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Does fretless really give you that much more freedom?

#21
Figjam said:
I guess having responded to my post you are agreeing that you are disagreeing just to be difficult :p
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Or disagreeing with an opinion. ;)

To each his own. I listened to your recording, Fig, and my bass tone would not fit there. I'm all about big bass tone - fretless with big roundwounds, MM humbucker in the neck position, and power tubes. Your band would probably run like hell in the other direction if I showed up at rehearsal. :smug:
 
#22
Wintermute said:
It's a very different playing style, that can take a while to really adjust to, but it's well worth trying. I for one can barely stand to play fretted instruments anymore - it feels like I really have to think about each note, whereas on a fretless I just feel them. It feels a lot more natural.

It's not for everyone, and it can be hard to fit them into certain styles of music, but I for one am a convert. :)
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+1. I bought my first fretless - an acoustic -a year ago and play it every day. If I play one of my fretted electric basses once a week it's alot.

Now thinking of adding a fretless electric to the stable.
 
#24
James Hart said:
well, that all takes time to learn as well. My fretless is a big 6 string P bass... It's got a lot of the stuff you searched for in your other threads. Just give it time.

(I'm not crazy about Jaco's tone for myself either)
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Ok cool, could you maybe post some clip of other tones that are a bit more as i described?
Also, iwonder, how would for example a wah wah pedal with distortion (like metallicas call of ktulu) sound on a fretless compared to a fretted?
 
#25
Eric Cioe said:
Or disagreeing with an opinion. ;)

To each his own. I listened to your recording, Fig, and my bass tone would not fit there. I'm all about big bass tone - fretless with big roundwounds, MM humbucker in the neck position, and power tubes. Your band would probably run like hell in the other direction if I showed up at rehearsal. :smug:
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Heh i dont doubt you on that.
 
#26
Like some others have said, i do feel more physically connected to my fretless. As an example, i can do a slight horizontal vibrato on a fretted bass and barely discern that i'm doing it...but then I do it on a fretless and you can easily tell.

My fretless (in single coil mode) sounds good for hard music, especially with some distortion. It's got a MEAN grind to it down low that i love. You also have to take into account that most fretless basses don't cut as well as thier fretted counterparts, so remember to boost your mids or turn yourself up a little more than you were doing before in the same mix.
 
#27
Diego said:
I think it does not give you "more" freedom, but it opens your creative possibilities. It can also be a challenging instrument and therefore expands your technical and musical horizons.
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Freedom's a funny thing... you still have to do something with it;)

Imagine a guy released from prison... who just stands at the gate looking out. Freedom isn't the problem.

I think fretless allows a ton of freedom. I also think that many have only scratched the surface of their instrument as far as possibilities. That's not on the instrument, it's on the musician.
 
#29
Fretless can work with metal, but you have to be a bit more progressive about it. Invalid Link Removed

Check out the albums Steve DiGiorgio played bass on. He plays fretless and he's done pretty well for himself. You just have to find your niche.

My next GAS attack is having me either get a 6 or 5 string fretted, or a 5 string fretless. Although, the 6 string would just be to show off, so I don't think I'll spend the extra money on one. I'll have to see how much I like the sound of a fretless before I buy one.
 
#30
I once heard somebody say, a fretless bass is like a big effects pedal, you just have to experiment with the bass yourself to discover all the effects. I started on a fretless about a year ago, and today I'm exclusively a fretless player and play it like a magician compared to how I did a year ago (but still not like a hotshot, yet). The bad part about transitioning over to a fretless is that you need about a month of playing it almost exclusively to even begin to formulate an opinion on it that isn't marred by frustration.


That said, some people are just more expressive on a fretted, and some people are more expressive on a fretless.
 
#31
I took the opposite approach. Instead of turning a cheap banger into a fretless, I spent over a G on a nice fretless. So I HAVE to get good at it! I play every day now until my neighbors are insane and I am getting bored. It's nice to be challenged after playing for a very long time. I am determined to conquer this bass! As far as fretless sounding metal enough. I have seen several metal and punk bands play fretless with distortion or overdrive to get a buzz saw edge. Also playing fretless into a distortion will REALLY tell you if you are off on chords and intervals.
horns |,,|/
 
#32
Has anyone ever seen those wordgame fridge magnets? Hundreds of tiny magnets, each with a word on. People mix them up, make phrases, jokes, and that kind of thing. Hugely popular. People love playing with them.

Do you think they'd have as much fun if you just handed them a fridge and a whiteboard marker?

Sometimes, restricting freedom encourages creativity. :)
 
#33
Wintermute said:
Has anyone ever seen those wordgame fridge magnets? Hundreds of tiny magnets, each with a word on. People mix them up, make phrases, jokes, and that kind of thing. Hugely popular. People love playing with them.

Do you think they'd have as much fun if you just handed them a fridge and a whiteboard marker?

Sometimes, restricting freedom encourages creativity. :)
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Most excellent. This is one of the brightest things I've heard in a while. Though, I would have to say that I feel much more creative on a fretless, and also agree that I have more freedom. That scenario can, however, be applied to most situations in life.
 
#34
Wintermute said:
Has anyone ever seen those wordgame fridge magnets? Hundreds of tiny magnets, each with a word on. People mix them up, make phrases, jokes, and that kind of thing. Hugely popular. People love playing with them.

Do you think they'd have as much fun if you just handed them a fridge and a whiteboard marker?

Sometimes, restricting freedom encourages creativity. :)
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Nice words, and i understand what you mean^^
 
#35
And i guess ill have to give fretless a chance anyway since icant afford a new bass for quite a while, ill just try experiment with different tones, setup, effects and when im buying a new bass, ill probably have a better view if i like fretless or not im pretty sure im going back to fretted tho, cos i dont want the fretless tone, it dont feel right for what i play, imean sure steve digiorgio uses it, but when played fast its not the same thing and it sounds chompy wich is ok, but i dont wanna play lightning fast all the time. Besides i dont like "warm" tones:/
 
#36
Wintermute said:
Has anyone ever seen those wordgame fridge magnets? Hundreds of tiny magnets, each with a word on. People mix them up, make phrases, jokes, and that kind of thing. Hugely popular. People love playing with them.

Do you think they'd have as much fun if you just handed them a fridge and a whiteboard marker?

Sometimes, restricting freedom encourages creativity. :)
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...or people are lazy and find no novelty in a whiteboard and a marker. :p
 

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