Factfinding quest: fretless 6 edition

[Kragnorak]

Hi all, I'm hoping to enlist some help in understanding what is available in the niche market of fretless 6-strings (and maybe 5s). The major problem I'm having is that when I walk into a Guitar Center and ask if there are any fretlesses the answer is "no" and if I'm in a boutique shop there might be 2 or 3. They are REALLY out of fashion right now I guess.

So the main feature I'm looking for is an ebony fretboard, or an epoxied one for lots of growl and mwah and won't get chewed up so fast. I would love it if there were a list of fretless basses that have that as an option. The secondary feature I'd like is an active/passive switch but this is not as important.

One bass I really like the idea of is a BTB676F but apparently they only have rosewood fingerboards. Is it true that Ibanez/Hoshino has no ability to customize something like this?

I've seen that the Gary Willis basses have ebonol fingerboards, but they are only 5-strings, correct? I know that Pedulla Hexabuzz are made with epoxied fingerboards, but what other luthiers have ebony or epoxy for less than $5 grand?

Pic of the bass that is so close...

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[mikezimmerman]

I've seen that the Gary Willis basses have ebonol fingerboards, but they are only 5-strings, correct? I know that Pedulla Hexabuzz are made with epoxied fingerboards, but what other luthiers have ebony or epoxy for less than $5 grand?

If your limit is $5k, there are tons of makers that can do a fretless 6 with ebony, composite, or epoxied boards, including some of the premier fretless builders, like Roscoe, F Bass, and Zon as well as smaller luthiers who do custom work like CB (Cliff Bordwell), ACG (Alan Cringean), Mike Kinal, etc.

For more a "production" bass, you can easily get a Carvin fretless 6 with an ebony board in that proce range.

 

[Kragnorak]

If your limit is $5k, there are tons of makers that can do a fretless 6 with ebony, composite, or epoxied boards, including some of the premier fretless builders, like Roscoe, F Bass, and Zon as well as smaller luthiers who do custom work like CB (Cliff Bordwell), ACG (Alan Cringean), Mike Kinal, etc.

Thanks for the reply! I should be clear about this part... I believe that F Bass for example is also awesome, but if I actually graduate to that $5-6k price range I might as well get a Pedulla since that is closest to my ideal tone. What I'm not familiar with is all of those smaller luthiers you listed. If anyone has had a great experience with such a builder I'd love to know about it! A great custom build for $2k to $3500 might be an option

For example, I love the sound that Forest LaPointe gets out of his 6-string fretless from La Lutherie MF, but I have no idea what price ranges would work out to from Montreal to the states and there are not even rough estimates on the website: Guitar and bass guitars MF Guitar and bass guitars MF

 

[mikezimmerman]

Well, a Roscoe Standard series 6 with lined Diamondwood board lists for under $3k, so that would definitely be one to look at. Roscoe builds great instruments and Diamondwood makes a fantastic fretless board.

I've had basses build by ACG, and Alan also builds wonderful instruments and will do treated wood fretless boards. Prices depend a bit on the exchange rate, though, since he's in Scotland, and import tarifs can be a pain.

I haven't owned a Cliff Boardwell, but I have a friend in town who owns several and I have one on order. They are also wonderful basses, though (like ACG) he tends to use either regular wood, "stabilized" resin-impregnated boards, or Diamondwood for fretless rather than epoxy them the way Pedulla does. Both the "stabilized" boards and Diamondwood give a similar "singing" fretless tone to what you get with an epoxied board, though.

 

[spanndrew]

Carvin is a really good option and you could realistically stay under 1500.

 

[Jaco Taco]

Hi all, I'm hoping to enlist some help in understanding what is available in the niche market of fretless 6-strings (and maybe 5s). The major problem I'm having is that when I walk into a Guitar Center and ask if there are any fretlesses the answer is "no" and if I'm in a boutique shop there might be 2 or 3. They are REALLY out of fashion right now I guess.

So the main feature I'm looking for is an ebony fretboard, or an epoxied one for lots of growl and mwah and won't get chewed up so fast. I would love it if there were a list of fretless basses that have that as an option. The secondary feature I'd like is an active/passive switch but this is not as important.

One bass I really like the idea of is a BTB676F but apparently they only have rosewood fingerboards. Is it true that Ibanez/Hoshino has no ability to customize something like this?

I've seen that the Gary Willis basses have ebonol fingerboards, but they are only 5-strings, correct? I know that Pedulla Hexabuzz are made with epoxied fingerboards, but what other luthiers have ebony or epoxy for less than $5 grand?

Pic of the bass that is so close...

Invalid Link Removed

Michael Dolan made me a fretless 6-string with ebony board with a poly finish on it just two years ago for a shade under $3,000. It's a fantastic bass and Dolan has a great reputation as a Luthier (you can search for his name here on talkbass). Here is a link to his website plus a few pics of my bass.
Michael Dolan Custom Guitars

 

[Kragnorak]

Michael Dolan made me a fretless 6-string with ebony board with a poly finish on it just two years ago for a shade under $3,000.

Sweet, that looks awesome! I've never heard of Dolan so this is exactly why I made the thread - thanks!

I was also intrigued by the Vigier Passion bass because it sounds great and has some sort of "iMetal" fingerboard. The Euro price for a 5 translates to $4200 though and they don't seem to make a 6-string.

 

[MobileHolmes]

Carvin is a really good option and you could realistically stay under 1500.

Heck, if you can find a used one, they practically give them away. I got my fretless LB76 (with an ebony board) for 400 bucks out the door a while back. And the ebony seems to wear really well. I don't play it much (i'm more of a fretted guy), but the previous owner had played it quite a bit (there is a divot by the neck pickup from his thumb) and there is zero wear that I can see on the board (it came to me strung with roundwounds). Poking around the carvin site, it looks like they will also put some kind of finish on the board for another 250 if you are really worried about wear, but I couldn't find any explanation of it.

 

[Kragnorak]

. I got my fretless LB76 (with an ebony board) for 400 bucks out the door a while back. .

That is an amazing price! A friend of mine had Carvin basses and they recorded really well, but for some reason I didn't feel they had a lot of 'personality' tone-wise. Does that make any sense to you or is my head just up my posterior?


EDIT: There is a sweet-looking one on the bay right now - there's a bidding war around $600 with 1 day left to go so I see your point! Carvin 6 String Fretless Bass Right Handed | eBay

 

[TolerancEJ]

This bass was custom built for me in The Philippines. (My wife is from there.) It has a birds eye maple fingerboard and a mangowood top. The exchange rate at the time presented a price of $1400-1500. Great price for a custom build.

 

[DiabolusInMusic]

@Jaco Taco didn't anybody teach you how to string a bass?



Nice bass by the way.

 

[TolerancEJ]

You could also try looking into a fretless F Bass BNF6 or VFF6. If you buy the standard models (without adding options), you can probably get one for $3200-3500.

 

[gully_jones]

I was in the same situation a couple years ago and after much looking decided to go the Warmoth route. One of best decisions I ever made.

 

[kesslari]

Carvin if you want to buy new and save $$
Lots of other choices, as folks have said.
My choice is Zon.

 

[ArtechnikA]

...I know that Pedulla Hexabuzz are made with epoxied fingerboards, but what other luthiers have ebony or epoxy for less than $5 grand?

Pedulla is polyester, actually...

I bought my Roscoe SKB 3006 fretless used for a lot less than $5k.
They show up from time to time, but you could probably have one made to order for under $5k if you didn't go crazy with options.
The Diamondwood (a wood-matrix epoxy laminate) fingerboard is really, really nice; Roscoe fretless are definitely in the top tier and I find their 6-string neck profiles very fast and playable. I'm not conversant with what preamp options are available and which of them may allow passive operation. Mine has Roscoe-spec Bartolini soapbar pickups and a Bartolini pre.

 

[raventepes]

I think the best route is going to be Carvin, to be honest, unless you want to wait for a longer period of time for a true custom build. Another option is to buy the bass of your choosing and have a luthier pull the frets.

As a 6-string guy, I know the struggle. I've been tempted to pick up a Schecter Stiletto Studio 6 FL, which isn't out of the question. To be realistic about it all, though I've never tried out the Stiletto Studio 6 FL, I'm very aware that the fretted version of the Stiletto Studio 6 sounds pretty good.

 

[Kragnorak]

Roscoe fretless are definitely in the top tier and I find their 6-string neck profiles very fast and playable.

That all sounds awesome. This is part of the pitfalls of being interested in niche instruments. I see the name Roscoe on TB over and over but I have never seen or touched one "in the wild" so they were not on my radar! The boutique dealer nearest me has F Bass, Jerzy Drozd, Pedulla, Tobias, Dingwall etc, but no Roscoe and very few fretless...

 

[BlushResponse]

If your budget is $5K, I'd go with a Zon. Their website is fairly user friendly and they have MANY options available to ensure that you spend every dime of that $5K.

 

[ArtechnikA]

...The boutique dealer nearest me has F Bass, Jerzy Drozd, Pedulla, Tobias, Dingwall etc, but no Roscoe and very few fretless...

Those are all fine instruments and the general consensus is that FBass, Pedulla, Zon, Roscoe and maybe one or two others I can't recall just now are the best fretless generally available. So in what part of the world are you ? There are Roscoe owners all over who I expect would be glad to have you test-run one. If you have access to FBass and Pedulla it can't be _that_ remote...

 

[mat666]

Thanks for the reply! I should be clear about this part... I believe that F Bass for example is also awesome, but if I actually graduate to that $5-6k price range I might as well get a Pedulla since that is closest to my ideal tone. What I'm not familiar with is all of those smaller luthiers you listed. If anyone has had a great experience with such a builder I'd love to know about it! A great custom build for $2k to $3500 might be an option

For example, I love the sound that Forest LaPointe gets out of his 6-string fretless from La Lutherie MF, but I have no idea what price ranges would work out to from Montreal to the states and there are not even rough estimates on the website: Guitar and bass guitars MF Guitar and bass guitars MF

Ok, if you're talking Montreal Pierre Laporte is the one you seek. He got the finest woods, the neck wood dried for a minimum of 25 years in his basement. He can make any bass style you want for around 2500$ CAD. ..roughly 1800$ US. All you need is bring the hardware and wait 12-14 months. My avatar is a bass he made and the most awesome bass I played. I personally know Forest (both lefty) and tried his bass and he'd like to have a Laporte.