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Why play a fretless bass?
- Thread starter Jackcrow
- Start date
If I want I can use a fretless everywhere I use a fretted (other than slap which I don't do much these days) but then I can lean into the slides & vibrato and it opens up a different world.
I don't see any drawbacks other than the extra effort for intonation etc which I this is actually a benefit. It improves my ear and my muscle memory.
I don't see any drawbacks other than the extra effort for intonation etc which I this is actually a benefit. It improves my ear and my muscle memory.
I owned a nice fretless, but...
imo... They never really had that special sauce. I’ve played a fair amount, but the only one that haunts me to this day is the Pedulla pentabuzz(?). The fingerboard was just ... exceptional. The notes had character and ... jeez...
it’s been the only one. Next was a Fender precision.
But nothing for me compares to the Pedulla regarding fretless... I’m still listening though...
imo... They never really had that special sauce. I’ve played a fair amount, but the only one that haunts me to this day is the Pedulla pentabuzz(?). The fingerboard was just ... exceptional. The notes had character and ... jeez...
it’s been the only one. Next was a Fender precision.
But nothing for me compares to the Pedulla regarding fretless... I’m still listening though...
The tone got me into it. But once I got one and actually started playing fretless I really came to enjoy other things about it. The feel and expressiveness for example. I also enjoy how the challenge of playing fretless influences me to play a little differently. I’ve even recorded songs on fretted bass that were written on fretless where I don’t think I’d have come up with the same lines on fretted. That lack of the same level of confidence I have playing fretted makes me play differently. Often making me simplify how busy my playing while putting more focus into things like note selection and dynamics for example. I recommend everyone writing original music get one for that reason. Even if you never end up gigging on fretless it’s a good way to force you into a different headspace if you find yourself doing too much of the same thing.
- Jan 26, 2014
- 768
- 1,555
- Disclosures
- Endorsing artist;DNA Amplification, GHS strings
Fretted bass, you only get half steps. Fretless bass, you get the whole rainbow.
I find it to be both a challenge and in some ways easier to play than a fretted. It’s a challenge because you have to work at correctly intonating the note at just the right spot and the further you go towards the bridge the less forgiving it is since the note spacing becomes much tighter.
Not having frets just makes technique easier. On a Fretless you don’t have to be conscious of where and how you place your finger on the fret. Also, fretbuzz is never an issue and Fretless can help you play faster with the left hand when called for. I think it was Jaco who coined the phrase “Frets are just speed bumps ”. You can play literally any note within the range of your bass I.E quarter steps or smaller fractions. For example. Many instruments like a piano or fretted bass are limited to just half steps/whole steps. Of course you can bend notes but you don’t need to on a Fretless. If your intonation is off on a note just quickly slide your finger to adjust. You can get away with that much better than you can on a fretted.
There’s more but I’ll stop here. I’m sure most pros and cons have already been addressed.
Not having frets just makes technique easier. On a Fretless you don’t have to be conscious of where and how you place your finger on the fret. Also, fretbuzz is never an issue and Fretless can help you play faster with the left hand when called for. I think it was Jaco who coined the phrase “Frets are just speed bumps ”. You can play literally any note within the range of your bass I.E quarter steps or smaller fractions. For example. Many instruments like a piano or fretted bass are limited to just half steps/whole steps. Of course you can bend notes but you don’t need to on a Fretless. If your intonation is off on a note just quickly slide your finger to adjust. You can get away with that much better than you can on a fretted.
There’s more but I’ll stop here. I’m sure most pros and cons have already been addressed.
How curious. I play fretless in a rocking chair all the time, and it doesn't affect my intonation.
When I get tired, but not so tired that I want to stop playing, my left arm tends to hang and without my elbow up I miss a lot of notes, especially notes played requiring a stretch.
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Got you. I suffer from something similar, on both fretted and fretless basses. If I let my elbow get in too close to my ribs, my freedom of movement in the forearm is severely impacted.
Seriously, for jazz in particular it just feels freer to me, if you get what I mean..
Thanks to an unacknowledged conspiracy between @B-Mac and @Dr. Cheese, I am expecting delivery of my second Glarry fretless tomorrow. After decades of playing fretted basses, fretless now has become my instrument of preference. For the tone, whether you call it mwah or fluidity or something else. I find it far more effective for contrapuntal playing (as opposed to pocket/riff); and as a folkie, I am more attuned to balladic/melodic repertoire.
One caveat. It is true that you do not have to worry about fret buzz on a fretless, but you do have to be on the lookout for dips in the fingerboard, which can produce an even more ear-jarring sound.
One caveat. It is true that you do not have to worry about fret buzz on a fretless, but you do have to be on the lookout for dips in the fingerboard, which can produce an even more ear-jarring sound.
When doing a recording session I always bring a fretless along. Sometimes a producer will say " I'm looking for something different" and I'll pull out the fretless. Sometimes this is exactly what they want they just didn't know how to put it into words. I can't think of a situation where I would play a only fretless live but it could happen. Even Jaco had a fretted with him on stage.
The bass I learned to play on in middle school through high school was a fretless, so it just feels like home. My main player bass is a fretless, and the past two groups I’ve played in the BL’s have expressed they highly prefer it when I play my fretless bass. Guess I just don’t sound right when I play a fretted bass.
D
Deleted member 165050
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I usually only take one bass and it's always a fretless, main choice is fretless 4 or fretless 5. I do own a fretted but it's not getting used...
You also don’t have to endure any sharp fret ends!
As far as the conspiracy goes you must not leave out @JRA. His Glarry fretless mods have been simply creatively beautiful and inspiring. And @Dr. Cheese ’s videos of his Glarry playing on the unlined fretless have also been inspiring.
Go for it GW!
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