Does such a thing exist and where is it? I looked at the Xaviere P basses but they charge an extra $214 for shipping. Iḿ not sure I want to pay that much P&P on a $189 instrument.
What does Harley Benton have? I hear they're somewhat similar to Rondo / SX here? I know SX probably has something, but I don't think they ship to Europe. Just googled and found this one: {} Harley Benton PB-50 SB Vintage Series Don't know if that's what you're looking for, looks nice to me (I learned on a real '54 not entirely unlike that).
I went through the rest of the list and didn't see a maple board with a split P pickup, just the single coil above.
Here's 2 to start with. LA II Bass Guitar by Gear4music, Natural at Gear4music.com And as @bholder just posted the Harley Benton PB-50. Liked mine so much I bought 2, 1 has TI jazz flats the other tapes. Great bass and my beloved Peaveys get neglected because of them. Here's a couple of threads on the PB-50 Harley Benton PB-50 - Modded! *Audio* harley benton pb50, can it really be as good as the reviews?
Is there much of a difference in sound between a single coil and a split coil P bass? If not then the HB certainly looks the way to go.
@Mark76 There is a difference,I don't think as much as folk claim but there's some sound clips in the links I posted. Give them a listen, the 2 comparing the Wilkinson Vs the Seymour Duncan are enlightening to say the least
Would you be a pal and give me links to the posts with the audio samples in rather than the entire threads? Cheers
The true single coil will be noisy, that's unavoidable, but they thump like nothing else. You can also get hum cancelling upgrade pickups in the single coil format
No problem. I've been plugging this bass for years and see no reason to stop now Here's Mark Smith playing his with La Bella flats if memory correct My mate Claudio A/B ing the pickups. Mark found the first had a EQ plugin so did another clip. HB Audio New.wav
You can get an SX Vintage 57 Precision Bass (with a maple neck, in black or 2TS) at www.harrys-world-of-music.com - Index in Austria. £200/€225 incl. delivery to the UK and gig bag. These are very fine instruments. Also posted on ebay. {}
Tried Squier VM series? They have some maple neck ones, with natural body, they look very good. More Squier: the Matt Freeman model is really good, and so is the Roger Waters one... Or you want cheaper? For something cheaper... I'd still get those, but find them used.
I don't think Harry does much business outside the Germanosphere. Judging by the lack of language and currency options on his site. That's the chap. I'll bookmark the site for later
Look on the top right where the flag is, you can change the currency and language there. Switch to English, select GBP... £130. That's a great price for quite a lot of bass. I have more experience with the guitars than basses, but the basses are pretty cool. I bought a Les Paul type of guitar with P90 pickups, set neck, all for the incredible amount of £124 back in 2005. I kept it stock. Just needed setting up, and the nut was a bit rough (part of setting it up anyway)... it's outperformed much more expensive guitars. At the time I played mostly guitar and I had something like 16 guitars. Today I only have three. Two stratocasters (one standard, another with humbucker and Floyd rose)... and the SX.
Just because you don't speak German doesn't mean he doesn't speak English. In this day & age that would be highly unlikely. And "in this day & age" a sale is a sale so I wouldn't write him off w/o trying if he actually has what you want. That said, if it were up to me I'd go with whatever Thomann has to offer. The best service. The best prices [usually]. And the best service IME over the past 10-years. People are ordering Sire basses from Thomann in the States when they can't get them direct from Sire FWIW. YMMV . . .
Half of my 4 Sires came from Thomann (my first 2) not because of availability but simply on price (with a major assist from then-favorable exchange rates). Very happy with both Thomann and Sire. Sire does make the P7, and there is a maple neck option, but I think it's above OP's price range. Still inexpensive, but not "cheap".
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