Expectations of A Maple Neck

[C&M Music - Lafayette]

I am considering ordering an Artist Hollowbody II with a Maple Neck. Is the Maple neck comparable to the remarkable results I found on my Modern Eagle? I cannot say enough for the difference the rosewood neck has made. I lean towards the maple because it is a staple for archtops. If the rosewood will not be too much for the hollowbody, I will go that route likely. Can I expect similar results from the maple neck or should I opt for the rosewood. What say you folks?

I will update my NGD Modern Eagle thread with pics soon.

 

[László]

Maple sounds different from Rosewood. So it depends what you're looking for.

In general, you get a bit crisper sound with faster sounding note attack. Coupled with the typical ebony fingerboard on an archtop guitar, you get a very different vibe than you would with a rosewood/rosewood combination, which will sound warmer and have more thickness in the lower mids.

 

[C&M Music - Lafayette]

Thank you Les,

I guess what I am getting at is to maximize the acoustic value of the hollowbody slightly over any lead/rythym playing of the hollowbody. The concern being is the rosewood just right, or to much. The sustain and resonance seem to be a good match, but the maple just seems to be a much safer bet. And yes, I do want the crisp note attack, but I want the best of the both worlds and like the sustain the rosewood brings. I guess I have to make a compromise. I am leaning towards the maple neck with the brazilian board. PRS would certainly not offer a bad choice, I am just curious to see what has proven to be pleasing to others. Who out there has a hollowbody with a rosewood or maple neck? What are your thoughts please?

 

[László]

I don't know if it helps, because acoustics are different, but I have a maple neck/ebony fingerboard on my Tonare Grand acoustic, and it's very articulate. It's a wonderful combination on the acoustic guitar (mine also has maple back/sides).

I've had maple/rosewood combinations on a couple of SAS and CU22 Soapbar models, but they're not hollowbodies of course. I wound up preferring the maple/maple versions to the maple/rosewood on those guitars (tried both). It seemed that the virtues of maple weren't as apparent with the RW fingerboard as they are with ebony or maple fingerboards. At least to my ear.

I realize that none of this really helps you, but I figured I'd throw it out there.

 

[CHARISMAFIRE]

I LOVE MAPLE NECKS! I dont think you can go wrong with a HB2. The real question is what pickups.

 

[Egads]

There is a rosewood necked red HB II (I can't remember if it's a singlecut HB or not) floating around out here, and the owner loves it.

 

[MOBirds]

FWIW - I have a maple neck & board Custom 22 with 59/09s and compared to my Custom 24 with hog neck & rw board with 59/09s I can say the 22 sounds uniquely awesome. I refer to the neck pup as "dark" and everyone laughs and says "maple makes it brighter!" To that, I will say "Bah! The maple makes the deeper neck pup crisper, more defined, so the low end actually stands out - hence to me 'darker'". Music49 has a Bonnie Pink HB II Artist with maple on maple still in stock and I've played that in store and can say it's very similar to my ears to my 22 (not 59/09's in it, so not exactly same). If I could get over the pink, I'd be GASin for it, but the pink just ain't for me. I really like how it projects alone without amp thought. Depending on what I see at Experience, I may end up ordering an Artist build of my own with same config but different color.

 

[C&M Music - Lafayette]

I am going to stay with the stock pups. Rosewood or Maple is my dilemma. Since I lost out on a 85 PRS just now, I am going to see what is available at the experience before pulling the trigger. It is safe to say, I am addicted to PRS. I am looking for more! Got to get my next PRS fix!!!

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Dude. Have you seen the maple neck maple fretboard HBII prototype thats on ebay? It looks amaze-balls.

 

[Tag]

FWIW - I have a maple neck & board Custom 22 with 59/09s and compared to my Custom 24 with hog neck & rw board with 59/09s I can say the 22 sounds uniquely awesome. I refer to the neck pup as "dark" and everyone laughs and says "maple makes it brighter!" To that, I will say "Bah! The maple makes the deeper neck pup crisper, more defined, so the low end actually stands out - hence to me 'darker'".

I think a big part of what you are hearing may be the location of the neck pup on the CU22. It (neck PUP) is going to be darker and IMO, bigger sounding than on a CU24 because of the location. The Maple IS probably making it a bit brighter and snappier, but not enough to over ride the location, which makes a huge difference. IMO, YMMV and all of that.

 

[yankeebulldog]

I much prefer maple over rosewood on solid bodies at least, my PS SC245 and my Brent Mason both with Korina bodies. To me maple necks don't have that suppressed midrange and I love the quicker attack.