Today, according to Thalia, mahogany guitars come in three main varieties of hardwood. You can find them in both electric and acoustic guitars, and the tonewood is highly resilient against wood rot or warping over time. General Acoustic Guitar and Amplification Discussion, https://markhorning.bandcamp.com/album/space-freedom, https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-T...56266954411686. Let's review that tonewood in detail. It's far superior the truly loathsome luan, a trash wood that's often euphemistically labeled as "Philippine mahogany" but is one of the nastiest, most worthless woods ever incorporated into musical instrument construction. I've had an acoustic with a Nato neck for over 30 years now. I'd like to try a solid wood Nato on a Taylor or Martin just so I can compare it to their other models. Ash: exhibits a "snappier" tone with a bright edge, but with a warm bass and long sustain. I've read so much about it but still have yet to understand exactly what it is. Yes it's real wood and it's used mostly in laminates as wade suggested. It has been absolutely rock solid with no issues for 35 years. It is often considered as the other "traditional" Stratocaster body wood. It's difficult for me to give an overall thought on Nato's tone simply because every Nato guitar I've ever played has (probably) been a laminate and on a budget guitar. It's held up well, I have zero complaints. Yamaha still makes a guitar with laminate nato. This is even stiffer than the other wood commonly used for necks, Hard Maple (12.62). If you ever see a guitar that's described as luan or as "Philippine mahogany… Yes it is. The solid maple/mahogany body is characteristically rich, warm, and resonant. Google "Nyatoh wood" for more info. (I think it's potentially undervalued as a tone wood like a lot of other less traditional tone woods also). The added stiffness makes it great for necks. Basswood: the principal wood used on many Japanese made instruments. Used on its own, mahogany’s characteristic tone is warm and somewhat soft, but well balanced with good grind and bite. Mahogany is a generic term that refers to several spices of dark colored wood. Nato in japan is fermented beans, a traditional dish that is seriously disgusting - when I first saw nato on a guitar I thought, "No way....". Nato mahogany is not laminated, laminated nato mahogany is. I think it is a distant relative of Mahogany It looks like mahogany. Alder: full and rich, with fat low-end, nice cutting mids, and good overall warmth and sustain.Alder is generally considered to be one of the "traditional" Stratocaster body woods. I really would like to know what it is. If you ever see a guitar that's described as luan or as "Philippine mahogany… In terms of sound, mahogany adds a parlor type of warm tone. But, it's obviously a cheaper wood. I hear it's Eastern mahogany. Basswood is a wood that’s being used predominantly on ‘metal’ guitars. Yes, a less expensive tone wood substitute for mostly mahogany. It's far superior the truly loathsome luan, a trash wood that's often euphemistically labeled as "Philippine mahogany" but is one of the nastiest, most worthless woods ever incorporated into musical instrument construction. My guitar's been very stable for 30 years with no special treatment. This is due both to its tonal response, (once again, very similar to Alder) as well as the fact that Basswood is much more readily available to the manufacturers in Asia. Nyatoh is a commercial grouping of species whose air-dry weights fall mostly between 38 and 45 lb/cu.ft or 610 and 720 kg/cu.m, but may be up to to 55 lb/cu.ft (880 kg/cu.m). Expect your guitar to sound twangier, but not quite as big sounding. Mahogany that is used in older guitars was from Cuba. Compared to Mahogany, Nyatoh is a little bit denser (620 vs. 590), but significantly stiffer (13.37 vs. 10.06). It's far superior the truly loathsome luan, a trash wood that's often euphemistically labeled as "Philippine mahogany" but is one of the nastiest, most worthless woods ever incorporated into musical instrument construction. Many guitar manufacturers as a substitute for alder are using this wood, as it is quite similar in tone.