monty
Banned
Does anyone hear a difference with an electric?
Buck62
噛んでくれ
Maple necks tend to make the guitar sound brighter, where as rosewood necks have a darker, beefier sound.
(General rule of thumb: The harder the wood, the brighter the sound.)
Maple necks offer less resistance when bending strings and playing fast.... but, rosewood has that bigger, beefier, tone.
Ebony is pretty nice... it's right in between the two.
Maple does have one flaw, though... as the neck gets worn, the finish will come off and eventually it'll need to be replaced.
Especially if you play it on a daily basis for years.
Rosewood necks are usually "slabbed" on top of a maple or ash neck and can be serviced easier.
(General rule of thumb: The harder the wood, the brighter the sound.)
Maple necks offer less resistance when bending strings and playing fast.... but, rosewood has that bigger, beefier, tone.
Ebony is pretty nice... it's right in between the two.
Maple does have one flaw, though... as the neck gets worn, the finish will come off and eventually it'll need to be replaced.
Especially if you play it on a daily basis for years.
Rosewood necks are usually "slabbed" on top of a maple or ash neck and can be serviced easier.
monty
Banned
But do 'you' hear a difference?
Buck62
噛んでくれ
On two of the "exact" same guitars, with the same body, bridge, and pick-ups... yes, I definitely can.
Otherwise, there's too many variables to consider.... wood type, body shape, pick-ups, etc.
Basically, you have to go with what feels (and sounds) right for you.
Otherwise, there's too many variables to consider.... wood type, body shape, pick-ups, etc.
Basically, you have to go with what feels (and sounds) right for you.
monty
Banned
That's the problem...I'd have to buy two guitars to find out which is right for me. Trying to do a sound test in a store, or even a feel test after everyone's dirty hands have made the necks feel sticky, is nearly impossible with all the noise and distractions in the store. Man it's a rough life...I shoulda been a constable on patrol. 
Buck62
噛んでくれ
Oh, hell... whadda we know anyway?
We're just a couple of creepy reptiles!
We're just a couple of creepy reptiles!
C
Clive Hugh
New member
I have two Fender strats, one maple fret board and the other rosewood.
Yes there is a difference, I find it considerable, generally in most settings the rosewood sounds sweeter but the maple is the dream machine to play so it gets 90% of the play time, but some numbers just lend themselves to the rosewood.
I also reset the amp to try and approximate the same sound, so with me the action is the more important between the two as I can tweak the highs and mids to suit.
Yes there is a difference, I find it considerable, generally in most settings the rosewood sounds sweeter but the maple is the dream machine to play so it gets 90% of the play time, but some numbers just lend themselves to the rosewood.
I also reset the amp to try and approximate the same sound, so with me the action is the more important between the two as I can tweak the highs and mids to suit.
philboyd studge
New member
Go with rosewood, it costs more to make, so the manufacturer has to work harder for your money.
T
tdukex
Man of the Muse
Sound schmound.
Honestly, just get the one that looks best with the guitar body you choose.
Honestly, just get the one that looks best with the guitar body you choose.
N
Newest User
New member
Hey monty,
Is there a price difference between the 2 guitars your looking at? Ive got 6 guitars and for me, the rosewood is easier to play than the maple, its not as bright sounding which is good for my particular style of music. If the Maple neck isn't done right, the finish can be kinda sticky. Typically rosewoods and ebony are bare with except a coating of finich oil. I find the visual aspects need consideration too. Try em all out if you can, but take your time, Ive spent as much as a month playing btw 2 different guitars in the stores before ordering it on the web from someone else. Remember to make sure it fits your body shape both standing and sitting...I have a V guitar in my attic, It was my mistake in guitar purchases.
Peace
Is there a price difference between the 2 guitars your looking at? Ive got 6 guitars and for me, the rosewood is easier to play than the maple, its not as bright sounding which is good for my particular style of music. If the Maple neck isn't done right, the finish can be kinda sticky. Typically rosewoods and ebony are bare with except a coating of finich oil. I find the visual aspects need consideration too. Try em all out if you can, but take your time, Ive spent as much as a month playing btw 2 different guitars in the stores before ordering it on the web from someone else. Remember to make sure it fits your body shape both standing and sitting...I have a V guitar in my attic, It was my mistake in guitar purchases.
Peace
barefoot
barefootsound.com
Technically the properties of the three most common fingerboard materials go in this order.Buck62 said:
Ebony - Hardest, Densest, Stiffest
Rosewood - In the middle (but the most resonant)
Maple - Least Hard, Least Dense, Least Stiff.
From my experience building guitars, however, the fingerboard material has less to do with the sound and more to do with the feel.
But a difference in sound can result from the neck design differences that are often customarily associated with these fingerboard materials.
Fender maple fingerboard necks are made from a solid flat sawn piece of maple. Therefore the neck material is relatively flexible and relies more on the balancing tension of the truss rod. This makes the neck more "alive" and tends to dissipate the highs and lows giving a warmer tone with accentuated midrange.
Ebony and Rosewood fingerboard necks are laminates and are often constructed of quarter sawn mahogany or maple. This makes the neck stiffer which tends to retain more low and high frequency energy in the strings giving an electric both a deeper and brighter tone.
Of course these qualities are heavily influenced and often times balanced by the choice of body material and most especially the pickups. For example, a Les Paul has accentuated lows and highs due to it's relatively stiff neck and body, but this is offset by the very warm midrangey character of its humbucking pickups.
barefoot
Track Rat
Just Your Average Sized Member
I MUCH prefer the feel of a maple finger board. I can dial in the tone.
Buck62
噛んでくれ
barefoot....
You got part of that wrong.
Maple is harder than rosewood.
You got part of that wrong.
Maple is harder than rosewood.
Aaron Cheney
Favorite Chord: C 6/9
Thank-you BAREFOOT.
Finally, someone what knows!
Yes, these woods do produce different sounds on a hollowbody, and we tend to extrapolate that to tone for fingerboards. I think it's mostly hogwash.
IF there is a difference in tone, it's as untracable as the difference in pickups. The only way you could ever really quantify it is by switching pickups or necks on the exact same guitar, which in practice doesn't really work. By the time you've switched you've lost your frame of reference. You could try to record it to compare, but that introduces another set of variables that can change over time.
My opinion: Fretboard wood has very, very VERY little to do with tone. It has everything to do with feel. I have 7 guitars and they are all rosewood except 2, which are ebony. I just have a hard time playing maple. They feel sticky to me.
My favorite necks of all time: Ernie Ball Necks are absolutely yummy.
Aaron
http://www.voodoovibe.com
Finally, someone what knows!
Yes, these woods do produce different sounds on a hollowbody, and we tend to extrapolate that to tone for fingerboards. I think it's mostly hogwash.
IF there is a difference in tone, it's as untracable as the difference in pickups. The only way you could ever really quantify it is by switching pickups or necks on the exact same guitar, which in practice doesn't really work. By the time you've switched you've lost your frame of reference. You could try to record it to compare, but that introduces another set of variables that can change over time.
My opinion: Fretboard wood has very, very VERY little to do with tone. It has everything to do with feel. I have 7 guitars and they are all rosewood except 2, which are ebony. I just have a hard time playing maple. They feel sticky to me.
My favorite necks of all time: Ernie Ball Necks are absolutely yummy.
Aaron
http://www.voodoovibe.com
eyeslikefire
I CAN SMELL EM!
Roger that buck!
Maple is in the middle as far as hardness and density.
Rosewood being in the bottom of the ladder and ebony on the top. Personally I prefer ebony, I have a 1981 Carvin DC-200 koa with a real thick slab of ebony for the board and man;... it feels great. My American Standard Strat has maple and is my main guit but when I play the DC-200..... Shiet, Its like going back to your first girl.
Maple is in the middle as far as hardness and density.
Rosewood being in the bottom of the ladder and ebony on the top. Personally I prefer ebony, I have a 1981 Carvin DC-200 koa with a real thick slab of ebony for the board and man;... it feels great. My American Standard Strat has maple and is my main guit but when I play the DC-200..... Shiet, Its like going back to your first girl.
barefoot
barefootsound.com
No, rosewood is harder than maple, but it turns out I was wrong about ebony.Buck62 said:
Code:
Bending strength |Max crushing strength |Janka Hardness
(PSI) | (PSI) | (lbf)
-----------------------+----------------------+---------------
Indian 16,920 9,220 3,170
Rosewood
Ebony 11,125 5,960 1,630
Sugar(rock) 9,400 4,020 1,450
Maplehttp://www.windsorplywood.com/tropical/home.html
barefoot
barefoot
barefootsound.com
Just some points of clarification:
This seems counterintuitive to me that rosewood is harder than ebony, but I think that Janka hardness must be more akin to impact strength rather than the scratch and cutting resistance we normally associate with hardness.
All this data is basically saying is that rosewood is a stronger wood than ebony, just like steel is stronger than glass even though glass is harder to scratch than steel. This is little surprising that rosewood is a stronger than ebony, but then I never actually tried to break either one because they are just too damned expensive and every scrap is precious..
Sonically these material strengths, rather than the scratch resistances, are the most important. As far as feel, probably the scratch resistance and tightness of the grain are most important. Even still, rosewood has higher scratch resistance than maple. Maple just seems to be harder this way because it has tighter grain and it's usually finished. Anyone who has ever worked these two woods will testify to the extreme hardness of rosewood. It eats up blades and bits like crazy - even carbide!
barefoot
This seems counterintuitive to me that rosewood is harder than ebony, but I think that Janka hardness must be more akin to impact strength rather than the scratch and cutting resistance we normally associate with hardness.
All this data is basically saying is that rosewood is a stronger wood than ebony, just like steel is stronger than glass even though glass is harder to scratch than steel. This is little surprising that rosewood is a stronger than ebony, but then I never actually tried to break either one because they are just too damned expensive and every scrap is precious..
Sonically these material strengths, rather than the scratch resistances, are the most important. As far as feel, probably the scratch resistance and tightness of the grain are most important. Even still, rosewood has higher scratch resistance than maple. Maple just seems to be harder this way because it has tighter grain and it's usually finished. Anyone who has ever worked these two woods will testify to the extreme hardness of rosewood. It eats up blades and bits like crazy - even carbide!
barefoot
toyL
Member
no monty, you cannot "hear" the difference...anyone who thinks they can hear the difference is only hearing what they "want" to hear at that moment...rosewood is more durable than maple--i.e. it will retain it's shape longer...but even this depends on the various physicals elements (moisture, temp, light, friction) the wood is exposed to...rosewood tends to be "harder" and may have a slightly different "feel"...but, again, the elements come into play--petrified maple is essentially rock...at ay rate, playing well is never dependent upon the kind of wood on your fretboard.
Evildick
New member
I may be completely off the mark here but comparing rosewood or Ebony against a maple fretboard sounds odd. Any difference that could be heard is more likely due to the bonding/glue of the ebony or rosewood to the actuall neck material. Similar to the way you hear differences in tone between a laminate top glued to a cheap stock body.
my .02
my .02
M
M.Brane
New member
Monty: Don't stress on it bro!
Pick up a guitar. Look at the finish, the workmanship, etc. Play it for 5 min. If you don't fall in love with it, put it down and try another.
When you find a good one, you'll know.
Pick up a guitar. Look at the finish, the workmanship, etc. Play it for 5 min. If you don't fall in love with it, put it down and try another.
When you find a good one, you'll know.
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