Members Danocoustic Posted December 11, 2018 Members Share Posted December 11, 2018 Anybody have one? What are your impressions? I find this interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Chordite Posted December 11, 2018 Members Share Posted December 11, 2018 Quick look at the videos. A surprising difference. I prefer the ordinary Maple TBH [video=youtube_share;OvyofUHrXRM] Despite the usual youtube 'wise guy' comments level he says in Russian it is just one guitar with the neck swapped Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 1001gear Posted December 11, 2018 Members Share Posted December 11, 2018 The regular neck sounds fuller. The burnt one sounds burnt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted December 11, 2018 Members Share Posted December 11, 2018 In an interview with American Lutherie magazine, Ken Warmoth was asked about roasted maple. He said that since customers have started demanding it he now stock flat sawn, quarterswan and flamed. He says it if very stable but the process make the wood brittle "so there is a higher propensity to split and crack, you can split off the side of a head". He says it smells like charcoal while they are working it, they warrant the necks for two years and the cost is roughly double plain maple (but less than some exotics). I'll pass but would certainly put it on a guitar if someone asked. I use mahogany for all my necks so its kind of a moot point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 6down1togo Posted December 12, 2018 Members Share Posted December 12, 2018 It's just a fad just like fat necks and all-rosewood necks. The roasted necks I have seen felt very dry and smelt like burnt toast. Baked/roasted maple was "invented" by Gibson for use as fingerboards when they had their CITES fiasco and their supply of rosewood was confiscated. The "baked maple" was seen as a workable compromise since maple was a proven fretboard material and the baking was used to make it look darker so as to be suitable for use in place of rosewood. The "substitution" was not universally embraced along with Granadillo and Richlite which were also used as rosewood substitutes until rosewood came back into the Gibson pipeline. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Into Nation Posted December 12, 2018 Members Share Posted December 12, 2018 I picked up a Gibson P90 Special some time after that rosewood incident, they were discounting them. It was very light in color when I got it, but after a quick dressing with mineral oil it darkened considerably, and oddly has stayed that way. I think I've had it at least 4 years - it has a 2012 date. The closest I can think to compare is ebony. It has nearly no pores and a very obvious sheen. I've had no problems with it, but honestly has not been played much. Maybe if it got more use the color would change, IDK.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Danocoustic Posted December 13, 2018 Author Members Share Posted December 13, 2018 It's just a fad just like fat necks and all-rosewood necks. The roasted necks I have seen felt very dry and smelt like burnt toast. Baked/roasted maple was "invented" by Gibson for use as fingerboards when they had their CITES fiasco and their supply of rosewood was confiscated. The "baked maple" was seen as a workable compromise since maple was a proven fretboard material and the baking was used to make it look darker so as to be suitable for use in place of rosewood. The "substitution" was not universally embraced along with Granadillo and Richlite which were also used as rosewood substitutes until rosewood came back into the Gibson pipeline. Thanks, I knew that but not everyone else does. What I'm referring to is entire necks being roasted, not just fretboards. Seems to be a relatively new thing. Personally, I'm skeptical about the claimed benefits. Incidentally, fat necks aren't a fad for me. I have big hands and fat necks fit me better. I make no claim about their tonal or sustain properties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members catscurlyear Posted December 13, 2018 Members Share Posted December 13, 2018 the roasted one sounded more valve so the normal one must be transistor .the roasted one would be nice with some sprouts ans mash . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 1001gear Posted December 13, 2018 Members Share Posted December 13, 2018 the roasted one sounded more valve so the normal one must be transistor .the roasted one would be nice with some sprouts ans mash . I hear the opposite. I think... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Danocoustic Posted December 13, 2018 Author Members Share Posted December 13, 2018 I hear the opposite. I think... Whatever...please pass the sprouts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Blackface Posted December 13, 2018 Members Share Posted December 13, 2018 Warmoth will warranty an unfinished roasted maple neck but not a standard maple neck so that must say something about the stability... It's certainly lighter. Lots of legit brands are using them... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted December 13, 2018 Share Posted December 13, 2018 Baked/roasted maple was "invented" by Gibson for use as fingerboards when they had their CITES fiasco and their supply of rosewood was confiscated. The "baked maple" was seen as a workable compromise since maple was a proven fretboard material and the baking was used to make it look darker so as to be suitable for use in place of rosewood. The "substitution" was not universally embraced along with Granadillo and Richlite which were also used as rosewood substitutes until rosewood came back into the Gibson pipeline. I'm not sure if Gibson invented baked maple or not (it's quite possible), but they did use it as a rosewood alternative for a while. Some other companies are also using pau ferro (which you didn't mention) as a rosewood alternative. I have never played a baked maple fingerboard-equipped guitar, so I have no opinion on it, although I really don't see the point of baking an entire maple neck instead of just a fretboard. I have played a guitar with a Richlite board. Small point of correction - it is used more as an ebony substitute, not really as a rosewood substitute. In fact, I had the guitar (a Gibson ES-275) here and was playing it for about two weeks before I noticed that the "ebony" had no pores. As much as I'm embarrassed to admit it, prior to that realization, I just assumed it was ebony. Unless you look close, it really does look like it, and as I said in the review, I think the sound and feel of Richlite are essentially indistinguishable from an ebony fretboard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted December 13, 2018 Members Share Posted December 13, 2018 Warmoth will warranty an unfinished roasted maple neck but not a standard maple neck so that must say something about the stability... It's certainly lighter. Lots of legit brands are using them... The quote is "We warrant these necks for two years just like any of our other necks with no finish on them" (American Lutherie #134, Summer 2018) but he also says that "when they split the head they think the wood was bad, but they just didn't read the instructions" Warmoth does not actually roast the wood themselves, its done by a supplier. Ken says that quality wise its always nice material, he thinks they don't want to waste their time roasting lower grade stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 6down1togo Posted December 16, 2018 Members Share Posted December 16, 2018 My Les Paul Custom Classic has a baked maple fingerboard. I have never noticed any difference from rosewood other than it is ha tighter pores and less figure than rosewood and cost me a lot less due to the fretboard. Buyers tend to pass them up for earlier and later models with rosewood fretboards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted December 16, 2018 Share Posted December 16, 2018 My Les Paul Custom Classic has a baked maple fingerboard. I have never noticed any difference from rosewood other than it is ha tighter pores and less figure than rosewood and cost me a lot less due to the fretboard. Buyers tend to pass them up for earlier and later models with rosewood fretboards. Does it feel any different? I do notice a difference when playing a rosewood or regular maple fingerboard - I would have thought that a baked maple fingerboard, while being darker in color, would "feel" more like a regular maple board than a rosewood board - is that not the case? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Blackface Posted December 17, 2018 Members Share Posted December 17, 2018 The quote is "We warrant these necks for two years just like any of our other necks with no finish on them" (American Lutherie #134, Summer 2018) but he also says that "when they split the head they think the wood was bad, but they just didn't read the instructions" Warmoth does not actually roast the wood themselves, its done by a supplier. Ken says that quality wise its always nice material, he thinks they don't want to waste their time roasting lower grade stuff. According to their website that you can actually buy stuff from, regular maple necks require a finish and roasted maple do not. You can see which woods need finish based on the charts here: http://www.warmoth.com/Guitar/Necks/NeckWoods.aspx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cornholio Farquarth III Posted December 23, 2018 Members Share Posted December 23, 2018 I'm not interested in baked, roasted, or otherwise cooked wood on a geetar. To me that's inflicting damage to it. I would be concerned with long term stability with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JTEES4 Posted January 28, 2019 Members Share Posted January 28, 2019 I had a 2012 Gibson Les Paul Special Humbucker with a baked maple board, it looked great and played and sounded great. The guitar is only gone because I had back issues and needed lighter guitars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members timtheshredder Posted February 7, 2019 Members Share Posted February 7, 2019 I have to say, I'm not a fan. I like the regular maple neck better. It sounds more full. Plus, it just looks better. Just my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members roughtrade Posted February 20, 2019 Members Share Posted February 20, 2019 I have a Firebird Studio, 2018, that has a baked grenadillo fretboard. It plays nicely. My callouses really prevent me from noticing any real major differences from rosewood, or from regular maple, except it is not as slick feeling as a finished wood, definitely more like rosewood and ebony. Gibson also experimented with a wood called preciosa for fretboards back in the early 2000 timeframe. Smartwood Les Pauls had them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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