Playing jazz on a Hofner violin bass

[ugly_bassplayer]

Chris Wood is now one of my top five bass players. Great tone. Great groove. And all on a short-scale Hofner. Well, I guess his rig has something to do with it too...

Sorry not all on Hofner, he uses a Pbass alot.

 

[wildhorse]

I've got a Rogue Beatle Bass Copy that works great... The Hofner aught to fit the bill quite nicely.... Try [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] for some La Bella Beatle Bass strings.

 

[lousybassplayer]

Nope, sorry. IF you play jazz obviously you need to use the bass that is specifically labeled for that purpose. Thread Over.

 

[Rob Mac]

Sorry not all on Hofner, he uses a Pbass alot.

My grammar was misleading. I meant he could get both groove and tone on a Hofner. I'm aware he plays other basses. But thanks for helping me get it a bit clearer in my own mind

 

[Rob Mac]

Nope, sorry. IF you play jazz obviously you need to use the bass that is specifically labeled for that purpose. Thread Over.

I've met guys like you

 

[synaesthesia]

My old Hofner has been defretted for years now, and I use a fishman archtop bridge with a piezo pickup instead of the hofner bridge and pickups. Sounds great for jazz.

 

[lousybassplayer]

I'll be honest though, I have always kinda dug those hofners. My uncle had one as a kid when he was living in Germany and sold it. Since then he has become somewhat well off and began collecting expensive vintage guitars ( collection is absolutely jaw dropping). He jsut got some old Hofner that was exactly (enough) like his old bass and its his pride and joy. Looking forward to hearing that thing next time I see him.

I would think they would sound great for traditional jazz if you had to use an electric.

 

[Pilgrim]

Nope, sorry. IF you play jazz obviously you need to use the bass that is specifically labeled for that purpose. Thread Over.

Nice jab! You even got one bite. Y'know, I checked a couple of my electric basses and I never found that darn caution label that says "Danger: Not to be used for playing jazz." Clearly the consumer product safety commission needs to speak to those manufacturers.

As usual, the sound depends a lot on the player. If you want to play jazz on a violin bass, go ahead. I like the Labella Hofner custom flats on my Rogue VB-100, but a nice set of tapewounds probably would work even better if you want a little more upright sound. If you want fast decay, that old standby "a hunka foam under da strings" would work.

 

[rfclef]

I have an Epiphone Viola I love to play with my jazz kids at school. I love the thumpy uprightish sound it gets... so yeah, give it a shot. (I also like to play my Birdsong with em...)

 

[jasper383]

This one is even better!!!



He plays that Hofner quite often!

What a great, full sound.

Wonder what flats he uses.

 

[joeyl]

nice change from the usual good bass for metal threads. Now I would like to see somebody play metal on a Hofner...

 

[jasper383]

You can get pretty close to an upright sound with an Ashbory. But it's fretless and very short scale. Also, you get lots of strange stares when you pull it out.

Those stares turn into smiles and gasps of wonder when the Ashbory is fired up. Nothing like it.

 

[JustDavid]

A Hofner with flats does do justice to the sound, but the neck gauge is so narrow you might find it difficult to play with anything but a pick unless you have very small hands.

I had that issue with an Epi Viola I found cheap.

Was able to widen the bridges string gap up to that of an Ibanez SR 5 string, & the E & G strings kept the same distance from the edge all down the neck.

Bridge saddles on those are just frets with grooves notched in. Carefully rapped them into position, then a small drop of glue either side.

A bit "cowboy" of a job, but I found the bass for $150.

 

[rfclef]

A Hofner with flats does do justice to the sound, but the neck gauge is so narrow you might find it difficult to play with anything but a pick unless you have very small hands.

Meh.... I have previously mentioned that I have big gorilla hands... The kind that you can't ever find gloves for... the kind that send women and children screaming "GOOD LORD, WHAT IS WRONG WITH HIM?!"....

But I am 99% finger style, and I have no prob with the narrow spacing on the Epi... YMMV...

Strings: I love the TI jazz flats on the Epi...

 

[rcarraher]

I don't do slapping, popping, tapping, etc, just old-fashioned walkin-style jazz. I would like to play an upright, but at 50 years old, am too stuck in my ways. I play a fretless Fender/Squire VM through a Bass Buddy into a PA.

Anyway, I thought it about time I got a fretted instrument, thought briefly about an acoustic bass for that upright sound, but there are too many negative comments regarding those instruments. I don't really expect an upright sound from anything other than an upright, but something that would get me roughly in that area is what I am looking for.

So, how about the Hofner violin bass? It has a reputation for getting close to the sound I'm after, especially if plucked near the neck. I can only afford the Contemporary Series (Chinese-made, with German pickups). The short scale wouldn't worry me, although sourcing high-quality flatwounds for short scale might be difficult.

Any thoughts?

I own a Hofner Beatle bass and it works well for jazz. Real nice "woody" sound and I don't have any problem switching from a 34'" scale to a short scale. I'm running La Bella rounds on mine but they make a short scale flat specificly for the Hofner, so check them out. Mines a 500/1 from 72 but I understand the Contemporay Series and I think they have an Icon series are real nice with that same classic tone. Good luck.

 

[BargeOn]

What a great, full sound.

Yeah, thanks for that video.

Notice where Martin is plucking that bass. Up at the neck. That will contribute a lot to the sound he's getting. That and his technique. I could play up there too and not coax that same sound.

Anyhow, Rob, I'm pretty much in the same boat as you and never considerd a violin bass. But I will now!
Post back and let us know how you make out.

 

[iamthebassman]

Of course, the thing to remember about strings for a Hofner is the distance from the tailpiece to the bridge. Some short-scale strings are too short(being designed for Fender-type bridges) and the windings end short of the nut.

 

[dave-chaulk]

As per the flats, just buy standard scale, or even long scale, and cut them down.. as with any shortscale bass..

 

[rcarraher]

I don't do slapping, popping, tapping, etc, just old-fashioned walkin-style jazz. I would like to play an upright, but at 50 years old, am too stuck in my ways. I play a fretless Fender/Squire VM through a Bass Buddy into a PA.

Anyway, I thought it about time I got a fretted instrument, thought briefly about an acoustic bass for that upright sound, but there are too many negative comments regarding those instruments. I don't really expect an upright sound from anything other than an upright, but something that would get me roughly in that area is what I am looking for.

So, how about the Hofner violin bass? It has a reputation for getting close to the sound I'm after, especially if plucked near the neck. I can only afford the Contemporary Series (Chinese-made, with German pickups). The short scale wouldn't worry me, although sourcing high-quality flatwounds for short scale might be difficult.

Any thoughts?

Both of my Hofners (68 500/1 & 2002 5000/1 Deluxe) as well as my "Cheapo" Jay Turser Beatle Bass are great for jazz, get real close to that upright sound (no replacement but close enough for jazz) The Icons and Contemporay are both supposed to be decent. I use LaBella Beatle Bass strings on all of them.

 

[lo-toots]

I agree - the neck on my '64 Hofner 500/1 is v.slim and takes some getting used to - as does the incredible (lack of) weight. If you got big hands you might struggle and the short scale and upper-register access might be somewhat limiting.

However it can be a real joy to play jazzy lines ....