Rosewood or Maple 'board?

[Musicman20]

Black blocks on a maple board look cheap and common to me now. Has to be rosewood with white pearl blocks. Much classier.

[drTStingray]

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1354404066' post='1885713']
Black blocks on a maple board look cheap and common to me now. Has to be rosewood with white pearl blocks. Much classier.
[/quote]

A couple of weeks ago I'd have agreed with you - never liked black blocks and binding and preferred the white with silver blocks on a maple Jazz as well (as Marcus Miller Jazz) - that was until someone showed a picture on here of a 70s Jazz bass in black with maple board, black blocks and binding - a bass of total beauty. I now get it totally (and I didn't used to like black basses either).

BTW I think the maple v rosewood board makes a significant difference on a Musicman - especially a maple with lacquered neck.

Edited December 1, 2012 by drTStingray

[bubinga5]

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1354404066' post='1885713']
Black blocks on a maple board look cheap and common to me now. Has to be rosewood with white pearl blocks. Much classier.
[/quote]im with you.. i dont personally like a maple jazz with black blocks.. maple with pearl block is the way to go.. imo... or rosewood with pearl looks amazing..

[Joker2807]

like some of the guys said I don't personally notice a difference and i love the look of both so i often find myself in a pickle trying to choose.. i guess it just which one looks best with colour your matching it to

[Truckstop]

Purely aesthetic in my opinion. If there is a tonal difference I think it's so slight as to be almost barely perceptible.

Precision style basses should have maple, everything else should be rosewood/ebony/w***wood.

Truckstop

[Dingus]

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1354404066' post='1885713']
Black blocks on a maple board look cheap and common to me now. Has to be rosewood with white pearl blocks. Much classier.
[/quote]
[quote name='bubinga5' timestamp='1354408186' post='1885744']
im with you.. i dont personally like a maple jazz with black blocks.. maple with pearl block is the way to go.. imo... or rosewood with pearl looks amazing..
[/quote]

I love black blocks and binding on a Fender- style neck . It alludes to Fender Jazz Basses made between 1970 and early 1974 , which featured such blocks and binding , and looks great to me , depending on the aesthetics of the rest of the bass , of course . I used to go see a band back in the 1980s and the bass player had a sunburst Jazz with black blocks and binding and it looked beautiful to the young Dingus . The fact that he was a wicked player with a great sound didn't hurt either . The early 1970s were the last of the great Fenders in my book , and anything after that just ain't vintage to me I'm afraid . As I have mentioned before , one of the biggest revelations of the internet age has been the insight it gives into other peoples taste ( or lack thereof in certain cases ) . Basses in colour schemes I would have thought to be too ugly for anyone to ever buy are almost always the apple of someones eye on sites like this , and yet there are folks out there who think that black blocks and binding look cheap , ugly and just plain wrong . One thing is for certain though - blocks need binding . Blocks without binding is a big no-no for me . No excuses , it's just not right !

Edited December 2, 2012 by Dingus

[Lfalex v1.1]

[quote name='lettsguitars' timestamp='1354398908' post='1885652']
Laquer makes a big difference. Maple looks better than rosewood to most people, but doesn't hold frets as well. Rosewood does a better job, but the winner for looks, tone and function has to be ebony.
[/quote]

And cost!
(Not to mention that it's generally only standard on necks that [i]don't[/i] have any frets to hold!)

[Zenitram]

Why is maple always lacquered?

Or is the question why is rosewood not lacquered?

Maple always seems to have a finish, and rosewood never does. Why is that?

[Musicman20]

[quote name='Zenitram' timestamp='1354439119' post='1885866']
Why is maple always lacquered?

Or is the question why is rosewood not lacquered?

Maple always seems to have a finish, and rosewood never does. Why is that?
[/quote]

EBMM necks and boards nowadays are not lacquered, just coated in gunstock oil for a more natural finish.

Edited December 2, 2012 by Musicman20

[Musicman20]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1354425892' post='1885815']



I love black blocks and binding on a Fender- style neck . It alludes to Fender Jazz Basses made between 1970 and early 1974 , which featured such blocks and binding , and looks great to me , depending on the aesthetics of the rest of the bass , of course . I used to go see a band back in the 1980s and the bass player had a sunburst Jazz with black blocks and binding and it looked beautiful to the young Dingus . The fact that he was a wicked player with a great sound didn't hurt either . The early 1970s were the last of the great Fenders in my book , and anything after that just ain't vintage to me I'm afraid . As I have mentioned before , one of the biggest revelations of the internet age has been the insight it gives into other peoples taste ( or lack thereof in certain cases ) . Basses in colour schemes I would have thought to be too ugly for anyone to ever buy are almost always the apple of someones eye on sites like this , and yet there are folks out there who think that black blocks and binding look cheap , ugly and just plain wrong . One thing is for certain though - blocks need binding . Blocks without binding is a big no-no for me . No excuses , it's just not right !
[/quote]

Exactly right about different tastes, and I 100% agree that blocks without binding looks like they couldn't be bothered to do it properly, (I think Sadowsky and Sandberg are guilty of this and Sadowsky charge a fortune for blocks).

[Zenitram]

What is EBBM?

And what are bindings?

Edited December 2, 2012 by Zenitram

[chris_b]

[quote name='Zenitram' timestamp='1354439119' post='1885866']
....Why is maple always lacquered?....
[/quote]

Maple is always sealed, by whatever means, because it gets dirty and, IMO, doesn't look very nice when that happens.

I prefer Rosewood, and given the choice I'd have no markings on the fretboard.

[jackers]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1354447409' post='1885961']
I prefer Rosewood, and given the choice I'd have no markings on the fretboard.
[/quote]

one of the nicest looking fingerboards I've ever had on a bass was the board on my aerodyne jazz basses, dark rosewood and no dots, beautiful

[iconic]

[quote name='Zenitram' timestamp='1354447193' post='1885958']

And what are bindings?
[/quote]

Don't try skiing without them, it will end in tears...

Maple still my choice.

[mcnach]

[quote name='Kobra11' timestamp='1354379841' post='1885397']
Hey guys,

This may be a bit of a dumb question and i apologise in advance if so but i was looking at Fender P basses and just wanted to know what the difference is between a rosewood and a maple board (ive only ever played with rosewoods)

Cheers
Seb
[/quote]


aesthetics, that's all.

All the other differences (one sounds darker, another brighter) are a lot of pish.
People often compare two instruments as being "equal except the fingerboard" when two "identical" instruments often have a very different tonality. Replacing the neck also affects the sound... Hey, if you convince yourself you hear a difference, enjoy it. But I have never been convinced. Same about maple being somehow worse to hold frets etc... just look how many ancient maple fingerboard instruments have falling-fret issues... exactly.
So there

Edited December 2, 2012 by mcnach

[bertbass]

I don't like the look of Maple necks but I love the look of Rosewood and Ebony. My favourite is a lacquered Rosewood fretboard, love it.

[Dingus]

[quote name='Zenitram' timestamp='1354447193' post='1885958']
What is EBBM?

And what are bindings?
[/quote]

EBMM stands for Ernie Ball Music Man . In reality it stands for this guy

because , trust me , when it comes to EBMM , what he says goes .


Binding is a ( usually) plastic edging to a fingerboard.

Edited December 2, 2012 by Dingus

[Zenitram]

Sterling Ball! What a name.

(thanks for the info)

[bartelby]

[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1354396091' post='1885615']
Yep. Add in black/black/maple, and that`s the top 3.
[/quote]

Sparkly Blue/chrome/maple...

and that's the top 4

[RhysP]

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1354446970' post='1885954']
EBMM necks and boards nowadays are not lacquered, just coated in gunstock oil to save money whilst still charging top dollar for the instrument.
[/quote]

Fixed.

[dlloyd]

[quote name='Kobra11' timestamp='1354379841' post='1885397']
Hey guys,

This may be a bit of a dumb question and i apologise in advance if so but i was looking at Fender P basses and just wanted to know what the difference is between a rosewood and a maple board (ive only ever played with rosewoods)

Cheers
Seb
[/quote]

All Fender guitars and basses originally had maple boards. One day, so the story goes*, Leo Fender saw someone playing one of his guitars on TV and noticed how the fingerboard darkens where the lacquer wears off through heavy use. He didn't like it so brought in the option of rosewood boards.

*Probably apocryphal... Fender brought them in as a response to distributors requests, which may or may not have had something to do with the way that maple ages.

Edited December 2, 2012 by dlloyd

[BigRedX]

I'd go for whichever you like the look off most.

Different fingerboard materials might give you slightly different tones, but I would mostly put it down to difference in construction (IIRC Fender-style necks with rosewood or maple boards are made in different ways) rather than the wood itself.

Maple boards aren't always finished - I have a bass with an unfinished one, but it's a bugger to keep clean. However the lacquered ones eventually wear through which IME looks just as nasty. Incidentally why do lacquered maple fingerboards (Fender) always show wear while lacquered Rosewood ones (Rickenbacker) don't?

[jackers]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1354454367' post='1886070']
Binding is a ( usually) plastic edging to a fingerboard.


[/quote]

phwoar....that is gorgeous.

[RhysP]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1354454367' post='1886070']

[/quote]

I suddenly realised I'd seen his face before:

[IMG]http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k120/RhysP/Fungus.jpg[/IMG]

[apa]

The question of Maple or Rosewood is an esthetic one. The tone question should be 'Coated or uncoated'. The best way to tell the different in tone is to use your eyes.

A