Rosewood vs. Ebony Fretboards

[ronadair]

A question for those more knowledgeable than I.

How much difference does the veneer used for the fretboard make to sound and or playability? It seems like ebony is default for acoustic, whereas rosewood is default for electric.

[fazool]

It's not veneer. Veneer is a very particular and specific type of wood layering.

It will not matter (virtually at all) for tone. You play the strngs not the board so playability won't matter.

WHat might matter is wearability. Ebony is oily and denser. Rosewood is more prone to drying out.

It won't matter for all practical purposes.


I have both and go back and forth without regard.

[ronadair]

Originally Posted by fazool

It's not veneer. Veneer is a very particular and specific type of wood layering.

It will not matter (virtually at all) for tone. You play the strngs not the board so playability won't matter.

WHat might matter is wearability. Ebony is oily and denser. Rosewood is more prone to drying out.

It won't matter for all practical purposes.


I have both and go back and forth without regard.

Yes, veneer is thinner 1/16” or less. Kinda’ what I thought... no practical difference.

[Guitars44me]

May I suggest you post this question in the Custom Shop (luthier's corner) here on AGF.

You are asking about the fretboard itself. Ebony tends to be harder. Rosewood tends to be lighter.

When you get into the upper reaches of the custom acoustic guitar world, you may often find Luthiers selecting for light weight. All things else being equal, a light weight bridge should let the top move more freely, and sound a bit louder and better...
And of course a light guitar is easier to hold for long periods of time.

Any very hard wood will work well for FBs and bridges. Lots of other options, but not used that often.
Hope this helps.

Cheers

Paul

[revellfa]

For durability (not wearing grooves) I prefer ebony.

For lightness and resonance and sound I prefer rosewood.

My dads banjo had Brazilian rosewood for the fingerboard and over 50 years of okay he wore 1/8 inch grooves in that board.

[Halcyon/Tinker]

I think it makes quite a big difference. Rosewood is warmer and smoother and the notes tend to blend into each other.

Ebony is brighter and has much better clarity and string separation.

[LouieAtienza]

Originally Posted by Halcyon/Tinker

I think it makes quite a big difference. Rosewood is warmer and smoother and the notes tend to blend into each other.

Ebony is brighter and has much better clarity and string separation.

I believe that too. I also "feel" an ebony board seems to make the notes "jump out," while a rosewood board tend to make the notes "bloom."

[fazool]

hmmmm....

Reading opinions about tonal impact of fretboard wood made me wonder "why" it could seem to have a difference.

Then I got thinking:

The vibrating string is anchored between the saddle and the fret. The fret will "feel" some string vibrations and absorbs them (imagine if your fret wire was rubber). Some vibrations are transmitted to the fretboard wood where some will be absorbed (again imagine your fretboard is made of rubber - the fret wire would move in vibration and the sound would be dampened).

So......I amend my thinking and can understand how it CAN make a difference.

[ronadair]

Ok, there’s a consensus forming... fretboard wood does make a difference.

So, how about the observation that, assuming similar quality instruments, rosewood appears more common on electrics than on acoustics.

[Cocobolo Kid]

I hope some experienced luthiers chime in as to any perceived sound differences among fretboard materials.

My impression is that ebony is often selected for its physical properties: hardness, ability to hold the frets well, etc.

[tadol]

I dont think there is any perceivable difference in tone between a rosewood and an ebony fretboard. Just like theres no perceivable difference when changing tuner buttons, different fret wire, or amount of inlay. I think all of those are purely functional or aesthetic choices.

[mercy]

I spent a year trying to learn to play off the frets but never could, Ive pushed down to the board too long playing electrics. So I find ebony smoother and thus faster than the deep pores of rosewood. Yes I do play better on ebony.

[CE Sobel]

It’s hard to answer the question because there are a lot of variables past just rosewood or ebony. To get a good consensus I feel we would have to make a bunch of guitars and swap the fingerboards out while keeping everything else the same to see if we hear a difference.

I feel it does affect the sound to a degree but not as much as the top or back. A stronger fingerboard (higher stiffness for its weight) will raise the neck mode of the guitar which will come through in the final sound. That’s where you almost have to be more specific because there is stiff ebony and floppy ebony, and floppy rosewood vs stiff rosewood.

You can definitely feel a softer fingerboard under the fingers... it has a more supple feel to it than hard ebony or Blackwood. So there is a tactile difference for sure.

Chris

[LouieAtienza]

I should clarify, I make no claim as to perceived change in "tone" with different fretboards; rather my observations were as to the "attack" and "decay" of the notes...

[Kent Chasson]

Like so many things with guitars, blanket statements (that are true) are rare. One thing that is almost always true when comparing ebony to Indian rosewood is that ebony will be between 30% and 50% heavier. It's enough of a difference in the overall weight of the guitar to be noticeable to most people.

What follows is opinion:

As for tone, I'm convinced that fretboard wood selection makes a difference but it's subtle and hard to prove or isolate. But if you include the neck wood too, such as comparing Spanish cedar/rosewood vs dense Honduras Mahogany/ebony, it becomes less subtle.

As for holding frets, both do just fine on the first time around. For re-fretting, I'd probably rather work with rosewood than ebony because it's less likely to chip out.

My usual suggestion to clients is to choose primarily based on weight and esthetics.