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Help for choosing a Fretless

#3
I've owned and"Frankensteined"(made my own) a few fretless basses in my years of playing music.My problem with a fretless bass is(besides playing in tune,lol) every bass that I've played just didn't seem to sound"alive"enough,for lack of a better term.I know that it's probably my ear being used to the tonal characteristics of a fretted bass.
But,IMHO,I have NEVER,EVER heard a fretless bass like a Pedulla.They simply sound AMAZING!!Back in the late-80's,early 90's,I was a gnat's ass away from buying a f-less Pedulla 4 string.Absolutely devastating bass.It sounded like God himself crafted that bass.
There has been many,many luthiers copy Micheal Pedulla's methods when it comes to fretless fingerboards.I think (besides Jaco,of course)it would be safe to say that he started the whole epoxy fingerboard deal for fretless basses.I am F-A-R from being an authority on fretless basses.But a Pedulla??That's what makes my ears happy.

NEXT QUESTION:But....Do you wanna spend that much for a fretless that sounds like it was crafted from "The Man Upstairs"??Well??Do you?
 
#5
+1 on the Standard Fender Jazz, but buy used and upgrade the pickups to maybe Fender CS '60s. Also, doing the neck in the marine epoxy is what really brought out the Jaco Mwah with mine. Aannd the setup is really important on a fretless. Hope this helps.
 
#7
millsbass5 said:
I've owned and"Frankensteined"(made my own) a few fretless basses in my years of playing music.My problem with a fretless bass is(besides playing in tune,lol) every bass that I've played just didn't seem to sound"alive"enough,for lack of a better term.I know that it's probably my ear being used to the tonal characteristics of a fretted bass.
But,IMHO,I have NEVER,EVER heard a fretless bass like a Pedulla.They simply sound AMAZING!!Back in the late-80's,early 90's,I was a gnat's ass away from buying a f-less Pedulla 4 string.Absolutely devastating bass.It sounded like God himself crafted that bass.
There has been many,many luthiers copy Micheal Pedulla's methods when it comes to fretless fingerboards.I think (besides Jaco,of course)it would be safe to say that he started the whole epoxy fingerboard deal for fretless basses.I am F-A-R from being an authority on fretless basses.But a Pedulla??That's what makes my ears happy.

NEXT QUESTION:But....Do you wanna spend that much for a fretless that sounds like it was crafted from "The Man Upstairs"??Well??Do you?
Click to expand...

This is gospel. However a buzz for 700 is a real tall order. I would honestly recommend buildingyour own. I made a couple by simply yanking the frets, filling in the holes with wood putty or that plaster in a tube used to fill nail holes in walls, and then coated it with bondo. A lot of sanding and time, but pretty easy. Seems that is what some other fretless player did to make his bass and sounded like it worked ok.
 
#9
$700...

Well, you've only been playing 2 years, so you aren't going to be crazy demanding.... So a nice Pedulla or Zon isn't what you require yet.

Were I you, I'd be looking on Ebay for a Fender or maybe a G&L. Buy it used so that when you are ready to sell it, you get your money back. THEN you can buy that Pedulla, Zon or whatever other really sweet fretless you need!
 

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