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Do you have any preferences for fingerboard wood: Ebony, rosewood, maple? I seem to always come back to rosewood fingerboards for left hand feel and tone.
Ed S.
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06-15-2011 11:16 PM
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Ebony. Always.
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+1 -- slicker than rosewood. Supposedly brighter, but how can you tell?
Originally Posted by 1949GibsonL5
BTW, I have a '49 L-5 (L-5P), too.
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depends on what guitar and what im using it for.
for jazz...rosewood seems like what i prefer.
for teles...maple
for strats...rosewood
that just me. i think i prefer the feel of rosewood to ebony, which always felt a little stiff to me.Last edited by mattymel; 06-16-2011 at 05:29 AM.
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Ebony! The feel of it is so exclusive!
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+1 for Ebony on my jazz guitar.
Rosewood on my Fenders and acoustics and bass.
Maple...not keen on the feel and seems to give a bright tone? - maybe that's just my perception, but just not for me.
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I've got ebony in both my Ibanez AS200 and my Höfner. I love the feel and look of it. On strats and teles I prefer rosewood, but I've got a japanese tele from the early 90s with a maple fretboard, and it sounds and feels great.
Bottom line, it all depends on the guitar, and what style.
But for jazz I prefer ebony. Seems to me that ebony sounds a little bit clearer than rosewood.
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I have guitars with all three kinds of wood, and I have a hard time telling the difference in sound. So for me, it's a question of cosmetics. Ebony looks classy on an archtop in traditional trim. Maple looks good on a strat or tele. Rosewood also looks great for many types of guitars.
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Indian rosewood - or on a vintage instrument - Brazilian rosewood, or Ebony.
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Pine.
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i like the feel of ebony. Ebony yields a bright ping along with the notes that is great for benson/wes stuff but a little bright for metheny/hall/rogers tones. I like rosewood better for that. Maple sounds great on a strat for SRV tones (Lenny, etc).
Neck wood effects tone quite a bit too.
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For looks, ebony.
If you blindfolded me, I'm not too sure I could tell the difference.
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I'm sure I'd have the same result. I've been thinking about this a bit more after reading the responses and one thought that came to me is that my rosewood fingerboards absorb more of my body oils and sweat. I think that changes the feel ever so slightly. The ebony fingerboard on my classical has never changed in the seven years I've played it. That's the reason ebony is used on orchestral stringed instruments for fingerboards. Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
Benny Goodman's daughter tells the story that she'd come home and find her father with every reed out, completely frazzled because none of them sounded "right". The next day he'd pick one, it would sound perfect, and he'd put all the reeds away.
I'm enjoying reading the responses.
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Okay, I'll chime in with a serious response now. I'm the same way. Blindfolded, I can't tell (and I seriously doubt you could either). But, I'm not an expert on what others can and can't feel/hear.
I've played several different ones from maple, rosewood, ebony, plastic, and yes even pine. I could tell the difference slightly with the plastic and the pine, but plastic is a different material and pine is so grainy it's hard not to tell. Hardwoods though, no difference to my fingers. As long as it looks cool, I'm in.
~DB
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Can you identify the fretboard wood when you hear a recording?
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No, not a chance, not me. Originally Posted by BigDaddyLoveHandles
Ed S.
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I used to take a double edged razor blade to my alto and baritone reeds and shave them down until they blew right. Didn't matter what number was stamped on the reed. Some 3's would be real wimpy and some 1.5's would be stiff as boards. Originally Posted by edspyhill01
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I like the slick feel of ebony. Rosewood is fine but can take ages to slicken up like ebony. A blues playing friend from 60's blues boom said the trick with rosewood finger boards was to wipe your hands through your greasy hair then rub onto the rosewood to slicken it up! He wasn't laughing when he told me that one. I suppose the closest thing to greasy hair would be lanolin. I found some non perfume soap with lanolin and just recently I've put some on me rosewood and it polishes up a treat. I've seen me use wax, linseed oil and even olive oil! But lanolin seems to work too. What do you guys use?? Someone posted a while back saying he left mineral oil on rosewood overnight
I wouldn't advocate that, it would be a case of small amount to wipe on, work in then wipe off excess.
Sorry to hijack this thread but to extend this topic somewhat what wood and treatment do we use and has anyone heard of the greay hair/lanolin urban myth??
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Didn't Jaco have the chicken bone?
I've definitey gone to the forehead or side of the nose for a little oil for a dry rosewood board...hey, ya gotta do what ya gotta do!
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Mr B, thanks mate for proving that theory, now I have a valid excuse for 'going native!' Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
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you shouldn't be oiling your wood too often. Guitarists sometimes have a fetish about this. Oil once a year and only if in a super dry climate.
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^^^Agreed. More often than not, it's simply unecessary.
And I missed the idea of linseed. NEVER. EVER. Anybody who oil paints can tell you why. Shit never dries.
ALso never use a citrus oil that's actually derived from citrus fruit (most of what is marketed as "Lemon Oil" is actually a mild mineral oil with a mild lemon scent, it's okay)
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I found something called "Fret Doctor" for fingerboards. It is a variation of the guy's "Bore Oil" product for fifes, clarinets andother woodwinds. Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
I used it on several rosewood fingerboards with perfect results.
Check out his site.
Bore Oil for the Fife and Fret Doctor
Ed S.
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Excellent! Knew of bore oil but never made the connection for guitar. Thanks. Originally Posted by edspyhill01
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Use lemon oil or orange oil to keep the fretboard moist. Dry ebony will crack before rosewood.
Maple is the most stable. Not as hard as ebony or rosewood though, especially the figured maple. Birdseye is the worst because it must be flat-sawn to show the figure. Rosewood is more stable than ebony. But ebony, you gotta love it.
Granadillo and purple heart sound good on basses, but not on guitars.
Ebony and most of the rosewood varieties are fine. Any ebony will do regardless of color. All fretboard wood should be quarter-sawn, but I give ebony a pass because because it's so scarce.
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