NBD: Harley Benton JB-75MN - mind blown again!

[ROGI]

Few months ago i've got myself HB JB-75MN black, just for the kicks. i've figured 150bucks for jazz with wilkinson pickups and hardware and ash body with maple neck, black blocks and binding is super cheap. reviews were also great! That bass blew my mind, it became my no1 player. i've sold my collection of expensive ibanez premium and prestige SRs, custom made basses and whatnot.

So i ordered another one. this time sunbrust/maple. bass came set up, ready to go! wow.

PROS:
-amazing sound, nails jazz bass tone with a bit more growl and character
-super sweet neck, low action without buzzz
-stays in tune, rock solid neck - i've played first (black) one in warm room, then went to warm damp room (bar) and then played in front of the car plugged into car's stereo (very cold, damp) and neck stayed rock solid, didn't budge or detune
-great neck profile (a tidy bit chunkier than regular jazz neck)
-amazing looks, this thing looks like +1000USD bass
-good headstock design (kinda like sadowsky, love it!)
-balanced!
-SUUUUUPER CHEAP , worth at least 5 times it's price. hands down.
-pots work great!
-with good strings (i've put elixir nanoweb 45-105 nickel) it really shines! wow!


MIDDLE GROUND:
-there are some visual issues here and there, pickguard is very prone to scrathces, finish is stained here and there but you really have to look hard to notice it and it's mostly on the back or near neck joint, places that you won't really see or look for blemishes - BUT AT THIS PRICE POINT??? full ash , maple woods, sunburst, beautiful pieces of wood, come on!

CONS:
-it's heavy. REALLY heavy. around 6kg , that's +13 pounds. so i got a groovegear comfrot strap. that fixed the issues. that's the only con i've found.

It sounds the same as the first one, fret leveling is a bit better on this one, but since i play low-medium setup i can't tell the difference until i put strings really low.

you can check out how they both sound here:
Shugar Band

and talking about how stable those basses are (necks) check out, i'm not kidding you my band (that is rock duo) played in front of the car at near freezing temperatures at 2am after 2 gigs.

(we play trough interface behringer umc404hd and into laptop - reaper daw and there we add drums, amp sims) i record/play with only compressor and that's it. there is only limiter and multiband compresor on master chanel + reverb , considering all other things that influence my sound. no amp sims for me.

so you can check out all the basses that this one (and black/maple benton) replaced here:
https://www.facebook.com/vukrogi/media_set?set=a.10153286673797030.1073741856.642632029&type=3

 

[kodiakblair]

Excellent stuff there @ROGI

Had my JB-75 for a couple of years now and agree they are great basses.

 

[equill]

Thanks for writing this - it's very helpful.
I may be pushed into getting a fretted bass soon, and am thinking about getting one of Thomann's 5-string models*. This is reassuring that it's a good idea.

*Hey, if I'm getting a new bass anyway, I may as well find out what that extra fourth of low-end will do for me.

 

[Madjon1973]

I agree mine is fantastic. Neck is very stable more chunky than my other basses, more of a p than a j but it sounds and plays superb.

I had a squier vm jazz but this is much better in terms of finish and stability, which is the reason i sold the vm jazz. I have several basses including some high end Tune basses and Yamaha basses but i struggle not to pick the Harley up.

Great jazz tones, the neck pup also gives a super p tone on its own. Great bass, struggling to come to terms with its cheapness!

 

[Phillip Keegan]

You may find that with the pick guard issue that there is a second peel off protective film.

 

[nonohmic]

What. 13 lbs?

 

[nabilhuakbar]

You may find that with the pick guard issue that there is a second peel off protective film.

3 year Necro post but that was the case with mine.

I have a newer JB75 with the Roswell pickups but I agree...it's probably the best bass that Thomann makes. The tone you can get out of these things is just unreal. They sound and play so far above their price point that it should be a crime

 

[dabbler]

3 year Necro post but that was the case with mine.

I have a newer JB75 with the Roswell pickups but I agree...it's probably the best bass that Thomann makes. The tone you can get out of these things is just unreal. They sound and play so far above their price point that it should be a crime

In the interest of... gee, there's no easy way to say this. Don't play one of their Enhanced model basses, or you might have to edit your post.

 

[nabilhuakbar]

In the interest of... gee, there's no easy way to say this. Don't play one of their Enhanced model basses, or you might have to edit your post.

Oh, I do know man! I have an MP5-MN (the P-bass version) and it's been a bit of a problem child from me actually...I'm not sure if my local environment itself is the issue but it's been making a lot of unnecessary noise.

That said, what I can hear of it sounds amazing. It's a niiiiiiiiiiiice bass guitar.

I guess what I really should have said is that I think the JB-75 is the best bass Thomann makes for the price. 'cause I agree, those Enhanced models are just unreal.