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new to fretless - string recommendations to start?
- Thread starter richntiff
- Start date
Start with the strings you usually play. Do not be snookered into thinking you must use flats or coated strings to preserve your fingerboard at the risk of harming an unfinished board. I'll admit to not caring for flats, on anything really, but I believe the voice most people associate with a fretless, the mwah sound, is captured best by rounds on wood. Yes, rounds will wear the fingerboard. The fingerboard, however, can be be sanded down and shaped by your tech many, many times before the board will need to be replaced. This is particularly true with a thick ebony fingerboard.
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I love the GHS Precision Flats on 1 Fretless Jazz I have but agree the GHS pressurewounds should be awesome. Currently playing my first set of those on a 56 Warmoth p bass with Lindy Fralin split p and they sound super. For tapes I like the discontinued GHS tapes. Inexpensive but a little rough to the touch but sound pretty good, Fender tapes. Overall I think I’ve become a GHS fanboy.
NYXL’s work very well on my fretless as do the stock nickel Pedulla strings. I LOVE Thomastik Infeld Jazz Rounds but I kind of lack the discipline to use them in a band setting.
You're gonna have a boatload of fun with that fretless! Finding the right string is part of it. All of the above are excellent choices. I've done Black Tapewounds, D'addario nickel and stainless rounds and currently have Ernie Ball Super Slinky on it. I have a Fender Jazz Bass Special Fretless with a Rosewood Board. One thing I have discovered is tension on a fretless matters. The D'addarios seemed to have more tension than the Slinkys, I'm really having fun with the Slinkys. The M'wah is more pronounced and easier to play, IMHO. Have fun, enjoy the discovery and play!
I had a set of sanded tape wound .100s that sounded great but I couldn't find them after that and I don't recall who made them. The regular tapes did make dull spots along the length of the neck after a few years but I get a bit hard on the strings while I'm playing. In the old days I used fender flats on my fretless basses. unless you have a real light touch, I'd stay away from rounds. d'addario makes half rounds that sound real good. A lot of music stores don't stock them.
I recommend spending some time on youtube checking out fretless with flats vs rounds vs tapewounds. I very much prefer fretless with rounds personally but if you’re going for more of an upright bass type sound tapewounds or flats might be the way to go. Maple like ebony is a pretty durable wood. If it gets messed up over time from the rounds you can always cost the board later on.
I’ve tried them all. For roundwound mwah, I like DR Sunbeams and Fodera Wootens.
For a more mellow, woodier tone, I like Labella Deep Talkin’ Bass (nylon tape-wounds). I was also impressed with plain old D’addario XLs. I’m not a fan of XLs on fretted basses, but they worked well on the fretlss. Nicely balanced without too much top-end zing.
For a more mellow, woodier tone, I like Labella Deep Talkin’ Bass (nylon tape-wounds). I was also impressed with plain old D’addario XLs. I’m not a fan of XLs on fretted basses, but they worked well on the fretlss. Nicely balanced without too much top-end zing.
+1 vote to use which ever strings you prefer, and don't be afraid of round wounds. If you are worried about fingerboard wear, there is the option of having it coated. In my case, I put CA glue (super glue) on mine - it took one weekend and was not too difficult.
LaBella 760FL's are my current favorite on fretless, but they are very strong on the fundamentals (the 760FS's and especially the 760FM's are thumpier). All the tapes I've tried sound a bit "plasticky" to me. I don't like how rounds feel or sound when sliding notes. You would probably like TI Jazz flats if you're looking for more definition. They have a bright, complex tone, play really smooth because of their flexibility, and they'll last for years. They have a bit less tension than most factory rounds, so you might have to loosen the truss rod just a tad. Relief is really easy to check on a fretless - and for "mwah" you're going to want very little relief.
Remember that with fretless you bend notes and/or get vibrato by moving your "fretting" finger up-and-down along the length of the string - not side-to-side like you would on a fretted bass. Flats (and tapes) help make that easier, so I recommend smoother strings as your initial choice.
Enjoy your first fretless! What bass are you getting?
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I've been eyeing a fretless neck and set of flats for my squirrelSquirep (darn autocorrect) as soon as some drum stuff sells. My string quandary for the thread is: I normally like stiff strings. But I've also heard flats tend to be even stiffer than their gauge might suggest. I was curious about the Rotosound 77LE's but was worried it was too much. I 'm sort of wanting the flatwound attack but with an aggressive brightness (for a flat that is).
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Hi richntiff
Welcome to the "planet fretless"!
As you can see, we (fretless guys) all can have different goals (soundwise)
I play stainless steel rounds (Rotosound swing bass)
= mmmmwaaaahhhh!!! and a ton of growl,
because I play mostly rock and bluesrock (Power trio)
For my two acoustic gigs, where I want to get into upright territory,
I use a foam mute and the EQ on my amp.
Enjoy your fretless
may the bass be with you
Wise(b)ass
My string recommendation is always TI jazz rounds but they're especially good on fretless. I found the lower tension and supple and bouncy feel makes fretless playing easier, for me anyway.
I went on a search for fretless strings this year, tried quite a few, clearly low tension strings were the worst regardless of wind. I would up with DR Sunbeams! I would have liked to try LaBella gold or white and found them to be unavailable, which makes them hard to try.