Maple top on Basswood:
The clean attack and even highs of Maple will make up for Basswood’s inherent reduction of those frequencies. The lows will still taper off, but the overall result is more frequencies covered than with either piece alone. Dynamics aren’t reduced, except for in the upper register, where they were less present in Basswood alone. So the improvement in high response is a little more compressed, and not as crisp and responsive in the attack as Swamp Ash for example.
Maple top on Mahogany:
The staple of vintage construction, the Maple adds crispness to the mahogany, but the lows and low mids of mahogany are still as apparent. The Maple combs out some of the upper mids, not because Maple lacks in these areas, but because it is vastly different from mahogany in its handling of the upper midrange. There is fighting going on in that range between the two pieces that results in a canceling out of some of those upper midrange frequencies. That’s part of the “smoothness” associated with the Les Paul & PRS types.
Maple top on Alder:
Takes Alder to a tone closer to solid Swamp Ash, but without the dynamics. The open resonance of the Alder comes through with the sharper attack and brightness of the Maple on the top end. The effect on the Alder is similar to the effect on Basswood. The upper mids of Maple come through, as Alder does not suppress upper mids.
