Sonic Blue Fretless

[Day-mun]

I built this fretless P-bass a few months ago using Warmoth showcase parts. Neck is standard thin lined fretless rosewood on (bonus) bird's eye maple w/ clear gloss finish and Tusq nut. Body is pretty standard; ash with sonic blue finish.  Tortoise shell surrounds a SD quarter-pound P-bass split coil. Hardware consists of Schaller tuners, rest isGenuine Fender replacement. Ernie Ball flat-wounds tie it all together.  All in all, lots of fun to put together, even more fun to play! -So silky and smooth like buttah :cool01:

 

[AutoBat]

sonic blue + tortoise guard & chrome hardware always is a winner to my eyes.

 

[Day-mun]

Thanks for the kudos! I was reluctant to add the huge chrome covers (drilling those two holes next to the bridge makes me a little sad every time) on this one, but my son was sure it would make the project, so I took the leap.

-If anyone taking a look at this has never snagged a lined fretless from Warmoth, I am here to tell you that they are so worth it. The lines are inlaid wood (-at least it so appears on my rosewood finger board they are). Precision is the word that comes to mind (and not just 'cuz it is a P), -all the cuts and inlay are razor-straight and air tight... -Laser-accurate craftsmanship!

 

[fretless]

Wow ! What a beauty and with a stunning fingerboard . :love

 

[alterbridgefan]

sonic blue + tortoise guard & chrome hardware always is a winner to my eyes.

:blob7:

Very spiffy. :icon_biggrin:

 

[Jack Michaelson]

Looks great!

You don't see a lot of fretless rosewood fingerboards. Especially with lines and dots.

"How's he gettin' that tone on a fretted P-bass?"

 

[Day-mun]

Are ya talkin' about on Warmoth's web site, or in general?

-The neck is actually a super Jbass neck; hop over to that section of the showcase, and maybe you'll see a few more lined fretless. -Stinks if you are used to the wider nut with, but all my other basses have been J's, so I didn't mind (actually preferred) getting the J neck for this Precision build.

 

[Jack Michaelson]

I just meant in general.

And yeah, I prefer Precision necks over Jazz necks.

 

[Day-mun]

Update (not that anyone is gonna find this to be earth-shattering news, but...): This beauty just got a gold anodized pickguard. -Now it is totally fifties'd-out! Screw holes lined up pretty darn good considering the "replacement" is genuine Fender.

 

[alterbridgefan]

Dude! That's awesome!!! PLEASE post pics, I love sb with anodized guards...

Now get out your pick and start relicing! The right way!

 

[Day-mun]

Starting a "relic" process with this one would be easy. Dunno if ya saw the thread on Sonic Blue finishes being extra fragile, but this is the one I had in mind when I commented/posted. -Nevertheless, I really like this one, and don't even care if the paint acts like it is made of robin egg shells... it'll probably end up looking like it has been through the war here in a few years even if I don't intend for it to happen. :laughing7:

 

[alterbridgefan]

You just need to play it like I do.

Wildly.

With anything I can find.

:toothy12:

Greta especially has been through a lot... She looks like shit so I treat her like shit. :laughing7: She gets thrown around, experimented with... Hell, I remember when I wanted to know what it would sound like to play a guitar with a handsaw! That was fun. :headbang1:

I especially enjoy beating her against the tank through some heavy delay, that gets loud.

 

[AutoBat]

Update (not that anyone is gonna find this to be earth-shattering news, but...): This beauty just got a gold anodized pickguard. -Now it is totally fifties'd-out!

 

[Day-mun]

Here ya go, Preston, -the pics you ordered... last week.

 

[alterbridgefan]

OHMYGODTHATISBEATIFUL.

Only thing, do I see a little bit of the route sticking out by the jack?

So sexy, though. Mmm... Now play the hell out of it.

 

[Day-mun]

Yeah. The pics where taken at the most vulnerable angles, but straight on, it is all but invisible. I had a '52 Hot Rod Tele with that pick-up route sticking out from behind the bridge plate (-from the Corona, CA factory, no less), and this is not as bad as that.

 

[alterbridgefan]

Love.

 

[hannaugh]

Looks nice!  The lines look good. 

Now if Warmoth made the Pbass shape available in a short scale, I would be so tempted to build one at some point. 

 

[Day-mun]

Hear that! -I'd love to build a SSB, but I like to keep four-stringers simple: no frets, one pick-up, a volume and maybe a tone knob. The showcase offerings are all two-pick-up top routs, or rear-routed with a huge cavity that would be largely unused if it came to belong to me. I'd love to see SS precisions... maybe even a top-routed '54 P (?)...

Oh well. -A boy can dream.

 

[hannaugh]

I find it a little odd that the P bass is not one of the short scale shapes already.  It seems like it's a pretty popular shape, I would have thought the first two short scale shapes would have been the Jazz and Precision rather than the Jazz and Z.  Maybe they just wanted a really modern shape instead of two vintage ones though.