JwK94 Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 Hey there, i'm currently looking into a couple of fretless basses that i'm considering buying. One is a squier VM jazz (the natural maple one) with a fretless fender neck on it, the other is a defretted MIM 5 string jazz. The 5 string is about £150 more and i'm not sure which to go for, is it worth the extra £150 for the extra string? Any money saved by buying the 4 string would go on uprgrades anyway. Anyway, any help is appreciated, cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 Do you need the extra string? Are all your other basses 5-stringers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JwK94 Posted May 9, 2012 Author Share Posted May 9, 2012 Should have specified that, nope, only got one other bass at the moment and its a 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EskimoBassist Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 If you really want to venture into the 5 string end of things, go ahead but I think you can get much nicer basses for the same money than the MIM Vs for what it's worth. The G&L L-2500 Tribute series is of particular mention, I've seen one or two defretted ones for sale on this forum for example. If I were you I'd just go for the VMJ, they're cracking basses, I'm thinking of buying one myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daz Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 (edited) Oooh nah squire, I'd be careful if I were you. I picked up a five string once and totally forgot how to play. The extra string flummoxed me it did. Wasn't right for weeks. Edited May 9, 2012 by daz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncle psychosis Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 As someone that moved from four to give recently, I'd say that you would "know" if you needed a five. given what you say, I'd go for the four. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JwK94 Posted May 9, 2012 Author Share Posted May 9, 2012 Cheers guys, think i'll stick with ol' 4 strings for now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drTStingray Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 If you're buying your fretless, I'd stick with a four string - my experience is it takes a while to learn to play a fretless consistently in tune. It also takes a while to perfect a technique with a 5 string which includes sufficient muting to stop the low B from ringing when you're playing other notes - as well as the complexities of getting the most out of the fifth string, and maybe altering some of your patterns to play lines on a 5 string. For me, the thought of learning to play a 5 and a fretless all at once would be too much. A Squire will be fine IMO, and you may want to upgrade later if you like it. I've played jazz fretlesses and they're nice - I only own Musicman basses so my fretless is a Stingray H which I bought on Ebay at a good price - and it's an awesome instrument, and produces a great fretless sound - instant Pino sound, with the added bonus of being able to sound like a regular Stingray with a tweek of technique and EQ - I use it regularly in a couple of bands. Best of luck with your purchase. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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