Fretless question

jps · Post by **jps** » Fri Sep 23, 2005 4:54 pm

May the force be with you, young fretless master!

headbanger · Post by **headbanger** » Fri Sep 23, 2005 5:16 pm

I'm already in love with mine & I've only had it since Tuesday.
Hey, This one is a 21 position neck as well. What's yours Andy? That only happened in the early 70's, right?

jnbass · Post by **jnbass** » Fri Sep 23, 2005 5:32 pm

Impressive, most impressive

But you are not yet a Fretless Master!

edski · Post by **edski** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 12:36 am

Not that I didn't like it...well, um, I guess that what I said...but...um, err...

I was just uncomfortable with all those dots. I suspect I'd grow to love one if I played it enough...right now when I play the fretless I have to look at my left hand a lot!

All those dots made me feel a little tipsy!

wints · Post by **wints** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 1:06 am

Hey Gerry...your right. Just looked at the old auction pics. Yours is the 21 fret(less!) version. How cool is that! Mine is the normal 20 frets.

I personally don't like all the dots either. It is way too confusing if you look....So, I don't!

ken_swearingen · Post by **ken_swearingen** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 2:34 am

Andy,post that pic. of you playing with one foot in the bucket and explain it again,stung by a stingray?? i cant remember.

headbanger · Post by **headbanger** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 6:27 am

How cool is that! Well mate, that is ultra cool.....
I put some nylons on just now. I wanted thud, well I sure got lotsa thud. Completely different sound from rounds.

wints · Post by **wints** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 7:29 am

Here it is Ken.

I swim in the Gulf most days summertime. Just put my foot down in the wrong place and the next think I know, it feels like someone has driven a nail into the top of my foot! Stingray...
The immediate treatment is to put your foot in a bucket of very hot soapy water.

It is painful......

But, no excuse to stop practice!

jnbass · Post by **jnbass** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 9:42 am

damn!

thought you were talkin 63 Stingray, split window...

wints · Post by **wints** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 10:14 am

LOL...I wish Jared, I wish....

edski · Post by **edski** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 10:25 am

Hazards of living in FLA!

learning_curve · Post by **learning_curve** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 2:51 pm

Gerry quite the bunch of Fretless info Haa.
I copied part one of these guy's messages.

"The new FLs only have dots on the binding that correspond to the dots on the fingerboard - in the center of the "fret", not on the actual note. The older ones, like yours Gerry, have the dots on the binding at every exact note, which is helpful on a dark stage!"

Yep this is correct. I have never actually owned a fretless before and playing it is much more of a challenge than I thought. I have gotten good enough with the frets to hit the note I need almost every time just by feeling but this fretless is something else! Gonna take many years of bass playing to slide up to an octave and hit it perfectly every time.

Anyway, I have already put glow dot fret markers on each of the dots so I can use this bass on stage.
I took the fretless I now have as a partial trade from our very own Dave Pasco earlier this month. Nice bass Dave!

Gerry I would suggest you take the round wounds off this bass they do dig up the fretboard a lot more than the flat wounds. I also find that so far the songs I am using this for do not need the round wound sounds anyway. These are much more subtle instruments and with the correct effects & a volume pedal can sound quite alien.

Enjoy Randy

jps · Post by **jps** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 4:59 pm

For truly alien fretless tone check out a Rick Turner Renaissance fretless bass. You can hear it at M.A.R.C.

headbanger · Post by **headbanger** » Sun Sep 25, 2005 1:30 am

I'm trying to get an upright sound from it, sort of... It sounds great today so I'm pretty happy. I have 2 1999's, one has 70's pickups & both have rounds. This I want to be a different animal...

headbanger · Post by **headbanger** » Sun Sep 25, 2005 1:49 am

Don't drop that bass in the bucket now Andy