Rosewood=OVERRATED! *fretboard poll*

  • Thread starter Thread starter nevusofota
  • Start date Start date

What is your favorite fretboard wood?

  • Other

    Votes: 1 1.0%

  • Ebony

    Votes: 27 28.1%

  • Maple

    Votes: 27 28.1%

  • Rosewood

    Votes: 41 42.7%
  • Total voters
    96
Ebony looks and feels great but brings nothing good to the tone party on an electric guitar. An ebony boarded electric that sounds great does so in spite of it, not because of it. I've tested it based on Tom Anderson's assertions that its a garbage tonewood and I've come to agree.
 
rupe":47tht52c said:
Ebony looks and feels great but brings nothing good to the tone party on an electric guitar. An ebony boarded electric that sounds great does so in spite of it, not because of it. I've tested it based on Tom Anderson's assertions that its a garbage tonewood and I've come to agree.
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Ebony a garbage tonewood? I do not think it is and has been put on great guitars such as the LP Custom. While I do prefer RW over all of them, I do not think Ebony is a garbage tonewood for fretboards.
 
Stramm8":1z6z9ly8 said:
I prefer maple but I tend to agree with that crazy guy on youtube who demonstrated that the fretboard wood has little or nothing to do with the tone. I like maple because of the way it looks and feels...
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I agree too!!! :thumbsup:
 
rupe":23m40yir said:
Ebony looks and feels great but brings nothing good to the tone party on an electric guitar. An ebony boarded electric that sounds great does so in spite of it, not because of it. I've tested it based on Tom Anderson's assertions that its a garbage tonewood and I've come to agree.
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I totally agree, I've spent a long time trying to "appreciate" ebony tonally, and arrived at the same conclusion.
 
I used to be so picky/anal about fretboard woods for a long time but came to realize it was mostly based on the cosmetic appearance/feel to my preferences. I have no problem with any of the three in the poll provided the guitar sounds good plugged in.
 
Stramm8":1tgy8xi8 said:
I prefer maple but I tend to agree with that crazy guy on youtube who demonstrated that the fretboard wood has little or nothing to do with the tone. I like maple because of the way it looks and feels...
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Are you referring to that guy from mylespaul.com, with the bad mouth? He does have a few valid points. People tend to overlook the total package. There are variances even within the same type of wood. This is mother nature. I gave up on expectations based on specs on paper. In practice it always sounded different, haha. Also, where is the scientific proof of the qualities people tend to hear?
 
metalmaniac93":1pfytl83 said:
rupe":1pfytl83 said:
Ebony looks and feels great but brings nothing good to the tone party on an electric guitar. An ebony boarded electric that sounds great does so in spite of it, not because of it. I've tested it based on Tom Anderson's assertions that its a garbage tonewood and I've come to agree.
Click to expand...

Ebony a garbage tonewood? I do not think it is and has been put on great guitars such as the LP Custom. While I do prefer RW over all of them, I do not think Ebony is a garbage tonewood for fretboards.
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How many iconic Les Paul Custom tones can you name compared to Les Paul Standard tones? I have a LP Custom that I like alot...I'd probably like it even more with a rosewood board though.

Tom Anderson on ebony:
i made a couple guitars with ebony in the late 80's. that was enough for me. "on our guitars", and i say that because that is what i have the most experience with, ebony has a brittle top end that just won't go away. i have acoustic guitars that i love with ebony, but just can't like the sound of it on our electrics. it is also a wood that is so dissimilar from maple that it will make the neck move more with climate changes than anything else. if you like the smooth feel, try pauferro of madagascar rosewood.
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rupe":3q922ssz said:
metalmaniac93":3q922ssz said:
rupe":3q922ssz said:
Ebony looks and feels great but brings nothing good to the tone party on an electric guitar. An ebony boarded electric that sounds great does so in spite of it, not because of it. I've tested it based on Tom Anderson's assertions that its a garbage tonewood and I've come to agree.
Click to expand...

Ebony a garbage tonewood? I do not think it is and has been put on great guitars such as the LP Custom. While I do prefer RW over all of them, I do not think Ebony is a garbage tonewood for fretboards.
Click to expand...
How many iconic Les Paul Custom tones can you name compared to Les Paul Standard tones? I have a LP Custom that I like alot...I'd probably like it even more with a rosewood board though.

Tom Anderson on ebony:
i made a couple guitars with ebony in the late 80's. that was enough for me. "on our guitars", and i say that because that is what i have the most experience with, ebony has a brittle top end that just won't go away. i have acoustic guitars that i love with ebony, but just can't like the sound of it on our electrics. it is also a wood that is so dissimilar from maple that it will make the neck move more with climate changes than anything else. if you like the smooth feel, try pauferro of madagascar rosewood.
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Well of course there are more LP Standards used than LP Customs but is it just because of the fretboard? I do not know, but like the type of fretboard is probably not going make that much of difference in a studio recording. Randy Rhoads, Mick Ronson, Ace Frehley, John Sykes, Jerry Cantrell are a few who did use the LP Custom and I am sure there are many more plus Jerry's Rampage has an ebony board. No bad tomes coming from any AIC or Jerry Cantrell solo LP/CD. I have a Heritage 150CM with a RW board and all but 3 of my guitars have RW boards. More to the tone of the entire guitar than just the fretboard. I agree, it can have a brittle top, but it is not that noticeable on two of my ebony board guitars.
 
Here is a page from Ed Roman's website about why ebony is so much "better" than rosewood:

http://www.edroman.com/customshop/wood/gaboon.htm




Here are a few reasons why he believes ebony is much better for fingerboards:

Benefits Of Using Ebony

1. Ebony is much harder and polishes up beautifully so that the neck feels smooth and slick. It's much harder and therefore you can get a better percussive tone when doing two hand tapping and hammer on's or playing without a pick.

2. Ebony reduces finger fatigue. If you play for hours your fingers will appreciate the smoothness. It's barely noticeable but the smoothness makes it so that you can play longer without getting sore fingers.

3. Cosmetically Beautiful, The Jet Black Ebony contrasts nicely with the binding and/or inlay material, also it effectively hides any filler for a much cleaner look.

4. Ebony is much stronger and much more stable. It helps keep your neck straighter and also protects it from breaking
 
nevusofota":12v7bsmv said:
Here is a page from Ed Roman's website about why ebony is so much "better" than rosewood:

http://www.edroman.com/customshop/wood/gaboon.htm




Here are a few reasons why he believes ebony is much better for fingerboards:

Benefits Of Using Ebony

1. Ebony is much harder and polishes up beautifully so that the neck feels smooth and slick. It's much harder and therefore you can get a better percussive tone when doing two hand tapping and hammer on's or playing without a pick.

2. Ebony reduces finger fatigue. If you play for hours your fingers will appreciate the smoothness. It's barely noticeable but the smoothness makes it so that you can play longer without getting sore fingers.

3. Cosmetically Beautiful, The Jet Black Ebony contrasts nicely with the binding and/or inlay material, also it effectively hides any filler for a much cleaner look.

4. Ebony is much stronger and much more stable. It helps keep your neck straighter and also protects it from breaking
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Aside from the subjective #3, that's all a crock of shit...and not surprising seeing as Ed Roman (RIP) was a bastion of bullshit and misinformation (and counterfeit guitars).

As for the iconic tones, I should have prefaced that with low to medium gain...high gain effectively squashes most dynamics and mitigates any structural tonal nuances. The only player you listed who played in that realm was Ronson (who I love) but how often do you hear of players raving about his tone? It was ok, but nothing that really stood out.
 
rupe":394vks6i said:
Aside from the subjective #3, that's all a crock of shit...and not surprising seeing as Ed Roman (RIP) was a bastion of bullshit and misinformation (and counterfeit guitars).
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Definitely, an accurate description....if there ever was one.
 
I love rosewood.
Had many guitars with RW board, and always worked well.
I like maple too, but depend of the lacquer on it...

I had, and still have one guitar, with ebony but can't love it.

Now a custom build coming with pau ferro board, to suggestion of the builder. I'll see...
 
I cant say i have a blanket statement preference for all guitars. The latest cool guitar was a Birdseye maple neck and roasted Birdseye maple fretboard, Suhr Standard with those options. Very resonant, even the headstock rings notes out. Can't say enough about Suhr.

My fav overall guitar is a rosewood plank Anderson. And again, Anderson uses great materials so the neck is high grade wood.

I was advised that the neck material and construction is way more important than the fretboard. Most people emphasize the fretboard since that is what you see. The long time player and store owner that shared this with me was correct, at least for my needs.
 
Everyone seems to have their preference, but I suspect that 90% of the jumbo fret sporting Rig-Talk crew couldn't tell the difference in blind taste tests.
 
I like the warmth of rosewood . I just bought a classic custom LP with a baked maple fret board and while I love the guitar I'm finding my self in the same pickle I always have with anything other than rosewood which is how to tame the brightness.
 
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