Last Bass of 2020: Fender Player Fretless Jazz Bass (Pau Ferro Fingerboard)

The last bass I acquired in 2020 was the Fender Player Fretless Jazz bass with Pau Ferro fingerboard in 3 color sunburst. If you've read any of my previous posts about fretless basses, you'll know that I have sold most of the ones I've bought in the past...with the exception of my Gold Tone Microbass. 

I've owned two other full scale fretless basses (aside from upright basses) and both were a little disappointing in the long run for a variety of reasons. They either didn't sound like a fretless bass at all or the pickups weren't right. So, I swore off fretless basses for a long while. 

Then, last fall, I ran across Fender's Player Fretless Jazz bass. It was affordable at $699, but not so cheap that I questioned its quality. (I only say this because I once bought an Ibanez SR300 fretless about 11 years ago. It was only $300, but it was an Ibanez so I didn't question the quality like I would've with another brand. But, as I write about in my review on that bass, I ended up selling it because it didn't meet my expectations.)

Once the new Fender fretless arrived, the first thing I noticed was the strings. Fender actually put flatwound strings on this bass. The other fretless basses I had bought (other than the Gold Tone) had come with roundwound strings on them (to save money, I know). I had already ordered some Fender flatwound strings before I ordered the bass because I figured they wouldn't send the bass with flatwounds on it. 

(This may not seem like a big deal, but if you play with flatwounds, you know the expense. It's enough to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for a new bass...then you have to spend another $40+ on strings to replace the roundwounds that come on it.)

After a little minor tweaking of the action, this bass was ready to go right out of the box--not something typical for the other Fender basses I've bought in the past. 

And, low and behold, this fretless sounded like a fretless--along with having that smooth jazz bass tone too. 

I was a little concerned about the neck before playing it because I'm used to the thinner necks that you normally get on the short scale basses that I typically play, but I've not had any problems with this bass. It's not one I could play for hours on end--mostly because I'm not comfortable playing long scale basses for long periods of time anymore. My shoulder tends to start hurting, which is why I switched to short scales in the first place. 

Overall, I'm pleased with this fretless--and it's nice to have a jazz bass again after all these years. 

Player Fretless Jazz Bass Pau Ferro Fingerboard Specifications:

Neck

• Shape: Modern C
• Wood: Maple
• Neck joint: Bolt-on
• Scale length: 34 in.
• Truss rod: Standard
• Finish: Satin

Pickups

• Active or passive pickups: Passive
• Pickup configuration: SS
• Middle: Single-coil Alnico V
• Bridge: Single-coil Alnico V
• Brand: Fender
• Series or parallel: Parallel

Fretboard

• Material: Pau Ferro 
• Radius: 9.5 in.
• Fret size: Extra-jumbo
• Number of frets: Fretless
• Inlays: Dot
• Nut material: Synthetic bone
• Nut width: 1.5 in. (38.1 mm)

Body

• Cutaway: Double cutaway
• Construction: Solidbody
• Body wood: Alder
• Top wood: Alder
• Body finish: Gloss
• Orientation: Right handed

Controls

• Control layout: Volume 1, volume 2, master tone

Hardware

• Bridge type: Fixed
• Bridge design: 4-Saddle adjustable
• Tuning machines: Open-geared
• Color: Nickel/chrome

Other

• Number of strings: 4
• Pickguard: Yes
• Special features: Pickups
• Case: Sold separately
• Country of origin: Mexico