African Blackwood Back + Side Set - 014

African Blackwood Back + Side Set - 014

One of the most exclusive tonewoods available for acoustic guitars—period.

African Blackwood, Dalbergia melanoxylon
African Blackwood has quietly become one of the most sought after superpremium tonewoods for acoustic guitars. Once reserved almost exclusively for woodwinds, high quality guitar-sized sets are now extraordinarily difficult to source—at any price.

This small batch represents an opportunity that rarely comes along in today's market. These are especially nice sets by modern standards, with exceptional color, density, and consistency. Quite simply, we don't know when, or if, we'll ever see sets like this again.

Visually, African Blackwood is unmistakable. Deep blacks and dark purples with occasional dramatic honey-colored sapwood. It pairs beautifully with nearly any binding or purfling scheme, from understated to ornate.

Tonally, African Blackwood delivers a powerful and refined voice. As a member of the rosewood family, it offers strong fundamentals, rich overtones, and impressive clarity, with a warmth and projection that rivals—or surpasses—many of the most sought-after rosewoods. Builders often describe it as having the depth of Brazilian rosewood with added focus and headroom.

If African Blackwood has been on your short list for a special build, this is the moment. Supplies like this are vanishingly rare, and when these sets are gone, they're gone.

Minimum Dimensions

• Back halves: 8-1/4" x 22" x 0.155" (210mm x 559mm x 3.9mm)
• Sides: 5" x 31-1/2" x 0.130" (127mm x 800mm x 3.3mm)

All WOODSTAX items come with our 100% satisfaction promise and no-hassle returns. If you are unhappy with the wood once you get it, simply return it in its original, unworked condition for a full refund or exchange.