HELP! Univox Hi Flier Bass - worth it?
 

hey so I came across one of these
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Univox_Hi-Flier
on ebay and it looks pretty killer, it's also very cheap compared to what I had been considering spending on my next bass. I've read up about it and it seems like the common consensus is they're pretty cool for a bass with passive pickups, it's awesome they're still alive from the 60s, the whole humbucker selector thing is good and all in all they're not bad. I had seen a little bit of "they're just not as good as the mosrite they were copied from" and "in the end they're likely to let you down."

I play in a semi successful garage band in australia and I'm really into dirty ass Bob Weston (shellac), Kim Deal, Fiona Kitschen (the drones) type tones but have a tendency to get a little Dungen/tame impalaish with some of our cleaner stuff

in all honesty I haven't had the chance to play as many different basses as I'd like so I think I lack the courage to commit - but if anyone out there cares/has any idea what I'm getting at I'd be totally grateful for any input you can give.

so what do you reckon, do I pay for this sexy hunk of wood and wires to be shipped all the way to australia for what I calculate to be about a week's pay - or should I keep looking and maybe consider mosrite for a sturdier, more reliable and professional next bass. (I pretty much just love the way the thing looks)

I also should add; part of my uncertainty spurs from a youtube clip I watched of some guy fumbling his way around an explanation of the bass, barely playing it until right at the end where he plays it badly before the realisation that, the guy was probably just trying to sell the bass without actually knowing a damn thing about it, struck me.

I had the Aria version of that bass (it's actually the same bass with a different name on it). It was a great bass. It was very thin and light, but it sounded huge. The passive pickups had a lot of punch. With flats on it it gave you the '60s Classic Rock sound in spades.

I would't pay more than $400 for one with a case or bag though. These days people seem to think they are worth anywhere from $450 to $600 just because they are Vintage. But they weren't very expensive when they were new, so the price is not justified in my opinion. They are not rare so why so high?

My 1st Bass was a Univox Hi-Flyer in White with the single coils! And actually, Eastwood makes a Very Nice "Copy" of the Mosrite Hi-Flyer. (Which is a copy of a Mosrite!) I have one. It's 34" scale, and Set Neck. It plays nice, Balances better, and has that Powerful single coil sound! I paid $300 for it, and I've been offered that much several times. You might want to look at one of those!

Realy there are so many copies that are so much better than the originals were there would be no reason to pay more than 350.00. Eastwood is a nice copy. I also like the German carve and the styling.Have fun with this decision.