argh which one?! to me, the maple feels SO much smoother and creamier but the strats with the rosewood necks seem to be cheaper! does anyone have any accurate comparisons between the two necks regarding to quality and feel?

thanks heaps

Rosewood Cheaper!!!!! As in cost or how there made?

_________________
The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.

Thomas Jefferson

I just LOVE my maple neck but my next guitar (either Strat, Tele, or possibly even "other") will have a rosewood fingerboard. Why? Because, that's why! I just want one of each. Personally I can't tell any difference in tone or playability even though I have owned both. Maybe my senses just aren't that developed.

At the end of the day what does it matter as to which one people think is better? Play both and then buy the one YOU like.

As far as cost goes, I can't say I've noticed any price differences between the 2. The only differences in price seem to be between solid colours and sunburst finishes.

_________________
_______________________________________

MIM Std Tele, MIM HSS Strat, Homemade Mongrel Tele, Blues Jr, Champ600, coupla pedals...sweeeet!

I have one of each. I think the maple has a snappier tone, while the rosewood has a slightly darker, but more defined tone. Maple is smoother while the rosewood is more porous. As far as looks go I think it depends what color the body is as to which neck I like. For surf green I like maple. For the chrome blue on my favorite Strat I like rosewood. I like the feel of both.

_________________
"My mind is a raging torrent, flooded with rivulets of thought cascading into a waterfall of creative alternatives." Blazing Saddles...

love the looks of maple myself

I've never seen any difference in price, at least for new instruments. You never know what's going on in the used market. Both freboard woods have their fans. I have one of each and don't have a preference.

_________________
James Burton Upgrade Telecaster
Hot Rodded Am Fat Strat Texas Special (now featuring Kinman Traditional II pickups)
Fender Blues Jr.
SWR California Blonde
Pedals Pedals Pedals

I have all three and if I had to put them in order it would be Rosewood,Maple and Ebony for my personal preference . Though unfinished birds eye maple is on par with rosewood. I guess I just like a drier board.As for cheaper you probably just picked up two different models with the maple guitar costing more as there is no price difference on the two.You have to go with just feels right to you. It is like asking people should I get black or white=you are probably going to get a 50-50 responce.

both great to play. but prefer maple neck in the ol looks department

Ebony is not softer than maple. It is much harder.

As a matter of fact, so is rosewood.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janka_hardness_test

So, as this legend about the "softer" woods sounding "warmer" is bunk. You THINK it s sounds warmer because it LOOKS warmer... and even if it does sound "warmer," it for sure isn't because the wood is "softer" and less reflective or whatever intuitive (but wrong) idea you've got about wood.... because both species of fingerboard are harder than maple. Spare me the argument about finish... most of these super bright "vintage Teles lost their fingerboard finish a long time ago. The fingerboard doesn't interact with the string... the fret does.

So pick the one that brings out the color in your eyes, because there just isn't any tonal difference that can be heard above your pickups, your amp and your playing.

Nice chart slap.

Much like the framework and bracing of an acoustic guitar can shape its sound I would imagine the cellular structure of the wood would tend to determine which vibrational frequencies it dampens or absorbs rather than just the hardness of the wood. Nice to know the info in the chart. I knew Ebony was harder than maple, but i always assumed Rosewood was softer. Nice to learn something new.

One thing though, I think every part of you guitar interacts with the string. Albeit by indirect contact.(Though I would be surprised if any person was strong enough to clamp a string so tightly it only vibrated against the fret,, and not the fingerboard.)

I've always thought people overstate the difference in sound of fretboards.
To me it is very subtle. Leo switched to rosewood because he thought the Maple boards looked dirty, as they started to show wear. If he had thought the change would drastically alter the sound of the instruments I am not sure he would have made the change. The sound had nothing to do with his decision to switch.

_________________
I'm not an expert, but I play one on the internet.

Up until recently I always prefered the look of Rosewood. But not all rosewood is equal. Ebony just looks black to me, with no grain. Sometimes, rosewood does not have a pretty grain or is black like ebony. I don't care for ebony, but I have not played it to see if I like the feel. I would not buy a rosewood guitar unless I the grain showed and I like its grain.

For some reason, I don't care for the looks of a strat with rosewood. Maple just looks right on strats to me....maybe because of all those Jimi images.

I have both RW and Maple, and I like both the same, just different for different guitars. If I was to buy another strat, it would be maple again. If I got a Tele, it would also have maple.

I cannot think of another guitar other than the two mainstays from Fender that I would choose maple on. Everything else just looks better dressed in a nice heavy grained rosewood.

_________________
Guitars:
1. mid 70's Ventura MIJ Gibson l6-s clone (Pre-lawsuit) in Black with Rosewood FB and EMG 81 BR/ 85 Neck
2. ESP KH2 Neck Thru
3. 2008 Am Std Strat in 3 tone sunburst

Maple every time for me!

Play both and see which one you like best

my preference is for maple. And that is just based on looks, because I think it looks better than Rosewood. I doubt it makes that much of a difference on sound. Of course, I am not that much of a snob because I have guitars with all three different types of fretboard wood (maple, rosewood, and ebony).

I do notice, however that there is a price difference between maple and rosewood on the used market. Either used guitars, or buying guitar necks to build upon I have been finding that maple commands an ever slight premium over rosewood.

Whew! I thought for a moment there that I needed my hearing checked.I have a rosewood, a maple and a pao ferro and I cant tell the difference in tone.They sure feel different.I like the look of a maple neck because thats how a strat traditionally is supposed to look to me.I like the feel of the rosewood fretboard while i play.It is a little easier for me to dig in on bends.Its nice having a variety though.