Fender Stratocaster Players: Maple or Rosewood Fingerboard & Why Your Preference?

[N4640W]

Rosewood…….Contrast.

[Bluside]

I'm not good enough or have the ear to tell the difference between the two. I just like the looks of maple on a Tele and Strat, especially ones that are well played.

[rmp]

I'm ok with both, and have a strat and a tele with maple, and another w/rosewood

my preference leans to rosewood.

I also agree that tone wise it's a little darker than maple, and with Strats and Teles, they can get pretty bright already, that cuts it back a bit IME.

[GCWaters]

Originally Posted by rmp

I'm ok with both, and have a strat and a tele with maple, and another w/rosewood



my preference leans to rosewood.



I also agree that tone wise it's a little darker than maple, and with Strats and Teles, they can get pretty bright already, that cuts it back a bit IME.

Agreed—a little darker, a little woodier..maple boards have that shimmery, glassy tone that I associate with early Mark Knopfler….

[Bob Womack]

I've had both. Right now my Strat is a G&L S-500 with a rosewood board. I had a lovely Am. Std. Strat with a maple board. Driven, I think I prefer the rosewood. Clean, there's just a certain "pop" that the maple board imparts that is really cool. Like this, in the interlude at 2:27:



I think the rosewood might be a tad more versatile but that clean pop sound is just lovely.

Bob

[s2y]

I usually go with jumbo frets. The fingerboard surface has no real feel to me.

I prefer maple. To my ears, there's a subtle glassy high end added. I'm also a light player. My hands and ears seem to find rosewood a tad dull.

[Dru Edwards]

I have both on my Strats and I also have a Warmoth maple neck on my Frankenstrat build. I'll play either but I do prefer rosewood when I'm bending strings.

[terryj47]

i have owned two Fender MIM Strats. One RW and one maple. I still on the RW. I just liked the feel of the RW better.

[talister106]

Always went with a maple fretboard but bought a new Ultra in January and they only had a rosewood one. Since then I play all my maple strat and tele along with the rosewood and enjoy them all without a big difference in tone or playability, yet maple is my favorite.

[letterk]

If it says Fender on the headstock, I typically like maple. Purely for cosmetic reasons.