Current day Hofner basses and rare Dolphins...

[swingingoodtime]

Hi all,

My ongoing search for a good starter bass continues, as does the saving of pennies to suit...

I have a question about Hofner basses; specifically the lower end solid-tops. I've searched through the threads & the web and found previous discussions that seem to suggest that the Chinese-made Hofners are of average quality (although in some cases, poor: green woods, lifting fingerboards etc), but overall, nothing that screams a good buy or great value for money. However, these discussions all seem to be about 4-5 years old. Does anyone has experience with current-day (ie recently built) versions of the Hofner solid-tops? How are they in terms of build quality, tone & playability? I'm currently toying with either one of these, or a Stentor Student 2 (full-solid) for not too much more.

In addition, does anyone have experience with the Korean built Dolfin (Dolphin?) basses? They seem to be fairly rare, so may have just been a locally (Aust) available & badged model, but I'd curious as to how they in terms of the same criteria mentioned above.

Thanks!

On a rambling note, I had the chance to try out a (Korean?) ply bass last night; surprisingly good tone (had been arco'd for about 5 yrs by a school student; sang really quite well!) & quite responsive. Would have been a serious consideration, had the music store he'd originally bought it from not notched the bridge so incorrectly that the strings sat way off to the E-string side of the fingerboard ; over the years, the imbalance in string pressure had caused the belly to start to collapse in at the f-hole And that was only with light gauge strings, too...

Oh well; at least it showed me that a ply bass can sound pretty good...

[Dr Piggery]

I bought a second hand Dolfin (solid carved Korean bass) for $2K AUD about three years ago to learn on. I had the bridge (which was warped) replaced, the string height lowered and the fingerboard shaved to eliminate a buzz. It is easy to play pizz and arco, and has a good overall sound.

I'm guessing mine is about 10 years old now, and is showing no signs of the problems that can develop with the real cheap Chineese basses. I've played one other Dolfin which was similar to mine in condition and sound.

They are a good first instrument - you are not forking out big bucks before you're absolutely sure you're up to the challenge of playing double bass, and you get a solid instrument that you'd be happy to play 5-10 years down the track.

I recently bought a more expensive bass, so the Dolfin is for sale. I'm hoping to get my $2K back.

[swingingoodtime]

Originally Posted by Dr Piggery

I bought a second hand Dolfin (solid carved Korean bass) for $2K AUD about three years ago to learn on. I had the bridge (which was warped) replaced, the string height lowered and the fingerboard shaved to eliminate a buzz. It is easy to play pizz and arco, and has a good overall sound.

I'm guessing mine is about 10 years old now, and is showing no signs of the problems that can develop with the real cheap Chineese basses. I've played one other Dolfin which was similar to mine in condition and sound.

They are a good first instrument - you are not forking out big bucks before you're absolutely sure you're up to the challenge of playing double bass, and you get a solid instrument that you'd be happy to play 5-10 years down the track.

I recently bought a more expensive bass, so the Dolfin is for sale. I'm hoping to get my $2K back.

Thanks for that; if I'm not mistaken, you're S.L. of the WA Bluegrass Club...? Saw the newsletter ad the other night; you had to be on the other side of the country, didn't you? It's so frustrating not being able to find one to play; the only other Dolfin I've seen is in SA (grrr!).

Regardless, what's the tone like? I'm only a beginner, but I've played some absolutely dead klunkers (like plucking on a slab of meat) and then others that sing quite nicely (plenty of sustain) & have quite a lively, quick response (rather than feeling like you've got to totally hammer the string to get any decent tone out of the body). Does it sound woody-thunk or woody-tone? (Does that make sense? I guess I mean: what's the emphasis, a thick bottom end, or also the resonances in the upper-mid bass voice?) And is yours all solid?

btw, check out these guys: www.myspace.com/theorphansau

Bluegrass/folk band; friends of mine. Guitar duo with a pedal steel player, in the process of finding a regular DB player (I'm not good enough & don't have an instrument yet!) btw, I like the vids on the BGWA site!

[Dr Piggery]

Swingoodtime,

Yes it is all solid carved.

I'm always stuck for words when it comes to describing bass sounds.
Woody... yes?
Quick response... yes??
Sustain....yes???

The bottom end (E string) is probably the weakest point.

I guess its all relative. I can say the Dolfin sounds more than half as good as the bass which I paid about three times my asking price for the Dolfin....if that makes sense!!

Good luck with your bass quest. Double bass is the coolest instrument!