The influence of a species of wood used in headphones on the sound timbre is often underestimated. In general, the denser the wood, the sharper and brighter the sound, and the lower the density the streamlined and softer the sound. The sound is transmitted from the inner walls of the headphone body to your ear. The ear picks up vibrations of the body that are influenced by nearly every part of the headphone chamber. Different parts resonate in different ways, thereby increasing some frequencies of the timbre and filtering out others. Moreover, the ear also picks up purely acoustic sound of the headphone body which is combined with the basic sound of the driver. The wood used in the headphone body influences the sound nearly in all phases, but the greatest effect is observed immediately after the sound is produced and when it attenuates. We should neither forget that each piece of wood is unique in its kind: even two pieces of the same species will differ from each other in their characteristics. Moreover, each listener has a different perception of what good sound is. Therefore, all the following descriptions of the wood species and their influence on the sound are more of a general and subjective nature. The characteristics below are based both on our own observations and on the findings of musical instrument makers.

Beech is very similar to hard ash in its acoustic properties. With all the good qualities characteristic of ash, beech has another extremely important quality: beech cups provide virtually identical sounds from one to another, which renders beech a very convenient material for achieving a predictably good result.

Alder has quite closely spaced pores, approximately similarly to basswood, but they have a better defined "grainy" pattern. Another characteristic typical of this species is a balanced timbre without amplification in any region of the frequency spectrum, except for that the upper-mid range is slightly more pronounced. This renders the sound clear and readable. Alder resonates quite well, has complex characteristics and a good dynamic range. Although alder is more fit for blues and rock sound, it is very versatile and applicable for any music style. This species provides smooth and clear sound with rich mids. Alder is suitable for a wide variety of styles.

Northern hard ash. This is a very musical wood which combines bright, and at the same time, warm sound with a broad dynamic range. Ash provides pure, ringing, bell-like highs, slightly recessed but complex mids and powerful, tight lows. Characteristics of medium frequencies differ significantly from one piece to another; therefore ash headphones are more different from each other in sound in comparison with others. Ash cups for headphones feature very fast attack and resonate very well across the frequency spectrum. They provide very detailed and complex sound, especially in clear or slightly overloaded sound.

American basswood is very light. It has a dense, grainy texture and a uniform pattern. Basswood is a very soft wood and can be easily dented. Thanks to its softness, basswood softens high and ultra-low frequencies, which provides distinct mids and accentuates the frequency of the basic tone. Its timbre is not too complex and dynamic range is somewhat limited as compared to ash or alder. Softened highs offset the tendency of accentuating high frequencies found in some headphones. As a result, basswood cups suite well for music styles such as "metal" and "rock". In the pure sound, basswood cups tend to some sterility.

Mahogany features a sophisticated pattern and large pores. This wood is denser and heavier than alder, but lighter than maple. It demonstrates good performance in the low frequency region of the spectrum and compressed midrange with a slight emphasis on the lower middle frequencies. High frequencies are soft and have no roughness. In general, the timbre is warm, full and sort of slightly nasal. In terms of dynamic qualities, mahogany features very good attack; therefore mahogany cups suit well for rock, acoustic music and jazz. A separate feature of mahogany is that it is positively influenced by its age. There is a popular belief that its sound becomes more and more colorful every year.

Eastern hard maple is highly reflective and is famous for its feature of adding brightness to the sound. It also contributes to making each note sound clearly, not blurry. Hard maple has a fairly bright sound, with thick, expressive highs and upper midrange. Despite the fact that the low frequencies of this species are not that strong, they are quite readable and can sound just fine when a proper driver is used. When used in headphone cups, maple produces a large amount of high frequency overtones and a faint, almost filtered bass. Maple features a clear and resonant sound with particularly pronounced high frequencies. Maple cups will perfectly fit those who plan to listen to the vocals, guitar music and especially instrumental pieces where acoustic instruments prevail.

Redwood (rosewood) is a very hard and dense species. Its sound is most close to that of maple; however redwood is more resonating and sounds warmer. The sound is richer in the basic tones and notably softer than that produced by maple, due to the absorption of sharp high harmonics by oil filled pores. If you are fond of heavy and rhythmic sounds, you should choose redwood. This species is second to none in the transmission of low frequencies. The upper range is smooth while the mids are rather bright.

European walnut is a dense, medium hard wood with an ash-like texture, but, like mahogany, it is more consistent in its density. In terms of timbral characteristics, European walnut has a warm timbre with clear lower mids and even more complex upper mids as compared to mahogany. The high frequency range is quite bright but not very accentuated. Walnut allows for reproducing the entire range of sound of a musical material.

American walnut is even denser than European walnut. With its sound being very similar to that of European walnut, American walnut has a very important feature — it delivers highly detailed high frequencies that are slightly more accentuated at the top end. It fits perfectly for listening to complex jazz compositions.

Wenge is a hard, solid and sturdy wood. In terms of sound and weight, it is most similar to hard maple, but has a wider stage. Like rosewood, wenge slightly clips the highs, while at the same time, resonates more in the basic tones in the medium frequency region and in the lower mids. Due to its "striped" density wenge selectively filters out some of the overtones in these regions.

Oak is very hard but porous, which gives the sound of oak cups a combination of the best acoustic properties of both hard and soft wood species. When oak cups are used, the sound is clear and bass is articulated and focused. It is a rather versatile material, but most of all it will be appreciated by admirers of complex musical genres. Merbau is a very hard material.

Merbau is used to manufacture cups because it is very "responsive" and resonates to even the quietest sound. While it accentuates the top range sounds, the lowest range is perfectly readable and has no rumble. It is perfectly fit for both music genres replete with acoustic instruments (such as classical music or jazz) and for complex electronic and pop music.

Amaranth is one of the best choices for the acoustic enclosure of headphones. While being to some extent similar to oak and hornbeam in terms of the nature of influence on the timbre, it makes the sound warm and velvety. Amaranth can be recommended to those keen on both comfortable and utmost detailed sound.

Sapele is a dense and hard species. Its sound properties are almost completely similar to those of rosewood, with very few differences. Sapele produces warm sound, rich in basic tones. It is well fit for heavy and rhythmic music. This species is second to none in the transmission of low frequencies. The upper range is smooth, while the mids are rather bright.

Silky oak (lacewood) is a truly "multi-density" wood. It has whiskey color and is very hard, like walnut. Double density contributes to accentuating some of the timbres while filtering out the others. Lacewood sounds brighter than alder and richer than maple. This wood controls the deep bass sound well. Its double density provides a good framework for tight low frequencies, and at the same time, produces a synergy with higher sounds due to the warm sounding low density parts. It is most suitable for admirers of the accurate and fullest sound, without accentuating any particular tones.

Bubinga is a very heavy, slightly oily wood. It produces "velvety" sound and beautiful, rich lows. Thanks to its acoustic properties, bubinga is used to manufacture high quality drums. It can be recommended to admirers of vibrant, bass rich music.

Hornbeam is a very hard and extremely difficult to process wood. It is used to manufacture an acoustic enclosure of headphones due to the fact that this species, like merbau, sensitively resonates to even the quietest sound. While it accentuates the top range sounds, the lowest range is perfectly readable and has no rumble. It has many advantages over other species, such as sharp attack and tight rounded lows, but also soft highs and detailed mids. It is perfectly fit for music genres replete with acoustic instruments, classical music and female vocals.

Zebrano is a very rare and beautiful species of light-golden color with dark brown to almost black streaks. Zebrano produces very soft, smooth sound. The stage is of average depth, with each note being clearly articulated. Zebrano is the perfect choice for those fond of acoustic music and traditional jazz.

Padauk is a very beautiful wood of blood-red color which darkens to dark brown over time. It is very durable and resistant to any impacts. It produces bright and clear sound with tight lows. Due to its versatility, it can be recommended as an excellent choice for everyday listening to a wide variety of music.

Makore is a blood-red or red-brown wood which is very viscous and hard. It features deep and "viscous" sound, which is especially noticeable in the bass range. This type of wood is good for rhythms, acoustic and orchestral music and the blues. One of the strengths of makore is the transmission of sound of an acoustic guitar and piano, producing a complex and surround sound.

Cherry features full attenuation rich with low frequency harmonics, and good and expressive sound. Cherry is one of the traditional materials to manufacture the body of headphone cups. Thanks to its uniform density, it provides compression of the midrange making the sound complete. This wood resonates well across all the frequency ranges supported by headphones. It can be recommended to admirers of full and tight sound, without accentuating any of the frequency ranges. The specific features of this material are particularly distinct in listening to quiet, detail rich music.

Teak is a viscous and hard golden brown wood with dark streaks. It produces a neutral sound with slight accentuation of the medium and high ranges. In general, teak cups are versatile enough to be used for any musical material.

Iroko (kambala) is often used as a substitute for teak which is very similar to it both in appearance and in acoustic and resonant properties. It has all the advantages of teak. It can be recommended as one of the most versatile materials without any genre preferences. Headphones with teak cups sound very naturally and vividly and feature the average stage.

Karelian birch is a rare and beautiful species with a fancy marble-like pattern. Thanks to curly fibers and wavy texture, it delivers an extremely colorful and very individual sound. It is usually impossible to find two pairs of cups made of this material that would sound exactly the same. The only things that cups made of this rare material have in common are fabulously beautiful patterns and a clear, very light and balanced sound. Remember that each pair of cups made of Karelian birch is exclusively individual and unique. It is preferable for those fond of complex, overloaded music of a wide variety of genres.

We should also keep in mind that different species of wood of relatively high quality and density always produce great sound. What makes the difference is the nature of both the wood itself and of a particular pair of cups. Further, apart from the influence of the material of cups, no less important are the design of a cup, its thickness, volume and configuration of the acoustic chamber, the method of processing used to make a cup and the coating material.

There is no definitive recipe for making a perfect cup. It is a matter of multiple hands-on experiments and a certain specific model of headphones. You should also take into account the undeniable fact that personal preferences in taste and genre may differ drastically from one listener to another. Unfortunately, it is impossible to achieve versatility in the production of any type of sound. Therefore, in order to avoid disappointment and unmet expectations, it is strongly recommended that when choosing headphones you should rely not only on recommendations, reviews and promotional information, but also on your own listening experience. Every person has their own hearing perception and idea of the true sound. Preferences in genre are different. No one has ever managed, does or will ever manage to achieve a universal sound that would satisfy everybody. That is why either of the above species of wood is applicable as a component of an acoustic system and can make the standard sound of a particular model unique and inimitable.