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Hofner-(not just Beatle Basses)-Group Part 2
- Thread starter Bryan R. Tyler
- Start date
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Not necessarily so.
See post #1249, earlier in this thread/topic, for my first-hand experience and more details.
In that example, I did have success with a LaBella short scale string set which was not designated for Hofners.
This allowed me a choice of gauges (42-56-75-100) not offered in the Hofner-specific LaBella sets .
To know for sure, MEASURE your instrument from ball to nut, and then decide.
It depends upon how many inches of the string has been wound, starting at the ball end, and different makers have chosen different lengths for this spec, for each scale length which they make.
Short Scale Winding lengths which I have personally confirmed during 2018-2019 :
LaBella : 32.25" (these are on my bass now)
GHS : 32.75"
DR : 33.50" or 33.75" (these were on my bass when purchased)
All of the above will properly fit my Hofner Ignition Club bass, though I have not tried the GHS ones on it, as they are currently on my Gibson SG bass, but the winding length number is within the range of the other two choices.
Also, plenty of folks here on TB have reported success with Pyramid #640 (IIRC) short scale strings, which I understand that Hofner ships installed on their German models.
As I suggested above, MEASURE your bass before ordering anything.
PS : I can confirm your 34" number as correct for the maximum winding length (for mine at least), as 34" of measuring tape just tickles the tuner post of my bass on the 4th E string.
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I have LaBella flats on my 500/1s and Hofner flats on my Club... Both sound great.. just ordered a set of Hofner's for a backup... Saves about $10 from the LaBellas
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Hofner-branded flats ?
I would EXPECT those to fit.
Pray tell, who sells them, and do you happen to know what gauges they are ?
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I think you can find them on Thomann or Reverb. Probably EBay too. I have various string types on my Hofners. Some don't fit, but all do the trick. I loved the La Bella white nylons for awhile. Cool tones with those.~
Hofner-branded flats ?
I would EXPECT those to fit.
Pray tell, who sells them, and do you happen to know what gauges they are ?
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I should add that in the above brands, their Medium Scale strings would be in excess of 34 inches, so would be unsuitable for my bass, and I expect for most other Hofners.
LaBella medium scale are 34.25" and GHS are 34.75".
DR does not seem to offer any medium scale sets per se, though some folks suggest that DR's short scale sets will fit some medium scale basses, due to being the longest short scale sets which I have noticed out there.
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Speaking of that bass, I had not posted any pics of it so far.
This post should serve to remedy that shortcoming.
The finish is a fine grain silver sparkle, in case the pics (taken by its first owner) do not show it well enough.
All I need to do now is remember how to insert pics into posts here....
Finally !!!
What an ORDEAL !!!
It looks like near impossible to insert pics into existing posts, but when I copied the text from and deleted my post, and started over, no problem.
I was concerned that I would exceed the one hour time limit to edit a post, so I decided to begin again.
Has that time limit always been in effect ?
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Hofner-branded flats ?
I would EXPECT those to fit.
I get them at Reverb for around $24 a set ... $4 s
Pray tell, who sells them, and do you happen to know what gauges they are ?
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Reverb $24 a set and $4 shipping
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Thanks !
It's my first Hofner, and the transition from my Ric 4001 has been fairly easy, feelwise, as both fingerboards are almost the same width at the nut, and the Hofner's slightly closer string spacing at the bridge seems not to be a bother.
Maybe it's not any tighter at the bridge, as Ric necks do not get as wide at the body as Fender necks would, heading toward the bridge.
I ought to measure them both to compare.
And more importantly, why I bothered to change basses after all of this time ?
The Hofner weighs about half of what the Ric does, literally.
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Hofner-branded flats ?
I would EXPECT those to fit.
Pray tell, who sells them, and do you happen to know what gauges they are ?
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I have Googled and been pointed to Thomann USA (but not to Reverb), and an onsite search on Reverb gives me several results, but none priced and shipped for as low a price as you mentioned.
Do you happen to know the name of the seller, or have a link to the exact Reverb page ?
Also, there seem to be TWO versions of these flatwounds in short/Hofner scale, according to Thomann, models H1133B, and the HCT1133B.
https://www.thomannmusic.com/hoefner_h1133_beatlebasssaiten.htm
On the Hofner site : Invalid Link Removed
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
On the Hofner site : Invalid Link Removed
While both are flatwound, the quoted gauges are not the same, the materials are said to be different, and on Thomann USA, one model costs more than double the price of the other, plus shipping.
Both claim to fit most Hofner basses, including Violin and Club, and one quotes the wound length as 860mm, which is about 33.86".
Does anyone have experience with both of these sets of Hofner strings, and if so, what do you think of each in comparison ?
And is someone else making them for Hofner ?
BTW, for comparison, the LaBella set which I just bought and installed cost me $38.95 USD, shipping included, and that was shipped from USA to Canada by 'Strings and Beyond', which cost me less than 'Strings by Mail' (where I have bought other strings several times in the past) would have charged me.
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So the weight was a motivation? I'm guessing the tone is quite different too?~
Thanks !
It's my first Hofner, and the transition from my Ric 4001 has been fairly easy, feelwise, as both fingerboards are almost the same width at the nut, and the Hofner's slightly closer string spacing at the bridge seems not to be a bother.
Maybe it's not any tighter at the bridge, as Ric necks do not get as wide at the body as Fender necks would, heading toward the bridge.
I ought to measure them both to compare.
And more importantly, why I bothered to change basses after all of this time ?
The Hofner weighs about half of what the Ric does, literally.
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I bought Hofner flats for my club bass copy that I got recently and I don't recommend them, the e was totally dead because the windings are loose- you can hear the string crackle as you run your fingers down it. The seller I got it from replaced the E, and the replacement had the same issue, to a slightly lesser degree but it is still much more dead than the other 3 and the string sounds chorused on every note.
i just got the labella beatle bass strings and they are remarkably better and are all consistent. The Hofner strings sounded good on the other 3, and I had an old GLS short scale flat that I put with them to do a recording, but the labella are so much better. I should have not tried to save a few bucks and just gotten them from the beginning. I use labella low tension flats in my mustang p/j and they are great, and regular labella flats on my short scale p bass copy, so I should have known to just get labella.
See my reply to the post below, maybe I was just very unlucky, how was the E string on your set?
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Saving money is always tempting.
I wonder who makes the Hofner-branded strings ?
My gut feeling is that it is Pyramid, though I have no proof of this.
Some anecdotal reports which I recently read have said that Pyramid flats have uneven response among some of the strings of a set, IIRC, and that LaBella are better in that regard.
Other reports say that Hofner factory installs Pyramid flats onto their German-built basses.
It would be logical from a business perspective for Hofner to have one company to service both needs.
Note also that there are TWO models of Hofner short scale flatwound bass string sets, as per links in one of my recent earlier posts.
Which model was giving you the grief ?
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Thanks.
Barry Clark is a seller who I have seen on eBay for a long time, but have not gotten around to buying anything from him so far.
I now need to figure out what it would cost me overall to have him ship some of them to Canada, compared to what I paid to SAB for my last set of LaBellas, mentioned not far upthread.
His pricing thru eBay might be different too.
That all said, the posts by mrufino1 worry me a bit, regarding troubles with the 4th E string of the Hofner-branded sets.
Hmmmm....
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Pyramid make Hofner strings but not the contemporary range of strings, the Hofner contemporary flats I tried where dreadful, Pyramid flats were good but too stiff for my taste
I really like the contemporary strings... I put them on my Hofner Club bass and I get a real 60's thump ... Granted, I a still fairly new to bass playing and may not have the world's best ear... but there are no dead spots, dull sounds or weak throbs.... In fact, I would pick them over the LaBellas just because of the price... I need t save all I can !!! There are more basses to buy !!! But I will not remove the LaBellas I have on my Ignition Violin Basses ...
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When you say that "the Pyramid flats were good", do you mean the Hofner-branded sets which you described, or actual Pyramid-branded sets ?
And what was dreadful for you about the Contemporary flats ?
I'm just trying to decide whether I should try EITHER of the Hofner flat sets at all, as I so far like the LaBella Low Tension Flats which I put on recently.
After doing some more research today, it looks like the Contemporary flats (HCT1133B) shipped to Canada from Barry Clark (based upon his eBay listing) would save me a few bucks vs LaBellas, but any of the places which carry the other model of Hofner flats which Pyramid may make (H1133B), those places want more for those strings than what LaBellas cost me.
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Thing is, I would need a 2nd Ignition Club, in order to effectively A/B compare other strings to those which I have on my only Hofner bass.
And if I go and do that, then there goes any money (and more) which I might save on the strings !
Still, there is some genuine truth and merit in the idea of having a 2nd identical model of bass for testing and comparing strings, because putting strings on and off a single bass repeatedly may break them off at the tuning pegs, or in the case of round core strings such as which I currently have on (LaBella Low Tension Flats), the wraps could become loose and ruin the sound, the next time I put them back on - seriously.
And for proper A/B-ing, you need to be able to just set one bass down and pick up the other, before you forget how the first one sounded.
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