guitars are fitted with a zero fret as standard — this ensures consistently low action and more accurate intonation at the nut. On six-string models, I go one step further: a compensated zero fret fine-tunes open string intonation even more precisely. And naturally, every saddle is compensated for equal temperament.
Prefer an ultra-smooth playing experience?
Semi-hemispherical fret ends are available — they feel silky under the fingers and make long playing sessions a joy.
Tuners
Tuners You Can Trust
Great tuners make a real difference — in tuning stability, in feel, and in long-term reliability. After trying just about every option on the market, I’ve settled on what I believe are the best: Gotoh 510s.
You’ll find Gold Gotoh 510 tuners with gold buttons on all my acoustic guitars, mandolins, and bouzouki-family instruments. Session King tenor guitars come fitted with brass Gotoh banjo tuners with classic ivoroid buttons. My electric guitars and Parlour King tenor guitar feature chrome Gotoh 510s for a sleek, modern look with the same rock-solid performance.
Yes, there are fancier and far more expensive tuners out there. But if they genuinely offered better performance, I’d be using them.
Pickups
Need a Pickup? Here’s What I Recommend.
I fit K&K pickups on request. They’re not just my go-to. They’re what I genuinely believe make the most sense for most players.
Let’s be honest: no pickup sounds “like your instrument only louder”. No matter what the marketing says, they all sound artificial to some degree. So the real question becomes:
Which artificial sound do I dislike the least?
And which pickup interferes the least with the acoustic tone of the instrument?
That’s where the K&K Pure Mini excels.
No, it doesn’t sound exactly like your guitar — but none of them do. What it does offer is a musical, usable tone that is easy to mic and sites well in a mix. And crucially, it doesn’t compromise your acoustic sound of your instrument — no squishy parts under the saddle, no mass to deaden the soundboard. Your instrument stays free to sing as it should.
It’s also refreshingly simple.
No battery. No preamp required. Just plug into a DI and go. I prefer clean, uncomplicated setups — fewer things to go wrong, fewer boxes to lug around. If you’re the same, you’ll appreciate the K&K.
Want something more complex?
Other options can be installed if you have a strong preference, but I’ve tried them all… and the K&K is the one I stand by. But it’s up to you.
Your amplified sound matters. So does your acoustic sound. Choose what serves both.