How can you tell the difference between ebony and blackwood?
Is one better than the other or is it just a question of personal taste?
As there is more than one timber called ebony, it can be a bit tricky in visually telling the difference. ABW has a dark reddish-brown cast to it and there is a species of ebony somewhat similar in color, while some is very black. Those familiar with both can usually see the difference.
As to one being “better” than the other, it depends on what you mean by being better. ABW is easier to bore and turn, and is more dense than ebony. ABW is better suited for flat pipes IMHO, and ebony is often used for concert pipes, as the tone is a bit mellower. Ebony is also used for flat pipes by many top makers as well. ABW seems to give a hard edge to the tone on concert pitch pipes, and I don’t usually like it for them. This is all just my opinion and others may disagree.
Ted
Ebony seems to favour the harmonics more than Blackwood. In reality most concert pitch chanters are being made in blackwood. Leo Rowsome’s nicest chanters are all in a lovely dense ebony which he seems to have had a good supply of.
Both ABW and Ebony come in different flavors. Macassar ebony is favored by Alain Froment today.
Blackwood burns longer. 
I think that maybe Madagascarian ebony. But I know Stephen Scales sourced a large quantity of Indian ebony that is now impossible to get and he is still using some of that
RORY
PJ,
The Robbie Hughes circa 1999 I have, is African Blackwood and I’m currently in the process of converting my cocobolo drones for matching Hughes in Blackwood or ebony. Know anyone selling Hughes and McLeod Co. Strangford drones.
Ebony is pretty common in France, rather than ABW, for woodwinds; I wonder if it could be related to the common timbers that people could get in the colonies of their respective countries. English/Scottish/Irish seem to have favoured ABW, and France Ebony.
For instance, Madagascar was a French colony.
Just ran across a website that has some potentially useful info about blackwood, ebony, and other exotic woods. It’s at http://www.exoticwoodgroup.com/.
Cheers,
Craig
Yes, I’m agree 100% about ebony for Uilleann Pipes. But very specially a “soft” ebony from the India. Unfortunately, it’s exporting is forbidden since 10-15 years ago. This is a very fragile wood, but it sounds amazing.
A.D.