Hi, I'm not planning on starting this project for at least a year because I may be able to get a grant from the college I want to go to. But, in the meantime I'm researching different methods and how to do it.

Does anyone know if any other wood has been tried other than rosewood? I know its generally accepted that rosewood sounds best, but is there a possibility that there could be a cheaper wood that might sound better? Any comments are appreciated.

Padouk is currently being used by several manufacturers as a cheaper alternative to Honduran rosewood. It doesn't sound bad, but it is a far cry from rosewood. I think Brazilian rosewood has been tried as well, but it evidently didn't work for some reason given the lack of companies using it.

Probably most any wood can be used--I once carved a piece of pine to sound a Bb, it didn't really sound that good--but time has told us that Honduran rosewood is the best.

This note is not only for Holly, but for anyone else who would like to build a marimba. I myself had a similar interest about eight years ago, and pursued the subject with a great deal of interest, as I had been