New Video: Exotic Neck Wood Shootout

[aarontunes]

Give it a listen!

 

[Logrinn]

Excellent video Aaron. As usual.

 

[cromulent]

Oh man I was about to pull the trigger on a roasted maple neck but am now intrigued by goncalo...

 

[teleme01]

WHEN I COULD SEE WHAT WAS BEING PLAYED I COULD HEAR THAT CANARY WAS BRIGHTER, DURING THE BLIND TEST I COULD NOT TELL THE DIFFERENCE., SORRY FOR SHOUTING

 

[VanHeGen]

I could hear a lot of differences in the body shootout, but here only Goncalo sounded different to me. I could not tell if it was darker, or if there was more bass, but different.

 

[aarontunes]

I could hear a lot of differences in the body shootout, but here only Goncalo sounded different to me. I could not tell if it was darker, or if there was more bass, but different.

Agreed. It's definitely the stand-out. It's a tone I liked for clean, but would not be my choice for anything w/ gain.

 

[triple jim]

That was a very nice test, thanks Aaron. Any differences I heard, which were very subtle, could be easily tuned out with a slight turn of the amp's settings, so I'd go with the one I liked the looks and feel of best.

 

[alexreinhold]

maybe it's my mood today. But I could really hear absolutely no differences. Is it just me?

 

[stratamania]

I did notice some subtle differences, though they all sounded good.

What I did wonder about, is what if a similar test was done with these necks and their equivalents in Vintage Modern, would the differences be greater between each other and between Modern and VM construction.

 

[Rick]

The all sounded good, and I concur totally with how the woods feel. The most interesting thing to me is the stiffness of Wenge and the waxiness of Goncalo. As to sound, I found Goncalo very similar to Korina or Limba. The only one I found different in my experience, in terms of sound is Wenge, I found it combs out a lot of the fundamentals, making it bright. Of course, I have experience with only one Wenge neck, so who knows what happened to that piece. It does feel great though.

So what's the lesson, since they are so close sounding, I guess, get what feels good and looks good to you.

 

[aarontunes]

maybe it's my mood today. But I could really hear absolutely no differences. Is it just me?

They are all pretty similar. The real standout, as far as sounding different from the rest, is Goncalo Alves. I felt confident I could have picked that out of that particular lineup most of the time.

 

[aarontunes]

I did notice some subtle differences, though they all sounded good.

What I did wonder about, is what if a similar test was done with these necks and their equivalents in Vintage Modern, would the differences be greater between each other and between Modern and VM construction.

That is an interesting question, and one for which I have no answer. LOL.

 

[Lbpesq]

Like others, the GA neck really stood out for me. I even got it right in the blind test. Excellent shoot-out methodology, by the way. I really like the way it changed quickly from one neck to the next so I could really hear the differences (or lack thereof). Too many shoot-outs spend too much time on each entry, making it harder to compare.

Bill, tgo

 

[Scab Pickens]

The rosewood was my favorite. I have a roasted flame maple neck on my newly assembled Tele and absolutely love it. Seriously considering giving a rosewood neck a try on my next build. I was already thinking about it, but now it really sounds like the way to go for me. Thanks for the video!

I also wonder, besides the already mentioned constructions, how much different fretboard woods could change the tone and feel. So many options, so little money and time!

 

[ghostrider25]

That rosewood neck is sexy!

 

[NedRyerson]

With the gonçalo alves* aside, the only way I could tell there was a difference at all was to listen and concentrate as closely as I could. Out in the wild, there'd be no way I could identify any differences whatsoever with the assumption that it's one or two people on stage or on a recording playing one.

But I'll bet that with the GA in isolation, I'd still not pick out "HEY, that's a GA neck on that one song there!"

* I've always pronounced it gon-SAH-lo AHL-ves since I thought it was of Brazilian origin.

 

[Rick]

Yep, in Brazilian Portuguese that's how they'd pronounce.

 

[VanHeGen]

And if that neck would be fast the wood could be called Speedy Gonzales

 

[stratamania]

And if that neck would be fast the wood could be called Speedy Gonzales

Sadly it is no longer available, it ran out...

 

[Rick]

And bloodwood fretboards are long gone. I know they are hard to work with, but man, they are luxurious. I have one on a rosewood neck, and it is delightful.