Macassar ebony
A striped ebony from Sulawesi, also sold as coromandel, with cream bands running through a dark brown ground.
Unlike the uniformly black ebonies, this species is naturally streaked, and the boldest boards are sold specifically for that striping. It is extremely hard and dense, polishes to a smooth surface with no finish at all and resists fret wear, which makes it a natural fingerboard material on high-end instruments and basses. It is commonly described as producing a bright, articulate attack with a tight and controlled low end, similar to the other ebonies. It is heavy, scarce relative to demand, hard on tooling, and its trade is monitored, so the paler striped boards are also being imitated by synthetics.
Example: A bass with a Macassar ebony board shows its stripes between the frets while its hard surface keeps the low notes clean.
typical use: Fretboards, bridges and decorative tops on high-end instruments.
See also
Related
- PageTone wood
- PageEbony
- PageBocote
- PageAdirondack spruce
- PageAfrican blackwood
- PageAfrican mahogany
- PageAaron Dessner
- PageAce Frehley