Is it harder to play a fretless?

[wideload]

Well, fretless helps me keep up with singers who sing flat...

 

[ArtechnikA]

Well, fretless helps me keep up with singers who sing flat...

I thought that in an audition I once had, but as it was the singer's project, the desperate need for autotune was kind of like the emperor's new clothes... And anyway I had to choose between working with the guitar and keys - who weren't about to retune - or the singer - who was already quite used to singing flat even already surrounded by those fine pitch references.

Yes, I knew you were kidding...

 

[kevteop]

Playing fretless in tune is pretty hard, especially above the 15th fret. You simply will not be able to do it reliably unless you're disciplined about your left hand technique and you're constantly listening. I played fretless exclusively for several years and I now play double bass, and honestly I think it's much more difficult to play fretless with accurate intonation than it is for double bass.

 

[Gougedeye]

I am now in the market for a nice 5 string fretless. I've messed with them a bit and a lined one is certainly easier to get around on, but after some practice, you'll find your groove, lined or not.

 

[Rockin Mike]

I think that's why frets were invented, to make it easier to play in tune.

 

[TheBiancaZed]

I am now in the market for a nice 5 string fretless. I've messed with them a bit and a lined one is certainly easier to get around on, but after some practice, you'll find your groove, lined or not.

Would it be easy to find a 4-string lined fretless?

 

[Marcury]

Is it harder? It is different and requires practicing and acquiring some different skills, but it's well worth the effort. Some love it and it's not for others. Check it out and see.

 

[SeattleSunn]

In the past few months I have started to use my fretless as my primary bass. It is more challenging, and some songs benifit from it more than others.
We have a few songs with shifts and or a bunch of octaves and it is not worth playing them on the fretless, the better tone is negated by the struggle to intonate. I have another song where I have to hit a low F and F an octave up over and over to the point of fatugue. I will go to the fretted because if you are off on octaves it doesn's sound good at all.

If you have a good ear, and plenty of time to practice to get the intervals into muscle memory, it ads another dimension to the instrument.

 

[Gougedeye]

Yes. Relatively inexpensive too. I believe Fender/Squire offer a couple different models. there are several imports to look at as well, Rouge, SX, ESP/LTD, Yamaha

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[Dr. Cheese]

A good choice, but used fretless MIM Fenders can be found for about the same price as the Squier is new. They're great basses and they don't have slightly raised fret lines like the Squier.

I bought a very nice MIM Jazz earlier
year for $300. I intend to install a Babicz bridge and a Hipshot D-Tuner.

 

[TheBiancaZed]

Yes. Relatively inexpensive too. I believe Fender/Squire offer a couple different models.

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Thanks! They're cheaper than I expected.

 

[DiabolusInMusic]

A good choice, but used fretless MIM Fenders can be found for about the same price as the Squier is new. They're great basses and they don't have slightly raised fret lines like the Squier.

This a billion times over.

Personally, I think those that say fretless is harder are all fretted guys. I find my fretless SOOOOOOOOOOO much easier to play than my fretted. (I would've used more O's but I didn't want to get modded.) I would prefer to play my fretless more, but I have to admit the fretted does fit most of my situations much better.

Frets, speed bumps as some call them, just add more noise and make you work harder. The intonation part is easy, assuming you don't do lots of double stops. Chords took some getting used to for me, I was just so used to the frets correcting my sloppy technique. By the time I played fretless I had played for years, so I was fairly comfortable with a 34" neck in my hand. I do also play with fretlines. Although, I recently played my first "no marker" bass and I was able to play it in pitch without even side markers.

Everybody should have a fretless, it will make you a better player. Fact.

 

[Ken J]

For me easier.
Frets are annoying to me.

 

[Atonalmodal]

There are challenges to learning every new skill and facing those challenges will make you a better player.
That being said, unless you can hear yourself in relation to the rest of the instruments, it will be impossible to
to know if your in tune with them.

 

[ctmullins]

As a long-time fretless player and lover, two comments:

1. Vibrato (orchestral-style) is far easier on a fretless, and helps with minor pitch variances. That's why it was invented!

2. The longer the scale length, the more forgiving it is regarding intonation.

Harder? Marginally. But entirely worth it!

 

[dkelley]

Op. Yes it's harder. That's why only great players play fretless well enough to make money at it. But if you hear pitch well and play well then it's actually easier to play fretless than fretted once you're used to it IMHO.

 

[cleary]

I recently started on a pretty much full time fretless journey (about a month ago). Notes of the things that I've found:
* good left hand technique (pivotting) is pretty much essential if you want to spend any time looking away from your fretboard
* good fretboard note knowledge is essential
* intonation is a skill that improves with practice
* lined vs unlined didn't make a difference in usability for me (I do have dots on the side of the unlined neck for reference though)

Is it harder than fretted? If you have these skills already, then maybe not. It probably also depends on what style you play.

YMMV, but I'm really enjoying the journey.

 

[Tbone76]

It may be harder initially, but don't let that stop you from trying it. The most important thing you can do is get a quality instrument. If you go with a lined fretless, make sure the line markers are flush with the fingerboard, or you won't be able to play in-tune. It really is an expressive, beautiful sounding instrument, and it isn't limited to just jazz or fusion. Jeff Ament from Pearl Jam recorded their debut album almost entirely on fretless, and Steve DiGiorgio plays fretless 5-string in a heavy metal context. It all comes down to practice and dedicating yourself to learning it.

I need to buy one again.....

 

[70'sRockChild]

I've always wondered if having no frets makes it harder to play. I'm a beginner and I do a lot of songs with sliding, and I just wanted to know if there's a difference in difficulty.

Since you said you were a beginner, let me throw out that you can slide on a set of flatwound strings, not slow of course, but like you would on a guitar. Most new basses come with roundwound strings, so I'm not sure if you have been exposed to flatwounds. Hope that helps.

On the other question about easy to find fretless, I don't know your market but I would think so, as people try them and don't always stay with them, then sell them to buy more stuff. Consider looking for a new or used replacement fretless neck if you have a bass you like or want to save money, but only as a second choice to one that is ready to go. I recently saw a Squire VM Jazz fretless neck with fretmarkers sit on Craigslist for months. They were only asking $60. Good luck, it's all a fun journey to me, finding what works and what I like. Let us know how many basses you have after a year!

 

[Shovel]

Yes. Even with my lined fretless, I always find my fingers drifting out of tune;