If you really want a good deal, look for the top or bottom piece in the bunk which will always have indentations from the banding. Ask for a $10 (at least) discount. And if you see delamination on the edges, cut well away from it. That is it's weakness.

I don't build often so a lot of deals slide by.

The best stuff I saw at HD was oak one side, maple the
other. Never saw that but once.

Every biggish city has a distributor or three that sells to cabinet shops. They generally have laminates, cabinet hardware, paper-backed veneer and hardwood plywood. GP and Weyerhauser are just 2 of the names that have Walnut and oak for around $90, cherry and mahogany a bit more and even exotics. I bought 'Chinese Walnut' out of Columbus from DSI for $52 a sheeet which is quite nice.
Good quality hardwood plywood and iron-on veneer edge-banding make using solid wood a wste of time and resources, at least for large speakers.

I just figured that cabinet grade (cheapo stuff from
HD might have less of the annoying "there's some
plywood" figuring in the panels.

One thing I found that should be more stable is
those glued up panels at Menards (in the Midwest USA).

They look like butcher block so I suppose it depends on
how dutchy your decor is.