Koa top for steel string acoustic guitar

[Craig Bumgarner]

I occasionally see guitars with Koa tops though I have never played one. They look interesting enough visually, but as Koa's stiffness to weight ratio is close to half of spruce or cedar, I can't imagine it would be as responsive. If it is, I have a whole lot of thinking to do. I ask because I recently saw a promotion of a guitar with a Koa topped guitar saying it had a HUGE voice and this runs contrary to everything I "think" I know about how to attain volume in an a steel string acoustic guitar. Any thoughts on this?

[GregL]

Hi Craig,

I have an all- curly Tasmanian Blackwood guitar made by Bob Connor (our esteemed host) and it's fabulous. Blackwood seems to be closely related to Koa (both acacia), and curly Blackwood looks very similar to curly Koa. I saw an all-Koa guitar in Ohio a few years ago, and loved it and thought that an all-Blackwood guitar wood be just as nice - to my eyes it's even better looking. Sound is great, though not the same as a Spruce-topped guitar - hard to describe sounds, but the all-Blackwood guitar sounds more strident, less delicate - although I guess that's a function of the top bracing pattern as well as the top wood used. Maybe Bob himself will chime in about construction details?

Thanks,
GregL.

[charangohabsburg]

[...] a promotion of a guitar with a Koa topped guitar saying it had a HUGE voice [...] Any thoughts on this?

Whatever HUGE voice may mean...
I have never played or heard "in person" a Koa topped guitar, but I believe that HUGE voice can not mean louder/more responsive when compared to a spruce or WRC topped guitar of the same model. It might mean "wonderful voice", or in the case you are describing it just may mean "buy our guitars".