Thanks for doing this, David. I hope demand and availability for this material brings about a drop in price, and encourages further innovation in this area.
Thanks for this video, I'm currently considering this in a current build. Do you apply oil to it? By the way, If you put on thick rimmed glasses you could do a damn good Stephen Merchant impression.
I have an old Washburn RS-8v which has this material on the fretboard. I’m watching this video because I’m seeking information about a replacement material for the purpose of improving the sound of the guitar acoustically.
I always ask myself if that kind of material is safe for human health ....Some guitars i ve played the richlite or micarta fingerboard had a very strange odor ...... Can anybody answer that question ???...thanks !
the stuff is so hard to block sand..and the sides of the fret slots done compress much so the slots need to really match the fret tang correctly or it will introduce a strong backbow..replacing the frets i read is a nightmare..hard and long lasting material certainly
Thank you, I've been searching for reviews on this for some time. How do you rate it's tonal qualities against ebony. I have a blank similar to the one you show in the video, and it's tap tone is very different to ebony so I wondered what a finished guitar would sound like.
I agree about the tap tone. This guitar sold within a week of it being completed, so I didn't have long to get a real feel for the tone. But under the fingers it does feel like ebony. I guess if you built two identical guitars, one with an ebony fretboard and the other with Rocklite there may be some small tonal differences, but the Rocklite would not necessarily be inferior to the ebony. For me the most important thing about Rocklite is that it is a real alternative to ebony. Will we be building guitars with ebony 30 years from now? I doubt it. And hopefully that is not just because there are no ebony trees left!
THE COOL THING IS PICKUPS DON'T AMPLIFY WOOD SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT IT UNLESS YOU ARE BUILDING A TAPTAR. I DON'T GET THE WHOLE TAPPING ON A PIECE OF WOOD TO SEE IF IT WILL MAKE PICKUPS SOUND BETTER.
@@Ibaneddie76 You're right about that from a very general sense, but think of it this way. If the pickups are only picking up the strings, then why not do everything you can to make the strings resonate in a more pleasing manor? Some woods resonate better then others, allowing the strings to ring longer/louder/with more dynamics, so although the pickups aren't DIRECTLY picking up the wood, the wood is still playing a major part in the way the guitar sounds, whether it's plugged in or not. So if you tap on a piece of wood and it sounds completely dull and flat, that's a pretty good indication of how it'll make the strings sound, dull and flat. A great set of pickups will do a good job of covering that up, and so will different techniques when using an amplifier, but that guitar will never sound as good as an instrument that rings out loud and true unplugged. There's only so much that can be covered up with electronics.
It is dull. Takes a bit of the highs out of the sound. I believe sound bounces off the fretboard when a string is fretted, and it affects the sound of the string as we (or our guitars pickups).
Thanks for the video! I just ordered a blank of rocklite for a custom build and I'm excited to see how it feels :)
Thanks for doing this, David. I hope demand and availability for this material brings about a drop in price, and encourages further innovation in this area.
Thanks. Yes, further innovation will be good and I'm sure that further restrictions on availability of hardwoods will drive this.
Thanks for this video, I'm currently considering this in a current build. Do you apply oil to it?
By the way, If you put on thick rimmed glasses you could do a damn good Stephen Merchant impression.
I have an old Washburn RS-8v which has this material on the fretboard. I’m watching this video because I’m seeking information about a replacement material for the purpose of improving the sound of the guitar acoustically.
Jeremy Irons is right, it does look a lot like Ebony.
great review ! thank you
I always ask myself if that kind of material is safe for human health ....Some guitars i ve played the richlite or micarta fingerboard had a very strange odor ...... Can anybody answer that question ???...thanks !
the stuff is so hard to block sand..and the sides of the fret slots done compress much so the slots need to really match the fret tang correctly or it will introduce a strong backbow..replacing the frets i read is a nightmare..hard and long lasting material certainly
Thank you, I've been searching for reviews on this for some time. How do you rate it's tonal qualities against ebony. I have a blank similar to the one you show in the video, and it's tap tone is very different to ebony so I wondered what a finished guitar would sound like.
I agree about the tap tone. This guitar sold within a week of it being completed, so I didn't have long to get a real feel for the tone. But under the fingers it does feel like ebony. I guess if you built two identical guitars, one with an ebony fretboard and the other with Rocklite there may be some small tonal differences, but the Rocklite would not necessarily be inferior to the ebony. For me the most important thing about Rocklite is that it is a real alternative to ebony. Will we be building guitars with ebony 30 years from now? I doubt it. And hopefully that is not just because there are no ebony trees left!
THE COOL THING IS PICKUPS DON'T AMPLIFY WOOD SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT IT UNLESS YOU ARE BUILDING A TAPTAR. I DON'T GET THE WHOLE TAPPING ON A PIECE OF WOOD TO SEE IF IT WILL MAKE PICKUPS SOUND BETTER.
@@Ibaneddie76 You're right about that from a very general sense, but think of it this way. If the pickups are only picking up the strings, then why not do everything you can to make the strings resonate in a more pleasing manor? Some woods resonate better then others, allowing the strings to ring longer/louder/with more dynamics, so although the pickups aren't DIRECTLY picking up the wood, the wood is still playing a major part in the way the guitar sounds, whether it's plugged in or not. So if you tap on a piece of wood and it sounds completely dull and flat, that's a pretty good indication of how it'll make the strings sound, dull and flat. A great set of pickups will do a good job of covering that up, and so will different techniques when using an amplifier, but that guitar will never sound as good as an instrument that rings out loud and true unplugged. There's only so much that can be covered up with electronics.
It is dull. Takes a bit of the highs out of the sound.
I believe sound bounces off the fretboard when a string is fretted, and it affects the sound of the string as we (or our guitars pickups).
How do you clean a Rocklite/Richlite fretboard?
Generally I use naptha
@@flameguitars5770 Where can I purchase this?
This is also called lighter fluid which you can buy in small top-up cans@@Happy-Me.
EBANOOOOO
Blah blah blah. if it works use it.
Curtis Lee Thanks for that *very helpful* comment.