Faux Fretless for $50? - Bass Flatter Review 

Thank you for the demo! We are definitely working to broaden our range to 5 string bass as well… Cheers!!

Dude, this is so weird but so interesting??? The idea of adding something on top of my fretboard is weird enough, but my brain can't imagine what that material itself feels like lol

You're too precise, I would not be able to tell you're playing fretless if you weren't explicitly told us 🤣

No way! I just got my hands on one of these yesterday! All in all it’s a pretty fun gadget and worth it at the price, even as a novelty that I’ll probably never use at a gig. I get some fret buzz at the 12th feet on my D and G strings, but that could just be my set up. It also adds pretty considerable weight to the neck and makes my bass dive a little, but nothing too drastic.

Neat! As a primarily fretless player I love anything that is going to get more people in to my instrument.

Now you can get that Jaco Pastorius vibe

This is like the opposite of the Fiddle Fretter (which gives frets to a violin)

I'm sure Harley Benton has a fretless jazz for like 37 euros.

Thanks for the review! I'm with you . . .make it twenty frets long

Damm. I knew Flatwounds were higher tension than their roundwound counterparts but being able to go down to a B with only a 110 feels almost like cheating. They also sound tight and punchy and not floppy at all. Guess I'll have to throw in a set to try when time to restring comes.

The flatter is quite flattering 😊

They need to come out with 5 and 6 string versions. It sounds great in your video!

i want a fretless sound purely to play that riff from Leverage when the con comes together

Very cool indeed! I did pull the frets on one of my basses (of course one I kinda hated) and I found it surprisingly easy to get a decent result. That being said, I think I would have gone for this bass flatter thing had it been available then. And one more thing: what is that fretless Sire that Lobster sent you? Looks so dope! Did he mod it?

Someone correct me if I am wrong but didn't Jaco use roundwound strings? Pretty sure he did.

So, if the round wound strings dug into the nut so deep the strings broke, it seems this device is made of VERY, VERY, VERY soft plastic, meaning it will wear quickly and badly.

I ripped out the frets on three of my basses, and found it worked great. Just slap on a veneer and some lacquer, and Bob's your uncle...

good demo, thanks

Dude I have to try this. I've been looking at getting a fretless bass but this may give me a taste of fretless without getting a whole other bass. Edit: nevermind, I have a p bass with a 1.75in nut width...

CONS!! Only PARTIALLY covers neck, Without Flexibilty for Roundwounds, Also 5,6, Longer Fretboards...

A gimmick, but little more. Something you might give to your bassist friend for their birthday that you never see them play on stage.

Wow. Very interesting! I wanna try one!

I got the fretless itch a couple years ago and decided to scratch it by doing the fret pulling and epoxy filling conversion to an old bass I had. It was fun for a couple weeks but then I switched back to fretted and haven’t touched it since. I think it’s a hard instrument to play well and the tone doesn’t easily fit into a lot of the music styles that I like to play. I still think fretless is cool and respect those who play it but I just don’t think it’s an instrument for me.

Anyone have an idea if/when this will be created for P-bass necks?

Thank you for the review . Did you raise your strings the thickness of the piece for the setup ? Looks interesting, take care .

Interesting. Would it work on short scale?

Just bought a cheap fretless bass.

Polycarbonate

I play fretless bass, both unlined and lined. Do you feel the frets under the flatter? Usually on a true fretless, you would play right on the fret (Or fret lines if it has them) to play in proper intonation, using your ears to further keep your playing in tune. Does this device require the same skill set/approach, or does it just simulate the sound of a fretless?

Oh I thought it was gonna be a pedal :D

Or you could swell yer balls and pull the frets out of your five string Yamaha! Anybody who owns 5 or more basses should defret one JUST FOR THE AWFUL BUT ENLIGHTENING EXPERIENCE! 🤣🤘