I have a theory about maple fingerboards

[trowaclown]

Think less, practise more.

The big difference between the two, is that rosewood is endangered while maple is not.

 

[Kwesi]

Here we go, one more time! Right on schedule too.

With the thread title the way it is, the OP was asking for it, lol. I just helped out

 

[kelleysdad]

The big difference is that Maple shows its age quicker on a fret board. That used to be a liability now it seems to be an asset. If you can hear a difference, you need to turn up the volume and add more low end.

 

[Batmensch]

My theory is, if indeed the wood of either the neck and/or the body , does have an effect on tone, it is negligible, and as soon as you bring the electronics into the equation, that difference becomes moot.

 

[johnk_10]

i have lots of basses with both maple and rosewood necks, i've built 100's of them over the years and i agree with the OP completely. i have also switched between maple and rosewood on the same basses to determine whether i could hear a difference, and i definitely can. especially one-piece maple necks. IME, the veneered ones do not exhibit as big of a difference. IMO, it also has to do with the fact that most maple boards have a gloss finish. it's not a huge difference, but it is there.

 

[jaibot]

 

[Will Kelly]

I hear zero difference.

 

[Kwesi]

Cool comparison. It seems that the difference is virtually nonexistent.

 

[johnk_10]

Cool comparison. It seems that the difference is virtually nonexistent.

it definitely is for those that can't hear it.

 

[Kwesi]

it definitely is for those that can't hear it.

Haha, true enough. I personally heard a very slight difference but nothing that would affect my personal decision if I were deciding between the two. I think we can all agree that the difference is not massive though.

 

[pie_man_25]

This is bunk.

also, just like kellysdad just said, rosewood was chosen to replace maple because the finish didn't wear off, causing the maple to turn gray, making it look bad, while rosewood simply didn't do that, it had nothing to do with "adding strength" and "adding warmth". It's all in your heads dudes.

 

[Will Kelly]

^^^ Yes. People hear what they want to. I cant hear any difference. I have been playing a long time. I cant hear it in my own basses, or when anyone else is playing theirs. FWIW.

 

[Pilgrim]

I've never been able to hear any difference between maple and rosewood. To me, the only difference is cosmetic. I'm not saying there absolutely, positively is no difference, but I do assert that I can't hear one.

I'd love the see a spectrum analysis of one bass played with two different necks....one rosewood, one maple. And even then you'd have to convince me that any difference in the frequency analysis was due to the kind of fretboard used, not simply to the fact that two different necks will always have different wood in the 80% of the neck that's not the fretboard. Maybe if someone took one neck, ran a frequency analysis on it, removed the fretboard and replaced it with the other wood and re-analyzed it, I'd be convinced.

Then part II would be convincing me that if there was any difference, that it actually mattered.

Therefore, I've never been able to relate much to threads arguing about the virtues of A vs. B.

 

[Disraeli Gears]

Concerning fretted basses: Can there be a tonal difference if the strings don't make contact with the wood?

Theoretically, yes, simply because of the fact that the strings are attached to the bass as a whole, and because of this, any part of the bass (including the fret/fingerboard) would affect the tone of the bass. That said, I strongly doubt the difference would actually be noticable.

 

[Fuzzbass]

Concerning fretted basses: Can there be a tonal difference if the strings don't make contact with the wood?

Here's the thing: NOBODY REALLY KNOWS**. Invalid Link Removed (lengthy video, but check the first 10 minutes) in which audio experts point out that it's human nature to hear what you expect to hear. In other words, if you believe that maple boards are brighter and rosewood boards are warmer, that is exactly what you will hear, even when you compare basses that are identical except for fingerboard wood.

The only way to know for sure is through double-blind testing. However the problem here is that basses made of completely identical materials will still sound different -- so, if a maple-boarded bass happens to be brighter than its rosewood twin, it might not be that way because of the fingerboard.

Even luthiers disagree on the tonal impact of fingerboard wood. I guess the majority believe body wood comes first and fingerboard wood second, Roger Sadowsky believes fingerboard wood contributes more to tone than the body wood, IIRC Jens Ritter said here that fingerboard wood contributes maybe "3%", and other luthiers say it makes no difference. They're all entitled to their opinions.

 

[Mike M.]

i have lots of basses with both maple and rosewood necks, i've built 100's of them over the years and i agree with the OP completely. i have also switched between maple and rosewood on the same basses to determine whether i could hear a difference, and i definitely can. especially one-piece maple necks. IME, the veneered ones do not exhibit as big of a difference. IMO, it also has to do with the fact that most maple boards have a gloss finish. it's not a huge difference, but it is there.

I agree on a similar note. While I have no experience in comparing maple or rosewood for bass I heard a real differance when I bought my Strat. Found two I liked that were the same year, model and had the same pickups. Differance was one had an all maple neck while the other had a rosewood cap on the neck. I went so far as to buy two new sets of strings and changed the strings on both Strats at the store. Adjusted the pickup heigths and did a "blind" test. Told the sales person to play the guitars while I had my back turned.

Without my knowing it he played the rosewood Strat first and I loved what I heard. I'll tell ya, as soon as he played the all maple neck Strat I knew right away what it was...but I still kept my back turned. I bought the rosewood one. Had a nice warmth to it. Strat tone all the way but not ice-picky.

I know we're talking basses here but based on my limited experience it seems to me that since I heard a real differance with those Strats I don't see why the same wouldn't apply to basses as well. How great of a differance, I don't know but I would imagine there to be one.

 

[Bryan R. Tyler]

it definitely is for those that can't hear it.

As with cables, the difference can be non-existent even for those that do hear it I've heard differences in tone in the couple of maple-boarded basses I've owned compared to nearly identical basses with different fretboards. Me hearing it doesn't mean it's actually there though. Sure does look pretty though.

 

[nutdog]

But what if I use a maple fretboard with a high end instrument cable?

 

[Munjibunga]

Wood on a bass (and bass neck) resonate. None of it actually changes 'tone'. Your pickup's change tone.

There has to be some level of sympathetic vibration of the string related to the resonance of the wood, since the witness points are connected to the bass. The fretboard wood is a small component compared the the body wood, so I think the body wood is going to be the biggest contributor to the fundamental tone of the bass. In any event, the EQ still will have more influence than the wood.

I choose the fretboard wood based on looks more than tone.

 

[perfektspace6]

If this is repeated often enough it will become internet truth.

+1

The difference is subtle. I notice a slight shift in dynamic reciprocity around the upper-mid-high range.

The only thing I know about maple boards is that I only like them on black or Olympic white jazz basses. Otherwise give me sweet death black ebony.