Flats on Fretless! Who would have thought!!!

[b-unit]

So this past weekend, I lucked out and managed to trade another brand of bass that I was never using for a pristine lefty Sterling 4 fretless in one of my absolute favorite EBMM colors, Trans Red. The bass was sporting a set of flats (Chromes) that I was planning to immediately discard...that was until I picked it up and played it!

Holy clams, this thing is a growl machine! All the snarl, growl, punch and fat mids that I could ever want with a set of flatwounds??? I still can't get over it! After playing her for several hours, totally incapable of wiping the smile off my face, I turned to my SR4 fretless which I have to admit, has not received the playtime it deserves.

I have owned the SR4 for a year and have tried, nickle and stainless rounds and have not been able to quite find the tone I am after. I have tweaked the truss rod, messed with the action and pickup height and just wasn't satisfied but could not figure out why.

I adore the sound of Slinky's on my fretted SR4's, SR5's and my Bongo but something just wasn't working on the fretless.

So I slapped a used set of Chromes on the SR4 that I had lying around, and just like the Sterling, I am in love! There is growl and mid punch, yet no lack of clarity. The two bases do not sound the same however. With all eq controls set flat, and a similar setup, the fretless Stingray has a hotter signal, more pronounced lows and a seems to have a bit less mid punch on the G string notes.

The Sterling has a quieter signal, less low end but the sweetest growling mid range tone I have ever been able to coax from a fretless bass. Dialing in more mids only makes it sweeter and adding a bit of low end really balances things out and brings up the output.

The Ray's mid punch is nicely enhanced with a bit of a boost from the mid knob but the bass has less growl and a lot more low end then the Sterling. The playability with the flats is fantastic on both basses and I cannot put them down. I keep switching between them and am just amazed that I never considered flatwounds on a fretless before. I expected to have no growl and no bloom in the notes but its all there in spades, especially with the Sterling.

I have never owned a Sterling before and am so impressed with everything about it. I always gravitated to the Stingray and admittedly dismissed the Sterling as a smaller less "manly" bass which was of course ridiculously silly.

Here's a pic of the new Sterling and a quick shot of my arsenal of lefty Balls! Single H all the way!

 

[madbassplaya]

Nice collection! I really want that MESA 412!

 

[b-unit]

Thanks. Great cab for sure. Its a beast to move but weighs about 50 pounds less then an 8x10.

 

[gafman]

Awesome collection. That sterling sure is nice and a blank plank too. Well done.

 

[MadMatt]

Congrats! That is a Very nice Sterling!

 

[J Romano]

Love that wood grain on PG on your Sterling. Very Sharp!!!!!!!

 

[muggsy]

Lots of people like flats on a fretless because they won't chew up the board, but I love the way they sound. I have a fretless Sterling and know exactly what you're talking about. Of course, I also love the way flats sound and feel on my fretted basses.

Love that trans red finish.

 

[b-unit]

Thanks guys. I keep thinking I should try some rounds on the Sterling but the tone i am after is all there with the added bonus of not chewing up the fingerboard. When I bought my Fretless Ray, it was over the internet with only a single photo for reference. I took a chance as a lefty fretless is not an easy thing to find. When it arrived, the fingerboard had deep grooves in it from the strings and I had to have a a proper sanding done to repair the damage and make the bass playable. Someone had played he bass hard for sure as I had never seen such a chewed up board. As much as I love that bass, the Sterling is completely blowing my mind with its tone and insane playability. Its actually heavier then the Ray despite being smaller. I just cant put it down!

 

[theroan]

Is there any other way?

 

[MattOfSweden]

Very interesting to hear about your experiences of the Sterling vs Stingray in their fretless incarnations. I've had my mind set on a fretless Ray (or possibly a Bongo) somewhere down the line, but a Sterling could for sure be a contender as well.

 

[b-unit]

They do sound different for sure. Not sure if it's just my Stingray fretless that is lacking a bit in the mwah department, or that just how they sound compared to the Sterling.

 

[J Romano]

Been having issues with my old SR fretless, need to get it to a luthier. I think it is a shim issue. But in the mean time I have been fooling with the truss rod adj, and string height from the bridge. I was able to dial in different levels of mwah. Just curious if the issue with your SR is the setup and not an issue of Sterling vs SR ?????

 

[b-unit]

I would not be surprised if my Stingray is just not setup to maximize the tone I am after, but I have not been able to tweak it on my own. I may have to break down and take it in for a specific setup. I do love the overall sound and feel of my fretless Ray but she just wont "mwah" the way the Sterling seems to do so effortlessly. I have to say, these are the only two basses I have been playing lately and cant keep the smile off my face! Life is good.

 

[J Romano]

My '88 fretless going in this week to a luthier. Can't get it right myself. Part of the problem is that the jerk that had it before me changed out the bridge to an off brand and I think that may be part of the problem. I would love to have mutes on it. And I wish I had the original bridge, it had the serial # on it. So I have no idea of the SN...... And I think there is a shim issue. Just can't get the string/FB relationship right. We'll see if he can get her right!