My objective in picking the combination of veneers was to do something interesting. I think burl woods are fascinating and wanted to work with these. I had originally picked cherry to go with the Carpathian burl wood but Jim suggested that the wood tones and grain in mahogany would be a better choice. Once the cabinets were veneered and a couple of the finish coats done, Jim asked about the final top coat and adding a bit of dye to bring out some of the colors in the undyed burl wood. I do like the overall effect, in part because the finish on the mahogany really sets off the Carpathian burl wood sides. What does not show in Jim's photos is the speaker tops, which are also finished in Carpathian elm burl. I think the burl tops tie the sides together nicely. I listen with the speaker grills in place, so the mahogany does not show. Jim's guidance on veneers, dye and finishes resulted in what, to my eye and taste, is a lovely pair of speakers. Being able to participate in the creation of the speakers (if only passively through the selection of veneer lots) is one of the reasons I chose Salk.
By the way, the Song3s sound awfully good, too. That's the other reason I went with Salk.
