Ebony Fretboards - Better Than Maple?

[Thumpalumpacus]

I don't hear much difference at all between ebony and maple. They both seem to have a sharper attack than rosewood (which is my favorite fretboard), and to me the biggest difference is with finished maple, which I dislike. But even compared to rosewood, the three different woods have only subtle differences.

Les Paul & SG Customs, and some Gibby archtops, are still built with ebony fretboards.

You would also like Richlite fingerboard as well. Don't let the name fool you, it feels and plays just like ebony. But because guitarists are strange creatures it gets a bad rap.
It actually is more expensi e to manufacture, but easier to refret without chipping
You will probably find used Gibson's with this fingerboard at a better price as well!

This too is good advice, both in pointing out the similarity of sound and feel, and also about resale value.

[citizenk74]

That's interesting to me. I have 3 strats, they all sound very noticeably different. My non musician girlfriend likes one of them in particular (it's got a warmer sound). I'm telling this with all honesty, I asked her to pick it out without looking which one I was playing through the amp as I switched guitars. She picked it very easily. This is true. It didn't surprise me because they do sound different. Especially 2 of them. I even swapped the pickups and NECKS, they still preserve the basic characteristics. They all sound like strats of course but still with differences.

It's possible that I happened to have particularly different sounding strats (light alder vs heavy ash). But even in guitar stores, if I play one strat, then another, they don't sound the same to me often.

In my experience, wood makes a difference. At one point I performed an experiment with my three PRS Custom 24s. I changed strings on all three using identical sets. I set up all three guitars with identical measurements (string height and tremolo action) and tested them for over-ring by stroking the strings and damping, allowing the tremolo springs to ring out. Each of the three resonated at a different note: E, G, and B. All were identical models, differing only in the material for the top: Red Curly Maple (local to me,from my private stock), Red Curly Maple from a different area (again, from my private stock), and Pacific Coast Quilted Hard Maple (which Paul picked out for me). Other than their colors, these guitars were the same. Yet each had a subtle, but discernible, distinctively characteristic voice.

[JaxJaxon]

I have only had one Guitar that had a Ebony fret board it was a pre war Jazz Box made in Bavaria. I got it used in 1974 and had it till 1992. the Ebony felt harder than Rose wood and Had a cleaner crisper sound By the time I sold it the Board had started to show wear at the places I played the most.

[MaxTwang]

^^^ As long as we're talking wood, Chromyte appears to be a made-up word. Is it a euphemism for balsa?

It's a bastardization of 'Ochroma pyramidale' which is the Latin name for the Balsa tree. IIRC Gibson marketing claimed Chromyte was a combination of woods, i.e. balsa with maple layer(s), that were combined for tone. My recollection is Chet Atkins was getting too old to sling a heavy maple core Gibson Country Gentleman so he asked Gibson to lighten the weight. My Country Gentleman has Chromyte and the weight is acceptable but I couldn't imagine going much heavier.

[django]

@Cunamara:

There are people who claim to have superhearing that can hear the difference between how many layers of nitro on the body, nitro versus poly versus automotive paint, whether the pickguard is Bakelite or plastic, whether the screws are nickel plated or chromed or plain, whether the guitar was made on a Tuesday, etc. Most or maybe all of it is self-hypnosis.

Yep, that's exactly what I mean. As you said, I think there is good portion of self-hypnosis going on. However, I won't neglect that everyone's ears are different, and every single part of a guitar offers its own tonal properties. The question is just: Do you hear it or do you want to hear it?
At the end this debate comes down to belief.
(Of course, we are talking about solidbodies here.)

Kind regards, Max

[Just Fred]

I don't hear much difference at all between ebony and maple. They both seem to have a sharper attack than rosewood (which is my favorite fretboard), and to me the biggest difference is with finished maple, which I dislike. But even compared to rosewood, the three different woods have only subtle differences.

Just to add to my OP, my interest in ebony fingerboards isn't about sound, it's about playability. Even though I have a couple dozen guitars, no matter which one I pick up and play, I always sound like me! And, at my age, with the normal age-related hearing loss, I doubt I could detect subtle differences anyway.

My experience with fingerboard materials suggests that ebony is the hardest and slickest, followed next by maple, then by rosewood (I'm omitting other materials for sake of discussion). Ed Roman preferred ebony. He maintained that companies wouldn't use it because they were interested in cost cutting, and ebony was more expensive. In typical Roman fashion, he wrote, "The cost of ebony can be very expensive compared to rosewood which is cheaper than dirt and will suffice in most cases where the customers are not informed.f Not a fan of rosewood, eh?

There's a good article on the difference between the three here. But that still doesn't answer the question, why is it so hard to find ebony fingerboards these days?

[Archangelmm]

"But as Taylor learned, the bulk of harvested ebony—nine of every ten trees—is in fact streaky brown in coloring and has historically been discarded."

https://acousticguitar.com/the-ebony-project-taylor-guitars-plants-trees-in-cameroon-to-preserve-this-vulnerable-tonewood/

Bob Taylor of Taylor guitars purchased the Cameroon sawmill that processes ebony and in doing so has reversed the practice of throwing away 90% of the ebony trees cut down. Pure black ebony has always been rare and now it is nearly unobtainable and the entire species is at risk due to the past harvesting waste. Now we're seeing natural ebony with it's glorious streaks, warmth and personality. Do a search for "Bob Taylor ebony" and you'll find additional reading on what Taylor is doing to make ebony sustainable.

As noted above many manufacturers dye their ebony fretboards to make them darker than natural ebony. If you like the look then take a look at fingerboard stains sold by Stew Mac and other luthier suppliers.

https://www.stewmac.com/Materials_and_Supplies/Finishing_Supplies/Colors_and_Tints_and_Stains/Black_Fingerboard_Stain.html

Bob Taylor explains it in his own words.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[gitman]

Something's going on in Switzerland :
Home | Swiss Wood Solutions

We'll be faced with breaking many more dear traditions judging by the rate in which we deplete our planet...
accepting alternative materials in musical instruments (and thereby discovering new sounds) is an easy feat compared to our relationship to food, transportation, clothing, housing, hygiene, our work environment etc.


On another note : for centuries european luthiers/flute and oboe makers have used "Ebenholz Beize" /Ebony Stain to blacken the streaks in the Grenadillo and Ebony wood they used for their instruments.

Re fret material : my Suhr Strat has steel frets and that neck feels sooo good, smooth and effortless fretting and it will outlast me ! Steel frets are also on my latest "Partscaster" Tele but , alas, there's one issue : the fret ends are not tapered down far enough for my liking so my hand bumps into these when moving up and down the neck - not really a biggie and I can adjust but with normal nickel-silver frets it would be a breeze to file them down. These steel frets however are so damn tough that my luthier is not willing to try his luck on them, ruining his file in the process. And having to spend hours polishing the ends with special bits on his Dremel. So if you're toying with the idea of having your guitar refretted with steel then make damn sure to specify every little aspect with your guy or you'll be sorry ....

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

S
Re fret material : my Suhr Strat has steel frets and that neck feels sooo good, smooth and effortless fretting and it will outlast me ! Steel frets are also on my latest "Partscaster" Tele but , alas, there's one issue : the fret ends are not tapered down far enough for my liking so my hand bumps into these when moving up and down the neck - not really a biggie and I can adjust but with normal nickel-silver frets it would be a breeze to file them down. These steel frets however are so damn tough that my luthier is not willing to try his luck on them, ruining his file in the process. And having to spend hours polishing the ends with special bits on his Dremel. So if you're toying with the idea of having your guitar refretted with steel then make damn sure to specify every little aspect with your guy or you'll be sorry ....

I think your luthier just needs the right tools. I'd like to try stainless steel frets.

[Cunamara]

I cannot tell ebony from rosewood or any other unfinished wood by touch while playing. A finished maple fingerboard is evident. I have a roasted maple neck which is unfinished and also the fingerboard is indistinguishable by touch to me from ebony or rosewood. The strings are in the way!

Regarding the demonstration video of nickel versus stainless steel frets, I was amazed that to my ears the stainless steel fret sound seemed much smaller than the nickel frets. This was true in all of the examples and, until the reveal at the end, I was quite certain that the stainless steel frets were on the neck that ended up to have the nickel frets. I thought for certain that with the much harder surface, the stainless steel frets would have a brighter and bigger sound. Just goes to show you. I ended up greatly preferring the tone of the nickel frets.

[gitman]

I cannot tell ebony from rosewood or any other unfinished wood by touch while playing. A finished maple fingerboard is evident. I have a roasted maple neck which is unfinished and also the fingerboard is indistinguishable by touch to me from ebony or rosewood. The strings are in the way!

Regarding the demonstration video of nickel versus stainless steel frets, I was amazed that to my ears the stainless steel fret sound seemed much smaller than the nickel frets. This was true in all of the examples and, until the reveal at the end, I was quite certain that the stainless steel frets were on the neck that ended up to have the nickel frets. I thought for certain that with the much harder surface, the stainless steel frets would have a brighter and bigger sound. Just goes to show you. I ended up greatly preferring the tone of the nickel frets.

This "test"/demonstration showed ME that it is quite futile trying to differentiate between the tones when two different pieces of wood are used. It proves - to me - the point that the specific properties of a specific neck play as big a role in the sonic identity as the rest of the parts involved. They should have gone the extra mile and have the SAME neck re-frettet. Simple feat for that company.....

As per your observations re the tone : I felt the same except the albeit subtle differences disappeared once he dialed in more overdrive.

[Hammertone]

This "test"/demonstration showed ME that it is quite futile trying to differentiate between the tones when two different pieces of wood are used. It proves - to me - the point that the specific properties of a specific neck play as big a role in the sonic identity as the rest of the parts involved. They should have gone the extra mile and have the SAME neck re-frettet. Simple feat for that company.....
As per your observations re the tone : I felt the same except the albeit subtle differences disappeared once he dialed in more overdrive.

I think that using two adjacent pieces of wood from the same neck blank was sufficient to make the point that the difference is really a slight turn of a knob on an amp.

[rob taft]

I'm very skeptical of hearing any noticeable difference between good quality rosewood,maple or ebony and the only way anyone could prove it would be via a blind test using the same neck i.e. removing the fretboard. Every guitar is a systems of systems so to speak. Everything makes a difference to the overall tone and feel of an instrument, some items e.g. pickups more than others. Some of the adjectives and phrases on hears describing the differences between fingerboard wood are fanciful e.g. "the notes jumped of the fretboard",

As far as my tastes go, I have dark deep black ebony on nearly every guitar I own. Those guitars are more than 20+ years old and deep black ebony was more common. My newest guitar has a snakewood fingerboard (I supplied) which is even harder than ebony. I'm having another archtop built but I supplied the fretboard (malagassy ebony) for that guitar. One guitar I own has a Bois De Rose fingerboard that is a very close grained rosewood. Again, I supplied that fingerboard from stock that I had for several years. Beautiful wood.

I play so lightly that I hardly contact the fingerboard but I just like the look of ebony.