Passive fretless tone

[CliveT]

I'm looking for a good, full sounding fretless tone on my fretless jazz, something like this by Guy Pratt:

[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2gSwNyyevk"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2gSwNyyevk[/url]

It's not a DVD quality clip so hopefully you can hear properly what's going on rather than post production. Skip to 2:57 to hear the short bass solo. It's a passive Lakland fretless, is he using both pickups together, or just the neck pickup?

[wateroftyne]

That's a neck and a bridge goin' on right there...

[The Bass Doc]

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='469698' date='Apr 22 2009, 04:12 PM']That's a neck and a bridge goin' on right there...[/quote]

Dashed clever of you WoT. I suspect that even in the short time since the OP appeared you downloaded a still from the show, E-mailed a friend in the CIA in Washington D.C. who enhanced and magnified the image 100 times whilst researching via information gleaned from Guy Pratt's guitar tech on an earlier tour as to the position of the line pointers on this particular bass when it was switched off. They then digitally rotated the image of the knobs through 340 degrees to reveal that both pickups were indeed full on before E-mailing you their findings. OR did you just use your lugs?

[CliveT]

Thanks guys, discernment comes with experience and I appreciate your input.

Both pups on full on Jazz bass does create a natural mid scoop so I guess a boost to the mids on the amp would be needed too.

[wateroftyne]

Here's a little vid I made a couple of weeks ago, where I switch between the three pup combinations on a Tony Franklin fretless. It should give you an idea of the tonal differences...

[odub]

What do you think of that Tony Franklin? Hows it play?

[Spoombung]

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='470457' date='Apr 23 2009, 10:36 AM']Here's a little vid I made a couple of weeks ago, where I switch between the three pup combinations on a Tony Franklin fretless. It should give you an idea of the tonal differences...

[/quote]

Nice. I must say it's VERY rare to hear a fretless player using anything but the bridge pickup.

[wateroftyne]

It's great.. I love it. The TF neck is a quite wide, and shallow front-to-back, and it's very easy to play. Even with ancient flats it sings and sustains for weeks.

In fact, I'm tearing myself up over whether to keep it and sell my '71 or get a Fanklin-like neck for my '71 and sell the TF on.

I've got The Bass Doc's lovely ebony neck on my '71 at the minute and I used each bass for half a set last weekend. They both sounded and played marvellous.

GAH!

[wateroftyne]

[quote name='Spoombung' post='470472' date='Apr 23 2009, 10:53 AM']Nice. I must say it's VERY rare to hear a fretless player using anything but the bridge pickup.[/quote]

Y'know, as soon as the J pickup is dropped into the mix (on any fretless, not specifically the TF) it kills it for me.

I realise I'm in the minority, though.

[odub]

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='470478' date='Apr 23 2009, 10:57 AM']It's great.. I love it. The TF neck is a quite wide, and shallow front-to-back, and it's very easy to play. Even with ancient flats it sings and sustains for weeks.

In fact, I'm tearing myself up over whether to keep it and sell my '71 or get a Fanklin-like neck for my '71 and sell the TF on.

I've got The Bass Doc's lovely ebony neck on my '71 at the minute and I used each bass for half a set last weekend. They both sounded and played marvellous.

GAH![/quote]

Give me a shout when you've decided?

[CliveT]

Thanks wateroftyne, nice clip, and very helpful to hear that along side the clip above. I appreciate your dilemma about the 71 too, they both sound great.

Interesting what’s been said about the J pickup too. You seem to get shunned by the fretless community for not using it.

[xilddx]

[quote name='CliveT' post='470678' date='Apr 23 2009, 01:24 PM']Interesting what’s been said about the J pickup too. You seem to get shunned by the fretless community for not using it.[/quote]
Ridiculous attitude, probably from those Jaco wannabes who have no tone of their own. I much prefer the full on front pickup tone.

[henry norton]

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='470479' date='Apr 23 2009, 11:58 AM']Y'know, as soon as the J pickup is dropped into the mix (on any fretless, not specifically the TF) it kills it for me.

I realise I'm in the minority, though.[/quote]

I totally agree. I fitted a J to the brigde position on my fretless Precision and found I only really used it to do Jaco ripoff harmonics. The P has a fantastic fretless tone.

[CliveT]

It's great to hear it's not just me who prefers the neck pickup, or a combination of the two I’ve been struggling for a while to get a good tone from the bridge pickup because you read that’s all you should use on fretless.

[Beedster]

I find in fretless playing the combination of the two JPUPs on a conventional Jazz can be extremely rewarding but that combining JPUP and PPUP on a hybrid fretless just doesn't work. I run old flats on my fretless Precision and new rounds on the fretless Jazz and between them they have a pretty wide range of tones covered. I prefere the tone of the Precision solo'd or in space but the Jazz sit's better if there more than one or two instruments.

[Jase]

The whole bass sounds great I reckon, Neck, both or just Bridge....great playing WoT! Bridge pup fan meself

[wateroftyne]

[quote name='Beedster' post='470884' date='Apr 23 2009, 04:09 PM']I find in fretless playing the combination of the two JPUPs on a conventional Jazz can be extremely rewarding but that combining JPUP and PPUP on a hybrid fretless just doesn't work. I run old flats on my fretless Precision and new rounds on the fretless Jazz and between them they have a pretty wide range of tones covered. I prefere the tone of the Precision solo'd or in space but the Jazz sit's better if there more than one or two instruments.[/quote]
Fairy nuff.. for me, the bridge pup just drags it away from approximating an URB.

[wateroftyne]

[quote name='Jase' post='470950' date='Apr 23 2009, 05:18 PM']The whole bass sounds great I reckon, Neck, both or just Bridge....great playing WoT! Bridge pup fan meself [/quote]
Thank you!

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='Spoombung' post='470472' date='Apr 23 2009, 10:53 AM']Nice. I must say it's VERY rare to hear a fretless player using anything but the bridge pickup.[/quote]

Usually full on neck pickup on my fretless Jazz here. Very rare I use the bridge pickup. In fact not that happy with the Jazz tone, so got to get a fretless Precision I think.

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='wateroftyne' post='470457' date='Apr 23 2009, 10:36 AM']Here's a little vid I made a couple of weeks ago, where I switch between the three pup combinations on a Tony Franklin fretless. It should give you an idea of the tonal differences...[/quote]

Very nice, especially the P pickup.

[Etienne]

Another +1 here for using the neck pickup on a fretless- I use the P pickup on my defretted Yamaha BB414 and love the sound!

John Paul Jones used a fretless maple-necked sunburst Precision with Led Zeppelin IIRC- you can see him tearing it up live on the Led Zep DVD, on 'In My Time Of Dying' (Earls Court 1975, Disc 2). I think he's got it tuned down a whole tone (DGCF) to work with Jimmy Page's open-tuned Danelectro... incredible playing from both of them!

[foal30]

yup, Neck Pick up only on the Fretless jazz when through my Valve amp
different in band setting obviously
but for home practice it is lovely getting that warmth.

[CliveT]

Thanks for all the comments. I used the fretless jazz at a gig over the weekend, with both pickups on full, and with 1 to 2 db boost to the bass and 4 to 5 db boost to the mids it sounded great.

[CliveT]

Here's another clip of a fretless Jazz bass. This time it's Eddie Duffy playing with Simple Minds. Does this sound like just the neck pickup rather than both?
[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIdtU-E2kLk"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIdtU-E2kLk[/url]

[wateroftyne]

[quote name='CliveT' post='550202' date='Jul 24 2009, 01:57 PM']Here's another clip of a fretless Jazz bass. This time it's Eddie Duffy playing with Simple Minds. Does this sound like just the neck pickup rather than both?
[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIdtU-E2kLk"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIdtU-E2kLk[/url][/quote]
Lots of bridge pup in there, I think..