Fretless players; lined or unlined? and why?

[PennyroyalWe]

Always lines. Why leave it up to chance? You can practice day in and day out and hope that you’re getting better at achieving perfect intonation...or get lines and pretty damn close to perfect from the get go.

 

[BarfanyShart]

Honestly, this is one of my hangups about even getting into fretless BG. As a DB player, I would want an unlined ebony board on sheer principle. But, I feel like for BG, I'm gonna want the lines to start. I'm gearing up to do a lined defret on my ABG, so I'll find out how much I like the lines once I've lived with that for a while.

 

[Five String]

I'm a fretless noob but so far I'm having more fun with unlined than my old lined basses. I'm finally learning by ear and fingerboard knowledge instead of looking at the neck and trying to put my fingers on the lines. Side dots are essential, however.

 

[Danny O Danny]

Unlined as that's what I've always played. One I have has dots on the front but I'd prefer it didn't. Does anyone know what the dots on NS Design EUBs mean? I reckon it's some kind of alien mind control code.

I find the dots on the NS Design to be really helpful. They're on the note, likes lines on a fretless would be, so they function as "quasi-lines" while being unobtrusive. Very ingenious and easy to get used to.

 

[PennyroyalWe]

As for appearances, I think unlined look unfinished. Like the builder stopped at the hardest part, getting the fret lines correct.

 

[Gilmourisgod]

Reading through this and other posts, its clear that the decision to go unlined is largely aesthetic. I think its undeniable that a lined fretless will overall result in more accurate intonation. If you want to play in tune consistently, get a lined fretless. If you care more about how it looks, go unlined.

 

[devnulljp]

I play upright, so unlined works for me. Although my main fretless electric is a defretted 60s PBass, so it has marks where th efrets used to be. (The other one is a 70s factory fretless, unlined). I very seldom look at the fingerboard when I'm playing anyway with/without frets with without markers.

 

[Mannyinnewyork]

My fretless Pbass was unlined. So what. Lines would have been nice after a shot or two of old number 7. It just doesn't matter.

 

[corinpills]

Just my opinion, but unlined looks cooler. However, lined sounds A LOT better when I play fretless.

 

[mark107]

Lined. I want to play in tuned. Jaco had lines. As an aside, I spent five years as a double-bass major. I don't need lines for that. But an elec bass neck is very long, and it can be hard to hear pitch on a stage.

 

[BZadlo]

I find that lines throw me off. Your eyes have to be right over the note for the lines to be in the correct position.
Better to use your ears. If you can't hear yourself well enough, don't play a fretless in that situation.
IME.

 

[Dbassmon]

Is being in tune important? If having lines allows you to have better intonation, is that a good idea?

Yes, being in tune is important! Supremely important. Lines give you a much better chance at being in tune... It's a very good idea.

If you have enough muscle memory, you may not need them. In the meantime, use them to help find the pitch and help develop muscle memory.

Double bass has some clearly defined landmarks that when used with a fingering system, like Simandl, allow a player to develop a reliable method of intonating. A fretless bass guitar does not join the body at E or Eb so you are flying blind as you go up the neck not having that physical anchor. As every fretless player knows, the further you get up that neck the smaller the distance between being flat or sharp. If you are guessing, it's not going to be pretty.

FWIW

 

[Tim Skaggs]

If the side marker dots are in the right place, it doesn’t matter to me what’s on the fingerboard. If the side marker dots are as they would be on a fretted neck, I want lines.

 

[Shizzean]

Lined.
I can't stand the look of an unbroken fingerboard...

 

[Supadope]

When I play fretless (any bass, actually), I don't hunch over the thing (that's bad ergonomics) - I can't see the fingerboard. Why would I put lines on a surface I can't see? Unined (smoothest board I can get), with dots on the side - where I CAN see them.

I also don't have position markers on the fretboards of any of my basses. But side dots? Absolutely! I play a lot of dark stages, so I can use all the help I can get:

View attachment 4170489

Me too.

My acoustic under regular light.

And under black lights.

 

[micguy]

Jaco had lines.

Jaco didn't have the option of a plain fingerboard. He had...a fretted bass and a butterknife. He did a good job of making do with what he had.

 

[asparaguspee]

Unlined looks better, but mine is lined because I suck.

 

[bikeplate]

Lined. Looks better

 

[bmusic]

I voted carrots because I've always preferred lined—had only lined—but there's am unlined one out there, available, and calling my name...

 

[wysiwyg248]

Gotta be lined, I need all the help I can get plus is a way to honor the best of them all.