carved maple top

[Rickco]

So Im sittin here enjoying my 575 and trying to think of comparable guitars. I cant think of any "production" guitars that are all solid maple carved. Figured if anyone would know it would be one of you guys. So, any other like constructed guitars you can think of? Mine has mounted HRW's and has a sound all its own (at least to my ears)

[ThatRhythmMan]

So Im sittin here enjoying my 575 and trying to think of comparable guitars. I cant think of any "production" guitars that are all solid maple carved. Figured if anyone would know it would be one of you guys. So, any other like constructed guitars you can think of? Mine has mounted HRW's and has a sound all its own (at least to my ears)

The short-lived Gibson L-9 has a carved maple top, but the back and sides are mahogany.


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[Greywolf]

Benedetto, PRS

[DawgBone]

My knockoff 355 Edwards E-SA semi hollow has an orange sticker inside that says solid carved hard maple top and back. Not much in common with a 575 tho.

[Hammertone]

My knockoff 355 Edwards E-SA semi hollow has an orange sticker inside that says solid carved hard maple top and back. Not much in common with a 575 tho.

The Edwards ES-3X5 series are fantastic guitars IMO - I've had a couple of them. Machine-carved maple tops and backs, mahogany blocks, SD pickups - REALLY nice guitars.

[oldane]

According to George Gruhn, back in the 1940s, the first few samples (maybe no more than 3 or 4) of the ES300 had carved maple tops. After that it was pressed plywood. Maybe the tooling for the pressed plywood tops wasn't quite ready when production started, so they just used a few maple backs normally intended for say the L5. Or maybe it was some kind of prototypes to see how it worked. It did work, but maybe they found that pressed plywood was more cost saving with little to no difference in sound. Who knows.

[skiboyny]

I believe the Peerless Cremona has a carved maple top.

[Tal_175]

Gibson CS-356 has carved maple top, I believe.

[powerwagonjohn]

As does my Gibson Johnny A. Thanks Marty, still my favorite guitar.
Thanks john

[Rickco]

Thanks for the replies. So the 575 seems to be the only one thats all maple carved archtop. I really like it and wonder why other makers didnt do it.......

[powerwagonjohn]

I know the Johnny A is a different style guitar but the top is carved inside and out.
Thanks John

[John A.]

From what I understand, spruce is especially well suited to stringed instrument tops because of its high strength and long, straight grain, and because it's relatively soft and easy to carve. Just a guess on my part, but it would be appreciably more difficult to carve a piece of maple thin enough to have a big acoustic voice, And then the result would require heavy bracing (which would deaden the acoustic voice) to be strong enough to withstand the string force. Carved thick enough to withstand that, it's not very different sounding from or louder than laminated spruce (at least that's the way a 575 strikes me based on the few I've heard). OTOH, laminated maple has its own special mid-range-y, percussive sound that carved maple doesn't seem to get.

So from a builder's perspective, if you want a true scooped acoustic sound, you carve spruce. If you want the heavier, mid-range-y electric sound you laminate maple. If you want to split the difference, you can laminate spruce or carve maple, with laminated spruce being easier to work with and more resistant to feedback. Heritage does seem to be pretty much the only builder that sees it differently, which I guess gives them a niche in the market. An actual builder comes along to tell me I'm wrong in 5 ... 4 ... 3 ...

[Rickco]

Mine sits next to a 50 yr old 175. They are completely different, the 175 sounds like a 175 the 575 has a sound of its own and due to the size difference is a completely different playing experience. I find I reach for the 575 more often. Thats why I posted,I am surprised no other makers have done a like construction. As an electric archtop it brings a lot to the table. Ive never seen a Johnny A......wow Id love to hear that.
Thanks guys

[RJVB]

but it would be appreciably more difficult to carve a piece of maple thin enough to have a big acoustic voice

Idem for a flat top. Taylor brought out a maple-topped guitar last year (or the beginning of this year?). It had a tiny and very dry acoustic voice (and that's where I lost interest so I can't really remember what the review said it'd be good for).

I saw a JWC "Catania Swing" in a YT video that had so much bearclaw in its spruce top that it looked like it had a maple top

[Stringswinger]

Les Pauls (mostly) and the short lived Gibson Pat Martino all have carved maple tops. I suspect the reason we do not see more carved maple tops is more about tradition rather than tone. I have played some dark Lesters with their carved maple top and some bright guitars with a carved spruce top.

Frankly, I love the look of a curly maple top myself.

[rlrhett]

I made a couple. They weren’t bad at all. Better acoustic voice than I expected, but essentially an electric guitar. Dry but bassy, not harsh at all. Maybe a bit muffled. Thunk? I don’t really know what people mean by that.


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[Stringswinger]

I made a couple. They weren’t bad at all. Better acoustic voice than I expected, but essentially an electric guitar. Dry but bassy, not harsh at all. Maybe a bit muffled. Thunk? I don’t really know what people mean by that.


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I think "thunk" only happens with a full depth, hollow body guitar made with laminate plates strung with flatwounds. And IMO, "thunk" is a good thing!

[Rickco]

piezzo bridge?

[rlrhett]

piezzo bridge?

On mine? No. Just the single humbucker. Nothing special, just a basic PAF style. I donated that guitar to a charity auction for a school. A bit of an experiment. Not the fanciest woods or electronics. But a good sounding guitar nonetheless.


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