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Anyone used it? Would you put it as having more or less overtone potential than rosewood...

Less than Rosewood, it definitely acts as you would expect from an Ebony -- but out of the Ebonies, it is one of the most musical and resonant. I really enjoy Ebony back/side when paired with Engelmann, Redwood, or Cedar.

One of my most spectacular sounding guitars was Malaysian Blackwood, but I suspect that has more to do with a high quality German spruce top and a bit of luck.

Be aware that "Malaysian Blackwood" is a tonewood supplier term that can refer to a large number of ebonies from Malaysia, where they are known and traded as "kayu malam" (literally "night wood"). There are many ebony species in this part of the world, and they are very difficult to identify as logs. The often-cited scientific name "Diospyros ebonasea" is complete fiction -- no such species exists on any recognized taxonomic list, although Diospyros is a genus in the Ebenaceae family. It's no wonder builders report so much variation in colour and figure.

Like all ebonies, in my experience, it is somewhat reluctant to bend and requires high temps. The sapwood and lighter areas of heartwood are more prone to bending failure, cracking, etc. than the darker areas.

Certainly a beautiful wood.



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I've built one with it (and bc Sitka) and I would say less, but rich and powerful. It tapped much livelier than African or macassar Ebonies and was quite dense and heavy, so ended up pretty thin. I think .070 & .080 on an OMish size.

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Pat

Professional recording of MB guitar referred to earlier http://youtu.be/IEyLVA0BuEA

Thanks folks!