I am not sure what the difference is between a "scientific" and a traditional approach to building, I use both plus intuition. A good example of the scientific approach would be the research by Carleen Huchins on Violin plate tuning and the relationship of the pitch of the plate modes in the assembled instrument. It turns out that many of her ideas were unfounded. Anyway violin makers traditionally do tune the back and belly by holding them at a given point and tapping them at a given place to hear the pitch and clarity of the note. The plates can also be placed over a loud speaker sprinkled with the contents of a tea bag and blasted with the loud speaker below till a pattern emerges on the plate when you get to the right pitch. The harpsichord maker John Rawson published interesting research in Galpin showing these patterns (Chladni patterns) on his harpsichord and Fortepiano soundboards as they existed in the instruments. 

You can attempt to assess the performance of an audio system by studying the specifications of the components, but the final arbiter is the Human ear, of course the same applies to harpsichords. No one would ever consider judging a Red wine by an analysis of its chemical composition. I think science and intuition can work hand in hand.

Richard

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