Hohner B2A . Steinberger spirit

barroso · #1 02-17-2009, 01:33 AM

Which one do you prefer as Steinberger cheap wooden made paddle bass clone?

DreadyDiggs · #2 02-17-2009, 02:10 AM

I have a Spirit. I haven't played the Hohner. You make them sound so down on the scale haha.

"cheap wooden paddle bass clone"

. Nothing wrong with a Spirit, I love mine.

HalfManHalfBass · #3 02-17-2009, 02:19 AM

I had the Hohner. It was a fun bass but had a few shortcomings:

1 Didn't balance at all well on a strap
2 Needed double ball bass strings (couldn't use normal strings with a clamp-e.g. like Status basses)
3 Couldn't mute the strings at the bridge with the palm of your hand (there is a lever to drop the E strung to D tuning in the way-constantly- on the newer models anyway)
4 The active electronics weren't anything special
5 The pickups were a bit lacking (EMG Selects I think?)
6 The output from the each string was a bit uneven. I seem to remember the E string always sounding a bit weaker than the others....

Sounds like a total nightmare, but I really DID like this bass, it was very portable and fun to play...at least until I smashed the thing in an arguement with my then time fiancee....d'oh....

stubarura · #4 02-17-2009, 04:26 AM

I have the spirit steiny and think its brilliant, i love the looks, its fantastic to play, it sounds like a much bigger bass as it has tremendous sustain and you can get loads of different sounds from it and its very light and portable.... cant fault it really, yeah it needs double ball strings but you know that before you buy it so you cant complain about that... ooh and once its tuned you dont have to touch it again! great imo

TAZ · #5 02-21-2009, 10:18 PM

Hey, those paddles by hohner or Spirits are made from Eastern Hard Maple. I prefer the Spirits but the one Hohner I had was lifeless but now it just kills... very distinctive sound... kind of like a Ricky. Take a look: http://mysite.verizon.net/res8zrb8/bassguitar/

ModuMan · #6 02-21-2009, 10:38 PM

I had the Hohner B2A, it was my first bass. It served its purpose (great for practicing) but by the time I was playing gigs I had a 5-string.

I gave the Hohner away. Yes, my first bass, given away. Can't say I'm all that sorry about it.

As mentioned above, the E (and the EMG Selects) are kind of weak. For balance, I moved the strap buttons to be more Steinberger-y.

Mark4 · #7 02-23-2009, 08:07 PM

I've had both.

My Spirit arrived with bubbles in the paint, a very uneven sanding job with deep scratches below the paint, a metallic sound, poor action, and rattling truss rod. I sent it back. Other than the hardware, everything else screamed "cheap" to me.

My Hohner, on the other hand, has a smooth finish, good tonal variety with or without the active preamp, low action, and a very solid feel. The quality control differences between it and the Spirit are like night and day. I don't know about other B2A's out there, but mine balances nicely. In my opinion, the Hohner is the best mass produced headless/bodyless bass on the market today. I even prefer the Hohner over the Synapse, because at least it has adjustable intonation. The quality is about what one would expect for the $600-$700 that they sell for. To my hands and ears, it is a solid mid-grade instrument. It may not be perfect, but it's perfectly capable of recording and gigging.

Your mileage may vary, of course. A lot of people love their Spirits... so maybe I just got a bad one. Then again, maybe I just got a good Hohner. If possible, play them both before deciding which bass is right for you.

**DeanT** · #8 02-23-2009, 09:30 PM

I had a Hohner B2AB. It was better made than the Steinberger Spirit. It sounded better too.

stubarura · #9 02-24-2009, 04:10 AM

man i gotta try 1 of those hohners

Stempelloos · #10 02-24-2009, 06:34 AM

I've had a good few jams on the Hohner B2AB of an acquaintance, enough to have an idea what it's like.
In those days I played a Hohner PJ FL (Fretless Precision Jazz clone with carbon fingerboard).
The B2AB played well and sounded good, fine instrument for it's price.
The active electronics are handy, I wasn't very keen on that sound though. The PJ sounded clearer and louder compared to the
passively switched B2AB (may have something to do with the carbon fingerboard). The B2Ab is easier to carry around, and more comfortable if you play for more than 2 hours standing.

Figjam · #11 02-24-2009, 07:09 AM

I had a hohner b2adb. Finish was a nice grey satin. My experiences were similiar to an earlier poster. Weak E string, boring electronics. Tuners were great though. I used it for a couple months and then moved on.

GM60466 · #12 02-24-2009, 07:22 AM

I had two Spirit basses. Bought both new for around $249 each. When I decided to sell one, It received 40+ bids and it sold for $35 more than I paid for it new.. They are no longer being made. It is a nothing-special kind of a bass that out of the box needs a cxomplete electronics overhaul. The EMG "select" humbuckers have no mid-range to speak about.

G

stubarura · #13 02-24-2009, 12:50 PM

so what is the best kind of work to do to the spirits to get them sounding awesome? as they are fairly cheap you don't really mind spending a bit of cash on them... right?

uglybassplayer · #14 02-25-2009, 10:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TAZ

Hey, those paddles by hohner or Spirits are made from Eastern Hard Maple. I prefer the Spirits but the one Hohner I had was lifeless but now it just kills... very distinctive sound... kind of like a Ricky. Take a look: http://mysite.verizon.net/res8zrb8/bassguitar/

Beautiful work! You may have found a good side business... Modding TB'ers' Spirits and Hohners. Think about it and put me first on your list of potential customers. I have a B2AV quilt top fiver that would love one of your makeovers

- Frank.

Stempelloos · #15 02-26-2009, 01:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uglybassplayer

Beautiful work! You may have found a good side business... Modding TB'ers' Spirits and Hohners. Think about it and put me first on your list of potential customers. I have a B2AV quilt top fiver that would love one of your makeovers

- Frank.

That makeover looks great, one thing though, it appears a lot like another type of Hohner headless bass with a Steinberger tuning device.
An English band on tour happend to stay above my studio some 20 years ago. We got to talk over a cup of coffee.
The bassplayer and I had a check on eachothers Hohners.
His was a full bodied headless with B2AB electronics.
A bit more sustain than the B2AB, sounded very similar.

http://www.guitarmaniacs.de/html/use...ohnerBass1.jpg

http://www.bristolrock.co.uk/Blogs/C...omBassBlog.htm

http://www.kapaza.be/detail/popup.cfm?14363116.jpg

http://we-designstudio.com/sale/imag...t_CRW_6277.jpg

rrohde · #16 02-26-2009, 02:02 AM

The Hohner was my very first bass back then in '86. Hohner's Steinberger copy is indeed considered to be cheap and entry level for German standards. I do remember that that neck was awfully thick and thus hard to play. I remember that my next bass thereafter was an Ibanez (forgot which).

ModuMan · #17 02-26-2009, 02:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rrohde

The Hohner was my very first bass back then in '86. Hohner's Steinberger copy is indeed considered to be cheap and entry level for German standards. I do remember that that neck was awfully thick and thus hard to play. I remember that my next bass thereafter was an Ibanez (forgot which).

Funny, my next bass after the Hohner was also an Ibanez - a Roadstar II 5-string. Much thinner neck. It was fine until I got my MM SR5 which blew it away. I think it was around then that I gave the Hohner away... I was simply not going to play it again.

uglybassplayer · #18 02-26-2009, 07:48 AM

I bought my B2AV as a beater to keep in the car and for travel gigs. The person I bought it from had replaced the EMG selects with regular EMGs. He also pulled out the preamp and was running the bass passive (other than the 9v needed to run the active pickups). I installed an EMG BTC system (vol, blend and active stacked bass/treble) and combined with the EMG LowZ's, it brought the bass to life. For me it's the perfect beater. Cheap, plays decent enough, small enough to fit in an overhead compartment on a plane, and with the replacement pickups/preamp it sounds killer too. I'll leave it in my car all week (even with the cold NJ weather we've been having), grab it for band practice and not even have to retune it

TAZ · #19 03-02-2009, 09:18 PM

Yeah... those are pretty popular and you can still buy them. Mine is more like a Kubicki shape, a lot smaller - more the size of a conventional Steinberger body. Those Hohners are full size bodies along with the weight. Another difference is mine is chambered and weights about 6 lbs.

I've modded it yet again... it is metalic ruby red and has one EMG 35P4 with active electronics. I've made a lucite pick up ring that is also a ramp. When it's ready, I post it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stempelloos

That makeover looks great, one thing though, it appears a lot like another type of Hohner headless bass with a Steinberger tuning device.
An English band on tour happend to stay above my studio some 20 years ago. We got to talk over a cup of coffee.
The bassplayer and I had a check on eachothers Hohners.
His was a full bodied headless with B2AB electronics.
A bit more sustain than the B2AB, sounded very similar.

http://www.guitarmaniacs.de/html/use...ohnerBass1.jpg

http://www.bristolrock.co.uk/Blogs/C...omBassBlog.htm

http://www.kapaza.be/detail/popup.cfm?14363116.jpg

http://we-designstudio.com/sale/imag...t_CRW_6277.jpg

Stempelloos · #20 03-03-2009, 02:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TAZ

Yeah... those are pretty popular and you can still buy them. Mine is more like a Kubicki shape, a lot smaller - more the size of a conventional Steinberger body. Those Hohners are full size bodies along with the weight. Another difference is mine is chambered and weights about 6 lbs.

I've modded it yet again... it is metalic ruby red and has one EMG 35P4 with active electronics. I've made a lucite pick up ring that is also a ramp. When it's ready, I post it.

The looks suggest that your modding is a better job than a B2AB Jackbass. By the way: Location: Thousand Oaks, California reminds me of: 7000 oaks, a land art project by Joseph Beuys that was showed in public in 1982 at the Documenta 7 in Kassel