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Posted by El Pájaro on February 02, 2001 at 15:55:39:
In Reply to: dumbest questions you ever read about fretless bass posted by scott on February 02, 2001 at 14:42:34:
: hello
: i've got some dumbass questions about fretless electric basses...
: - is the main purpose of fretless basses just to get a more upright bass tone?
: - would buying a fretless bass that has fretlines on the fingerboard be considered "cheating"?
: - what would be the best/strongest fingerboard wood used on a fretless bass if you were going to use roundwounds instead of flatwounds? (I've read that roundwounds can really destroy a fretless fingerboard)
:
: .......thanks for your help on this,
Hey there,
your questions aren't dumb at all. Here's my two cents:
question #1: no, although it is one contributing factor, and plucking near the fingerboard end with some palm- or thum-muting can do the trick pretty well.
question #2: no, although some people do believe the contrary. IMHO, with or without lines you'll need your EARS to determinate wether you're in tune or not.
question #3: yes, roundwounds do chew up the fingerboard like nobody's business. If you like the sound of rounds but don't want to worry about your fingearboard being ruined beyong recognition, then I strongly recommend going with phenolic or some other composite material. It WILL give you a different sound, but it will resist a lot more.
Hope this helped. Buena suerte and keep your bass up front in the mix,
El Pájaro