I have been having so much fun with my P since I swapped out the neck for a fretless neck.
I missed how much fun it is to go fretless.
I missed how much fun it is to go fretless.
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Don't be scared to play fretless!
- Thread starter Katoosie
- Start date
Passinwind
I know nothing.
- Dec 3, 2003
- 23,069
- 46,012
- Disclosures
- Designer/Toaster Tech @ Passinwind Electronics
Heya!
A thing I have noticed throughout my bass journey is that a lot of bassists say something akin to "I'm not good enough of a player to play a fretless" and I think that is all kinds of wrong.
Just think this:
If we lived in a time before the electric was even invented, you would have been playing a double bass. No frets.
Nowadays, you got a choice.
And that choice shouldn't prevent you from grabbing that fretless and going at it, so just have fun. They don't even have to be expensive
So have fun.
Good luck!
Hey, I think I may actually own one fretted bass. I'll have to see if I can figure out where it is...
Question: As there is no "fret" to press against, you fingers have to press down at the spot where the fret would be--i.e. the line if the neck is lined. This is a few mm ahead of where you would press on a fretted bass, as you are fretting behind the fret.
So, my question is does this screw you up going back and forth between the two?
So, my question is does this screw you up going back and forth between the two?
I have and play both fretless and fretted and both 4 and 5 string.
It takes some getting used to, but I find going back and forth from 4 to 5 string much more intimidating than switching from fretless to fretted.
It takes some getting used to, but I find going back and forth from 4 to 5 string much more intimidating than switching from fretless to fretted.
I had also expected that to be difficult when I took up a FL 3 years ago, but it certainly wasn't. In contrast, the FL made me improve my right hand technique on the fretted, too - i.e. more consistent space between finger and fret, even if it isn't necessary there...
I also had expected that it would require much more strength in the right hand, but that wasn't the case, either.
However, I learnt that intonation is much more critical above the 12th fret than on the lower frets. That was and is still a challenge...
However, I learnt that intonation is much more critical above the 12th fret than on the lower frets. That was and is still a challenge...
I was given the advice to get a rackmount tuner so the image is nice and big and play with the tuner for six months until it's second nature.
Also, I don't think the OP meant scared, just intimidated by the idea of it. It is a vulnerability you need to overcome because the slightest flat or sharp will stick out.
Also, I don't think the OP meant scared, just intimidated by the idea of it. It is a vulnerability you need to overcome because the slightest flat or sharp will stick out.
I couldn't agree more. I switch between fretted and fretless often during some sets and never have any issues. However, I have a few 4 string basses that haven't seen the light of day since 1995 when I first went to a five. Currently switch between fretted and fretless Alembic 5 strings and a fretless Kelly acoustic dragonfly 5. Both my Upright and EUB are 5s. I've picked up a 4 now and again in a store or maybe someone else's at a showcase but I miss the bottom B.
Graeme
I used to be someone that feared FL play. I met a guy (when selling a bass) who also played fretless. He assured me that it's nothing to back away from. I tried it on a Squier FL in a store and I traded a bass for an upright 'stick'. I found it was kind of fun and when I learned a trick or two about maintaining intonation (my worst fear) I was fine. To reference some other comments in this thread, it's not actually my passion and I'm not someone who must have that 'mwah' sound. That's why I'm sticking to fretted bass, but I would encourage anyone who wants to go fretless.
I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever play a 4 again. It took a while to make the adjustment, but now I grab the wrong string on a 4. I also have an Alembic 5 and a Kelly Acoustic 5 fretless.
The tonal advantages of the fretted bass are intuitive, really, but to just state two of them: utterly precise, stable and repeatable intonation and the "muaah"-lessness of the note. Those are just facts about the tone of the fretted bass, particularly how easy and reliably you can get that kind of tone with literally no effort by the player other than getting that string mashed down against the fret at just the right time, and with the finger back behind the fret out of the way.
Yes, you can force that kind of "precision", pardon the pun, and tone out of the FL, with many years of hard work, a very high action and the strength of a gorilla, hard compression and ... well, you see where I'm going with this..
That's what I mean when I say the fretted bass is "better" for situations requiring that kind of synthetic/machine-like tone. Those are inherent tonal properties of the fretted bass, but the FL requires a lot of force to get the same thing out of it. You can hammer a nail with a crescent wrench, but a hammer is really the preferred way of doing that. The FL is not the right tool for that job is another way to put it.
Again, my goal here is only to tell the truth about the FL as best as I can render it, so guys aren't seduced into thinking the FL is something that it's actually not, or that the commitment to it will yield a result that it actually won't yield for them.
And finally, the idea that the FL is somehow a superior instrument that will make you a "better player" has a lot of myth around it too. I won't go into that here except to present myself as hard proof that that doesn't necessarily follow. I've played the FL for over 20 years now and I suck just as bad today as I sucked 20 years ago. And I fully expect to continue to suck going forward even as I continue to play the FL.
It is a brute fact that playing the FL will not improve your fretted playing as effectively as playing the fretted will. It will, however, make you a better FL player, but that's really all it will do....
L
I guess we can both agree to disagree lol
At the moment (well, pre-Covid) I'm only playing in a world music band. Sometimes I need quarter tones
But really, I bought this Godin (see my avatar) because I liked the singing tone. And it's my only bass.
If you could only pick one fretless bass, the Godin is a excellent choice. They are quite remarkable instruments.
Fretless basses with lines on the fretboard are easy to play, IMO. Most fretless basses I've owned had the lines on the fretboard, the exception being a Michael Kelly Dragonfly Acoustic bass.
you have to be 'listening' of course...by raising or lowering your elbow (upright bass primarily; shifting your elbow/wrist on a bass guitar) you can fine tune the pitch of the note.
It’s not impossible to get a truly fretted sound out of an FL, but it a) is a lot of work and b) defeats the purpose in the first place.
The unglamorous truth is that many times, the FL isn’t the best tool for the job. This is a sad realization for me too, since I was exclusively FL only for many years. But I play a fretted bass now for a number of different things and it actually works a lot better than I remembered it did.
The other thing to let go of is the lines-are-a-crutch thing too. They’re not, and even Jaco said so. They’re a really good option if you go high up in the neck, it really does help to have the extra visual aid (assuming you can see the board of course). I can definitely intonate my Jaco better than the Tony Franklin in the upper registers. That evens out with a lot of practice, I’ll agree, but the lines are a nice aid to have.
L
Such a good point! Fairly new to the fretless and still working on intonation (perpetual challenge, I assume), but there is such a smooth, buttery feeling grooving on a fretless.@Katoosie, you *really* should inform people that once they go the fretless way, there's a high probability they won't go back to fretted road again; it's too bumpy.
Go listen to any of my work w/ SHEER COLD or A Perfect Being.
Again let's just agree to disagree.
I've had more than a couple producers w your attitude telling me my bass wouldn't work for the job because it was fretless and the stuff I'm playing needs precision and yadda friggin yadda. After I was done recording they shutup and praised me. Practice makes perfect, and not to sound pompous or cocky, but I'm obviously better at playing fretless than you. Most peoe don't even know I'm playing fretless until I tell them, even other bassists who see me live. Lol
I hate fretted bass.
Let's just agree to disagree, because I think all your points are totally moot and subjective.ll
P.s. I never said lines were a crutch, I have lined, unlined, and multiscale (fanned) fretless basses.
D
Deleted member 165050
Guest
I am entirely unlined, but partially dotted. The dots on the Dean and the Turner are correct for fretless intonation, the ones on the Rickenbacker aren't. Actually the dots on the Rick are a nuisance and I'd have them removed but it's a coated fingerboard. All the basses have correct side dots except the Takamine, which has nothing. The one time I had a lined fretless I found the lines rather distracting as I felt the urge to play between them rather than on them.
I never said The FL was never the right tool for the job - I don’t know where you got that, but you didn’t get it from me. I also never said you didn’t have to like or love the fretted bass. You didn’t get that from me either.
As for attitude, yours comes across to me as clearly not one any professional outfit would want to pay good money for, so I’m skeptical of your claims of virtuosity and experience on the fretless bass too. A true professional, OTOH, knows when to use the right tools at the right time, particularly when someone else is signing your paycheck. Telling them what they want tends to be a career limiting move for you. If you have other ideas, they’re likely to just go find someone else to do what they need instead. That’s just how that pickle squirts, I’m afraid. Just some things to keep in mind.
Again, the unglamorous truth is that sometimes the fretless bass isn’t the right tool for the job, and the player needs to know when and where it’s appropriate or not.
L
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