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How many fretless basses?

#101
I have 3 fretless currently. A 4 string jazz, 4 string michael kelly dragonfly acoustic and an 8 string Bryce. Once I get my Waterstone 12 string, I'll be pulling the frets on my Dean Rhapsody 12 and I'll have all my basses covered by both fretted and fretless. I'd like to replace the lined jazz neck with an unlined one some day.. possibly with an epoxied maple fingerboard to look different.
 
#102
Since my last post, I have sextoupled the number of fretlesses I own. I still have my 4003FL, but I also have a 6 string fretless ABG, a 36" Schack headless/fretless 5, an FBass BNF5 NT, a Carvin fretless, and a MIJ P Bass Special fretless.

This is all part of my grand plan to switch from predominately 4 string fretted basses to 5+ string fretlesses.
 
#103
Matthew_84 said:
For you fretless owners, how many fretless basses do you own?
Click to expand...

Three in total - all Carvins: an LB70F, an Icon 5F, and a Bromberg 5 (B25F) with custom GraphTech Ghost piezoelectric system. All instruments built with neck-throughs, and epoxied ebony fingerboards.

Matthew_84 said:
I'd also like to know why you have the amount that you have. For instance, you may have only one, but it is active with a passive bypass, has two pick-ups and compression wound strings and can get most of the tones you are looking for, or you have three, one is a passive jazz with rounds, and an epoxied board, another is a fretless p bass with flats and a foam mute on a raw ebony board, and the third is an acoustic with tapewounds on a rosewood board, etc.
Click to expand...

No, nothing as varied as all that. Since I also own fretted versions of each of these instruments, and I'm still in process of becoming completely fluent on the fretless, I made a point of purchasing the identical make & model in fretless configuration as well, in order to facilitate the transition via muscle memory. :hmm:

MM
 
#104
MysticMichael said:
Three in total - all Carvins: an LB70F, an Icon 5F, and a Bromberg 5 (B25F) with custom GraphTech Ghost piezoelectric system. All instruments built with neck-throughs, and epoxied ebony fingerboards.



No, nothing as varied as all that. Since I also own fretted versions of each of these instruments, and I'm still in process of becoming completely fluent on the fretless, I made a point of purchasing the identical make & model in fretless configuration as well, in order to facilitate the transition via muscle memory. :hmm:

MM
Click to expand...
Since finger positions on a fretted and a fretless are different for the same note, wouldn't it make more sense to buy an unlined and a lined fretless if you want to work on muscle memory? That is basically how I learned to play fretless at age 4.
 
#107
one is enough for me ...

5f%20003.jpg
 
#110
cfsporn said:
Since finger positions on a fretted and a fretless are different for the same note, wouldn't it make more sense to buy an unlined and a lined fretless if you want to work on muscle memory? That is basically how I learned to play fretless at age 4.
Click to expand...

I guess I'm not entirely seeing the thread of logic here... :hmm:

Yes, one strives to play just in front of the fret of a fretted bass, while playing right on the fret line of a fretless bass. But the difference in location is so small that it can easily be compensated for with a good ear.

By "muscle memory", I was referring specifically to the process of transitioning back and forth between a fretted bass and a fretless bass with virtually identical neck dimensions, i.e. same scale, same shape & taper, etc. so that each neck feels identical in one's hand.

Does that clarify my remarks for you? :eyebrow:

MM
 
#111
6 total:
Two Carvin LB76s-one a stock '92 and one a 2002 LB76F Claro Walnut with piezos.
A Modulus Graphite Quantum 6 w/EMGs (identical to the one Marcus used on The Sun Don't Lie-walnut over ash body)
A Hot Wire/Magnus Krempel Sharkey 6 w/piezos in the body cavity
An Ibanez Silver Series fretless P Bass copy with Bartolini J pickup in the bridge position from 1978-my first fretless
A Yamaha RBX270 fretless-an inexpensive impulse buy
They all sound and feel different and I switch them up depending on the sound I'm looking for in the studio. The 2002 Carvin sees the most action these days.
 
#113
Just one, but there has to be a first, right? She's a beauty, too.

It's an unlined/no dots BEM board with an epoxy coating - a Carvin LB70P - a neck through. Active/passive 4 string. Many may have seen the NBD thread on this thing. She's got rounds on her currently.

My next would be an ebony board, again no lines or dots, and without the epoxy. I would string her with flats, and it might just be a bolt on neck. More low-fi ish that one would be. A Carvin as well.

:hiding:
 
#114
1) Custom built Doug Roomian (SF Luthier) 4 string. Ebony slab, Passive, Koa wings w/ maple center block, bolt on neck with a Jazz type skinny neck profile with a upright like neck radius, a delight to play.
2) 50's German upright w/ carved top.
3) cheap ass Dean 5 string fretless surprisingly good from the mid 90's w/ Rosewood fretboard, passive, actually worth more to me than it would cost to replace it. haha
 
#116
MysticMichael said:
I guess I'm not entirely seeing the thread of logic here... :hmm:

Yes, one strives to play just in front of the fret of a fretted bass, while playing right on the fret line of a fretless bass. But the difference in location is so small that it can easily be compensated for with a good ear.

By "muscle memory", I was referring specifically to the process of transitioning back and forth between a fretted bass and a fretless bass with virtually identical neck dimensions, i.e. same scale, same shape & taper, etc. so that each neck feels identical in one's hand.

Does that clarify my remarks for you? :eyebrow:

MM
Click to expand...

Yes. To be honest, I think my "idea" made a lot more sense to me when I typed it.
 
#117
Two, Pedulla Pentabuzz and Squier VM Jazz. One is active and a five string, the other is a four string passive. I almost sold the Squier to fund an Empress compressor, but I decided to keep it because it's actually a really good bass and provides a different tone.
 

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