Talk me out of going fretless

[TheGreek]

I didn't get on with fretless for many years but TBH I didn't persevere. 

 

I bought a Yamaha TRB 5iif which was fantastic but traded it for the fretted version. 

 

Now I have "another " fretted bass.

 

I miss my fretless. 

[Paul S]

My relationship with fretless is much the same as with a 5er.  if I am in a band situation where I need/have use for one I thoroughly enjoy playing it.  But if I don't I immediately default to 4 string fretted and anything else languishes in a cse until I take pity on them and move them on.

[nilorius]

1 minute ago, Paul S said:

My relationship with fretless is much the same as with a 5er.  if I am in a band situation where I need/have use for one I thoroughly enjoy playing it.  But if I don't I immediately default to 4 string fretted and anything else languishes in a cse until I take pity on them and move them on.

Well said, i do exactly the same.

[Lfalex v1.1]

And then there's EUBs....

[Fishfacefour]

6 minutes ago, Lfalex v1.1 said:

And then there's EUBs....

Ah don't! 

[nilorius]

8 minutes ago, Lfalex v1.1 said:

And then there's EUBs....

What is EUBs ?

[Waddo Soqable]

Fretless?.. Why bother, just bung some chorus on, and wiggle the strings about a bit... 

[Len_derby]

8 minutes ago, nilorius said:

What is EUBs ?

Electric Upright Bass.

 

[DTB]

2 hours ago, Linus27 said:

Lots of things to ponder over to make your move to fretless.

 

The first is what do you predominantly play? If you are mostly a 5 string player then get a 5 string fretless. The transition will be more natural and you won't be so limited in playing what you are already playing on your fretted 5 string bass.

 

The biggest decision is do you go for lined or unlined? There is no right or wrong choice here, it is purely down to what you prefer to play or more comfortable playing. I play unlined as I personally find lines are a huge distraction, it's easier to play but equally a bigger challenge to be more accurate so hugely rewarding and it improves your ear and technique. Players who play lined fretless basses will have their own preferences and as I say, there is no right or wrong, but your own individual preference. For information purposes, a lined fretless you play on the lines and an unlined, you play on the dots or the gaps between them.

 

There are more lined fretless basses available so your choices will be bigger. Fender make a range of lined fretless Jazz basses and a very very good lined fretless bass is the Ibanez SRF705. Beautiful bass and if it was unlined then I'd have one. Ibanez have also just released a headless 5 string lined fretless which is quite funky looking. Just remember, even if it doesn't have lines on the board, it still has lines on the side of the neck like the Ibanez fretless basses making it lined so don't get caught out thinking its unlined. As for unlined then your best bet will be second hand and a good start will be a Japanese Fender Jazz or Precision. As I say, it's hard to find an unlined fretless bass these days but not impossible and I think Warwick make an unlined Streamer Rockbass which looks nice.

 

As for playing then if you have good technique and a good ear then they are no different than playing a fretted bass. It's all about playing accurately, listening to what you are playing and making micro adjustments on the fly. It's not difficult and it's not all about slides, vibrato and Jacoesque runs, you can make it as none fretless sounding as you want. Try playing your 5 string in the dark and low light and see how you get on. If you are ok and can hear when you are out and can adjust then you'll be fine. One thing I found though is my fretted bass was a '75 Fender Jazz with blocks and binding but because I'm so used to playing a clean fretless fretboard, the blocks and binding on my fretted bass was so distracting, I had to sell it as it was so distracting to play.

 

As for the benefits, personally I prefer the tone of a fretless and the freedom that it brings. It's so expressive and musical and if you get a good one, they can so sing. Also, you'll find your technique will adjust and you'll slide up to notes and there's no step that you get with frets, it's one smooth transition from note to note. Also, chords are fabulous, for example, play an open A and fret C# (11th fret on the D string) at the same time and add a bit of vibrato, it sounds wonderful. Any singular note with a bit of vibrato sounds wonderful and expressive but you don't have to and that's the beauty, you can make it sound nothing like a fretless bass if you want. Harmonics are also another lovely, rich feature that come alive on a fretless, especially with a bit of chorus and reverb. 

 

With regards to strings, roundwounds will cause wear to a fretless board but never be afraid to use them. They sound great and the wear is minimal unless you are playing hundreds of gigs a year. A 5 minute rub down with 0000 Steel Wool and applying Beeswax Orange Oil after will bring the neck back to a glass like finish. I've used roundwounds for years and never ever had an issue, however I would never use them on my maple fretless board. Personally though, I use either LaBella Black Tapewounds which sound fabulous and are designed for fretless or LaBella Low Tension Flats on my fretless Precision's which give a very full, rich, warm, rounded tone.

 

Good luck with your search and don't be afraid to make the switch. These are my fretless basses and if you have any questions then just ask.

 

Hey Mr Linus, probably should pm you with this but not wanting to hijack the thread could you recommend a six string fretless, if not it’ll be the Ibanez 5 headless you mentioned that will stay on my list of wants. 

[Waddo Soqable]

45 minutes ago, nilorius said:

What is EUBs ?

What Chris Eubank's mates call him? 

[Fishfacefour]

So, sire fretless 5 strings., any thoughts? 

 

Not much 5 string fretless stock about in the usual shops. 

[ezbass]

11 minutes ago, Fishfacefour said:

So, sire fretless 5 strings., any thoughts? 

 

Not much 5 string fretless stock about in the usual shops. 

One of the few companies to do a fretless P type, let alone a fiver. Shame that the pictures on the Anderton’s site are fretted basses, despite the description. Doesn’t fill you with confidence. However, I can’t answer your question as I’ve never played one, although I’ve come very close to buying one of those P types on a number of occasions.

[Fishfacefour]

Yes, not having the actual pic is worrying. 

 

I'm sure there are thoughts on ebony vs maple vs roasted maple boards. Do I even think about that right now? 

[ezbass]

6 minutes ago, Fishfacefour said:

 

 

I'm sure there are thoughts on ebony vs maple vs roasted maple boards. Do I even think about that right now? 

Nah!

[Gwilym]

I've heard a sire 5 string live and it sounded great, I'm sure the fretless is probably a decent bass. I would recommend fret lines too, mainly because I think they look better, but I think the only reason not to is if you don't like the aethetic.

[Beedster]

Fretted and fretless: same instrument, you can play either like Jamerson or like Jaco. OK there's a few things you can do on fretless you would struggle to do on fretted, but the differences are nothing like as significant as it seems and you only have to listen to Jaco playing the same lines on both instruments to realise that the the frets or the lack of them were not the defining feature. For me, playing a gigo n fretless without anyone, even the band, realising and assuming I'm playing fretted, is something I will always love doing 👍

[Beedster]

22 minutes ago, Fishfacefour said:

Yes, not having the actual pic is worrying. 

 

I'm sure there are thoughts on ebony vs maple vs roasted maple boards. Do I even think about that right now? 

 

Your best bet starting is a board that will be resilient such as ebony, especially if your playing roundwounds. Maple boards are glorious but they chew up quickly if you're not careful 

[Count Bassie]

6 hours ago, Smanth said:

What is there to gain … enjoyment and a lovely sound.

I would go for a five string (but I am a 5 string lover) and can highly recommend the Harley Benton B-550FL, mine pictured on the left.

 

Similar to the four string version the Lobster reviewed.

 

S’manth x

This dude is a character. I think it's funny the way he laughs after playing a passage! Kind of a kook, but it's a pretty good review. I'd watch another I suppose.

[nilorius]

39 minutes ago, Beedster said:

Fretted and fretless: same instrument, you can play either like Jamerson or like Jaco. OK there's a few things you can do on fretless you would struggle to do on fretted, but the differences are nothing like as significant as it seems and you only have to listen to Jaco playing the same lines on both instruments to realise that the the frets or the lack of them were not the defining feature. For me, playing a gigo n fretless without anyone, even the band, realising and assuming I'm playing fretted, is something I will always love doing 👍

You can play fretless the same as fretted bass, but if you play fretless with all what gives you, it's two different instruments.

[dclaassen]

I’m not sure why you would want to use rounds on a fretless. Could someone tell me?

[lksmks792]

I had a Sire V7 fretless 5er for a while, as well as a fretted 4 string P. Nice basses both of them. Guess you can't really go wrong with the fretless P.

[BlueMoon]

I make the analogy of playing fretless or fretted the same as driving a vehicle with automatic transmission or with manual transmission. Both are out there and I know which I prefer personally. I drive a manual car and learned double bass. More control, more work, but once it becomes second nature it becomes just that, second nature.

 

Enjoy whatever you prefer!

[itu]

1 hour ago, dclaassen said:

I’m not sure why you would want to use rounds on a fretless. Could someone tell me?

I love the feel and the sound. Flats are dead even before the first tuning, they don't talk to me on a short scale instrument. I need the sound of flats, I'll go to level 42 (inches of scale, that is).

[chyc]

If you're serious about being talked out of a purchase, I get the vibe that when you ruck up with a fretless bass, people think you're a show-off, whether rightly or wrongly. Bizarrely nobody seems to think that about a violin or cello player, but life isn't fair.

 

 

 

[Linus27]

1 hour ago, dclaassen said:

I’m not sure why you would want to use rounds on a fretless. Could someone tell me?

 

Most fretless bass players used rounds from Pino to Jaco. It was the done thing back in the day. Flats were also much higher tension and less comfortable. Nowadays, there are more string choices, variables tensions and some which are more tailored to a fretless.