Fretless - Strings - Harmonics etc.

[Rayman]

47 minutes ago, StickyDBRmf said:

Wow. I used D'Addario nickel rounds on all my fretless basses. Same as any other bass I ever had. One string, work from there. I can't imagine using different strings on different basses. When I bought a shortscale bass, I couldn't get my D'Addarios, had to put something else on, and HATED it. Couldn't play it. Had to wait for the D'Addarios to come in. Different strings-it's like different underwear.

I currently have 12 basses, and only two have the same strings on them (TI flats)…. For no particular reason, it’s just how they ended up….. rounds, flats, tapes… all sorts. 

[Hellzero]

I really the first fretless tone on each example (A1, B1 & C1) @Linus27.

 

The #2 is too hollow sounding for my taste and #3 is quite similar with more upper mids.

 

So what are the strings on this #1 bass please?

[Linus27]

24 minutes ago, Hellzero said:

I really the first fretless tone on each example (A1, B1 & C1) @Linus27.

 

The #2 is too hollow sounding for my taste and #3 is quite similar with more upper mids.

 

So what are the strings on this #1 bass please?

 

So the strings on A1, B1 and C1 are LaBella Deep Talkin Black Nylon on a Jazz.

 

The string on A2, B2 and C2 are LaBella Low Tension Flats on a Precision.

 

The strings on A3, B3 and C3 are Rotosound 77 Jazz Flats.

[Sambrook]

I would put in a vote for TI rounds here (JR344). As flexible and supple as the flats, smooth to the touch like the flats (don't know how they do that with rounds), but with all the growl you could wish for.

Sliding harmonics are a doddle.

Some chorus and reverb (not too much) and a slight boost to the mids = Harmonic Heaven.

[GuyR]

Just occurred to me that when I bought Pino's back-up fretless Stingray from Martin Petersen, it came equipped with a bright sounding set of roundwounds. That will do for me as a recommendation.

[Hellzero]

9 hours ago, Linus27 said:

 

So the strings on A1, B1 and C1 are LaBella Deep Talkin Black Nylon on a Jazz.

 

The string on A2, B2 and C2 are LaBella Low Tension Flats on a Precision.

 

The strings on A3, B3 and C3 are Rotosound 77 Jazz Flats.

Thanks a lot @Linus27 and it confirmed I don't like fretless P-Bass hollow tone, but that's only me, and it's only a question of personal taste, so no need to start a war here. 😉

 

Thanks a lot for your tone examples.

[Linus27]

13 minutes ago, Hellzero said:

Thanks a lot @Linus27 and it confirmed I don't like fretless P-Bass hollow tone, but that's only me, and it's only a question of personal taste, so no need to start a war here. 😉

 

Thanks a lot for your tone examples.

 

You are very welcome and interestingly, I think my black Jazz with the LaBella Deep Talkin Black Nylon strings is my best sounding fretless.

[Rayman]

Fascinating, I preferred the sound of the low tension flats….. horses for courses eh?

[Rayman]

TI flats are on…. let’s see how this goes

[Rayman]

Ok, so the TI flats feel much more familiar to me, because I already have them on two other basses. Not dramatically different to the Monels, but definitely more clarity, less wooliness and more tone options, so I'm going in the right direction. However, I'm thinking that the inevitable outcome will be that I'll need to try rounds too, just to see what I get.

 

Maybe, which has just occurred to me, I could be trying to default tonally to my normal fretted tone? Does that make sense? In other words I need to understand that the tone from a fretless is a different thing and I need to roll with that and enjoy the difference.

 

Decisions decisions....

[Linus27]

I wouldn't say that the tone from a fretless is tonally different to a fretless bass, they can if you wanted, sound a like. The difference comes from how you play and your technique. If you play a fretless and express the slides and vibrato then yes, you will get a difference but if you play it like a fretted bass then it won't sound overly different. For example, if you played a fretted and a fretless Precision with rounds, tone on full with a pick then they will both sound pretty much the same tonally, the only difference will be some of the expression between fretted notes but even if you kept slides to a minimum then there wouldn't be a huge difference if any tonally.

[Rich]

Flats would be a non-starter for me, I just hate the feel of them under my fingers. I use Elixir coated nickels on my fretless and they work perfectly for me. Nice and soft so they won't chew the board, but with as much brightness as I could want. And zingy harmonics by the gallon. 

[Hellzero]

On a record where I used to play a fretted and a fretless bass depending the track, afterwards it's hard to tell which is which as I was able to play the fretted Leduc U-Basse in such a way that it sounded like a fretless and the fretless Leduc Masterpiece was sounding like a fretted bass under my fingers on dole tracks 

 

So it can work both ways @Linus27. 😉

 

@Rayman : You could try the Fodera round wound nickel strings on your fretless as they are really excellent, but hélas quite expensive.

 

I stopped using them because of that.

[Rayman]

Yeah, I think when it comes to harmonics, rounds may well be the way forward, but I prefer the feel of flats, personally. I have them on quite a few basses. For me harmonics are a bonus, not a necessity, so I guess I have to find a happy medium.

[knirirr]

On 14/08/2023 at 11:59, franzbassist said:

For me, it's La Bella white nylon flats on a fretless, and has been since pretty much they were introduced.  They are very versatile, aren't "thumpy" or dull at all, and have plenty of sustain right down to the low E and B. I love them.

 

 

I have just received some of the gold variety which I ordered based on comments here. Very nice indeed.

[tauzero]

The manual for the Pedulla 6 fretless that I've just bought says to use nickel strings as stainless are (quote) "too harsh for the fingerboard and will sound terrible". It's not easy finding 6-string nickel roundwound sets with 30-40-60-80-100-125 or 130, but there's a Warwick Red Label set which are perfect, and not in stock at Thomann, but I've ordered them anyway, and a 5-string set or two as well. More news as it comes in.

[nilorius]

On 14/08/2023 at 10:42, Rayman said:

So I’m on my (unlined) fretless journey, and every day is a learning curve.

 

A couple of questions for more experienced fretless players….

 

Musically I want to be able to play a relatively wide range of styles. I much prefer flats generally, but I’m finding the Rotosound Monels currently on the Dean a bit dull, and I’m struggling to get the sliding harmonics on them. I have a set of TIs on the way, which should be brighter, but do you think that rounds might be a better option for what I’m after? Are rounds better for harmonics? Are they a better option for a more versatile fretless sound?

 

The bass itself seems to have a ton of tonal options, it’s active and has lots of high and low cut and boost.

 

Any tips appreciated 

Unlined or lined - Your own choice, but i guess it does not attend to sound. As to strings, for 15 years i preffer on my 5 string lined fretless - d'addario roundwounds, nickels, 45-135.

[Linus27]

On 15/08/2023 at 19:46, Rayman said:

Yeah, I think when it comes to harmonics, rounds may well be the way forward, but I prefer the feel of flats, personally. I have them on quite a few basses. For me harmonics are a bonus, not a necessity, so I guess I have to find a happy medium.

 

I play a lot of harmonics and I only have flats or nylon strings on my fretless basses.