*J*
New member
I soon will be purchasing my first MM bass,and was looking for some opinions on rosewood vs. maple necks. I like the look of the maple but dont know if the tone is better/worse.Your help would be much appreciated.Thanx,*J*
- Thread starter *J*
- Start date
Hey, *J*! good luck finding your tone machine! I personally prefer the maple over the rosewood fretboards, but I think I may be in the minority--It would be interesting to see what others here think. The maple may be a bit brighter sounding.. Just my opinion, though.
Masamax
Well-known member
Maple generally is considered a brighter sounding wood compared to rosewood which will offer a more mellow sound, athlough generally most people hardly even notice it until they compare them side my side. I really dislike the way rosewood looks however, and prefer the sound of maple anyways. If you are planning on getting a SR5 maple also has the advantage of having a little higher string tension, which really doesn't matter for EADG but the B string needs all the help it can get on a 34" scale instrument, and although the B is pretty tight on the rosewood, I just prefer the sound of the B on the maple. Tighter and more defined.
Of course it's up to you to try both out and determine the best wood. One problem maple sometimes has is a little bit faster destructition by those pesky roundwounds, but it's not very difficult to get refinished, perhaps easier then if you have the rosewood on top of the maple neck.
Of course it's up to you to try both out and determine the best wood. One problem maple sometimes has is a little bit faster destructition by those pesky roundwounds, but it's not very difficult to get refinished, perhaps easier then if you have the rosewood on top of the maple neck.
*J*
New member
Thanks for your input guys.I will definately be going with the maple neck.Now, if I could only decide on the color.........
Hmmm you heard two voices say "maple" and you're sold? That's strange 
I personally love maple but rosewood is the one I keep on buying. It's a lot cooler than maple. It sounds warmer - even if it's just that little bit - I think it looks cooler (on some finishes maple is a joke) and it plays a lot better than maple.
Just some food for thought for ya, *J* !
Jazzy J
I personally love maple but rosewood is the one I keep on buying. It's a lot cooler than maple. It sounds warmer - even if it's just that little bit - I think it looks cooler (on some finishes maple is a joke) and it plays a lot better than maple.
Just some food for thought for ya, *J* !
Jazzy J
I have to go with rosewood - I have a SR4 with a Rosewood fingerboard over a Birds Eye Maple neck. Again it is personal choice, but I think that the SR has so much attack and brightness with the treble eq, that I can't imagine wanting a bass to sound any brighter. I have to play with the bass eq full on all the time to make sure I have plenty of bottom end going into the desk.
Good luck in your hunt for your SR
Good luck in your hunt for your SR
Dees
Well-known member
I 'd choose the rosewood, but that's my opinion. Just go to the local music shop and try one with a maple neck and one with a rosewood.
bovinehost
Administrator
"maple also has the advantage of having a little higher string tension....."
How does the fingerboard material affect string tension???
How does the fingerboard material affect string tension???
*J*
New member
HMMM..3 for rosewood 2 for maple, I might have to think about this a little more. Im just anxious to get it in my hands!
bovinehost
Administrator
In any live situation I’ve ever experienced, the sonic difference between maple and rosewood is negligible. In recording, if the bass track is solo’d or if it is a quiet acoustic track, you might hear slightly more snap to a maple fingerboard. Then again, you may not. IMHO, there are three things to consider when choosing a fingerboard:
1. Appearance. Some people simply prefer one over the other. Also, maple will show dirt and crud while rosewood provides camouflage.
2. Feel. They do feel a bit different, of course, although in the midst of a hard rockin’ tune, who notices? Not me!
3. Longevity. Rosewood wears better over a longer period of time.
I’m a rosewood guy, myself, but understand and appreciate both preferences. One of the best Stingrays I’ve ever owned (or played, for that matter) was a maple board – these days, I just like the rosewood.
BTW, string tension is determined by a number of factors, the most important of which would be the type of string (ie, Thomastik-Infeld JFs will be fairly low tension, Rotosound flats will be relatively high tension). Fingerboard composition has no bearing on tension at all.
1. Appearance. Some people simply prefer one over the other. Also, maple will show dirt and crud while rosewood provides camouflage.
2. Feel. They do feel a bit different, of course, although in the midst of a hard rockin’ tune, who notices? Not me!
3. Longevity. Rosewood wears better over a longer period of time.
I’m a rosewood guy, myself, but understand and appreciate both preferences. One of the best Stingrays I’ve ever owned (or played, for that matter) was a maple board – these days, I just like the rosewood.
BTW, string tension is determined by a number of factors, the most important of which would be the type of string (ie, Thomastik-Infeld JFs will be fairly low tension, Rotosound flats will be relatively high tension). Fingerboard composition has no bearing on tension at all.
The good thing about the Stingray website is that you can do a virtual build and get a pretty good idea of what it is going to look like and you can chop and change colours for body and neck types. That should take care of the appearance aspect of your decision making.
Have fun
Have fun
Masamax
Well-known member
bovinehost said:
I would beg to differ. The rosewood board basses I have played haven't been as snappy as the maple ones. This isn't as noticable on a SR4 or Sterling (if at all!) but I do notice it on the B string on SR5. This is after DIRECT comparisson, and the effect is not incredible, but it's there.
bovinehost
Administrator
Max, I would be the last person on earth to tell you you're wrong. Maple might be more 'snappy' tone-wise - agreed and agreed. Out of the seven or eight SR5s I've owned, two or three were maple and I think they are a bit brighter.
But string tension? How would fingerboard material affect string tension? String tension can be influenced by various factors, such as:
- movement of the top, but this applies only in acoustic instruments so isn't applicable here.
- break angle over the nut.
- break angle over the bridge.
- string through body versus string through bridge.
- most importantly, the tension rating of the strings themselves.
Thomastik-Infeld are one of the few manufacturers to publish their tension ratings. The Jazz Flats, a very popular string, are considered fairly low tension. The Powerbass series, even more popular with the Stingray players, are somewhat higher tension. Check the difference:
TI Flats
G - 37.03 lbs
D - 37.47 lbs
A - 31.30 lbs
E - 34.39 lbs
TI Powerbass
G - 46.40 lbs
D - 53.68 lbs
A - 42.76 lbs
E - 40.78 lbs
I can't find published tensions for Rotosound Flats, but would love to compare them to, say, the TIs.
But in any case, string tension is your main consideration here.
Make sense?
But string tension? How would fingerboard material affect string tension? String tension can be influenced by various factors, such as:
- movement of the top, but this applies only in acoustic instruments so isn't applicable here.
- break angle over the nut.
- break angle over the bridge.
- string through body versus string through bridge.
- most importantly, the tension rating of the strings themselves.
Thomastik-Infeld are one of the few manufacturers to publish their tension ratings. The Jazz Flats, a very popular string, are considered fairly low tension. The Powerbass series, even more popular with the Stingray players, are somewhat higher tension. Check the difference:
TI Flats
G - 37.03 lbs
D - 37.47 lbs
A - 31.30 lbs
E - 34.39 lbs
TI Powerbass
G - 46.40 lbs
D - 53.68 lbs
A - 42.76 lbs
E - 40.78 lbs
I can't find published tensions for Rotosound Flats, but would love to compare them to, say, the TIs.
But in any case, string tension is your main consideration here.
Make sense?
Masamax
Well-known member
I am just telling my experience. I am not the only one who has noticed this. Next time you have 2 basses, one rosewood and one maple, preferably with the same body wood, check the tension. It may have just been a freak occurance but when I was looking at this a few months ago the basses I tried seemed fairly well set up, so I doubt that was it.
Jazzbassman23
Well-known member
fun with physics
I'm sure one of the scientist types will step in here, but given two Stingrays with the SAME guage/brand of string, nut, and setup, I don't see how it would be possible for the tension to be different. My guess is that the two basses you played had different strings. I own two maple MM's and have owned rosewood, and the difference in sound is minimal if there at all. I know there are many who will disagree, but my ears can't really tell much of a difference. Now feel and appearance. . . that's up to you. I'm looking for an SR5 in rosewood just because I already have the maple covered. Answer: buy one of each
I'm sure one of the scientist types will step in here, but given two Stingrays with the SAME guage/brand of string, nut, and setup, I don't see how it would be possible for the tension to be different. My guess is that the two basses you played had different strings. I own two maple MM's and have owned rosewood, and the difference in sound is minimal if there at all. I know there are many who will disagree, but my ears can't really tell much of a difference. Now feel and appearance. . . that's up to you. I'm looking for an SR5 in rosewood just because I already have the maple covered. Answer: buy one of each
bovinehost
Administrator
I think we can all agree that the strings don't touch the fretboard unless you're fretting a note. (With a statement like that, I'm sure it's easy to figure out that although I'm not a scientist, I do play one on the internet.) Agreed? Right, so let's move on.
Question: How, then, would fingerboard composition affect string tension?
Answer: You got me.
I'm not trying to start a push and shove here, by the way, just trying to clear this up, so don't anyone take this as a personal attack - it certainly isn't meant that way.
Question: How, then, would fingerboard composition affect string tension?
Answer: You got me.
I'm not trying to start a push and shove here, by the way, just trying to clear this up, so don't anyone take this as a personal attack - it certainly isn't meant that way.
