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Harley Benton Multiscale 5s

#41
DJ Bebop said:
Dammit TalkBass!!!

View attachment 7176035

I was playing back the video of Frank Itt playing that bass through our home theater unit. And wife came in the room while Frank was giving his best bass face and the wife wanted to know what that was all about. I told her about the bass from Harley Benton. She said she liked the sound of it 😲 I didn't think she would notice but I do play a lot of vintage-sounding basses, P’s with flats, J’s with Rotosound Swing Bass that sort of thing. In fact I was in the process of selling stuff for a vintage of sorts P bass, AV II or a Vntera I or II.

Anyway she noted this bass sounded different than my usual crap.

View attachment 7176040


She told me she had a little pin money and I should go ahead and order one.

I love that woman 😻

View attachment 7176042

😊
Click to expand...
It was too good to be true!!!

1742202017917.png


So after the Misses okayed the purchase and the order went through.
After all the jacks are in their boxes
and the clowns have all gone to bed,
I get an email saying the order was on hold to check and to with me to see if I still wanted to go through with it. Why you ask?

Because of the country of origin of the bass. This particular model is made in China and because of that I will have to pay an additional cost because of the Tariffs imposed by the country I live in. Adding 25%-50% more to the total cost of the bass, plus the higher shipping cost already there. Taking it out of the budget range it was in at first 😢

They gave me 3 weeks to decide if I wanna go ahead 😔
 
#42
TeeSee said:
It is a nice bass, and they look really nice but cost is prohibitive to us on other side of pond, excluding any shipping or taxes the models range from £430 to £550, you can see why we are buying G4M's or Harley Bentons for 2/3rd's the price then tricking them out ourselves, most multiscales are extortionate over here but we're just stuck with that ugly body unless we throw a lot more real estate at 'em. and buy a dingwall or something. Something I personally am not prepared to do, but other's might.
Cheers.
Click to expand...
I’m now finding this true coming back this way from your side of the pond on this particular model as I wrote above as far as added shipping and taxes. I get it 😔
 
#43
I
DJ Bebop said:
I’m now finding this true coming back this way from your side of the pond on this particular model as I wrote above as far as added shipping and taxes. I get it 😔
Click to expand...
f that's the case I would definitely look at the Rondo in your neck of the woods it'll probably work out the same price or maybe less. The guitar Dabbler has is a decent looking guitar with conventional horns so there'd be no bother with a single cut. Plus the scale length on the B is 37" which would sound a lot better as there's more tension and the B should really shine compared to a conventional 32" scale.
I was going to suggest maybe you get the HB purchased from someone in the EU, unfortunately I believe the EU and UK will also be subject to tariff's very shortly. :rolleyes:
 
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#44
TeeSee said:
I

f that's the case I would definitely look at the Rondo in your neck of the woods it'll probably work out the same price or maybe less. The guitar Dabbler has is a decent looking guitar with conventional horns so there'd be no bother with a single cut. Plus the scale length on the B is 37" which would sound a lot better as there's more tension and the B should really shine compared to a conventional 32" scale.
I was going to suggest maybe you get the HB purchased from someone in the EU, unfortunately I believe the EU and UK will also be subject to tariff's very shortly. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
Nope, unfortunately they don't stock those anymore, or at least not now.😢
 
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#45
TeeSee said:
I was going to suggest maybe you get the HB purchased from someone in the EU, unfortunately I believe the EU and UK will also be subject to tariff's very shortly. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
Isn't Germany part of the EU?

Yes this is the issue that Thomann emailed me about. Any product made in Hong Kong or China must be accompanied by the US tariffs if they are shipped into the US, regardless of the current shipper’s location. 😔

I don't know if one can circumvent that. Like have someone local buy it then ship it over. Seems like as much fooling around as just paying the tariffs. Thomann has a US wherehouse, that bass is not stocked there. Probably would still be the same only difference could be, I would avoid the overseas shipping and declaration charges.
 
#46
DJ Bebop said:
It was too good to be true!!!

View attachment 7178020

So after the Misses okayed the purchase and the order went through.
After all the jacks are in their boxes
and the clowns have all gone to bed,
I get an email saying the order was on hold to check and to with me to see if I still wanted to go through with it. Why you ask?

Because of the country of origin of the bass. This particular model is made in China and because of that I will have to pay an additional cost because of the Tariffs imposed by the country I live in. Adding 25%-50% more to the total cost of the bass, plus the higher shipping cost already there. Taking it out of the budget range it was in at first 😢

They gave me 3 weeks to decide if I wanna go ahead 😔
Click to expand...
IMG_9012.gif


I took the plunge anyway.
Had some crap sell unexpectedly and the Ms. increased her pin money contribution and encouraged me to go ahead. We’ll see what happens next. 😳
 
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#48
DJ Bebop said:
Dammit TalkBass!!!

View attachment 7176035

I was playing back the video of Frank Itt playing that bass through our home theater unit. And wife came in the room while Frank was giving his best bass face and the wife wanted to know what that was all about. I told her about the bass from Harley Benton. She said she liked the sound of it 😲 I didn't think she would notice but I do play a lot of vintage-sounding basses, P’s with flats, J’s with Rotosound Swing Bass that sort of thing. In fact I was in the process of selling stuff for a vintage of sorts P bass, AV II or a Vntera I or II.

Anyway she noted this bass sounded different than my usual crap.

View attachment 7176040


She told me she had a little pin money and I should go ahead and order one.

I love that woman 😻

View attachment 7176042

😊
Click to expand...
Right on!...here's to understanding women!!!;):laugh:

kirkbonesyes.gif
 
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#52
comatosedragon said:
Very Nice! That's the color I will be getting also, should I decide to follow through.

Is the string spacing "tight" like I have heard others mention? I play comfortably on 19mm, but it's next to impossible to tell from a picture.
Click to expand...
Without my glasses, it looks like 16mm with my ruler. I have a 6 sting that close but it was fine for me. I guess I'm not a picky as I thought as that was my preferred spacing, 19mm with all of my FSO 😊
 
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#53
DJ Bebop said:
Without my glasses, it looks like 16mm with my ruler. I have a 6 sting that close but it was fine for me. I guess I'm not a picky as I thought as that was my preferred spacing, 19mm with all of my FSO 😊
Click to expand...
If it's any use, it's 17mm on the Redsub fiver of mine. There'd be a fairly thick neck on a 19mm spacing for a 5 string. Not saying they don't do them but it would be a chunky thing.
 
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#54
TeeSee said:
If it's any use, it's 17mm on the Redsub fiver of mine. There'd be a fairly thick neck on a 19mm spacing for a 5 string. Not saying they don't do them but it would be a chunky thing.
Click to expand...
Oh I don't know, I have a Carvin BB 5 string with 19mm spacing and the neck on that is a slim or slimmer than the neck on the Harly Benton. True it is not a multiscale.

BTW I can get 17mm if I push on my ruler a little bit 🤣
 

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