Brazilian Rosewood - worth it?

[headless Phil]

Guys

I am deciding on what wood to build my next guitar from. My question is this – is Brazilian Rosewood worth seeking out & the extra cost?

I am thinking in terms of strength & tone / sustain.

I was thinking of using this for a thru neck construction with ash wings on the body & ebony fingerboard & ebony veneer front. The guitar will then be lightly oil finished only.

Thanks

Phil

[Biohazard]

I've only ever known brazillian rosewood to be used for fretboards.

[Devon Headen]

I could only justify it for a top of the line everything instrument. It's extrememly expensive, and although I've never worked with it, I don't imagine it is much different than Indian Rosewood.

[guitar_ed]

Hi Phil,

Due to rainforest destruction, Brazillian Rosewood is very difficult to get and very expensive. Another reason you do not see a lot of Rosewood, in general, on guitar bodies is that it is very dense and heavy.

On the other hand, top of the line BR is incredibly beautiful, which is why people want it so badly. So for weight and $$ reasons, it used almost exclusively for fretboards.

One company that does use BR for their acoustic guitars is Martin Guitars. If you go to their web page, you can get a feel for how much impact BR has on the price of a guitar.

Take care,

Guitar Ed

[Meegs666]

i believe george harrison had a rosewood tele at one point. they shot a video or something on top of a building. in the outakes and such you can hear him saying to paul "do you realize how bloody f-ckin heavy this thing is, ive hurt my damn back" i have a hard enough time playing a gretsch duo jet, i wouldnt dare go for something heavier than that, but you know if it sounds good and you want to get a hernea lifting it up than more power to ya. im just not a big fan of having a crane come to my gigs to pick the guitar up and place it on my shoulder.

[camsna]

Hey, Phil. I used to work for Suhr Guitars. While I was there we built a guitar with a solid BRW neck. It looked SWEET, but sounded, well, bad. It's great for acoustics and fingerboards...but for a neck, especially neck/thru, I'd say that it ain't worth the expense. If want a cool looking, super strong and bitchin' sounding neck, try pau ferro. Sweet tone and really stable (also called Ironwood).

[erikbojerik]

One thing that concerns me is that, if you shell out the big bucks for Brazilian Rosewood, how can you tell that you're getting the real thing (without a DNA test)? I saw not too recently a BRW top, sides and back for a Benedetto-style archtop on the 'Bay with a BIN price of $2500!!! It thought "yeah OK, but how do you really know it's Brazilian?" And as has been said, would it really sound that different?

One thing you can do is to try and scavenge some thin BRW from some beat-up vintage 60s-era acoustics, can be enough to make a fretboard and some odds & ends if you play your cards right.

[Snork]

i think indian rosewood are just about the same. i've seen both at the hardwood store. if you can find some great looking indian rosewood i think it will look and sound about the same as brazilian. for a cheaper alternative try bubinga or ovangkol.

[camcool]

yyyyyeseeerrrrrreeeeeeeee

it is worth it i m a pro

[camcool]

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[Devon Headen]

i think indian rosewood are just about the same. i've seen both at the hardwood store. if you can find some great looking indian rosewood i think it will look and sound about the same as brazilian. for a cheaper alternative try bubinga or ovangkol.

I wish my hardwood store carried either . Are you sure your store a BR? I find it's almost impossible to find. When you do find it it's back and side sets. Larry at Gallery Hardwoods quoted me 600 for a back/side set.

[headless Phil]

The reason I asked is because Klein guitars have used rosewood since stopping using steinberger graphite necks.

Feed back I have picked up on the net suggests these sound better.

I had not considered weight here though, I dont want a 10 pounder!

I want warmth & sustain from the wood - are there any others I should be considering?? my existing guitar has rock maple thru neck with ebony board, I would like a slightly different sound from the next one. I was thinking of mahogany originally but picked up that this is not really that strong from this forum.

Thanks

Phil

[camsna]

I'm a bit confused, Phil. Acoustic or electric?

[Devon Headen]

Go with the mahogany. It's perfectly suitable for any wooden part except the FB. Rosewood is most definitely not gonna be "warm" Rosewood is denser than maple, so it's probably gonna sound even more harsh.

[headless Phil]

Thanks for all the responses - the guitar I am building is electric (to answer earlier question)

if rosewood will be more harsh than maple then thats not what i am after, sounds like mahogany or ironwood may be my better options.

Thanks

Phil

[bigdguitars]

I like satinwood if you can find it. Open grained very hard, bright and snappy sound...

[camsna]

What style electric are you building? And what sound are you going for? EVERYTHING effects tone one way or another. Hardware...glue...jish. Anyhow. One of my FAVORITE wood combos is Korina body, korina neck, maple top, pau ferro fretboard. Sustainy and great on sparkle and beef. But if it's a bolt-on I prefer mahogany to korina.