So I did this. I've been watching Hofner clubs for two years now, ever since I saw an excellent female bassist for a Virginia band dance her way around on stage with one and chatted with her afterward in the "green room" of a festival our band's played in.
Then I saw that Phil Fang Volk of the Raiders played one on TV appearances and I was kinda hooked.
Most of the Ignition clubs have run $340 to $370 without a case but I once saw one for $250 so I figured I'd bide my time until...
Musicians Friend had an after Christmas sale for week on baby blue clubs for $249. So I did it.
It arrived cold from the recent chill snap and out of tune so I got it home and warmed it up. The first thing is that this sucker is SMALL. It must weigh all of 5 pounds. It's short scale and if you're not careful you forget it's hanging off your neck. The toy-like tuners look cheap but they do the job and keep neck dive to nothing.
Out of the box it was set up to play. Intonation was spot on and action was acceptable. I don't know how long the round wound strings had been on it, but after 30 minutes of playing my fingers were gray so I rubbed the strings down a bit. They actually don't sound too bad and I prefer rounds on my short scales and hollows because they sort of make up for the thuddy thump inherent in the instruments.
Using both pickups I got a great country and classic rock vibe and front pickup allowed me to go a bit darker. Deep jazzy tones are not part of the bass' repertoire and it does NOT make a respectable P-bass sound. That's fine with me as I have a P bass should Inwant it. Funk could be an issue on this baby, but I slap like Betty White, so I'm not worried.
The weird control panel is confusing. I still don't understand why, but I managed to get it to play a variety of sounds.
Finish is better than the $249 Inpaid and the tiny frets take a bit of getting used to without glasses. Luckily, I've been playing fretless. No fret sprout, neck is spot on and all in all it's a beautiful little Sir Paul-esque bass that can take part in 75% of my gigs and won't be a bother should I decide to moonwalk, duck walk or waltz while playing on stage.
I didn't need the little bass, but I dig it.
Then I saw that Phil Fang Volk of the Raiders played one on TV appearances and I was kinda hooked.
Most of the Ignition clubs have run $340 to $370 without a case but I once saw one for $250 so I figured I'd bide my time until...
Musicians Friend had an after Christmas sale for week on baby blue clubs for $249. So I did it.
It arrived cold from the recent chill snap and out of tune so I got it home and warmed it up. The first thing is that this sucker is SMALL. It must weigh all of 5 pounds. It's short scale and if you're not careful you forget it's hanging off your neck. The toy-like tuners look cheap but they do the job and keep neck dive to nothing.
Out of the box it was set up to play. Intonation was spot on and action was acceptable. I don't know how long the round wound strings had been on it, but after 30 minutes of playing my fingers were gray so I rubbed the strings down a bit. They actually don't sound too bad and I prefer rounds on my short scales and hollows because they sort of make up for the thuddy thump inherent in the instruments.
Using both pickups I got a great country and classic rock vibe and front pickup allowed me to go a bit darker. Deep jazzy tones are not part of the bass' repertoire and it does NOT make a respectable P-bass sound. That's fine with me as I have a P bass should Inwant it. Funk could be an issue on this baby, but I slap like Betty White, so I'm not worried.
The weird control panel is confusing. I still don't understand why, but I managed to get it to play a variety of sounds.
Finish is better than the $249 Inpaid and the tiny frets take a bit of getting used to without glasses. Luckily, I've been playing fretless. No fret sprout, neck is spot on and all in all it's a beautiful little Sir Paul-esque bass that can take part in 75% of my gigs and won't be a bother should I decide to moonwalk, duck walk or waltz while playing on stage.
I didn't need the little bass, but I dig it.
. That's a huge score on price for one of those basses.
