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Rosewood or maple?

Normally I'd say rosewood, but I'm beginning to lean more towards the fingerboard-wood-doesn't-make-that-huge-a-difference-in-the-long-run side of things, in which case I'd say get whatever looks better to you and then eq your amp accordingly to get the tone you want.
 
This question comes up at least once a week...

Maple has a brighter tone than Rosewood.
Did you want warm or bright?

Maple is finished, and Rosewood is played raw.
Do you like the finished feel or the raw wood feel?

If this is a fretted bass, Maple is generally more expensive to do fretwork on, as you need to repair the finish.

I'm not a fan of either wood anymore, but personally, I prefer Maple to Rosewood on fretted basses.
 
There's poll up here on Talkbass this morning with sound clips comparing the two on the same bass. (Actually from 2007, but bumped this morning)

IMHO the differences are tough to tell and "could" be attributed to differences in technique.


Found it... http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=385876

The volume is low on the sound clips. The creator didn't want to adjust the files at all to keep it from potentially effecting people's choices.
 
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