I feel you 
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Ready player one, 
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While the Rumble 40 surely has more bass, in a quiter/sofa environment Positive Grid Spark 2 might be sufficient.
It has knobs … but also a sophisticated app with lots of bells & whistles.
Also it has an optional battery pack, if you want to enjoy practicing in the park as soon as the sun shines…
@mmanfrin has it … and do I remember it correctly that @Al1885 has also one?
Maybe they can comment.
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@weirdocritter , Josh has some great videos on gear selection. I am enclosing them here for you to get an idea of things you might want to consider when selecting your gear.
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Yes I have several sparks however my loyalty shifted. For the same price +$40 fothe Bluetooth dongle, Katana 110 is a much much better buy. You can use head phone with that.
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@weirdocritter - this is the definitive answer! @Al1885 is always right!
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I thought of the Katana 110, but it seems like it would be going in the wrong direction for the OP’s requirements? 
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Yes I agree. Katana go would be a good starting point. That said the 110 is future proof.
I have a V7 fretless…
The only think I would caution is that it’s an active bass and, in my humble opinion, the Sire preamp is too complicated for it. If I were to go for one again, I would go for a passive version, maybe the V5.
Yes, you can fiddle with the preamp, but it’s overkill, and a lot of the time I simply can’t get the tone I want. I generally play it in passive mode.
@Whying_Dutchman mentioned the Hotone Ampero. While I have an amp (actually, I have two), I hardly ever use them. I practice through the Ampero - you can plug a device into it so you can hear backing tracks, the BassBuzz lessons etc - and you can use it as a recording interface, when you get to that point in your bass journey. It is also a freakin’ awesome multi-effects pedal and can be used in a live situation. I did start going down the separate effects pedals route, but sold them all once I got my first Ampero…
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I respectfully disagree that the Sire 3-band preamp is complicated. Simple tweaks can add a wide range of tonal variety, but I mainly play my active basses with the knobs at 12 o’clock unless I want more bass or mids.
I sometimes switch it to passive, but very rarely.
A preamp is nothing to avoid or be intimidated by.
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I think the Sire preamp, for the fretless use case, is overkill. As I said, I’d go for a Sire passive fretless, if I were in the market again.
Clearly, we can have different views though 
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Just out of curiousity: can you explain this?
Is it about all the knobs and options (I understand) or about the tone of active PUs (I don’t understand)?
“I thought of the Katana 110, but it seems like it would be going in the wrong direction for the OP’s’”
I just picked up a Katana 110 and agree with you totally.
A lot of distractions with the settings, sure the sounds get better as one learns to dial in the settings, but that 50 hours of knob turning is better spent learning to put your fingers in the right place at the right time.
I’m open to advise on the Katana settings, thanks…
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You’re absolutely entitled to your opinion.
That said, fretless bass masters including, Jaco, Pino, Sting, et al, use preamp pedals on their respective boards to shape the tones they need. A built-in preamp on a bass largely serves the same function.
This video offers great advice for shaping tones, without time wasted or intimidation.
Finally, my perspective is that it’s better to have a preamp and not need it than to need it and not have it.
Mileage. Varies. Yada, yada, yada. 
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Firstly, the pick ups themselves are not active, they are passive. The bass has a preamp, making the bass active.
Above, is a pic of the controls layout. In and of themselves, all you need to remember is what each does, but I feel, for the fretless use case, all I really need is the blend and the tone knobs. The rest are superfluous, plus the ‘range’ of sounds don’t really do it for me. I’d also add, that for a fretless, as you will have found with yours, you don’t really get the classic fretless sound on the low notes, near the headstock, you need to move up the fretboard. I don’t need the active EQ to do that and I think it sounds better passive.
Actually, if I’m looking for a double bass-type sound, my pink Ibanez short scale can nail it.
I much prefer the preamp controls on my Dingwall and my Hohner. The Ibanez controls are ok, they are certainly better than the Sire.
The thing the Sire knocks out the park is the feel of the neck. For the money I paid, it’s great!
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Yep, different players = different ears and hands. No two are alike. And no two players will necessarily agree on anything, much less everything.
Variety of experience and opinion is the spice of subjective life.
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Agreed again…
I recently got a Fender Marcus Miller jb with a preamp and already owned a Geddy jb, both in passive sound much different as they say each bass has its own sound, but the Marcus with the preamp on is an animal.
My first preamp bass and lovin it.
There are a few exceptions like a pb, but I’ll likely be preamp guy with the next bass I get.
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I wholeheartedly agree.
My Sire M5 and V8 each have the great Heritage-3 preamp onboard. I got the M5 years ago, never having experienced that exact preamp before, and I immediately fell in love with it. Then, when I got the (then) newly-released V8 a few months ago, I was perfectly at home with the preamp settings.
Both basses have an outstanding range of tonal options. That said, it’s simple to just reset all knobs to dead-center 12 o’clock to get back to uncolored tone. A preamp is a preamp, whether it’s built-in, a pedal, or software-based. But I sure am glad to have Sire’s preamps on my bad boys. 
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@jimmyWishbone, the Kanata distractions are up to the operator. Someone can set the knobs to mid range for the time being until they are ready to venture into the capability of amp-(like me )Just thinking out loud-the Kanata might be better and more capable in the long run for not that much more money. @Al1885 keeps an eye on sales. I feel that playing an electric instrument is both about the instrument and electronics, otherwise get an acoustic instrument- IMO
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Equally, any bass that is put through an amplifier will likely have access to tone shaping via the amp’s onboard EQ (I am not technical enough to know if that EQ is at the preamp or power amp stage).
All I am saying is that that I think the preamp on the fretless V7 is superfluous. The preamp on my old Hohner is freakin’ superb. The one on the Dingwall works very well too. That said, of late, I’ve been experimenting with plucking hand placement on the Dingwall. I’ve been working on a song that demands quite “punchy” notes and playing over the bridge pickup absolutely delivers in a way that neither the Ibanez, nor the Hohner can. Funnily enough, my Steinberger can also deliver.
All great fun!!
Back to @weirdocritter’s original question, the V7 fretless is a great bass, but I would also check out the V5. Go and try them both and see which you like the most. Oh, and if fall down the bass rabbit hole, like many of us here, you can rest assured it won’t be the last bass you purchase 
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