Guitar player with questions...Fret vs Fretless? Steinberge

I dont play bass, but I was wondering, what does fretles vs frets do for the sound you get from your bass? And I saw some very inexpensive Steinbergers over at Music o, they got great reviews on H.C. But sometimes that page is tough to judge from....any opinions on these?

Fretted basses generally have a cleaner tone, more sustain, and (unless you are especially good) more precise intonation. Fretless have a faster decay and a buzzier "mwaah" sound - like an upright bass

Fretless basses sound great. if you can listen to some weather report with Jaco, you can get an idea about the tone. BUt, they will require some work to get the intonation right. If you get one with fret lines, it will be a bit easier, but still you have to be bang on.

If this is a first bass as a diversion from the guitar, it's probably best to go with frets.

g.

At least for me it depends on what I'm playing. To my ears, it differences are really subtle. The differences for me come in where I'm playing on the neck. At the bottom end, fretless isn't too much different. If I'm going to the top end a lot, I sort of like the frets being there. Either way, it'll sure make you use your ears more, which is good for me. It boils down to six one way, half a dozen the other.
Another thing I enjoy on fretless, is if I have a string go out of tune, I can play it sharp or flat, depending, to balance it out til I can grab a tuner.
PLUS ~ If you've ever tried to learn tunes from old records, (before the wonderful age of electronic tuners), it's easier for me to follow the tune on fretless & then transpose it to whatever key I'll be using on the fretted.
Cheerio, Y'all :-)

I play both, and upright bass too. If you just want to learn a different instrument, then fretless is mo' different. if you actually want to play bass in a live context, then get a fretted bass.

Fretless is very very cool, and way more expressive than fretted, but it's much much harder to play. Partly this is the obvious intonation issue--it's easy to slip out of tune. But the tone is also harder to control--it tends to be "bigger" and looser. A fretted bass note is plucked and then pretty much stays in character as it decays--pretty much the same overtones and timbre. A fretless note will do all sorts of cool/odd stuff before it decays, abnd in some cntexts it just sounds too busy and dstracting. if you're walkng a blues line you want a really fosued, consistent sound, and if your fretless is "mwahhing" all over the place no one will be happy

So it depends on your goals. if you wnat to play with people, get a fretted unless you're ready for a steeper learning curve

Regarding the steinbergers--cheap, but I'd stay away, you can't play them sitting down, and they have cheap EMG active electronics which in my experience sound lousy. Also string are harder to find. I'd get a good mim fender of a Yamaha--Yamaha's low end basses are cheap and excellent.

If you really are interested in fretless, check out the lowend yamaha's, 3-400$'s. You may want to replace the electronics. I have A sound gearish type yamaha with a split "p" p-up. Dont expect to jump in and gig with it, as it takes alot of getting used to. Fretted might be a better option for your first bass.

If you have to ask, you really need to try them out in person before spending your money. :wink:

- Scott

Just get a decent p-bass to start with and the other stuff will came later if it needs to m'kay.

I played a fretless P-Bass in my first real band, and one thing I found was how hard it was to sing and play accurately at the same time! I eventually got myself a fretted bass and found it a lot easier...

Cheers, Tim

My main guitar is a Steinberger Spirit GT-Pro.
Yesterday I spent a nearly whole afternoon in a shop here in Budapest, playing a fretless Hohner steinberger bass copy, and the main reason for not buying it is that I just bought a fretless mongrel bass (Warwick Thumb-ish) a few weeks ago.
Steinbergers can come as a shock, if your are not experienced with them, but that shocked actually changed my guitar playing life for the better.
I could not stop playing that bass yesterday, ergonomicaly it is just no contest for me anyway, Ned Steinberger as Reeves Gabrels put it is the Leo Fender of his generation.

Electronics are often if not regularly changed on pricier instruments too, so ...
Getting double ball strings is not an issue even here in Hungary, which is probably the least steinberger penetrated segment of the whole universe.

Try it though, a lot of people hate the shape, the comfort, the sound, the looks.
Musiciansfriend is selling the Steinberger Spirit line, the bass is called XT, and unlike their Hohner counterparts, they came with two passive EMG select pickups with no active tone controll. On the Steinberger forum is common knowledge, that changing the pots to CTS or any higher quality stuff skyrockets the sound of this durable instruments.
As far as I can tell, Steinberger does not offer fretless in the Spirit line - a few years ago an unlined five string version was available- but you can get rid of the frets, a few guitar shops are offering this for not much more than a 100 USD, such was the hohner I played yesterday, and is my warwick lookalike mongrel.

Oh, and apart from Jaco to whom the whole fretless thing is coming from, if you are into experimental, check Patrick O'hearn on Zappa's Live in New York on a frettles precision, if you're into pop, than check Pino Palladino's work on Paul Young's Every time you go away or Come back and Stay on a fretless Stingray, if you are into weirdo's, check Gary Numan's Dance with Mick Karn (of Japan) playing a fretless Wall, or if you' are into world music than try not to step on your own dropped jaw hearing Bakithi Kumalo playing some don'tknowwhat bass on Paul Simon's Graceland.
These totally different musical examples should give you an idea of what a fretless bass can be used for.
Anything I might say.

Fretless basses are great sounding and playing instruments, but I wouldn't recommend one as a first bass.
They are more difficult to play and IMHO less versatile than fretted basses.

I'd buy an inexpensive Precision as a first bass (Mexican classic series, or perhaps one of these new Squier classic vibes 60's). A fretless bass would be a great addition later!