Fretless GUITAR

[TheGreek]

No mistake...a fretless 6 string guitar...now you don't see these everyday..

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hutchins-fretless-guitar-Fender-telecaster-copy-/141678068817?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item20fcabc451

[pete.young]

There's some great clips on youtube featuring the awesome Guthrie Govan demonstrating his Vigier fretless guitar.

[PlungerModerno]

Pretty cool. Unfortunately due to the accuracy needed to play in tune consistently - It's not a very simple switch from fretted 6:

Someone with a lot of practice: (see pete's comment) or [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjEGtUXGWa0"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjEGtUXGWa0[/url]

Vs a fretted player trying fretless: [url="https://youtu.be/ewCZ-TWdx40?t=74"]https://youtu.be/ewCZ-TWdx40?t=74[/url]

[Annoying Twit]

The recording of John Lennon trying to play a fretless guitar while speaking to Kenny Everett springs to mind.

If I remember correctly, Rondo Music in the USA was selling a fretless 12 string guitar. Surely everyone needs a fretless 12 string guitar in their collection.

EDIT: They still do. http://www.rondomusic.com/al310012bkfl.html

Edited June 4, 2015 by Annoying Twit

[Beer of the Bass]

[quote name='Annoying Twit' timestamp='1433456633' post='2791328']
If I remember correctly, Rondo Music in the USA was selling a fretless 12 string guitar. Surely everyone needs a fretless 12 string guitar in their collection.

[/quote]

I wonder how many of those they've sold? It might be fun to string it in unison with a single string on the bottom and play it like an oud, otherwise I can't think what else you might do with one!

[AndyTravis]

That's pretty handsome though!?

[Annoying Twit]

[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1433457753' post='2791337']
I wonder how many of those they've sold? It might be fun to string it in unison with a single string on the bottom and play it like an oud, otherwise I can't think what else you might do with one!
[/quote]

They're selling to the US market. That's 300 million people. Surely among that number of people, there's a useful chunk of people who would buy this 'because it's there', and it's cheap. That's partially what led me to buy my 6/12 string double neck silent guitar, that I haven't really played since I bought it. But when I walked through town carrying it, people were stopping me in the street to ask about it. I'm sure a fretless 12 string Les Paul would be a similar conversation piece.

[quote name='AndyTravis' timestamp='1433457929' post='2791340']
That's pretty handsome though!?
[/quote]

Which one? If the agile, I think it would look better with black pickups

[jazzyvee]

I have a Vigier surfretter I bought about 12 or so years back. Still in great nick. I used it live a few times when I was working as a guitarist with an Indian artiste and on a couple of TV recordings. These days it doesn't see much action. It's surprisingly easy to play if you trust your finger memory but clean chords are a challenge.
The first guitar I made from scratch when I was about 18 was a fretless electric guitar, then made another in the early 80's from parts but that time I de-fretted a strat style neck to get a better finger board than the one I made earlier. I gigged quite a bit with that one too.

Edited June 5, 2015 by jazzyvee

[TheGreek]

I think a happy middle ground with these would be to fret from the nut to the 12th fret then fretless above. That way guitarists could still play chords and reserve the fretless part for twiddling...I think that Wal made a few Basses like this IIRC.

[PlungerModerno]

I know of the Ibanez Fretted/Fretless bass - the Ashula:


Didn't know wal had it the other way (frets for part of the way along the board, as opposed to part of the way across the board, like the Ashula above!

Closest thing I can find is the classic Hellborg:

[Happy Jack]

Up next, someone playing bottleneck violin ...