Hadean Fretless Guitars???

HotHead

HotHead

New member
I was wandering the dark reaches of the internet for some extremely cheap guitars, and good ol' Rondo Music showed me this gem:

Link to said guitar: http://www.rondomusic.com/eg483cwr.html
Link to said guitar (with a cheap, imitation Floyd Rose): http://www.rondomusic.com/eg625tbl.html

Has anyone actually bought one of these things? I've been looking for reviews on YouTube, forums, or just any proof of any kind of purchase, but I haven't found anything. Out of all the curious minds on this forum, someone has to have bought one by now. I know there are probably numerous things that need to be fixed, but even if this thing is slightly functional, I might just grab one. At $110, why not? In fact, quite a few of those cheap Rondos look interesting to say the least.
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

damn id play one of those.. might have to put some training wheels on the neck though (i.e. fret lines).. lol
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

With fretless guitar, the knack is to decide between Standard Tuning for single note lines and riffs or Open Tuning for easier chording. Fret position lines definitely assist with chord work.
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

I'd go with some kind of really strange way of playing on that, maybe use some exotic 36 note per octave scales or something. Or at least most people who would try playing something like that would sound like that's what they're doing.
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

Well, I've got or had several SX (which is essentially the same thing) and an Agile. The Agile was definitely better, but I would call Agile's roughly equivalent, or just a slight step down, from Epiphones.

The SXs, while playable, make you want to immediately replace every piece of hardware, the nut, and of course, the pickups. Except for their P90s. They are remarkably adequate, in their own way.
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

thought id post this by a master player demo'ing and explaining the peculiarities on going fretless

 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

kramersteen said:
I have a feeling i wouldn't like them but i do want one.
Click to expand...

i felt the exact same way.. went to the warmoth site to see how much a fretless neck would cost as there is no way in hell im paying 3500 for the guitar Guthrie is using.. its really nice but way to steep for me.

If the guitar the OP posted is playable, and not "cheap" feeling. id love to experiment on it and just zone out on it:). I know its only like 150 or so but now adays you can still get a guitar that is playable in that price range.. sometimes
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

A few minutes with a soldering iron and a fret puller can turn any guitar into a fretless. If you have an extra bolt on lying around it is something to explore.
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

ericmeyer4 said:
A few minutes with a soldering iron and a fret puller can turn any guitar into a fretless. If you have an extra bolt on lying around it is something to explore.
Click to expand...
not really the same.. id have to filli in the fret graps as well.. board woulds have to be flush and smooth or it would really irritate me
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

Brandenburg said:
not really the same.. id have to filli in the fret graps as well.. board woulds have to be flush and smooth or it would really irritate me
Click to expand...

Typically the fret slots are filled with some thin strips of wood, sanded, and covered in epoxy. A little bit of work, but using an existing guitar you get a lot of other options ard can easily source extra parts.
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

ericmeyer4 said:
A few minutes with a soldering iron and a fret puller can turn any guitar into a fretless. If you have an extra bolt on lying around it is something to explore.
Click to expand...

It's not really the same. You could fill the slots and polish the surface, but it just won't perform as well as a real fretless would. Also, if I believe that fretless guitars have a relatively flat radius, so most guitars are at a disadvantage. I tried that before with a cheap Washburn Lyon I bought at a flea market, and the thing had horrible sustain, even for a fretless. I just ended up trashing it.
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

HotHead said:
It's not really the same. You could fill the slots and polish the surface, but it just won't perform as well as a real fretless would. Also, if I believe that fretless guitars have a relatively flat radius, so most guitars are at a disadvantage. I tried that before with a cheap Washburn Lyon I bought at a flea market, and the thing had horrible sustain, even for a fretless. I just ended up trashing it.
Click to expand...

You missed my subsequent post. Pull the frets, fill the slots with wood, and finish with epoxy. Rock hard and can be polished glass smooth. Pulling frets first and filling the slots with wood isn't any different than a fretless where slots where cut for wooden line markers. For example. Performance should be equal between the two as they are the same by that point.

With your experience, did the Washburn have a rosewood fretboard and was it left unfinished? Did you use flatwound or round wound strings? On fretless guitars using round wound strings on an unfinished rosewood fretboard can kill the sustain because the strings have the tendency to dig into the fretboard. This is especially true on guitars more so than basses because of the smaller string gauges. Using a harder wood for the fretboard - like maple or ebony and/or a hard finish go a long way in getting a great playing fretless guitars. Personally, I wouldn't discount the technique based on one experience that didn't go how you expected. Fretless guitars are tricky. The necks need to be finished properly and have a great setup to get the most out of them.

The flatness of the radius is going to come down to personal preference. If a flatter radius is desired it could be flattened with sanding block. Stewmac sells radius sanding blocks for example.

The point of my posts wasn't to dissuade you or anyone from getting the guitar in the OP. Simply, highlighting another option for someone wanting to enter the fretless world.
 
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Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

Making your own fretless is a *lot* of work, when you can just drop $110 or $150 on the Rondo guitar. If you don't like the fretless neck, you can just swap a Jackson neck onto it and have a playable guitar.

The Hadean guitars are in the same ballpark as the SX guitars, but on this one you don't have to worry about sharp frets. :D
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

In my experience, fretless guitars with wooden fretboard have a tone that is too mellow. Coupled with the poor sustain that fretless guitars tend to have, a wooden fretboard makes them pretty unusable.

I prefer glass or metal. The Vigier guitar in the video has a metal alloy fretboard probably for this reason.

Ned Evett, a cool fretless player, used to sell Fernandes guitars that had been converted to a glass fretboard and had the sustainer pickup. He might still do them.
 
Re: Hadean Fretless Guitars???

Silver said:
In my experience, fretless guitars with wooden fretboard have a tone that is too mellow. Coupled with the poor sustain that fretless guitars tend to have, a wooden fretboard makes them pretty unusable.

I prefer glass or metal. The Vigier guitar in the video has a metal alloy fretboard probably for this reason.

Ned Evett, a cool fretless player, used to sell Fernandes guitars that had been converted to a glass fretboard and had the sustainer pickup. He might still do them.
Click to expand...

I don't even think the fretboard is wood. I know it says "rosewood fretboard" on the site, but how could you dye rosewood like that?! Unless it's painted, which would be even worse. I think it has some sort of poly veneer on top of the rosewood.
 
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