Can a Hofner do motown/soul?

[Joe Nerve]

I think people make too much of the "small hands" thing. Anyone can play a 34" scale bass, unless they have a physical limitation. That said, I believe as an amateur, you can use any bass for anything. Crazy talk, I know! Get whatever you want and rock it.

I know this is a short scale... but look at the size of her hands . I agree, that we're only limited if we think we are. There are lots of other vids of little kids shredding on full scale basses.



RE the Hofner doing Motown, ABSOLUTELY! I have an Ignition Club and its far more versatile than I thought it would be. It gets lots of thump, cut, bite, grit... I love it.

What it DOESN'T do well, at least not for me, is go from fingerstyle to slap or super (modern) funky tone. My band does a wide variety of tunes and, well... it just boomed like crazy when I switched over to slap for a few things. Funky bass like in Dua Lipa, too. I'm sure it could be adjusted accordingly and worked with, but if the settings are left the same on the bass, it can get real weird and boomy.

Outside of that, I think Hofner Ignition basses are one of the most underrated on the market. They sound great, feel great, and weigh next to nothing. They will sound great doing Motown.

My strong opinion .

 

[sikamikanico]

For your first bass, I'd make sure to try as many basses to see what you like. Try not to form an opinion what would work for you based on what you read online. Sure, after owning a bass for a while you'll learn even more what you like or don't like, but you gotta start somewhere.

If I was looking at Hofners, I'd get the cavern version. It has the bridge pickup more towards the middle where a P pickup would be, which has a nice punchy sound. It's not that the neck pickup can't do it, it's just a little closer with the middle pickup. And they look cool. Not sure if they come in a lefty format, but you could just flip it over. Worked well for some dude from Liverpool...

 

[mcrawfordmusic]

Spending time developing your technique, timing and articulation is going to get you closer to that sound than just buying a P bass

Your Hofner will do the job.

 

[Danny C]

I have many basses of all kinds. My Hofner story...I went to audition for a Stax/Motown band. I went with my Hofner Beatle bass. I could have brought a P but I grabbed the Hof. The drummer looked at me and said no way.
I got the gig. Just sayin...

 

[b_carville]

A lot of the local R&B/Soul bands around my way(PhiladelphiaPA 'burbs) bass players used those violin hollow body basses. Usually not Hofner's but the Japanese knockoffs. Sekova brand violin basses were popular. They were cheap & got that old school 60's tone & came in cool colors. The cherry Red one looked great!

 

[Doctor Intrepid]

Check this out.

 

[Deleted member 271037]

Oh yeah, the MASSIVE thumpy lows you get from Höfners make them excellent for old school soul IMO. It won't sound like a P-bass but it will sound great!

Of course you will need flats. As much as I love LaBella DTFs (the classic choice for Motown) with long scale basses I've never liked the DTF short scale sets much.

On a Höfner my first choice will always be Pyramid Golds. These strings were specifically designed for short scale basses and work better with short scale than any other flats IMO (I don't like the Pyramid Gold LONG scale sets much btw). In fact, Pyramid Golds were specifically designed for Höfners back in the day. They are THE classic strings for Höfners and will give you the classic Höfner tone, which of course means McCartney if you're using a pick. But when you play fingerstyle they're excellent for old school soul. Pyramid Golds need some time to break in. For the first couple of weeks/months the higher strings will be a bit bright/metallic but once they're broken in they have a really fat, warm tone with a wonderful "bouncy" feel that's perfect for soul.

The Höfner tone controls aren't exactly intuitive but once you understand how they work they are really quite powerful for a passive instrument. They work like this:


-Neck pickup switch ON: Mutes the bridge pickup and cuts treble from the neck pickup. This is the classic McCartney tone (when using a pick). A bit dark&boomy for fingerstyle IMO but the lows are SEISMIC and can be pretty cool with the right song/arrangement.

-Bridge pickup switch ON: Mutes the neck pickup and cuts lows from the bridge pickup.

-Both pickup switches ON: Mutes both pickups(!).

-Both pickup switches "OFF": In this mode both pickups are actually ON (or using Höfner logic, neither is muted). You can now dial in the volume controls to use either pickup alone of blend them. This is the only mode where you can use the pickups with no bass/treble cut as the pickup ON positions activate bass/treble cuts on the neck/bridge pickup respectively.

-Rhythm/solo: Rhythm lowers the output volume a bit. It's best to keep this switch permanently in solo mode IMO.


It does kinda makes sense, it's just the opposite of what you might expect.

My starting point for soul would probably be both pickup switches in the OFF position and turn down the volume on the bridge pickup. This will give you the neck pickup soloed with no treble cut. If this isn't dark and thumpy enough, engange the neck pickup ON switch.

This will also depend on which type of pickup configuration you've got. It it's the most commonly seen neck/bridge Höfner configuration I wouldn't use the bridge pickup at all for soul. It it's the neck/middle configuration (like on the "Cavern" Höfners) the middle position might actually be cool for soul as it's closer to the P-bass position but unfortunately the middle pickup won't have a treble cut, only bass cut as in this configuration the middle pickup is actually the "bridge" pickup... (see explanation above).

Of course the string spacing on Höfners is a bit narrower than on most basses. Personally I don't have any problems playing fingerstyle on a Höfner but anyone with big hands/fingers should to try one before buying. It doesn't sound like this will be an issue here though.

But of course, if you want to 100% nail the Jamerson tone you'll have to get a vintage spec P-bass with LaBellas. Not a shortie P but a LONG scale P-bass.

Even some long scale P-basses are completely unsuitable for Motown though. You've got P-bass pickups like the very popular EMG GZR that won't go anywhere near Motown territory even with the tone control all the way down. The greasebucket tone circuit on Fender American Performer series will also be rather useless for Motown IMO. As will any active P-basses (although they MIGHT get close if they've got a passive mode).

Basically, make sure you don't get a "modern" P-bass if you want the old school P-bass tone. You'll want a classic, passive, vintage voiced P-bass.

What's your max budget?

 

[pbass2]

A Hofner can sound great for old school soul, reggae, etc. But it's not just about the sound. The ergonomics of a Hofner are very different from a Fender-style bass. Everyone is different, but for me, when it comes to funkier material, I can't play on a short scale Hofner like I can on a pbass or jbass. I'm not talking slapping--I pretty much never slap. I'm talking Motown/classic soul type of fingerstyle. For me, it doesn't feel as good playing that music on that kind of bass. I can't dig in and thump the same way. It's a combination of the scale, the string spacing, pickup placement, etc. And I have "smallish" hands. On a Hofner or similar I find I gravitate towards pickstyle, or thumb plucking/palm mute. Everyone is different of course. Since this is your first bass, spend some time trying both out. And ultimately at the end of the day, if you're going to only have one bass, you can't go wrong with a decent P. It'll be way more versatile than a Hofner.

 

[bmusic]

It’s the best bass for metal

Finally!

 

[Real Soon]

Hofners are sick basses! The main things that drive the Motown sound on the bass side are: flatwounds, preferably broken in or deadened, and a bit of extra deadening via a string mute... and, if James Jamerson won't be denied, strings layered up with the secret ingredient: "The gunk brings the funk".

And a Precision bass. That, a Hofner will not quite entirely be, for scale and pickup reasons. Still! You don't have to use a P bass for soul music, not at all.


You can make nearly any bass get soulful with some choices, time, and work (or lack of work; refusal to clean strings & maybe hands, eww lol but still. BBQ chicken wings & then bass practice time!).


All in all, you can get a fantastically soulful tone with that bass (and if you don't like chicken, Eucerin lotion is famous for a) slaying your calluses so wash your hands after treatment!! and b) deadening strings with the quickness).

The psychedelic rock element is interesting too; while she's not that, Brittany Howard of the erstwhile Alabama Shakes enjoyed recording songs with those elements along with classic soul. My main band played Gimme All Your Love last week at a gig, and I used my vintage 1960 Precision bass with worn-in flatwounds AND a string mute, and it rocked. Given how hard Sir Paul McCartney is able rock with his Beatle Bass, and given his ability to write & play very soulful music........ I think your choice is almost made for you, in my humblest bit of opine.

 

[KohanMike]

I only play 21"-23" scale bass with flat wound strings and play everything on them, including this 21" scale Hofner style.

 

[mikewalker]

4 strings, tuned E-A-D-G? Check!
(Play anything you like on any bass you like)
I played a Hofner (copy!) with rounds for years, and made it work for dozens of different styles. The grooves live in your fingers, not in the wood and wire and magnets...

 

[Mayo Fan]

Bit of a sidestep here, but if it's your first bass and you are starting playing bass (i.e. haven't played bass before) I would suggest buying a right hand bass. You need to train both hands either way, so which one is the primary doesn't really matter. Think of it like a piano, they don't sell those in left hand versions. And it will make it sooooo much easier for you to try and buy basses in the future. The left-to-right-handed ratio is probably something like 1 to 100.

 

[CoughSyrup]

I only play 21"-23" scale bass with flat wound strings and play everything on them, including this 21" scale Hofner style.

View attachment 4756748

That thing is freakin' cool! What other super shorties do you have?

 

[halcyo]

Get the p bass first. The P bass will do your psychedelic rock stuff way better than your hofner will do motown/r&b. The P is a versatile instrument, and the Hofner more a “specialized/character” instrument. If deciding on a FIRST bass, the answer here is easily the P style bass.

Part of learning to get good at bass is strengthening your hands/fingers and working to increase your reach and agility. I have small hands and I gig most on an EXTENDED scale 35” Lakland 5 string, with the full wide 19mm string spacing! You can do it!

 

[el murdoque]

The one difference between the Höfner and the P bass that really matters is the Pickup placement. The Höfner has the bass and treble pickups sitting all the way on the end of the possible space, while the P bass has the pickup in the middle.
The middle placement lets the P have that trademark midrange. The Höfner can do thunderous lows the P can't.
At the end of the day, you can simply dial in some more mids on your amp or pedalboard, play Motown on the Höfner and no one will complain (and most will not even notice).
You will loose some points for style, playing a violin bass in a genre that belongs to FSOs - but as long as you hold down the groove on well worn flats, no one will care.

 

[alack]

Check this out.

Beat me to it!

 

[Rib 13]

The answer is Yes.You can use any bass to play anything.....but I think a P or J would be more optimum for 60s RnB and Motown

The same way you can use a Strat to play metal but a guitar with humbuckers is probably more optimum

 

[Nunovsky]

Get a Site U5.
It's short scalee and there's a left hand version and if you place a ser of flats on it, you'll get that Motown tone and also those Take Impala that you love. And it's much more versatile than the Hofner.

 

[micguy]

26640684[/URL], member: 162612"]It’s not Motown unless the bassist plays a P with flats.

Most Motown was played on a P with flats and a foam string mute. That setup reduces the sustain of the bass to more of a dull thud. Dull thud is absolutely Hofner territory. A Hofner may actually be better at Motown than a P.

If you listen to Motown and early Beatles, the bass sounds are pretty similar. McCartney says he was trying to be Jamerson, and sonically, he came pretty close.