Fretboard in natural wood or treated?
What is your preference and why?
I'M ITALIAN,EXCUSE MY LANGUAGE..
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FretLessSince68
- Posts:307
- Joined:Tue Dec 19, 2006 2:29 am
- Location:On an Island, WA, USA
It depends on your preferences and playing style.
Yes, Rosewood wears if you use round wound strings. To avoid rutting, I use flats or ground wound strings on my natural wood fingerboards. Stainless round wound strings are the worst for rutting.
If it's Mwah that you seek the best response in my experience is when using round wound nickle wrap strings and a man made material fingerboard such as phenolic or diamond wood.(Modulus, ZON, Status, etc.). After that I like a hard coating over natural wood similar to what Jaco did or as provided by some makers. Ebonal boards are fine for mwah/hardness but the actual necks on some Asian basses tend to be questionable regarding quality, while others are surprisingly good.
I have a Yamaha TRB6II fretless (factory coated Rosewood) that Mwahs almost as well as the phenolic fingerboard Modulus.
For an uncoated natural fingerboard, I agree with jaydee that ebony fingerboards are excellent. However I would use less abrasive strings on such a nice natural board. The tone will have a softer, warmer, Mwah but should still be very nice.
Search this forum for Mwah, fingerboard or tone, for more information.
The neck really is the soul of an instrument, you are wise to consider this detail among the highest importance. I find that the wood and carving (profile/shape) of the neck to also be very important. I like necks with plenty of strength and wood integrity. Narrow, slim necks sometimes become warped from the tension, and also tend to absorb more string vibration (inductive loss) transmitting less string energy into the body. This puts me solidly in the big wide neck camp.
Yes, Rosewood wears if you use round wound strings. To avoid rutting, I use flats or ground wound strings on my natural wood fingerboards. Stainless round wound strings are the worst for rutting.
If it's Mwah that you seek the best response in my experience is when using round wound nickle wrap strings and a man made material fingerboard such as phenolic or diamond wood.(Modulus, ZON, Status, etc.). After that I like a hard coating over natural wood similar to what Jaco did or as provided by some makers. Ebonal boards are fine for mwah/hardness but the actual necks on some Asian basses tend to be questionable regarding quality, while others are surprisingly good.
I have a Yamaha TRB6II fretless (factory coated Rosewood) that Mwahs almost as well as the phenolic fingerboard Modulus.
For an uncoated natural fingerboard, I agree with jaydee that ebony fingerboards are excellent. However I would use less abrasive strings on such a nice natural board. The tone will have a softer, warmer, Mwah but should still be very nice.
Search this forum for Mwah, fingerboard or tone, for more information.
The neck really is the soul of an instrument, you are wise to consider this detail among the highest importance. I find that the wood and carving (profile/shape) of the neck to also be very important. I like necks with plenty of strength and wood integrity. Narrow, slim necks sometimes become warped from the tension, and also tend to absorb more string vibration (inductive loss) transmitting less string energy into the body. This puts me solidly in the big wide neck camp.
One good note makes my day.