• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Hofner Violin Basses

#41
J.T. Chester said:
I don't understand the flatwound string attraction. I won't give up the sustain I get with rounds.
Click to expand...

OK, I'll explain it to you; Some people want to recreate the sounds of basses heard on 60s recordings, a huge majority of which were strung with flatwounds. One difference you've already mentioned, a lack of sustain.
 
#45
rfclef said:
I got the Beatles Complete Scores (like $69 or something, but i got mine off of Half.com or Amazon for $30ish). Has all parts (guitars, piano, bass, whatever other horns n stuff were used) for all songs they recorded. The guitar and bass parts are both tabbed and notated, which I love... TOTALLY worth the dough...
Click to expand...

wow! cheers! - Do you know if there are also approved MIDI files that match the book ?

The trouble with BASS is that when your practicing on your own it can be difficult but if I can play along with a MIDI file (and mute the bass).
 
#48
toaster2k3 said:
I have a Jay Turser. It's the lightest bass I own and very easy to play. The cheap violin bass that Hofner makes is inferior to the Turser.
Click to expand...

I don't know where you get that impression. I own both. :eyebrow:

The Jay Turser is OK... I've loved it for the year I've had it, but you are dead wrong... the Hofner Icon SMOKES IT!!! Every bit as light, way better tone and even easier to play. Plus... it has the correct color (NOT RED) and the correct shape (NOT SQUASHED). :rollno:

Ya want another Turser? Mine's ready to go! :p
 
#49
iamthebassman said:
OK, I'll explain it to you; Some people want to recreate the sounds of basses heard on 60s recordings, a huge majority of which were strung with flatwounds. One difference you've already mentioned, a lack of sustain.
Click to expand...

I understand all of that, but I can get that by playing it that way. Hell, I've been doing it with my Ric forever. I HAD to.

I guess they're OK for those who want ONLY 'that' sound or can't work their fretting hand to do it with RWs.

I just won't give up the sustain I need for other material.
 
#50
J.T. Chester said:
I don't know where you get that impression. I own both. :eyebrow:

The Jay Turser is OK... I've loved it for the year I've had it, but you are dead wrong... the Hofner Icon SMOKES IT!!! Every bit as light, way better tone and even easier to play. Plus... it has the correct color (NOT RED) and the correct shape (NOT SQUASHED). :rollno:

Ya want another Turser? Mine's ready to go! :p
Click to expand...
Haven't got to play an Icon yet but I'm perfectly happy with my Turser. Except for the squashed shape. And the red in the sunburst. Fortunately I'm not bothered about cosmetic stuff.

I do have to say, though, that I don't like how Hofner uses guitar tuners instead of bass tuners. My first bass had guitar tuners (a 1964 Framus Strato-Star), and bass strings are really hard on them.
 
#52
Get the bass that appeals to you. If you dig it, you'll likely keep on playing it. Sure, the Hofner is fairly one-dimensional, but it was made to sound like a double bass. Isn't the DB one-dimensional? I don't own one, but the few I've played had a nice feel to them, and I dig the sound. It works well in music that doesn't have really heavy guitars. I say go for it, but buy from a place that has a return policy just in case the bass doesn't suit you.
 
#55
The problem with the contemporary is it's only a semi-hollowbody. It's got a block running down the middle of it, so it's not quite the same as the top of the line model. It's not a huge difference but it does sound different.

People say that the real Hofner is a much better bass than the Tursers and Brices and Epiphones, but I remember a day you couldn't give them away because they were thought of as cheap and crappy. Only when Paul started playing them again was when they all of a sudden cost $1800. I look at it this way...if Paul were starting out now, he'd probably buy a Brice, not a Hofner.
 
#56
JimmyM said:
The problem with the contemporary is it's only a semi-hollowbody. It's got a block running down the middle of it, so it's not quite the same as the top of the line model. It's not a huge difference but it does sound different.
Click to expand...


Yeah, that's my only gripe with it... But a set of Pyramid flats might offset some of the extra sustain that the solid center block adds... That black finish is just so sharp looking... I also like that it's compatable with the "Paul McCartney-style" strap, unlike the Icon.
 
#57
I've always hated the way they feel. v.weird thin neck.

but check this video out - it's 'chank' by Scofield Medeski Martin & Wood


he's using a 60's hofner and he manages to get a really full tone. nice and warm.
 
#59
Here's my '65 Hofner, s/n 937, that I bought new, in Germany, for $119.00. I still have it and it has served me very well indeed!!

Guitars203.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: El Pelusa
#60
main-sale, that beautiful finish is certainly something you can't get out of Tursers and Rogues. If I owned a Hofner, I would want one exactly like that one.

thechips, a full tone is the violin bass' calling card. Never have I owned a bass that could beat its way through any mix just by sheer virtue of the insane amount of frequencies it puts out. I totally love my Turser for that reason.
 
  • Like
Reactions: El Pelusa

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back