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Do Hofners get the least love?
- Thread starter BassGreaser
- Start date
They're adored, even venerated, by Beatles tribute bands, so there's that 
IMO they aren't versatile. That's why most don't use them. Noot saying they aren't good and don't have their please, because they are and they do. But the couple times I've picked one up, it did not feel or sound right at all. To me.
They really have to groove with you to be a personal good match as an instrument. The craftspeople in Germany who make the electric guitars and basses do some really beautiful work. Like any other brand, they've had some years that stand out as lemons in production.
I used my Hofner Contemporary Club bass in my last band and it worked great. To me it has one of the purest bass tones of all electric basses.
Never played one. I can't remember when I was ever at a bricks and mortar music retail establishment to even try one. I think the phenomenon I experienced is common, and the answer, at least partly, to your question lies there.
I love my Hofner. Over the past few years, it’s probably been my most played bass. It has a vibe and tone that none of my other basses can match. Most people use flats, but I really like rounds on mine.
I find them quirky to play, like a Ric, but sonically a whole lot less interesting
I see a lot more Hofners these days than I did 20/30/40/ years ago. It fits well with the short scale basses a lot of cats are using today.
I often wonder that if Sir Paul McCartney hadn’t chose it as his #1 bass, while playing early and mid period Beatles masterpieces if we’d even be having this conversation, but HE DID, so there’s that. Those magnificent basslines on Lady Madonna, Rain, Taxman, and Fixing A Hole put Paul right alongside James Jameson and Duck Dunn in the annals of great melodic bass playing and grove. Jameson and Dunn used Fender Precision’s while McCartney used a Hofner. The Hofner Violin Bass is as much a part of Paul’s sound as Paul is a part of the sound of the Hofner. They’re inseparable in that sense. Personally, as a Fender/Lakland player all my life, the Hofner is not easy for me to switch over two. A few years ago, I played a new years gig where we were doing continuous music and I was the intermission bassist. Trying to play the Hofner that belonged to the bands regular bassist without any pervious break shedding, was a very frustrating experience. So they’re not a bass I’d chose to play gigs with. Just my take however.
Nope. Out here, studio engineers constantly want a Hofner tone... probably second only to the P Bass. It's just hard to find a nice one, hence why so many cats use basses that do the 'Hofner thing' but aren't necessarily a Hofner. They're still very much appreciated, though.
Paul McCartney chose the Hofner 500/1 bass in 1961 because he 1) couldn’t afford a Fender P Bass and 2) it was symmetrical, which he liked as a left handed bassist.
Keep in mind that he also played a 1964 Ric 4001 in the latter half of The Beatles and in Wings. He switched in October 1965 (“Day Tripper” was the first song he recorded after the switch) because the Ric had more sustain and nicer highs than the Hofner.
This! I briefly owned a Chinese Ignition series 500/1 when I was a teenager. I returned it to the store after 2 weeks because:
1. It wasn’t versatile
2. It was an ergonomic nightmare
3. It was too light and small
4. Overall poor QC
They might be loved by Beatles tribute bands, Paul McCartney, Tina Weymouth, and even Geddy Lee (read his Big Beautiful Book of Bass - IYKYK), but they are not for everyone.
Billy Shears is naturally right handed but it was easy for him to learn to play it lefty.
I think Hofners are very versatile and there’s a lot they can be used for.
To me the biggest adjustment is playability due to the narrow necks & narrow string spacing.
I play a 1965 hofner club and have gigged about 75 dates a year for the last 3-4 years with it. It sounds and plays great. I sold all my vintage fenders.
That's debatable. Are Squiers or MIM Fenders not "real" Fenders? Is an Epiphone not a "real" Gibson?
