#46
|
|||
|
|||
Why doesn't anybody ever complain about plastic binding and plastic pickguards and plastic tuner buttons and plastic dot markers?
|
#47
|
|||
|
|||
Believe me, they sure did, but that was before the internet.
|
#48
|
|||
|
|||
Black Richlite
I've owned guitars with richlite, personally I think it's great, looks great and always will, smooth as silk and is adverse to humidity and temp changes.
Don't get me wrong, I like wood fretboards as well, but I don't believe richlite is inferior to wood as a fretboard material, definitely would not be a deal breaker for me at all! In fact, on some models I prefer it.
__________________
"I've got to keep on keepin' on , You know the big wheel keeps on spinnin' around" |
#49
|
|||
|
|||
Such a funny thread.
Revisit this in ten years. |
#50
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
The fingerboards are just fine, they look great and are nice and slick under the fingers. I'm very skeptical of using the material for the bridge though. No way is a resin-impregnated bridge as good a carrier of vibrations as an actual piece of wood.
__________________
And I thought, "I've fiddled all night, and lost! You were good, hillbilly ... but you've been bossed." - Mountain Whippoorwill (Or, How Hillbilly Jim Won The Great Fiddler's Prize), Nitty Gritty Dirt Band Last edited by good_hillbilly; 03-18-2015 at 01:53 PM. |
#51
|
|||
|
|||
There are all kinds of synthetic materials in our guitars. Is it done to save costs, certainly. However, if saving that cost is the price for the wealth of consistently well-built guitars that are available today, it doesn't bother me. If you don't want the synthetic material, there are other guitars at other price points with more traditional materials. I bought a GPCPA4R that has a Richlite fingerboard. The GPCPA4R is not a traditional looking Martin Guitar anyway, with its cutaway top.
I don't notice the difference between the Richlite fingerboard and the Rosewood or Ebony fingerboards on my other guitars. I did notice that, partially due to the Richlite fingerboard, I was able to buy a well-built, Martin guitar that was perfect for my needs at a price I was comfortable paying. As others have pointed out, our guitars contain all sorts of non-traditional materials. If they didn't we would probably be without elephants, tortoises, abalone and the Brazilian rain forests. There are lots of great sounding guitars with lots of plastic parts these days! |
#52
|
|||
|
|||
I'd prefer a good ebony board. The problem is I'm seeing more punky ebony boards on newer guitars. The ebony on my 2013 D18 isn't any where near as good as there was just a few years ago. I just bought 2009 Martin Custom GC MMV dread that has way better ebony on both the bridge and neck than my D18. If the trend continues Richlite will be ok by me.
|
#53
|
|||
|
|||
I am not a stickler for tradition -- I do not believe in doing something just because that is how earlier people did it. At one time, all of these traditions that some people blindly follow were, in themselves, new ideas and methods often initially met with skepticism.
If these new materials can give as good or better results, (sound, looks, feel, durability, value, etc.) then why not use them? But, let's not go to the other extreme and try them out on our dollars just because they are new; make them earn their acceptance. Kick the ball back into the manufacturers' court for them to prove (before sale) and warranty (after sale) that these new materials are as good or better than what we already have. I think that a good full-replacement warranty for, say, 10 years, would be a good first step by manufacturers. You think that that will ever happen? |
#54
|
|||
|
|||
I hope you really liked the Larrivee better. It would be silly, IMO, to pass on a guitar you liked because of the fretboard material.
__________________
Taylor GA3 Taylor 150e Taylor 224ce-K |
#55
|
|||
|
|||
I have a Marting GPCPA3 w/Richlite fretboard and a G&L ASAT Special w/ebony board - can't feel or hear a difference - I know one is acoustic and the other electric, but both fretboards have the same "snappy" note response that ebony has as opposed to rosewood. I just play 'em and they sound real good. I also understand that Richlite will take a re-fret better than ebony since it will not crack or fracture like ebony is prone to do. I just don't dig in as a traditionalist if I can't hear the diff.
|
#56
|
|||
|
|||
At the risk of sounding redundant- play it. If you like it, and have no psychological hangups about the material, go for it! I played a new D16-RGT at Sam Ash that had just been unpacked, Factory setup was great, and it played really nicely. Looked good, too.
A lot of people are fine with richlite, but those folks won't be the 'purists', and that's completely understandable. No idea how it holds up over the years, etc., but outside of the mental hangup of having a synthetic fretboard, I found it to be a nice playing material. BUT- don't discount that psychological hangup! If it even slightly seems like something you won't be able to get past, you probably won't be happy with it in the long run.
__________________
Martin 2014 000-18 Seagull S12 Takamine GS-330S Washburn B9 Banjo Some electrics and a bass |
#57
|
|||
|
|||
I had a Martin CEO4R with Micarta bridge and fingerboard and I really don't understand the issues people seem to have with the stuff. Complaints that it isn't 'traditional' are common. Neither are the plastic binding, scratchplate, bridge and end pins or the fibre used for rosettes you'll find on your 'traditional', mass-produced Martin.
Micarta/Richlite are almost indistinguishable from ebony in feel and appearance; luthiers like it because it won't chip as ebony is prone to doing, and it is easier to work. Perhaps we should revert to gut strings, tied-on gut frets, tortoiseshell and elephant ivory to keep the purist happy. Guitars evolve and your D-16 is a very different animal from a Belchior Dias five-course guitar from 1590.
__________________
Faith Mars FRMG Faith Neptune FKN Epiphone Masterbilt Texan Last edited by AndrewG; 03-19-2015 at 06:13 AM. |
#58
|
|||
|
|||
Richlite..........No Kidding, the pink slime of the guitar world. Guitars should be made of solid wood! There is enough of it around! Don't start talking about price point. Manufacturers passing off a way to overcharge the consumer as OK or doable. NO!
__________________
"All the money is down around the third fret" A couple of good guitars Mac Computer #2 Pencil Various Scraps of Paper Last edited by cigarfan; 03-19-2015 at 06:51 AM. Reason: language and be nice |
#59
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
__________________
Faith Mars FRMG Faith Neptune FKN Epiphone Masterbilt Texan Last edited by AndrewG; 03-19-2015 at 06:38 AM. |
#60
|
|||
|
|||
It's Bob Taylor's fault.
Oops, wrong thread. Four years ago, when this thread was started, the original question was about Richlite being a money saving deal, which it is not. Jimmy
__________________
Avian Skylark Pono 0000-30 Gardiner Parlor Kremona Kiano Ramsay Hauser Cordoba C10 Chris Walsh Archtop Gardiner Concert Taylor Leo Kottke Gretsch 6120 Pavan TP30 Aria A19c Hsienmo MJ Ukuleles: Cocobolo 5 string Tenor Kanilea K3 Koa Kanilea K1 Walnut Tenor Kala Super Tenor Rebel Super Concert Nehemiah Covey Tenor Mainland Mahogany Tenor Mainland Cedar/Rosewood Tenor |