RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE Posted August 5, 2014 Share Posted August 5, 2014 I have a fretless vester custom bass. I occasionally browse here and flea bay for the fretted version of that bass. I was wondering tho' , I would have thought that both basses. Should have the same feel to them. What do you think ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve-bbb Posted August 5, 2014 Share Posted August 5, 2014 (edited) no edit - i have a fretty J and got myself a vm unfretted from this very forum they are both shaped the same and same dimensions but the similarity pretty much ends there both different weights differnt pups hence completely different sounds controls on the supposedly better model noisy as anything and crackly just remembered one other similarity is that they both have a tendecny for the G string to drop tension when not being played hope this helps Edited August 5, 2014 by steve-bbb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE Posted August 5, 2014 Author Share Posted August 5, 2014 Wow! Quickest reply in history Why not ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve-bbb Posted August 5, 2014 Share Posted August 5, 2014 well i guess a big part of the difference in feel is in the widely varying approach to technique required by the fretted and unfretted broadly speaking shape and dimesions the same will be a very similar feel but because of the different approach to technique required you need to play them differently to get the desired tone and effect so imho its not quite the same as trying to compare say a fretted squire J with a fretted fender J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE Posted August 5, 2014 Author Share Posted August 5, 2014 Thanks Steve . Looks like I should keep the basses I have then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve-bbb Posted August 5, 2014 Share Posted August 5, 2014 dont take my word for it though if youre at the SE bass bash you can compare and contrast my fretted and unfretted J's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted August 5, 2014 Share Posted August 5, 2014 (edited) After years of muscle memory from playing a fretted note in one area of the neck even if you ripped the frets out of the same bass just playing all the notes 1/2 inch further up the neck would feel different never mind a different bass, that said a J fretted and J fretless will feel more similar than say a J fretted and a MM fretless obviously, just looking at the lines on that fretless Squire is making my intonation go pear shaped as I would try and [b][i]fret [/i][/b]the note rather than [b][i]stop[/i][/b] the note on the line if you get what I mean?, it was not until I started on DB that I began to understand why some people dont like a lined neck. Edited August 5, 2014 by stingrayPete1977 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brensabre79 Posted August 6, 2014 Share Posted August 6, 2014 [quote name='RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE' timestamp='1407235557' post='2518544'] I have a fretless vester custom bass. I occasionally browse here and flea bay for the fretted version of that bass. I was wondering tho' , I would have thought that both basses. Should have the same feel to them. What do you think ? [/quote] If you bought another fretless Vester it wouldn't feel exactly the same, but at least the notes would be in the same place. playing fretted means you'll have to move your fingers back a little bit - so it'll never feel the same as a fretless. I play fretted mostly, but when I do get the fretless out it feels like being let off the leash Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE Posted August 6, 2014 Author Share Posted August 6, 2014 Strange really. My go to bass, is normally my was burn status. It's fretted. But for some reason , the fretless vester feels light and smooth to play. Maybe it's the strings, which are the lightest I've ever played . They have black threading on the tops , and have been on it since 1994/6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE Posted August 6, 2014 Author Share Posted August 6, 2014 [quote name='steve-bbb' timestamp='1407242141' post='2518658'] dont take my word for it though if youre at the SE bass bash you can compare and contrast my fretted and unfretted J's [/quote] Nice basses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve-bbb Posted August 6, 2014 Share Posted August 6, 2014 the blue one is a beast now that it has wizard hammers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted August 6, 2014 Share Posted August 6, 2014 I had a fretless Ibanez SR800, lovely bass, and always had GAS for a fretted version. Ibanez do change the specs of their basses regularly but eventually I was lucky enough to find a fretted SR800 from the same model year. Apart from the neck & colour, it was identical - same weight, balance, pickups, EQ, hardware etc, so it did feel very similar & familiar in most ways. Sound & feel were different only because fretted & fretless are inherently different instruments. I don't have either of them any more (which I regret to a certain degree) but I did learn that while I prefer a skinny J-width neck on a fretted bass, I'm a lot more comfortable with a wider, flatter board on a fretless. Jon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE Posted August 6, 2014 Author Share Posted August 6, 2014 That's the thing Jon. I'm assuming that, other than the frets, both basses should, in theory be the same . They're even the same colour . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted August 6, 2014 Share Posted August 6, 2014 I've got 2 Streamers. The one in my avatar and this one below. The pups are the same, the necks are about the same, the wood, size and weight... etc, etc. One's a bolt on and the others' a through neck, but no they don't feel totally the same to me. As others have said, I think it's because the technique and the mind-set thinking about intonation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Count Bassy Posted August 7, 2014 Share Posted August 7, 2014 I have an Ibanez 605 (Fretted) and an Ibanez GWB35 (Fretless). Apart from the obvious they are very similar to play. Ie neck profile & size, body size and shape practically the same, they hang the same (despite the the rear peg on the GWB being about 100mm higher (ie not on centre line). Obviously sond different (otherwise what's the point ?). I got the GWB first, and got the 605 because it looked as close to the fretted equivalent as you'd get, and I was not disappointed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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