Fender Fretless Jazz Bass

[sweetemotion83]

What would the best strings be for this bass? I'm not a beginner bassist, I want strings that have equally good tone from bottom end to high mids. What would anyone recommend?

[J. Crawford]

Definitely flatwounds, or halfwounds.

[snyderz]

GHS Precision flats.

[Jo6Pak]

I use D'Addario Chromes on everything, fretted or not (ECB81).

[squashedOpossum]

DA Chromes or La Bella 760 flats. I've got a set of Chromes on my fretted Jazz and a set of La Bellas on my fretless 5-string. Although they're both flats they have very different sounds. The Chromes are almost like a coated roundwounds, but the La Bellas are the classic flatwound sound on steriods. So smooth and creamy with amazing bottom end.

[Fretlessboy]

I use DR Xtra life on my fretless Smith and my Jazz bass and wouldn't trade them for anything

[drden]

Everybody is going to tell you a bunch of different brands, but overall most will say flats, and I say, even better, nylon tapewound. I use labellas, but whatever you like better, use those

[fretlessguy]

Flatwounds: D'Addario Chromes .40-.95, GHS Precision Flats, .40-.95, or TI Jazz Flats .43-.100

Rounds: Fender 7250 Superbass .40-.100 or OEM original Nickels (7150), same gauge.

Compressed: GHS Pressurewound .40-.98 or .45-.103

I have used all of these on my fretlesses at one time or another and enjoyed them all.

FG

[Meatrus]

If you are after a double bass type sound I can recommend Rotosound Trubass. They wont mark your board at all, and sound to me a lot like a double bass.

[Kael]

I don't get all these flat recommendations in this instance. Flats are great for old school tone. A few flats try and break out of that mold a bit, but none really do completely. TI flats come closest, and even they are sonically recognizable as a flat. The OP said that he wanted even tone from lows to high mids. That tone goal IMHO calls for rounds. No flat will give as even response as a round across the board. That's the whole point of flats. They give you a hump in the frequency response built into the string from the get-go.

I'd recommend starting off with a decent roundwound string that isn't overly expensive (ex: D'Addario light gauge) and start isolating what bugs you about those strings on this particular bass. Then you can start looking for strings that vary from the baseline. Talk about roundwound wear on fretless is overblown. Even if you do get wear, you can fix it. Hell, if that possibilty bugs you, you can always epoxy the fingerboard.


I just re-read my post and it reads a little condescending. Not meant that way.

I apologize for any inherent douchery in my above post.

[JTE]

DR Sunbeams (nickle rounds on a round core). At least that's my favorite string for my fretless basses. I also quite like D'Addario's XL series strings (I use EXL-165 the 45/65/85/105 set).

And I agree totally with Kael's post too. I did just put a set of Lakland Joe Osborn flats on my fretless P/J but it's mostly because that bass is kind of dark sounding and because I just put new DR's on the Lakland fretless that came last week.

jte

[Fajah]

I tend to agree with what Kael has said. I strung my first fretless with a set of chromes. I liked the feel but in time, I found them to go to the muddy side. This is also something I experienced using chromes on my jazz guitars. I then went to half rounds. They were a bit brighter to start off with and had pretty good tonal depth and feel but again, I found them to get a bit muddy over time.

Then I happened the have the opportunity to play a couple of Rob Allen basses which come with La Bella tape wound strings. Of all the strings I've played so far, they had the best feel. Being a 5 string player, I like the tension and tonal quality of the low B. I bought a set and have been playing them for several months up until recently. The La Bella's have incredible tonal depth on the RA basses since they're chambered and having a piezzo pickup. On my solid body jazz bass, the tonal depth is not quite there and they tend to sound a bit mid-rangy although I can compensate for some of it via EQ'ing on my amp. You also have to be careful when installing these strings for the slightest twist can make them sound chorusy.

I realized that what I really like was the depth of tone I was getting from the R. Cocco nickel round wound strings I have on my fretted jazz bass. So I recently installed a set on my fretless. The tone is great and what I've was looking for. I was surprised that the tension was the same as the La Bella's for I did not need to adjust the truss rod. The low B is excellent as well. The only downside is the bit of string noise which hopefully will subside a bit as I put some hours on them. I have no concern about wear an tear on my rosewood fretboard.

All in all, I've found a good balance in tone and feel with nickel round wound strings regardless of whether I'm using my fretted or fretless bass.

[the low one]

I've tried lots of flats, rounds, half rounds, pressure wound and for me Status half rounds work best. They don't chew the fingerboard but retain much more tone than flats, not as much as rounds but they are a good compromise. I think you'll have to bite the bullet try a few to get what's right for you.

[CPplaysBASS]

More support here behind Kael's comment ... I'm traditionally a "flats" player but personally prefer the sound of rounds on my fretless. Specifically Fender 7150 Pure Nickel wounds ... the "warmest" of nickel rounds in my opinion (and inexpensive). And my initial worry about fretboard wear was misplaced - the 7150s are not nearly as rough as some others (e.g. Rotosounds), and certainly are not damaging the fretboard in any way. Like most strings, you can't judge them the moment you put them on, but they warm up very quickly.

[DeluxeRed]

The issue I had with rounds on my Fender MIM Jazz Fretless is that the rounds ground right through the nut after a few tunings, and I had to have it replaced. I wasn't real happy with the "Frankentone" I was getting, either, and was much happier going back to flats--but I use my fretless for that old-school tone, so YMMV.

[the low one]

There are lots and lots of clips of Jaco wannabies on Youtube playing fretless jazz basses using rounds and soloing the bridge pup but I can’t find anything where players are using flats or half wounds on their fretless jazz basses and different pickup blends. Anyone know of any?

[Lester4string]

DA Chromes, unless you want to try tapewound strings (rotosound tapes are good)

[Slabobian Mesh]

I think inevitably your tonal requirements will dictate the string best suited for your bass. You may want to experiment with a set of each (roundwound and flatwound). For what it’s worth, my two fretless Jazz basses (“Jaco” model and Deluxe) are strung with Rotosound 66 roundwound strings. The Roto’s have a great bright tone and presence when new, but tend to degrade pretty quickly. My fretless G&L L-1000 is strung with TI flats. The TI’s sound just as good after a year, but you’ve got to want that low thumpy tone. Tried other brands on both, but always come back to the comfort zone. Good luck………..

[the low one]

What strings, eq and pickup volume settings would you use to get this tone:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwht3...om=PL&index=13

[Eric Swaim]

I use LaBella nylon tape wound, the same strings used on Turner & Rob Allen Basses. They are a better quality string and wound tighter than the other companies tape wound strings. They will run you about $45.00 but you will like them. I use DR High Beams on everything else.