Would you buy a bass without side dots?

[MegaSwing]

Seems simple enough to fix.

 

[BigBadBen67]

Sure. But I would do the same thing I did on my American Original P, which has very faint side dots. Six bucks worth of bright white nail polish and I have very visible little side dots right where I need them. Works great.

Stage lighting is there to make you look a certain way, not to make you be able to see. It sucks when they count off the first tune and you can't see where your 5th fret is. White nail polish does the trick. And no one can see it but you.

B

 

[jimmydean]

While I have bought two basses without side dots , I will not say I liked it . It felt really weird not having that reference point . Come to think of it, I also played a fretless that had no dots.........all ended up being sold after a couple of months .

 

[smperry]

I've done it with fretted basses, but if it were fretless, I'd add a few dots (stickers) to be honest.

 

[Rip Van Dan]

If you liked a bass enough, would you buy it if it didn't have side dots on the neck?

I have a German Hofner that doesn't have side dots. So far it's pushed me to lean more on my ears than eyes when playing.

I voted no but if it was a really good deal for a great bass, I might go ahead and buy it, although I would then put side dots on it.

 

[Deleted member 271037]

Yes, if I like the bass I would buy it, but I would install the side dots myself. I hate playing basses without side dots.

 

[6-3-2]

If everything else was amazing, yes. If not, no. I use side dots CONSTANTLY.

 

[Pings Bass]

I put side dot stickers on my upright, as a lot of people do.

 

[Andy Marshman]

I had an AVRI 62 P bass. The side dots were so small I couldn’t see them. I carefully applied a tiny dab of glow in the dark paint. Perfect solution.

 

[GIBrat51]

If you liked a bass enough, would you buy it if it didn't have side dots on the neck?

I have a German Hofner that doesn't have side dots. So far it's pushed me to lean more on my ears than eyes when playing.

Well...
If I found a bass I liked; if it was left handed (and, sadly, a lot of basses I really like, never were); and, most importantly - if there was a place in my herd for it? I wouldn't give a tinker's damn if it had side dots - or not.
That, said, though; none of the 27 basses I've bought (25 of which I still have) came without side dots. Even my '17 German Hofner 500/2 Sunburst Club Bass has them. Rather large ones, too... TBH, I don't use the side dots, really. I'll use the 12th fret double dots, sometimes, when I'm messing with strings - tuning, intonation, etc. - on the workbench. When I play bass (or guitar), if I look at anything, I look at fret ends. Or the line ends on my lined fretless basses... Currently, I have 3 more basses on order; a Schecter Stiletto Studio lined fretless; a very custom Birdsong Fusion lined fretless; and a short scale, fretted Serek Sacramento Bass. I'm pretty certain all of them will have side dots - whether I need them, or not...

 

[MCS4]

Yes. As a lefty I've used multiple instruments that started their life as righty and thus didn't have side dots on my side. I would likely do something to mark them myself, though.

 

[DirkP]

I never thought about side dots and could have sworn I never look at them. Until at one of the first gigs with my clay dots AVS Jazz I found myself on a very dark stage…
It’s like I just need that short feedback that I’m where I think I am and if I don’t get it, I feel a bit lost.

 

[Reedt2000]

Sure. 1/8 My buddy Jockomo Inlay Stickers For The Win!

Edit: Should add that they stay in place really well for most folks, but there have been a couple of exceptions here, having to do with playing style (big hands wrapping around) and body chemistry, from the sound of it. I've used them for years and they stay put very well for me. But I couldn't touch them with my left thumb from playing position if I tried...

Yup, this ^

You could install actual side markers if you wanted to. It's pretty easy and can be done with simple hand tools. But there are a plethora of stickers available that should work fine and are cheap, easily replaced, and easily removed.

 

[logdrum]

My no name single cut has only a market on the octave and nothing on the fretboard , but classical guitars are like that too -- minus any mark on the side and I navigate my classical nylon just fine. Will be tough on an unlined fretless. Even though I play DB, an unlined with no side dots will be tough to play.

 

[Axtman]

 

[ole Jason]

My Eshenbaugh doesn't have dots above the 12th fret. I just used some white out. IIRC the bass was originally ordered with not dots at all and someone added some I guess.

 

[hbarcat]

I've never seen an upright with side dots....

I have seen them with masking tape though!

(I'm sure someone will post an example...)

A few years ago, I inherited a 120 year old violin from a deceased relative that had been passed down in several steps from my great grandfather. It wasnt playable when I got it, but I had it restored because it was a quality instrument and worth about $2k when finished.

Someone along the line had used a thick black sharpie to mark fretlines on the Fingerboard. They weren't even straight. It looked like a drunk guy did it one night on an impulse.

 

[Clark Westfield]

Me not so bright sometimes.

I need the dots

 

[BlueTalon]

My main bass doesn't have dots on fretboard but i still need the side ones.

Side dots are simple to install. You can buy material from stewmac. Or have a tech install them.

If i liked the bass enough, sure! I'd probably get them installed though.

If I was really into the bass then, yes - but I would be adding them afterwards!

A paper of 1/4 inch file folder dots and a stick of glue from WalMart are all you need. Easily visible, easily removable.

I have a few that the dots are so hard to see ya may as well say they don't have any. But I like them so much that I overlook that factor. Its not a huge deal and I manage to get by. But it is nice when ya pull out something with binding and dots and you can see them so clearly.

In a way, I did. The side dots on my Fender American Original 60s Jazz Bass are near invisible, at least to me.

For the right bass I'd accept the deficiency and pay to have them added. I don't use the fingerboard dots because none of my basses have them, but for a quick shift I'm not that good to gig without them.

All of my basses have side dots. That said on a dim lit stage, or a stage with (hopefully ) changing stage light, I usually don't see them at all.

I voted no but if it was a really good deal for a great bass, I might go ahead and buy it, although I would then put side dots on it.

Yes, if I like the bass I would buy it, but I would install the side dots myself. I hate playing basses without side dots.

If everything else was amazing, yes. If not, no. I use side dots CONSTANTLY.

Long story short, I accidentally discovered the perfect solution -- fishing lure stickers. I get the oval shaped ones, and fold them over the top edge of my fretboard, so they'll reflect light from any angle. They're never not visible (even with neon strings), regardless of how bad the light on stage is -- they're designed to reflect light in low light situations, and the adhesive is designed to stick in harsh environments.

I haven't had much luck with my luminlays, to be honest. Yes, they are great...when they are lit up. The only way that I have achieved that is to use the provided flash light and shine it at all the dots, one-by-one. And it's great, but only lasts about two songs.

It's possible that I'm missing something, and also haven't fully tried it live, but they don't seem to activate all that easily.

Adjacent topic: Has anyone ever had standard side dots replaced with the oversized lumilay 3mm ones? Difficulty/cost? I know the neck may need a refinish and don't mind if it's just the back (no maple boards).

I got luminlay side dots on my Maruszczyk. I found that they didn't keep a charge, so to speak, so I'd have to refresh them with flashlights in order for them to be visible at all. I ended up putting the fishing lure stickers on, but not before punching holes so I could see the luminlay dots. (Why? I don't know. It just seemed like having spent the money on them, I should be able to see them even if they weren't terribly helpful.)

 

[J Wilson]

If there were no fingerboard markers (though I swoon for real abalone . . . . ) or side dots, that would be just fine with me.