Solid Rosewood Neck?

[orpheo]

It's so funny to see so many argue, and most haven't tried a rosewood neck, let alone make one.

Rosewood won't give it a brighter tone than maple, but it will give a broader tone than maple. It is as if you're expanding the EQ. Also, you don't need to finish rosewood, which is a huge bonus. In the end, it doesn't really matter. Pickups, construction, quality of work; that matters. Wood? Not so much. I am slowly pivoting away from the whole tonewood debate. It matters a bit, only a deaf man could say it doesn't, but man, pickups, electronics and even strings make a bigger difference. Scale, too. But wood? Just get good wood, that's not too warbly.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Rosewood won't give it a brighter tone than maple,

Exactly.
For an example: with Fender guitars, sometimes you can buy a guitar with either the maple or rosewood fretboard. All else being equal, the guitar with rosewood will be slightly warmer.

In the end, it doesn't really matter. Pickups, construction, quality of work; that matters. Wood? Not so much. I am slowly pivoting away from the whole tonewood debate. It matters a bit, only a deaf man could say it doesn't, but man, pickups, electronics and even strings make a bigger difference. Scale, too. But wood? Just get good wood, that's not too warbly.

I'm glad to see you come around. When someone builds enough guitars (like Orpheo and myself) you get to really see what parts make the biggest difference in tone. What Orpheo said is exactly correct, and what I have been saying for years. Certainly woods make a difference, but they are a small contributor to the total equation of tone.

It's a similar comparison with magnets and pickups. Different magnets will indeed make a difference in a pup, but the difference between an A3 and an A5 is extremely small compared to the difference between a 59 and an Invader.

 

[crguti]

Thanks for all the responses. I’ll take an Allparts rosewood neck and be happy with it.

 

[GuitarDoc]

I'm sure you will be happy with it.
Even if the tone isn't exactly what you were expecting (and like was said, the differences will be small), it's gonna sound great and be gorgeous in the process.

 

[Mincer]

An interesting comparison:

 

[elelpe]

Thanks for all the responses. I’ll take an Allparts rosewood neck and be happy with it.

You won't regret it. I know I don't. Mine is not heavier than maple. Best feeling neck I've ever had.

 

[GuitarDoc]

That was a very interesting vid, Dave. I have to say that, at least from that shootout, I have some favorites.

1. My all-around number one favorite was the Roasted Maple. Great clarity, definition, and even tonal character. Solid mids and bass. I think it would be the most versatile of the bunch. Plus, big bonus...it is the lightest, and it is very stable.
2. & 3. This was a tie, but for very different, almost opposite reasons...Rosewood & Canarywood. The Rosewood was very full bodied, smooth, and even sounding. VERY nice mids. Not quite as bright as Maple, a bit rounded top end, but still very clear. The Canarywood was the brightest with a bit of a scooped mid tone, and had super clarity with solid clean bass. Great punch. (I personally have a preference for brightness and clarity, thinking that the EQ can always tone it down if needed and an OD can always add some fullness and grit when wanted). And both are very beautiful woods, but, again, for very different reasons.
4. Goncalo Alves. Good tone, nothing special. Heavy.
5. Wenge. Dark, rolled off highs, heavy, open grain texture. Can't get any brightness from it (can't add something that you don't begin with). On the heavy side. Wenge dust is very irritating to skin and nasal passages when working it.

 

[Mincer]

Roasted maple was my fave, too. Funny, my 2 Warmoths have roasted maple on one, and wenge on the other. Both have ebony fretboards. The construction of both of my guitars are so different, that I can't directly compare them otherwise, though. I will say that roasted maple feels amazing to play.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Plain maple isn't the most beautiful wood for a neck but sometimes it can be the perfect esthetic match for the guitar, especially some of its varieties: flame, curly, bird's eye, roasted. But it has everything else going for it: stiffness, stability, tone, clarity, feel, light weight, easy to work and stain and finish, readily available, comparitively inexpensive. It is my #1 go-to wood for necks (but I've also used mahogany, curly cherry, walnut, rambutan, rosewood, cocobolo,sapele, etc).

 

[strat dude]

I have a guitar with a solid Rosewood neck and another with a wenge neck and love them both. Every guitar is different anyhow so I don’t really put much thought to it, and I’m pretty sure in a blind test it would be hard to tell any difference vs my maple neck guitars.

 

[ErikH]

I love the look and feel of roasted maple too. But, do not get a neck with black side dots if you leave it unfinished. The color will darken over time as you play and it will become difficult to see them. Go with white, MOP or luminlay. Speaking from experience here. Had my OCD been ok with the misaligned luminlay dots I put in, I would've kept it but sold it for a great deal on a plain maple neck with the Wolfgang profile in the Warmoth showcase.

 

[solspirit]

I love the look and feel of roasted maple too. But, do not get a neck with black side dots if you leave it unfinished. The color will darken over time as you play and it will become difficult to see them. Go with white, MOP or luminlay. Speaking from experience here. Had my OCD been ok with the misaligned luminlay dots I put in, I would've kept it but sold it for a great deal on a plain maple neck with the Wolfgang profile in the Warmoth showcase.

I kind of agree, but I rarely if ever, use the side dots when I'm playing, I mainly just use them when I'm composing, only as a reference as to where I'm at, not where I'm going.
. I do love the look of mahogany necks on some Strats though.