raecarter
Well-known member
That is the question!
There is no difference in sound, says Mike.can a more well informed uker tell us the difference in sound between the two? I'm curious about this myself.
I have a gloss kala sprucetop, and really like how it feels.
Since the sound difference is undetectable by most, it's a matter of aesthethics and wear. For me, I went with gloss after owning a matte Lehua for a couple years. The Lehua deveolped glossy areas, from hand oils. The neck became extremely glossy, and all over the soundboard, in patches (my hand is all over the place, but mostly around the left side of the soundhole and behind the bridge where I dampen a lot). Over time, it was half/half gloss/matte. This didn't bother me a bit, though. If anything it was kind of interesting to see physical evidence of my playing style. If you are an over-the-neck strummer type, this won't be a factor, though. The gloss shows little scratches and other "love marks" already, but again, I'm not bothered by that at all. Fingerprints polish off, so I wouldn't worry about that either. I just liked the photos I saw of the gloss compared to the matte Mainlands better, the richness of the wood, etc. Now, that was the opposite of the Lehua - I preferred the look of the matte, so it depends on the type of wood. My Mainland is mahogany, and to me mahogany looks rather dull unfinished.I think it depends on the type of wood, but IMHO...gloss brings out the grain better, even though it does show fingerprints more (and drool)!:drool: