Jump to content
Gibson Brands Forums

MAPLE NECK VS MAHOGANY NECK


hoross

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 53
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

It's hard to decide between maple and mahogany neck in general. Maple seems more vibrant to me, but I also experienced that fretboard material and neck shape contribute a lot to the overall behaviour.

 

Both timbers allow for making very fine necks. I think the entire instrument is what counts in the end.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If I were blindfolded I wouldn't be able to tell the difference between mahogany and maple in a million years.

As long as the neck profile is 'good' and the finish is smooth I really couldn't care less.

 

Fingerboards are a different matter, of course, but the necks themselves? Nope. Doesn't matter (to me) in the slightest.

 

P.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pippy is correct when he says you could never tell the difference blindfolded and just playing.

 

My 25 / 50 is (mainly) maple and looks great and feels great. However, I perceive the main advantage of maple is stability and toughness. Maple necks tend to stay straight if they are straight in the first place and maple is a vastly tougher wood than mahogany.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I wouldn't know the difference in feel, but I've heard side-by-side comparisons of Custom Les Paul type guitars made from different tone woods and you can hear a difference in the tone of the guitars. While I'm not sure just the neck being of a different wood will make nearly as big a difference as the whole guitar, I suspect there are some tonal difference & dynamics from the neck woods alone, but I'm not certain I can tell the difference...

 

I've heard players; Joe Bonamassa comes to mind, that claim the thicker/stouter the neck and the bigger the head stock the better overall tone from a guitar...

 

I certainly am prone to associate maple necks with Fenders more than Gibsons. I've never had a maple neck on a Gibson, although I guess I really don't know what the neck on my Peavey JF-1EX is made of, but even my '89 Torino Red Fender American Standard Strat I had back in the day had a rosewood fretboard so I wasn't playing on Maple like so many Fenders allow for...

 

I did have a Fender Bullet dot-neck before that Strat, but I cannot remember the fretboard material, but I happen to think it was probably maple...

 

I prefer anything that will stand the test of time with consistency and stability and not require constant chasing w/truss-rod adjustment or fret lift/separation...

 

I do prefer Ebony and then Rosewood for my fretboard materials so far, but I've had so many tell me the Baked Maple fretboards from Gibson are awesome that I'm considering trying one if the right opportunity comes along...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pippy is correct when he says you could never tell the difference blindfolded and just playing.

 

My 25 / 50 is (mainly) maple and looks great and feels great. However, I perceive the main advantage of maple is stability and toughness. Maple necks tend to stay straight if they are straight in the first place and maple is a vastly tougher wood than mahogany.

This is hard to generalize. To my experience, maple necks just lag much more when adjusting them. Sturdiness will also depend on neck profile and individual piece of wood.

 

The two sturdiest necks on guitars of mine, rated through the share of support by the truss rod, are made of mahogany. All in all, when comparing seventeen mahogany and sixteen maple necks, they are very similar in taking up forces over time but the maple ones tend to vibrate stronger.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If I were blindfolded I wouldn't be able to tell the difference between mahogany and maple in a million years.

As long as the neck profile is 'good' and the finish is smooth I really couldn't care less.

 

Fingerboards are a different matter, of course, but the necks themselves? Nope. Doesn't matter (to me) in the slightest.

 

P.

 

Yes,, this.

 

Anything else is pompous nonsense.

 

I challenge ANYONE to pass the blindfold test.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

as long as the neck and fretboard are both good, hard wood, I really don't care what either is made from, but i'm terribly heavy handed and rather rough on a neck/FB, so if there's a little extra "drag" at first, it won't be there long.

 

the only necks I don't care for are the "dipped in plastic" poly necks some Asian guitars have.....but a good dose of ultra fine 0000 steel wool fixes that really fast!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i have a maple neck on the new les paul studio 2014 and i must say i found personally the quality better then a mahogany neck.

I think the durability and strongness of a maple neck is much better then a mahogany neck.

 

Absolutely agree with you here. The maple neck on the 2014 Studio is perfect, and you do not have the same amount of flex as I have seen with mahogany necked Gibsons. Why the hell Gibson decided to put such weird (FUGLY) colored plastics on this years Studios is a mystery to me, but I think they hit it out the park with this years Studios.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Absolutely agree with you here. The maple neck on the 2014 Studio is perfect, and you do not have the same amount of flex as I have seen with mahogany necked Gibsons. Why the hell Gibson decided to put such weird (FUGLY) colored plastics on this years Studios is a mystery to me, but I think they hit it out the park with this years Studios.

 

 

Maybe the difference is not in "the feel".

 

I had a '74 (ish) L5s which had a 5 ply Maple neck and I could never warm it up. Always so cold!!

 

My Les Paul Recording with its mahogany neck instantly warmed to the touch.

 

My L5s was therefore seldom used and went. My '72 LPR neck continues to be warm and responsive.

 

DG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Absolutely agree with you here. The maple neck on the 2014 Studio is perfect, and you do not have the same amount of flex as I have seen with mahogany necked Gibsons. Why the hell Gibson decided to put such weird (FUGLY) colored plastics on this years Studios is a mystery to me, but I think they hit it out the park with this years Studios.

 

Just bought a 14 after selling my 13. The Maple neck was the main reason, as I do feel(and hope), it's a stronger material and less prone to the dreaded headstock break. The Vintage gloss finish has got bashed a bit on the various forums, but I love the Brilliant Red Burst finish on my 14 Studio. The neck feels smoother to touch too, although can't say there was much difference in the sound of either guitar. Maybe a tad more treble in the bridge position, though I'd put that down to the different bridge pups on the 13/14.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just bought a 14 after selling my 13. The Maple neck was the main reason, as I do feel(and hope), it's a stronger material and less prone to the dreaded headstock break. The Vintage gloss finish has got bashed a bit on the various forums, but I love the Brilliant Red Burst finish on my 14 Studio. The neck feels smoother to touch too, although can't say there was much difference in the sound of either guitar. Maybe a tad more treble in the bridge position, though I'd put that down to the different bridge pups on the 13/14.

I agree. It seems hard to discern between these influences.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have guitars with both woods, enjoy them equally. For me its more about the feel of the neck and not having it sticky. I have tried a studio and LPJ with a maple neck and the material felt fine, the neck profile was another matter.

 

Find a guitar that feels good to you, don't worry so much about the wood type. Thats how I always choose mine.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Um, aren't maple necks supposed to have a brighter sound than mahogany? :unsure:

 

Lots of people say that maple is a "bright" wood. When comparing two types of wood, the term "bright" generally means "more treble/upper-mids".

 

The illusion of maple's "brightness" comes from it's lack of bass response, which emphasizes the upper-mids and treble frequences.

 

Rosewood (generally) has more treble response and is a little scooped in the upper-mids, but also has an extended bass response and more lower-mids which gives it the "warmth" we often associate with it.

 

Mahogany is fairly even but with rolled off treble and bass response, which gives it that low-mid "growl", that mid "honk" and that cutting upper-midrange that doesn't take your head off.

 

At least that's how I hear it. As always, tone is subjective.

 

-Ryan

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 6 years later...

I have a mahogany neck LP Tribute 2018. The finish is satin and I can feel that the grains of the mahogany are smaller. I’ll have to feel a maple neck LP to compare, but my G&L L2000 Tribute Maple neck definitely feels smoother. With any sort of thicker finish, I doubt that I could tell the difference. I like them both.

 

p.s. You can see where the light is reflected more smoothly off of maple

ECEA0239-A86E-448C-BD3A-60FFE11DBFE1.jpeg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I had to wait 45/50 minutes at Andertons while they fetched over the maple necked ES-339 Studio from the warehouse. While waiting I played 3 mahogany necked ES-339s.

I felt there might have been a small difference in brightness of tone, but I really could not be sure. If there is a difference, its very small. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 I owned only one Strat and one Tele and one SG with maple boards. The SG was that baked maple. On the Fenders the only differeance was the maple boards were finished, and the baked one was not. I can't remember if it was my Faded SG or the Standard. I know I had RW on the SG Special. The other two were around the time of the infamous wood raid. Gilmour had The Black Strat. I had a green one, take that Dave.

ZhlmsTp.jpg

2kXSTIK.jpg

Edited by Sgt. Pepper
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...