Fretless basses deliver a unique tone that’s more in keeping with what you’d expect from those huge upright acoustic basses everyone used until Leo Fender stepped in and invented the fretless electric bass. Originally, in order to have a fretless bass, players like the late Jaco Pastorius had to pry the frets out of the fingerboard, then fill in the gaps and add a clear coat. If that doesn’t sound like your idea of fun, you’ll be happy to know such radical steps are no longer necessary, because Fender is building fretless basses just like this one, the American Jazz Bass Fretless. The distinctive, solid alder, offset body shape is combined with a graphite-reinforced maple neck with a modern “C” shape and a rosewood fingerboard with rolled edges and 20 inlaid white position markers, making intonation a breeze.
The electronics of the J-Bass Fretless are something special, too, consisting of two American Jazz Bass single-coil pickups (in the middle and bridge positions) along with two volume controls, one tone control, and Fender’s revolutionary S-1 switching for as much tonal versatility as you can possibly handle. Chrome hardware, a 3-ply parchment pickguard and a string-through-body bridge complete the package. Currently we have the 3-color Sunburst and Flat Black finishes in stock. In keeping with contemporary tastes, the trademark maple neck comes with a satin polyurethane finish. Naturally, this instrument comes with a standard Fender molded case, which will provide decades of protection for your instrument.
