Best Approach to Fretless

[skyline_01]

Use your ears, of course, as many have said.

I would sit down with a tuner and familiarize yourself with where each note is in tune on the board, keeping in mind that the notes between the markers are NOT necessarily in tune when fingered halfway in between (especially true with unlined boards).

Start with simple lines, maybe do some playing along with songs that have fretted basslines too and just listen closely to match pitch. There's no substitute for practice - eventually things will become easier and your muscle memory will kick in to help you.

 

[nnnnnn]

I suggest starting on a fretless instrument of the same scale length as your main fretted bass. There are plenty of players who quickly adapt to different scale lengths, but sticking with one length just removes one possible complication.

When I first tried to get into fretless many years ago I bought the only fretless I could afford that was available locally, and it happened to be short scale. The scale was a big part of why it didn't work out for me and I ended up selling it. Then last year I bought a Squire VM Jazz fretless that is the same scale length as my main bass, and I was instantly way better than I'd ever been on the previous fretless. I'm not good, but with a 34" scale I'm bad rather than terrible.

 

[BarfanyShart]

You know I was mainly an upright guy, but I still always had trouble with fretless BG. With a DB planted to the ground the notes always stay in the same position relative to the planet Earth, but a BG neck moves around a little as it dangles in the air. I'd like to get a fretless BG at some point and give it another go.

 

[nnnnnn]

With a DB planted to the ground the notes always stay in the same position relative to the planet Earth

 

[BarfanyShart]

View attachment 3707980

You see, that's what I call the worst of both worlds. Some people just love making things unnecessarily difficult.

 

[Nephilymbass]

Would like some advice to switching to a Fretless. Thanks in advance.

The first thing people tend to do when they switch from fretted to fretless is over use vibrato and slides. But the focus should really be making sure you can play with good intonation. So keep the “tricks” tasteful and focus on playing with good pitch. Pick some simple songs to jam along to and really focus on trying to make the fretless sound more like a fretted bass as far as nailing pitch. Having good technique with whichever hand (depending if you play lefty or righty) is on the neck helps. Vibrato and harmonic slides and stuff are some of the funnest parts of playing fretless bass but you have to do it with taste or it just gets annoying. It’s like that really annoying person in a church choir who always sings with ridiculous vibrato because they think it showcases their ability to sing. It’s good to be able to do but you don’t want your vibrato to get played out halfway through the first song.

 

[MrLenny1]

Don't spend big money on a first fretless.
They are tough to learn and if you don't stay with it
resale on a fretless is poor.

 

[franklindayala]

Would like some advice to switching to a Fretless. Thanks in advance.

Lines or no Lines... Its up to you really. My advice, use a tunner to develope muscle memorie to where the exact note is on the fingerboard... Once you have that... Do the same in a dark room (Steve Bailey recomends this).

Use a light touch while playing fretless.

 

[juancaminos]

For my first fretless I put away my other basses and played nothing but fretless for a few years. For me it was the only way.

 

[ChrisBowsman]

I started playing bass seriously last fall. About a month later, I decided I was going to off some guitar gear to get a good bass. The good bass wound up being a fretless Warwick Corvette. My approach has been to play it a lot.

 

[DavC]

i'm also trying a fretless ( parts build ) again ... i practice along with my keyboard on ... play a chord - sustain it ... helps keep me cognizant of pitch ... and using open strings for pitch reminder helps train the ear/fingers ..

it does feel a bit different playing right ' on the line ' versus anywhere between the lines/frets ..!?!

i did use a lined fretless MiM J neck .. another pitch reference helper ..!

 

[thewildest]

If you can afford it, one day get your hands on a piezo-equipped bass. Mix the piezo with the bridge PU, turn bass up, mids up and treble to 10% and cry when you hear how amazing that C note sounds.

 

[nonohmic]

i'm also trying a fretless ( parts build ) again ... i practice along with my keyboard on ... play a chord - sustain it ... helps keep me cognizant of pitch ... and using open strings for pitch reminder helps train the ear/fingers ..

it does feel a bit different playing right ' on the line ' versus anywhere between the lines/frets ..!?!

i did use a lined fretless MiM J neck .. another pitch reference helper ..!

View attachment 3708059 View attachment 3708060

White pickups look sweet!

 

[imurrx]

My first jump in to fretless was an unlined fretless shortscale acoustic. Big mistake since I always played long scale fretted. When I got a long scale lined fretless, it was very easy to get into it. The lines make it easier but you will use less of it as you get better. Get a cheap Harley Benton Fretless. It's cheep and will get the job done. When you get better then upgrade.

 

[MichelD]

I've had mine 44 years today. It was and is my first bass guitar.

The only lines I have are on the top edge of the fingerboard.

When I go beyond first position I look at the lines, but I am not much of an "up he neck" player.

 

[rylie]

Several years ago, decided to add a fretless J when I agreed to a regular church gig. The purchase was based on what was available and at what price, at the time. Bought the Squire fretless J, when it was first introduced. Upgraded PU to DiMarzio. Flats only on this fretboard. Plays/sounds as well as any bass costing 2-3 times more.

 

[QweziRider]

Train your ears and you won't need the tuner. The best way to do that is to play along with other people, or recordings.

This. Practice, practice, practice. Over and over. And then do it again. The only way I've found to grasp the concept of playing fretless.

I tried several times over the years, OP, and just didn't get it. Lined basses made it worse because I felt I was falling behind always looking for the note. Then I had to play an upright and, somehow, going vertical suddenly made sense. Which then translated to going back to horizontal with an unlined fingerboard. Haven't looked back since.

 

[Kawai2g4b]

Try both lined an unlined. I started on the double bass first, so positioning (with hands and with body) was drilled into me early on.

If a goal of yours is to sight read and play, then playing with a lined board may not be of utmost priority. In that case I would recommend practicing against good recordings (starting from simple to more complex) and constantly adjusting intonation until positioning becomes ingrained in muscle memory. I used to practice in the dark as a challenging routine shaker and, with the right person, can be effective.

That said, this was relayed to me years ago by an experienced fretless player: when using a fretted bass, fret your notes almost directly on top of your intended fret. This way, you can practice positioning in situations where a fretless isn’t used.

 

[SteveCS]

Here's my advice, based on 35+ years of playing fretless bass. Forget about lined/unlined, matching scale length, playing in the dark, etc...

Learn to SING IN TUNE. I mean really get it ingrained in your inner ear. You will never play with bad intonation again. After that, its just bass.

 

[whero]

Two weekends ago I got together with an ex-workmate for a jam. He's primarily a rhythm guitarist but recently bought a new Artist lined fretless, delivered, for under NZ$200. It's by no means a great bass, and it does need a setup, but it's astonishingly good for something so cheap and it fits his main criteria, which was: spend as little as possible on a fretless until you know whether you really want to put the time into learning to play one. Anyway, this wasn't meant to be a post on Artists guitars. The point was...

That was the first time I had ever tried playing a fretless. Always wanted to, but the opportunity never really came up. And I was very pleased that I wasn't terrible. I certainly wasn't great, but I hit many correct notes and although I mostly just tried to get the fingering right, I did experiment with some vibrato and sliding into a few notes with acceptable results. I was happy enough that I'm definitely going to get one for another band project I've been offered, and spend some time learning to play it well.

So while I can't offer any tips for learning to play a fretless yet, I'd say if you want to give it a go, just do it. Yes, it's a bit of a different technique but, like anything, you start off near the bottom of the ladder and you learn and you practise and you get better. And the more effort you put into it, the better you get.