I had the maple, end-grain board built. It is a nice looking board and the height and thickness are just right for me.
The only drawback for me (and it’s really not a big deal-breaker) is that a few of the end pieces used show what looks to be a mineral stain in the wood. In no way does it affect the functionality or structure of the board, just purely cosmetic. It would probably look more appealing to some if none of the end pieces used had the stain, or more pieces had it and those pieces were represented across the entire board rather than clustered in one place.
Again, not a thing wrong with the board, to me it’s a beautiful piece, however if you’re particular about the colors and grain being the same throughout, the finished piece just be aware that you are dealing with a natural material and there may be slight differences in pieces used for construction.