Harley Benton Rickenbacker

[kodiakblair]

And I would add, if I may, that the body is Ric inspired but not identical by any means

That's the truth Good Brother.

 

[Thom Harmand]

Thanks, that helps.
Down to the Jazz and the Yamaha.

 

[Thom Harmand]

I decided to go with an Ash body maple neck Jazz knockoff from Thomann, $216 shipped. It's the package that includes a gig bag, strap, and cable. I will post a review once I play it.
Thanks to all for your input!

 

[Thom Harmand]

Thanks, that helps.
Down to the Jazz and the Yamaha.

I finally pulled the trigger on a Harley Benton Jazz Bass for $138. I went with the package including a gig bag, cable, and a strap for $146.
Review will be posted once I figure out why my bank won't pay. Believe me most of the time In very happy with their security.

 

[kodiakblair]

I finally pulled the trigger on a Harley Benton Jazz Bass for $138. I went with the package including a gig bag, cable, and a strap for $146.

You're aware of the weight ?

This one from 8 year back was 12 lbs.

Picked this one up end of August, also weighs 12 lbs

 

[Koshchei]

Build quality will probably be far better than a real Rick but it doesn't exactly look like a Rick, does it? And I strongly doubt if it will SOUND like a Rick (but please post clips to prove me wrong).

Harley Benton are generally amazing value but don't expect water tight QC at this price. The HBs I have personal experience with have varied from worthless junk (very few) to amazing out of the box (also very few). Most will be very good instruments with a poor setup and have extremely sharp fret ends out of the box (at least that has been the case in my experience and I see quite a few of these at the workshop, for obvious reasons).

When factoring in the cost (or time) for a proper setup most HBs will still be amazing value and easily as good as a Fender Player series IMO.

2020 and later, I'd put a Ric against almost anything, which is crazy because they still cost about the same as a standard US-made Fender bass. They've really gotten their act together in terms of build quality.

In terms of how they play and feel, yes, definitely an acquired taste - they feel and respond nothing like a Fender. While they can do an authoritative P-Bass impression, where they're happiest is a tone that no other bass can get anywhere close to. The Harley Benton does a not bad job, but it's not quite the same.

Personally, I can't play anything but a Ric at this point.

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