On a fretless, the board material matters quite a bit. For the fretless sound in my head, a raw wood board just won't do - I need a coated (epoxy, poly) or an ebonol board. The pickups and electronics matter too, but without the right things happening at the interface between the strings and the board, no combo of pickups and electronics will get the sound I need.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Opinions on the 'most' Versatile Fretless?
- Thread starter Tyler Wilkins
- Start date
Out of the box my Franklin was almost perfect. I didn’t like the goth-tort pickguard.
cool! but a two-pickup ax is obviously more "versatile" than an ax with but one. you seem to want a go-to 'brand', but i think you'll find that your pickup choices are more significant than an actual brand...at least for your stated purposes. the brand may get the 'feel', the balance, the craftsmanship, etc., but how you 'power' the beast will determine the sound. and the right active setup will give you the home runs!
note: i play and gig fretless, passive PJs.
I concur. They make them I'm black, too!
Here's mine.
Active/passive. Tons of tonal options. Ridiculously well made.
I went through the same search as the OP when I was shopping for a fretless. I finally landed on a G&L L2000 fretless bass with an ebony fingerboard. Lots of love for the G&L fretless basses as others have posted due to their versatility and excellent construction and overall feel. The flexibility in tones is amazing including P or J tones. Also, the USA G&L's are built extremely well. Here's a picture of my mid-90's L2k. Good luck to the OP in your quest.
Versatility is in the player.
Not the bass.
Michael Manring can do more with a Squier fretless than I can do with his Hyperbass.
Not the bass.
Michael Manring can do more with a Squier fretless than I can do with his Hyperbass.
Versatility?
Willcox Guitars Releases Premium Upgrades to Its Best Seller
or
Invalid Link Removed
While fine basses on their own right, you can hook up to the latest Roland (Boss) monster v-guitar processor BOSS - SY-1000 | Guitar Synthesizer
You're welcome!
Willcox Guitars Releases Premium Upgrades to Its Best Seller
or
Invalid Link Removed
While fine basses on their own right, you can hook up to the latest Roland (Boss) monster v-guitar processor BOSS - SY-1000 | Guitar Synthesizer
You're welcome!
As far as common fretlesses go, the L-2000 is pretty versatile.
It can do anything a P, 'Ray, or Sabre can do. And if you rewire it for splitting instead of parallel (or order it this way from G&L), it can do J bass individual pickup tones, or both J pickups on full tones.
What it can't do is the spectrum of partially blended J tones, e.g. neck pickup on 80 percent and bridge pickup on 50 percent. The L-2000 has a master volume control, so when you are using both pickups, you don't get to choose the amount of each that you are getting.
The other good thing about it is the there's a cheap version, the Tribute. Same pickups, same tonal options – just "lesser" materials and craftsmanship, and very few options.
It can do anything a P, 'Ray, or Sabre can do. And if you rewire it for splitting instead of parallel (or order it this way from G&L), it can do J bass individual pickup tones, or both J pickups on full tones.
What it can't do is the spectrum of partially blended J tones, e.g. neck pickup on 80 percent and bridge pickup on 50 percent. The L-2000 has a master volume control, so when you are using both pickups, you don't get to choose the amount of each that you are getting.
The other good thing about it is the there's a cheap version, the Tribute. Same pickups, same tonal options – just "lesser" materials and craftsmanship, and very few options.
Last edited:
I think you can play about anything you like with a fretless if you're willing to put in the effort to make it work. You can play a fretless with bright strings and heavy hands and sound pretty close to fretted. But you can't make a fretted sound like fretless. But good news you can have one of each or more.
No thread about fretless is complete without a Pastorius pic. Here's picture of Jaco after eating $30 of Taco Bell.
No thread about fretless is complete without a Pastorius pic. Here's picture of Jaco after eating $30 of Taco Bell.
While I completely agree with your sentiment, I purposefully included some credentials in the OP to avoid comments like that. I’m not looking for a philosophy on bass playing. I developed mine long ago and (like you and many others) have put a lot of time into my instrument. I’m just trying to get some hardware answers, here.
thanks for taking the time to reply.
Largely yes, but just a little bit no. IME, every instrument has a 'voice'. That voice might be malleable and easily manipulated by the player, or it might be imposing and obstructive no matter the best efforts of the player. One man's hurdy gurdy might be another man's chamber group, or more...
YMMV.
Not necessarily. You will not be able to get some J sounds from a P bass. You will not be able to get some (many) fretless sounds out of a fretted bass. I can splice a cable with scissors, but it’s a cleaner job If I do it with wire cutters. I can also hammer a nail with a rolling pin...
Beyond musicianship, there are factors that play into an instrument’s versatility. THAT is what this post is discussing. Please stop pushing your agenda to evangelize the need for the player to be versatile. Though true, it’s irrelevant to the conversation.
IMHO, the most versatile fretless is less about brand and more about electronics. It seems that for max versatility, it should have 2 pickups and a Piezo pickup in the bridge. Just by changing pickups (and technique a little) you should be able to go from a non-fretless sound to super-mwah.
Agreed. So, per the OP, in your travels, what has been the most versatile fretless you’ve played/heard/seen?
Sadly, the Tribute isn't available in a fretless version (at least not to my knowledge). I think it's made for G&L by Cort guitars, but I may be wrong on that. More sadly, fretless is an extra-cost option on (MIA) G&L's and the lead time last I checked (about a week ago) is running about 6 months.
So waiting for a used one, etc., to show up may be quicker than actually ordering a new one
.One other thing I liked (but the OP might not) about my L2K FL was that it didn't sound like an FL. Mine gave me more of a fretted tone, which is my preference. I've always preferred a fretted tone, but I can't stand all the clinking and tinkling of the fret slap; that was actually the only real reason I went to FL in the beginning. On the FL the clinks and clacks are still there just not nearly as bad. It's not because I just like doing it the hard way
.So mine at least didn't extend its versatility into a "traditional" FL tone. You could force that sound out of it by plucking up near the fingerboard or even on top of it DB style, but otherwise it tended not to sound like an FL.
(that was why my recommendation to the OP was the Ibanez...)
L
The active-only M-series does allow pickup blending, which I love on my M-2500. I wouldn't say it's more versatile than the L-2x00, but versatile in different ways with the three-band active EQ and pickup blend. I don't have much experience with fretless (had fretless P for awhile), but I suspect this would be great. For example, pan toward the bridge pickup for "mwah," and boost bass to maintain thickness.
