• 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.

Will Round Wounds Chew Up A Fretless Neck?

#21
I'm new to the world of fretless and have the same question.
I have a Musicman Sterling 34ca MAPLE neck, I recently made it fretless and put flatwound strings on it. I love the fretless sound and feel but I would like to play it with roundwounds.
My concern is that the neck si maple (which if I'm right, its the most delicate wood for neck), is it a good idea to use roundwounds on a fretless maple?? Is an epoxy coating enough to support this type of strings?
Thanks
 
#22
SebastianM said:
I'm new to the world of fretless and have the same question.
I have a Musicman Sterling 34ca MAPLE neck, I recently made it fretless and put flatwound strings on it. I love the fretless sound and feel but I would like to play it with roundwounds.
My concern is that the neck si maple (which if I'm right, its the most delicate wood for neck), is it a good idea to use roundwounds on a fretless maple?? Is an epoxy coating enough to support this type of strings?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Epoxy it and go for it nothing like a round on a poly'd neck once you hear it you will never go back. Besides it is only digging into the poly if it gets done right and you upkeep it like others have said.
 
  • Like
Reactions: reverendrally
#24
In the 90's I piked up a Washburn Bantam 6 string with the frets removed dirt cheap. Living in Palm Beach County(FL), the local luthier's shop happened to be Kevin Kaufman's. I got the Jaco treatment on it and played it as my main bass for a few years, always with roundwounds. It has some marks on it and I need to sand it but the sound isn't hurt by the marks at all.
 
#25
In my engineer's world of absolutes, the answer is; yes, round wound strings will chew up a fretless neck. The question you're really asking is "How badly, and how long will it take?" And the answer is, "it depends". In the real world, there are too many variables for a simple answer - unless you'll be happy with a simple "Yes they will"...
1 Strings. They're metal; the fingerboard is not. Unless you use tapewound strings. rubbing a metal string - any metal string - across it will wear it out sooner or later. Since round wound strings are more like a file than flat wounds, they will wear it out a little sooner - all other things being equal...
2. Technique. As has been mentioned, sliding vs. bending, and a light touch with your "fretting" hand, will go a long way towards minimizing wear on the fingerboard. But it will wear; just later, rather than sooner...
3. Fingerboard material. Some woods are harder than others (Duh..:rolleyes:), which is why ebony (hard) is more common on fretless instruments than, say, rosewood (not so hard). Synthetic materials - like ebanol - are pretty darn hard, and are becoming more popular, because they are both cheaper and CITES friendly. But, ebony and ebanol are still softer that steel, so.. see no.1 above. I have an old fretless Kramer aluminum neck around here with an ebanol board. It looks terrible, but is actually still very smooth. It's very obvious that a previous owned played it with round wounds, though... Epoxy coatings, although very hard, are still not quite as hard as the strings. It may take a long time, but the metal strings will win in the end...
So bottom line is; yes, round wound wound strings will probably cause noticeable wear sooner than any other type of string. However, it's your responsibility to minimize that wear, through proper playing technique, and the appropriate maintenance at the proper time - which is before the neck gets "chewed up"...:thumbsup:
 
#27
Heres my list of 11 thoughts on playing fretless regarding the strings used and the fretboard ( or rather "finger" board) material. I have a Squier vintage modified p bass 4 string with ebonol. A schecter studio stiletto 5 with rosewood and a Carvin bb75 with natural uncoated ebony.
1 I like the sound AND FEEL of the natural wood boards better than the ebonol
2 all three are showing visible string wear on the board even though only the Carvin has round wounds and the schecter has always had flats
3 the Carvin with rounds and the Squier ((with rounds) that I changed off( which is my least favorite sounding of the 3 with flats on it now ) both sound noticeably more pleasing like a mwah double bass sound with the rounds.
4 the schecter rosewood board with Ernie Ball flats still shows signs of wear immediately after I started playing on it
5 I plan to keep the Carvin and sell the others due to its superior sound which I believe is definitely partly due to the uncoated natural ebony board
6 I played on a Carvin with ebony coated with their "hard as nails" finish and I think the bare ebony feels and sounds better. I did not like that coated board
7 the " hard as nails" bass i played on showed wear and tear too and is basically just like ebonol at the surface.
8 ebonol or ebonite and coated ebony are considered superior fretless bass boards but that is in regards to durability and not sound.
9 everyone has a different opinion of what sounds good and doesn't. You might find you like rounds better or flats better.
10 experiment and find what you like in the sound and feel department and if you wear out your bass fingerboard. Well... Great job! That probably means you're really darn good now and maybe deserve a new bass!
LAST! The sound of a fretless has many factors. Strings, fretboard material are big ones but setup is just as important and nut and bridge settings as well as neck relief are important factors that should not be ignored. More important than on a fretted bass in my opinion. To get that sweet fretless mwah all the way up and down the neck these need to be tweaked just right.
I think a great thread would be pictures of all your worn out fretless boards!
Oh wait one more thought I just had.... "Why am I sitting here typing all this crap? I'm gonna go play bass now.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back