Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

I'm ordering a custom Strat body from warmoth.com and I have a dilemma on my hands...I dont know what fingerboard wood to get.... I'm most familiar with Rosewood, but i'm getting the body in solid black and the headstock in solid black so i dont want the color of the rosewood to make it contrast so badly that it's ugly and stuff....

if anybody knows about both woods including their pro's and con's, feel free to leave a post

thanks. :wave:
 
Re: Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

I love them both!! Ebony is a bit smoother than rosewood. I think rosewood is brighter than ebony.
 
Re: Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

Ebony is my favorite of all fingerboards.
 
Re: Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

Actually Ebony is a little (tiny bit) brighter then rosewood. Ebony is harder. for a strat I would go with rosewood. A nice dark rosewood.
 
Re: Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

I say pick a name out of a Hat, because ebony and rosewood both rawk. Either way youll sound great. IMHO.
 
Re: Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

I think ebony feels better on the fingers than Rosewood.

or u could just get maple : )
 
Re: Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

If you can afford it go for Ziricote - It is a dark gray to black wood and similar to ebony in weight, density and tone. Some pieces have gorgeous striping and spider web grain patterns. It may be oil finished or left raw. Suitable for both necks and fingerboards. Limited availability and expensive.

This is what it would like on a strat:

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and if you want to see what it would look like on a black body:

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If not go for rosewood!
 
Re: Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

I would probably go for ebony in this case - although it's not traditionally a strat wood, it'll go better with the look you're going for and in any case it won't be any brighter than maple fingerboards - very much traditional strat. =)
 
Re: Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

norman, your guitar is hott, really, really hott

and my guitar is all black with rosewood, looks good IMO
 
Re: Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

Ebony is my favorite for feel; very smooth and comfortable. Rosewood contributes a sweet warmth to the tone of a guitar and has a slightly grainy feel to it. You really can't go wrong with either. Maple is the only fingerboard wood I don't care for.
 
Re: Ebony or Rosewood fingerboard?

For a black guitar and a custom strat, the neck wood seems like a no-brainer to me. Nothing looks and feels quite like raw maple.

Rosewood and ebony is just too dark for a black guitar.
 
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