Fretless 5 string help

[RickBlair]

You could probably find a Carvin LB75F used for well under your budget. The fretless Carvins (as far as I know) all came with ebony fingerboards. I put a couple of coats of gunstock oil on my fingerboard and it really brought out a lot of the fretless buzz - combined with a careful setup. I always get compliments on the sound of my LB75F, more than any of my more expensive basses.

Rick B.

 

[asparaguspee]

I'm real happy with my ESP LTD. Looks and sounds gorgeous and well under your price point.

ESP LTD B-205SM Fretless Bass Guitar - Natural Satin

I've got a 4-string. Really nice instrument. With the extra cash the OP could upgrade the pickups. I haven't felt the need to yet however.

 

[sonojono]

Ibanez Portamento? I've been looking at this for a backup for my Alembic...

Currently have one for sale if interested? Buyer backed out on Reverb...

 

[Blueinred]

Lots of choices here:

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Fretless Basses – Thomann United States (thomannmusic.com)

I have the Sire V7 5 string lined fretless, love it, and get great compliments on the sound at church (always thru a reverb pedal). I got mine from Thomann. The Sire P7 gets good reviews, as well.

 

[2playbass]

That is one heck of a deal on the Radius!

I think the original owner was selling it cheap because the tuners were slipping. The good news for me is that NS Designs upgraded the parts in the bridge for free to the latest design that doesn't slip. Just send them the bridge, they upgrade and send it back.

 

[2playbass]

That's a steal, just got the same in 4 string. Extremely high quality build, quite impressed. Some very forward- thinking design going on with these.

You should check with NS Designs to see if you have the latest spec tuners. They upgraded the parts in my bridge for free to the latest spec. If you want to PM me, I can send you a couple of email addresses to try. Or just try the contact page at nedsteinberger.com. The tuners in mine were slipping, which I think is why the previous owner was letting it go so cheap. The upgraded parts fixed the problem

 

[Hercules]

MTD KZ5 or a used MTD ZX5.
I have a ZX5 and I love it.
35” scale, asymetrical neck, 19mm string spacing.

 

[markythesparky]

What a great response - thanks guys! Your input has been really useful as I have discovered basses that I would not have initially considered. Really appreciate all the effort and time you have put into your posts. Cheers!

 

[Standalone]

 

[BassFalcon]

MTD KZ5 or a used MTD ZX5.
I have a ZX5 and I love it.
35” scale, asymetrical neck, 19mm string spacing.

Those also pack a lot of high end features into this price point, I especially like the asymmetrical neck and the 35” scale, two features rare at this price point. In my case, however, it wasn’t more than a couple days after I was dead set decided on ZX5 that I learned of the MetroExpress, which fits my needs a little better. It was a tough decision though, two of the best basses I’ve ever played were a regular Metro and a Tobias.

 

[ElectricBass72]

In that price range... there's many options for 5-string fretless.

 

[Real Soon]

I'm getting into the market myself.

Someone mentioned doing a Warmoth build elsewhere, but I've no idea (yet) what that'll run.

Godin has the A5, and I'm definitely eyeballing the Portamento as a better budget item.


I'm being unreasonable in that I want the challenge of going unlined, so my options are limited in this price range. Also, I prefer active for this but a well-designed passive instrument could butt in.