Maple vs. Rosewood fretboard

[Scot]

My main gigging axe has a maple board and I tend to prefer maple. It's less maintenance IME. Rosewood boards tend to collect oils and dirt that get on my strings and make them go dead much quicker if I'm not diligent about cleaning the fingerboard. Maple boards are finished and can be easily wiped down.

 

[birminghambass]

The black dots on maple and white dots on RW negate any tonal differences between the woods...

 

[Jim Leslie]

The black dots on maple and white dots on RW negate any tonal differences between the woods...

Exactly, it's a wash.

 

[strictlybass_ic]

As many have said, supposedly maple is brighter and rosewood is warmer. I don't know about all that, but I can tell you I like rosewood better. Get rosewood. It looks better too.

Ebony is good, but only for fretless (I have just decided). All other materials are fictitious and just made up by sales people (or I've never used them, one of the two).

 

[Bassin']

The first time a really noticed a sonic difference in neck woods was when I was in the market for an acoustic guitar. I think it has to do with the surface of the wood and the fact that most of the string length is over the neck. I can also hear s slight difference the basses too but I do think it has a lesser impact on the overall sound and there are a lot of other factors that affect the sound more. Bottom line, I think appearance should be the deciding factor.

 

[lfmn16]

Maybe you could start by using the handy dandy search feature and reading one of the other 100 threads on this topic!

 

[alembicbones]

I think the type of strings used will have more of an effect on warmth or brightness of tone rather than fretboard wood. I have basses with ebony, maple and rosewood boards and like them all.

Bones

 

[AaronVonRock]

it is cosmetic-
it doesn't really matter

I stopped reading the posts after this one because this is spot on. Strings and pick-ups will make a big difference in the sound of your bass. On an electric bass, a maple or rosewood fingerboard will not. It is like ke asking if putting a tort pickguard on your bass will sound better than a white one.

Maintenance-wise, a finished maple fingerboard might collect less grime and be easier to clean than an unfinished rosewood one.

 

[nerkoids]

When it comes to wood, most people suggest that how you play will have more of an effect than the material.

That said, "brighter" maple and "warmer" rosewood are the common answers.

Common, but not the entire gamut between the two, again, like he said, how you play, and with what kind of strings you put on the bass. Also depends on the pickup. That shoot-out is a good way to gauge. Typically, the MiMs and Japanese standard edition (I believe the '95 is such a beast) have ceramics. The MiAs have Alnicos -- that can have an impact too. They all sound great in their own way, to be fair.

So many variables. If you're thinking of using garden-variety nickel-plated rounds (like D'Addarios, GHS Boomers, Ernie Ball Slinkys, etc...) and you have access to both the maple and rosewood, try them both. See how they feel. Go with your ears as well. Just because you're a beginner, doesn't mean you don't know good sound. ;-)

To give you my example (I'm kinda new to the bass too), I wanted originally a P-bass as well, but being a lefty, my choices were nil unless I got a used Squier Standard P-bass special (which I didn't really want) -- so I had to go for a VM Jazz. I could choose between the obstinately 60s VM Jazz, which was a 3 tone sunburst with rosewood, or a 70s VM Jazz, which was all-maple. The vendor (a local shop here in Montreal) insisted I should go with the maple. I told him I wanted the old-school, mellow flatwound sound. He said to me, trust me, it's better to take away than to add. He meant brightness and punch.

He was right. I am not lacking for low end on my all-maple bass, and it cuts through and sounds very dynamic. It has a certain punchiness I could not hear as well in the 60s version. I now have an inexpensive P-bass copy with a rosewood, and it's nice as well.

Also, maple boards require less care over-all, or at least, they're easier to clean without damaging it, since most of the time the maple is heavily lacquered.

 

[nerkoids]

Love that video

It's when he gets to the picking... what great drive and groove...

 

[Red Four]

There's definitely a difference, though it's a small one. Strings make a big difference too. I'd say that, tonally, if you need a bass that's as bright-sounding as you can possibly get, that would lean toward maple, and if you need a bass with the warmest sound you could possibly get, lean rosewood. But most people don't need to "dime" their tone in either direction, so for most it won't matter. I have rosewood, maple, and ebony-boarded basses, and the other variables besides that wood seem to have the biggest effect, though there is a difference from the wood as well.

A few folks above talk about maintenance. While it's easy to wipe off surface stuff on a finished/lacquered maple board, there are a couple things to consider: 1) maple boards will show grime much more readily than a darker board, and 2) if you need to do more than wipe, a maple board can be more challenging. A nice thing about rosewood is that it's forgiving with being scrubbed. You can rub it with mild steel wool, add a little oil, and it's good as new. Makes polishing/scrubbing your frets pretty easy. And with fretwork, a finished/lacquered maple board will be more labor-intensive. Refrets or major fret work are pretty rare for most people, so that may not be a big deal.

In the end, lots of folks love either or both woods and have great times owning them. If you choose what really looks and sounds best to you, you'll learn to work with it.

 

[friendlybass]

It's when he gets to the picking... what great drive and groove...

I'm saving up for a g&l lb100 cause this video showed me how good a good P C be. I was a Jazz bass man

 

[QweziRider]

I've had both, never could tell a sonic difference. The older I get, the more I lean toward the one I can see side dot markers on a dimly lit stage - maple.

 

[Jeff K]

It's just aesthetics for me. Certain colors look better with maple boards while others look better with rosewood boards. Strictly my opinion of course; but I DO buy basses for ME! That said, I seem to have developed an unintentional habit: All my Precisions have maple boards, while all my Jazzes (except for the AV '75 Reissue) have rosewood. Just seems to work out that way though. I don't care, as long as the bass sounds good, and looks good to me...

 

[telecopy]

It's a vibrating wire. Anchored at each end. With pickups here or there.
Strings. Pickups. Pickup location. That's the sound. And, yeah, fingers..
Then the bridge. Nut. Frets.
That's it. The pickups don't know what kind of wood they're mounted on.
Maybe some woods allow the strings to vibrate longer or shorter because of density or whatever.
But, c'mon! It doesn't matter what kind of wood the fingerboard is made of. Or the body for that matter.
On a strictly ACOUSTIC instrument? Violin, guitar, whatever? MAYBE.
But, for crying out loud, once and for all, it doesn't matter with a solid body guitar.

 

[TrevorOfDoom]

After 12+ years on TB I'd rather argue Coke vs. Pepsi. The clear winner is Coke, you're a damn fool if you think otherwise.

according to double-blind taste tests, most Americans preferred the taste of Pepsi, but the brand recognition of Coke is all-encompassing when you can see the label.
I don't drink either, but just thought it was interesting.

 

[bobsacamano]

There's a difference, but it's incredibly subtle. I'd base my decision off looks, feel, and/or price more than tonal difference of the fingerboard wood.

 

[Bret_Salyer]

There is defenitely a difference in sound. It is a matter of taste.

Listen to this, close your eyes.
And pick the Maple neck with your eyes closed easily.

Is that the fingerboard or the body wood?
Are you sure rosewood is not brighter than maple as a fingerboard wood?
If I remember correctly the Boss GT-10B has a maple neck effect and a rosewood neck effect.
It seems like when I heard those the maple was warmer.
IDK, just throwing it out there.

 

[Low town]

Hi All, I am a new bass player, only about four months under my belt. I am looking at getting a Fender Standard Precision (MIM). Any advise/opinions on the fretboard wood... maple vs. rosewood.

Thanks for the help.

Jim

My advice is that the type of fret board is about the last thing you need to consider for sound / playing quality - be it beginner or expert.

Important for aesthetics.

 

[blindrabbit]

Meh. This isn't evidence of anything.

That video has three different basses that have three different ages, three different pickups, and three different body woods.

The sample size necessary for any kind of legitimate results would have to be huge. 100 maple board Mexican precisions and 100 rosewood board Mexican precisions played with the same kind of strings by the same player through the same rig would yield some definitive results, but not 3 basses from different countries with decades of use between them.

Someone who understands science and experimentation! Yay!

Choose based upon aesthetics, period. I like darker woods better, so that's why I go with. To each their own though.