I'm 65 and I've played for decades and own 20 basses.I own all kinds and brands,a few are high end.I bought a HB mainly to see what the hype was and I'm amazed at how much you get for little money,I find myself playing it quite a bit more than my others.I could definitely use it as an every day bass.
We sound very similar regarding playing and basses. I got the Bass VI, because it was interesting, but I knew it was just to mess around. And it was so good (designed after the Fender type, not the Squire), that I got a fretless from HB, and this is a superb instrument -- solid, inspiring under the hands, terrific fit and finish. And tone for days, with all the fretless magic. While I'm curious about the longevity these have, their apparent playability really is beyond any reasonable expectation. I'm waiting for an extended multiscale from them.
I have a HB jb75. I upgraded the pots and output jack, and added a series/parallel circuit. This bass is a beast. I also have a 2000 mim jazz bass. Also a beast. Love 'em both.
... touché, my wise countryman. I'm a bit over 30 years of playing bass, a bit more than that on guitar. I have owned, and thoroughly enjoyed a few Fender basses, mostly American made P basses and P Deluxe with a PJ pickup set, but never a Harley Benton. I have to say that the comparison of these two instruments was striking, and whether through my phone, or through my computer, my DAW,, and my monitors or monitor headphones, they sounded remarkably similar, and very difficult to choose a clear preference between these two. They both seem to be good platforms for a mod project (I just did a very minor mod job on a neighbor's Squire bass, installing an EMG Geezer Butler P bass pickup, and the proper pots and output jack, minor work on, and installation of, a vintage Fender pick guard, some minor fret work, a proper set up/truss rod/clean up, and he and his bandmates absolutely loved it (the first time any of them heard it was as they were beginning a show about 2 hours after I returned it to my neighbor). I started working on these instruments the very next day after I received my first guitar, a Japanese made Kramer Focus 4000, at age 14, when I replaced the stock Kramer pickups, with a set of Dimarzio's, which were then replaced 2 weeks later, with a set from Seymour Duncan. I'm not sure which pickup models I installed, but I'll find out later this week, as they're still in the guitar, I still own it, and I'm going to be doing a fairly extensive rebuild. I'll be keeping the original Floyd Rose vibrato, and those Duncan pick ups (probably). I'm going to be doing a slightly less extensive rebuild of the first bass I ever bought with my own money, an also Japanese made Ibanez CT, which was the second bass I ever owned. I recently replaced the active PJ pick up set with an EMG PJ X set along with the EMG bqc system, and paired this with the 24 volt mod, and THAT sounds GREAT. I'll be keeping those pickups and all of the electronics in that bass, but I will be replacing the rebuilt original Fender style bridge. All of this rework, rebuild, and the instructing of all of the replacement necks for both the guitar and the base will be shown on the youtube channel, and website for the custom guitar and bass building business which my wife and I recently started. I will post an announcement of the UA-cam channel and website going live on this comment board, on a later video, if it is acceptable to Patrick, as well as a few other UA-cam channels, and hopefully working with UA-cam channels, and working with patrick, to get out information about not only the custom instruments which we build, but also a wide variety of existing models, with a huge variety of standard available options, as well as a very extensive variety of in-house, handmade Bridges, bridge and saddle components and assemblies, aftermarkets components for many widely available new and vintage parts (like necks, bodies, etc.) and components (proprietary design bridges and saddles,replacement saddles for existing bridges and trems. locking nuts and parts for them, tuner keys and knobs, made from a huge variety of materials, made in our shop, though we also work with a number of local artists and artisans to create extremely beautiful custom and one off components and original creations out of a huge variety of materials), all of which we will unveil over a relatively short period of time over the next three months or so. We will build to order just about anything a guitar or bass player, and in time a drummer, could want, but we do not build gimmicks. We build everything, as I said in house, in our USA shop, aside from a few items for which we work with local artists and artists to create. We work with only the best materials, and our exotic and domestic hardwoods are hand selected by myself and my wife and are about 90% sourced from vendors and suppliers employee sustainable growth and sustainable harvest practices. We, at the present, as stated in our operational statement, and mission statements, donate 5% of every dollar we make, before taxes, before expenses, not profits, 5% of every dollar we make we donate to certain selected and fully vetted verified charitable organizations, charities which are very close to our heart for certain reasons. Also, as stated in our operating statement and mission statements will increase from 5% of every dollar to 10% of every dollar going to these charitable organizations.
@@Crodon Not necessarily true. Its a very common (and acceptable) practice to buy a cheaper bass where they skimped on the electronics/hardware and replace all that with aftermarket parts that *you* want. You can make an instrument that suits you... and you can do it over time, changing it little by little instead of dropping $$$ all at once... or having to wait till you have that scratch.
@J. J. Flabenowitz no, they're not. You're just likely unable to modify your own instruments so put down those who do. I've heard modded Squire jazz basses sound better than American Fenders.
Both sound really great! I’m constantly surprised at how good those Harley Benton instruments sound and look. I love the sanded finish on the fender! Great video, man!
@@plooopymops not him but I absolutely would. It's probably the best cheap bass that Thomann makes. It sounds awesome stock but I'd imagine it could sound even more awesome with some high-end pickups in it. I hear that Roswell supplies a lot of OEM parts for a lot of people, including Fenders, and it's not a huge stretch of the imagination to think that the pickups for both of these basses were made in the same factory to very similar specs.
Hey, are you sure about "using the same strings"? Because the Harley Benton clearly has coloured ball ends (D#addario?)and the Fender has brass coloured ball ends (ernie ball?).
I put the old strings back on the HB after recording the audio and then filmed everything after that. So while the video has different strings, the audio I recorded had both basses using the same set of strings!
The Fender seemed to have more "thump" and low end, while the Harley Benton sounded more "focused". I would choose the Fender, but I suspect if the pickups were swapped out of the Harley Benton, it would sound more like the Fender and still cost less :)
I'm gigging the pj-74 with upgraded pickups, shielding and new nut, and for roughly 300 bucks it kills. Plays and sounds as good as any Fender I've tried.
@@danibiyarslanov I sold it for a very good price. It was even too beastly in many situations. Now I'm playing a V9 that sounds great too. But I miss that neck.
I got my HB JB75 with natural finish about around the time you made that first video, you impressions helped me get it. 6 or 7 months later i can confirm that it's an amazing bass. I come from guitar, i don't have any big references when it comes to basses all i can say is that i really have fun playing it and doesn't feel cheap at all. Thanks for this comparison. I would like if you made a video tour of your desk, how you record your stuf.
It look fugly, try seeing the video in higher def, it’s extremely scratched up on the front like it was tied to a car and drug behind it for hundreds of miles.
I’m a guitarist who’s picking up bass so I bought the HB PJ and I’m downright STUNNED at how solid the thing is. I mean, good grief! The sound is pretty darn nice! Especially the neck pickup. It’s fun to play and the price is just nonsensical. I live in the US so shipping was a bit wild. But having bought an HB guitar in the past I was confident in them. I wasn’t disappointed. It got to my house in less than four days and I’m actually going to be playing live with it tomorrow. 🙂 You can rely on this one, guys. And, no, I’m not getting paid to say it. Just get it. You’ll be very happy with it.
Just received my new Harley Benton JB 4 string bass. I don't have an amp at the moment so, i haven't heard how it sounds but it feels great, it arrived tuned and set up which, as you know, is rare! I've been playing 5 string basses for nearly 10 years so, all my basses are 5 string and this is, for the moment my only 4 string. The whole, "thick neck issue" means nothing to me because I've been playing 5 strings whereby the neck is bigger anyway. I bought this bass as a project bass so, I'm looking forward to doing my planned modifications. 👍
I've said it a million times even Fender started as a no name company,they where a Harley Benton kind of company,these Harley Benton's are going to be in demand as vintage basses,grab them while their cheap
@@Ryzanu thats a lie. Those prices only started in the 80s. 60s and 70s you could get any fender instrument that you found no matter how vintage it was under 400 dollars. Shops and people would rarely sell a guitar or bass over 300 dollars back then. The quality stigma of American Made instruments was not a thing in the 60s or 70s. They were considered just the same as your squier or harley benton. Hell, japan and korean instruments were considered the high end instruments before american ones were.
The only real difference I'm hearing is compression. The Fender sounds smoother and the HB punchier. If the rig was set the same for both basses but the pickup output is different, this would probably account for this difference. I wonder how much closer you could get them sound if the signal path was optimised for each bass.
@Irfan Spirtovic it wouldn't be that dumb, if that would show, that you can buy a 140,- HB, add original Fender Pickups for ~150 and get a brand new Fenderish JB for under 300,-
I married a 51 p bass body to a jazz neck with flat wounds from Thomann and Lindey Fralin pickup and wow what a bass upgraded the pots as well and it’s a beast
Interesting - right away, at 0:18, you can see clear differences in body shape. The HB upper horn cuts away much less deeply than the Fender, and also cuts away a wider piece of wood (distance from the edge of the neck to the edge of the horn is more on the HB. Less certain, it looks to my eye like the "swoop" of the body on that same side is at it's narrowest a little further down the body on the Fender, making the horn a bit longer appearing. Some of this could be due to the two guitars being photographed from slightly different angles. Then there's the pick guard, which on the HB is much closer to the edge of the bass than on the Fender. There are other subtle shape differences as well in the pick guard.
Sounds like a nice Bass for the price. But i would defintly change the pickups. Especially in the slap part I hear the Roswell-Pickups producing some kind of clipping sound if you dig in harder.
Squier affinity basses are great for the money as well. $199 new and even cheaper used. I got mine (a 2016 lake placid blue model) for $129 (around $160 with tax and shipping) mint condition and I love it! Im not even planning on changing the pickups or electronics. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it right?
i'm a guitarist but ROSWELL are an after market brand and though I mostly use Seymour Duncan and Dimarzio on my guitars I can tell you that Roswell make some great pick ups at half the price. For Example I tried a number of P90 pick ups from big name brands and the Roswell P90's were the best sounding to my ears. Now not all Roswell are like their P90 models but they are a great option if you're on a budget.
@@Empyrean55 Seems to be the case. I'm gonna have to look into shipping costs. I'm in the States, and from what I understand, they're in England, right? So it might be just as cost effective to just go out and buy a Mexican Fender.
The Roswell pu's are not a main Harley Benton brand. The used to go with Wilkinson pickups but they got fakes from some manufacturers. You can order Roswell pickups by musicstore colone separately Thomann doesn't list them anywhere. For Thomann it's kinda like a prestige model or pro series just to lift them a little from the regular models
I've had my Harley Benton JB-75 for a year now. The sound and build quality is nothing short of excellent. The big drawback for me is weight. The thing weighs a ton. Has anyone tried any weight reducing techniques? Would it be feasible to drill out some of that wood and replace it with something lighter?
I love my HB JB75 ! It's an amazing bass for a great price! I also have the Harley Benton passive Stingray model and it's a great sounding bass as well !
I have the black JB-75, which I put black tapewound flats on - and a graphite nut. My guitar tech was amazed at what I'd got for the money. A further upgrade may be the tone capacitor - but I'm more than happy with it.
@@gvasilev92 - Hi, I went with Rotosound tapewounds - 45 - 115 (I think). I have since sold the bass, not because there was anything wrong with it, it’s a great instrument, but I needed the money.
I had a 2005 standard Jazz bass. The neck pickup was killer! For shows, i turned the bridge pickup completely off. Late 90s-Mid 00s Fender Basses are the shizzle.
The Fender sounds slightly warmer and the HB has a slightly more aggressive sound. I'm sure many bass players have figured out that they could buy a HB JB-75 and then swap in some high end pickups and still be cheaper than a MIM Fender. Even though the prices are rising , the HB is a steal at this price.
Hey man thank you for your reviews! I’ve pretty new to playing bass and I’m interested in the HB jazz bass. Do you think a jazz bass is more “well rounded” than precision style bass? I don’t realy actually play much jazz style bass lines. I’m more into rock and metal and country style music Some slap and funk too. Do you think it would be a mistake for me to purchase a jazz bass? I’ve been told by many people too because it’s just so well rounded.
Great review! I prefer the Harley Benton sound best. The fender is nice though. Can you do a video on recording bass? And how to get consistent levels in a mix?
An Alder body and Canadian hard rock maple neck and even swamp ash body on Natural Finish HB JB, they are perfectly the same DNA at a way fraction of a price that's why I'm grabbing one Harley Benton JB with the swamp ash body! Good shoot out! Hardly there's no difference of the sound just paying the name Fender. This HB JB could knock off some Boutique Basses without breaking your bank!
The mics on the HB sounds a bit harsher and a with a bit less punch but it's not a big difference! Most people swap the electronics on them anyways. I changed the bridge pup on my HB MP-4EB to a Seymour Duncan MM alnico humbucker and the pre-amp to a Glockenklang 2-band and now it sounds and feels like a 1500$ bass! :D
I liked the sound of the Harley Benton better which surprised me. Thinking about picking one up after watching the video and I’m not even a J-bass guy. P-basses are usually more my style but that HB sounds killer
I’d love a Harley Benton bass. But shipping to the US right now is $80. I can get an Ibanez or Squier for about the same price. Hopefully shipping will go down in price. When I ordered my first HB guitar a year or so ago shipping was about $35
Surely any slight tonal differences could be rectified with the tone controls of the guitar and amp. Also, once you're bass is in the mix, who would know, or even care?!? I've made tonal adjustments for certain songs that sound awful alone, but once you're playng with a band, sound amazing.
In my experience, Harley Bentons are definitely equal if not better built than MiM Fenders. I've got a friends JB-75 here and the neck pocket is in the Sadowsky, USA Fender league (really). My pj74 it's a joy to play too. But when you perform live you notice that the pickups lack some clarity. Put some CS's and still it's cheaper than a Squier.
I've had my Harley Benton JB-75 for a year now. The sound and build quality is nothing short of excellent. The big drawback for me is weight. The thing weighs a ton. Has anyone tried any weight reducing techniques? Would it be feasible to drill out some of that wood and replace it with something lighter?
The "messyco" 😂 bass is smoother and deeper, the HB has sounds good but you hear that string click or pick up distortion of whatever is called, a pick up change and i bet its on the same level 👌
The highs were more transparent with the fender ,sounds better for slapping. like a flea sound, but maybe that's the pick ups and I'm a guitarist so i could be guessing wrong.
Got the Natural JB-75, and I have two other basses, a MusicMan Ray 4 and a V7 Marus Miller, and I still like my JB-75 better. It feels better in my hand and plays much better than both. I don't like my stock MusicMan Ray 4 at all. It fills thin and unstable; I will likely mod or dump it. I bought it, so I didn't bring out an expensive bass, but I would rather play on it, and now I almost don't want to take it out to junk gigs. I could easily do so for the price. You can't go wrong with this model.
When buying a Harley Benton you should do yourself a favor and order 2 cheap items that will make a huge difference: -Tad orange drop capacitor 0.047nf. It really brings the Roswell pickups to life. (can also go for the 10 times more expensive Emerson paper & oil but why?) - A good nut. (Got a pre-cut Graftech) Investing €11- and taking the time to replace those 2 wil make a big difference in the tone, versatility and playability. After doing this to my fretless HB and reshaping the imo ugly headstock and thinning the nek just a tad, I sold my old USA Fender JB for a scandalous high price. Scandalous if you think that I sold it because.. well.. (please don’t hate me to much..) the HB sounded and played better. Again: In my very humble opinion. But I am the kind of idiot who doesn’t give a crap about the brand I play. So for me having an instrument I enjoy more together with enough money to take the wife & kids on vacation was more than enough to justify selling my Fender.. Also, the Benton is THÉ perfect gig-pig as I’m not getting stressed anymore by our clumsy drummer every-time he approaches my rig..
I've had my Harley Benton JB-75 for a year now. The sound and build quality is nothing short of excellent. The big drawback for me is weight. The thing weighs a ton. Has anyone tried any weight reducing techniques? Would it be feasible to drill out some of that wood and replace it with something lighter?
![Is this the BEST budget Jazz Bass?! | Harley Benton JB-75 [Review/Demo]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/LHXQZmAuJqE/mqdefault.jpg)
I'm 65 and I've played for decades and own 20 basses.I own all kinds and brands,a few are high end.I bought a HB mainly to see what the hype was and I'm amazed at how much you get for little money,I find myself playing it quite a bit more than my others.I could definitely use it as an every day bass.
Спасибо друг за отзыв!
We sound very similar regarding playing and basses. I got the Bass VI, because it was interesting, but I knew it was just to mess around. And it was so good (designed after the Fender type, not the Squire), that I got a fretless from HB, and this is a superb instrument -- solid, inspiring under the hands, terrific fit and finish. And tone for days, with all the fretless magic. While I'm curious about the longevity these have, their apparent playability really is beyond any reasonable expectation. I'm waiting for an extended multiscale from them.
I have a HB jb75. I upgraded the pots and output jack, and added a series/parallel circuit. This bass is a beast. I also have a 2000 mim jazz bass. Also a beast. Love 'em both.
outstanding,.....I purchased the very same bass and it is a beast right out of the box.
I been playing bass for a long time. I'm 62 years old. The Harley Benton sounds way better, and beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
... touché, my wise countryman.
I'm a bit over 30 years of playing bass, a bit more than that on guitar. I have owned, and thoroughly enjoyed a few Fender basses, mostly American made P basses and P Deluxe with a PJ pickup set, but never a Harley Benton. I have to say that the comparison of these two instruments was striking, and whether through my phone, or through my computer, my DAW,, and my monitors or monitor headphones, they sounded remarkably similar, and very difficult to choose a clear preference between these two. They both seem to be good platforms for a mod project (I just did a very minor mod job on a neighbor's Squire bass, installing an EMG Geezer Butler P bass pickup, and the proper pots and output jack, minor work on, and installation of, a vintage Fender pick guard, some minor fret work, a proper set up/truss rod/clean up, and he and his bandmates absolutely loved it (the first time any of them heard it was as they were beginning a show about 2 hours after I returned it to my neighbor).
I started working on these instruments the very next day after I received my first guitar, a Japanese made Kramer Focus 4000, at age 14, when I replaced the stock Kramer pickups, with a set of Dimarzio's, which were then replaced 2 weeks later, with a set from Seymour Duncan. I'm not sure which pickup models I installed, but I'll find out later this week, as they're still in the guitar, I still own it, and I'm going to be doing a fairly extensive rebuild. I'll be keeping the original Floyd Rose vibrato, and those Duncan pick ups (probably).
I'm going to be doing a slightly less extensive rebuild of the first bass I ever bought with my own money, an also Japanese made Ibanez CT, which was the second bass I ever owned. I recently replaced the active PJ pick up set with an EMG PJ X set along with the EMG bqc system, and paired this with the 24 volt mod, and THAT sounds GREAT. I'll be keeping those pickups and all of the electronics in that bass, but I will be replacing the rebuilt original Fender style bridge.
All of this rework, rebuild, and the instructing of all of the replacement necks for both the guitar and the base will be shown on the youtube channel, and website for the custom guitar and bass building business which my wife and I recently started. I will post an announcement of the UA-cam channel and website going live on this comment board, on a later video, if it is acceptable to Patrick, as well as a few other UA-cam channels, and hopefully working with UA-cam channels, and working with patrick, to get out information about not only the custom instruments which we build, but also a wide variety of existing models, with a huge variety of standard available options, as well as a very extensive variety of in-house, handmade Bridges, bridge and saddle components and assemblies, aftermarkets components for many widely available new and vintage parts (like necks, bodies, etc.) and components (proprietary design bridges and saddles,replacement saddles for existing bridges and trems. locking nuts and parts for them, tuner keys and knobs, made from a huge variety of materials, made in our shop, though we also work with a number of local artists and artisans to create extremely beautiful custom and one off components and original creations out of a huge variety of materials), all of which we will unveil over a relatively short period of time over the next three months or so. We will build to order just about anything a guitar or bass player, and in time a drummer, could want, but we do not build gimmicks. We build everything, as I said in house, in our USA shop, aside from a few items for which we work with local artists and artists to create. We work with only the best materials, and our exotic and domestic hardwoods are hand selected by myself and my wife and are about 90% sourced from vendors and suppliers employee sustainable growth and sustainable harvest practices. We, at the present, as stated in our operational statement, and mission statements, donate 5% of every dollar we make, before taxes, before expenses, not profits, 5% of every dollar we make we donate to certain selected and fully vetted verified charitable organizations, charities which are very close to our heart for certain reasons. Also, as stated in our operating statement and mission statements will increase from 5% of every dollar to 10% of every dollar going to these charitable organizations.
I think the Fender sounding really compressed at times.
@@Metalbass10000 LOTS OF TEXT
That the sound on the HB makes this even a debate is an amazing accomplishment for that price.
I prefer the Harley Benton, specially considering that even with mods, it won't reach the fender's price
If you need to mod a guitar, it wasn't good enough to begin with.
@@Crodon Not necessarily true. Its a very common (and acceptable) practice to buy a cheaper bass where they skimped on the electronics/hardware and replace all that with aftermarket parts that *you* want. You can make an instrument that suits you... and you can do it over time, changing it little by little instead of dropping $$$ all at once... or having to wait till you have that scratch.
@J. J. Flabenowitz to each their own. I don't begrudge someone buying and keeping it stock. I like messing with guts. :)
@@Crodon no, but that's the point. If a $150 bass with $250 pickups can sound like a $1000 bass, I'll take the $150 bass.
@J. J. Flabenowitz no, they're not. You're just likely unable to modify your own instruments so put down those who do. I've heard modded Squire jazz basses sound better than American Fenders.
Both sound really great! I’m constantly surprised at how good those Harley Benton instruments sound and look. I love the sanded finish on the fender! Great video, man!
I love my Harley Benton. I couldn’t beat the Value. It sounds great and after a basic set up I couldn’t be happier.
I just ordered a Harley Benton Jazz bass based on this video. I'm looking forward to its arrival!
How are you getting on with it? Would you recommend?
@@plooopymops not him but I absolutely would. It's probably the best cheap bass that Thomann makes. It sounds awesome stock but I'd imagine it could sound even more awesome with some high-end pickups in it. I hear that Roswell supplies a lot of OEM parts for a lot of people, including Fenders, and it's not a huge stretch of the imagination to think that the pickups for both of these basses were made in the same factory to very similar specs.
Bassed
Hey, are you sure about "using the same strings"? Because the Harley Benton clearly has coloured ball ends (D#addario?)and the Fender has brass coloured ball ends (ernie ball?).
I put the old strings back on the HB after recording the audio and then filmed everything after that. So while the video has different strings, the audio I recorded had both basses using the same set of strings!
@@patrickhunter thanks for answer, mate!
@@patrickhunter sure...
@@imfunnyman85 I'm sure he's not hard pressed for strings, fucking UA-cam detectives.
The Fender seemed to have more "thump" and low end, while the Harley Benton sounded more "focused". I would choose the Fender, but I suspect if the pickups were swapped out of the Harley Benton, it would sound more like the Fender and still cost less :)
i'd get the harley benton if i was on a tight budget and then upgrade teh pick ups to some high gain EMG , or Seymour duncans later down the line.
8
I'm gigging the pj-74 with upgraded pickups, shielding and new nut, and for roughly 300 bucks it kills. Plays and sounds as good as any Fender I've tried.
How is it 2 years later?
@@danibiyarslanov I sold it for a very good price. It was even too beastly in many situations. Now I'm playing a V9 that sounds great too. But I miss that neck.
I got my HB JB75 with natural finish about around the time you made that first video, you impressions helped me get it. 6 or 7 months later i can confirm that it's an amazing bass. I come from guitar, i don't have any big references when it comes to basses all i can say is that i really have fun playing it and doesn't feel cheap at all. Thanks for this comparison. I would like if you made a video tour of your desk, how you record your stuf.
The color on that Fender is killer. You made the right decision to keep it that way.
It does look cool, doesn't it?
It look fugly, try seeing the video in higher def, it’s extremely scratched up on the front like it was tied to a car and drug behind it for hundreds of miles.
@@Bobdixon_Moonvarga_Dancer_III I think that's the point, he sanded it down to that color
Possessing a Fender that's unlike any other Fender is cool!
I’m a guitarist who’s picking up bass so I bought the HB PJ and I’m downright STUNNED at how solid the thing is. I mean, good grief! The sound is pretty darn nice! Especially the neck pickup. It’s fun to play and the price is just nonsensical. I live in the US so shipping was a bit wild. But having bought an HB guitar in the past I was confident in them. I wasn’t disappointed. It got to my house in less than four days and I’m actually going to be playing live with it tomorrow. 🙂 You can rely on this one, guys. And, no, I’m not getting paid to say it. Just get it. You’ll be very happy with it.
I have both a fender J and a Harley Benton and the fender stays home in the case and the Benton goes to work. Harley Benton basses kick butt!
Good idea that.
In this video the Harley Benton sounded a bit louder and clearer. I agree with you.
Benton it's heavy? How much?
@@chinelitomx 5,5 Kilo
Just received my new Harley Benton JB 4 string bass. I don't have an amp at the moment so, i haven't heard how it sounds but it feels great, it arrived tuned and set up which, as you know, is rare! I've been playing 5 string basses for nearly 10 years so, all my basses are 5 string and this is, for the moment my only 4 string. The whole, "thick neck issue" means nothing to me because I've been playing 5 strings whereby the neck is bigger anyway. I bought this bass as a project bass so, I'm looking forward to doing my planned modifications. 👍
I've said it a million times even Fender started as a no name company,they where a Harley Benton kind of company,these Harley Benton's are going to be in demand as vintage basses,grab them while their cheap
@@Ryzanu thats a lie. Those prices only started in the 80s. 60s and 70s you could get any fender instrument that you found no matter how vintage it was under 400 dollars. Shops and people would rarely sell a guitar or bass over 300 dollars back then. The quality stigma of American Made instruments was not a thing in the 60s or 70s. They were considered just the same as your squier or harley benton. Hell, japan and korean instruments were considered the high end instruments before american ones were.
The only real difference I'm hearing is compression. The Fender sounds smoother and the HB punchier. If the rig was set the same for both basses but the pickup output is different, this would probably account for this difference. I wonder how much closer you could get them sound if the signal path was optimised for each bass.
I love Harley Benton, their whole range offers fantastic quality and value for money!
Thanks for posting.
Now for a fun comparison... Swap the pickups between the 2 and compare again
Irfan Spirtovic 93.56%
You're torturing Patrick.
@Irfan Spirtovic it wouldn't be that dumb, if that would show, that you can buy a 140,- HB, add original Fender Pickups for ~150 and get a brand new Fenderish JB for under 300,-
both pickups sucks dude, the diference is the wood fender has alder much better than basswood
@@diegodefante Pretty sure these Harley Bentons are made of Ash and not Basswood.
Thank you for the review. Cheers
I'm glad that you said it first, I also found that The Harley Benton sounded better.
Just bought a Harley Benton jb 75 a couple of months ago...awesome bass, it's now my no.1 , knocking my Rickenbacker back to no.2 !!!
Great review, just shows the funk really is in the fingers!
Woah that color on the fender!!! 😲
The HB sounded just a hair more bright and the bridge pup slightly thinner. But still a very nice sound!
Wow that HB is gorgeous, I was eyeing the Sire V7 but this has more bang for the buck. Sounds amazing. I’m sold, thank you for the review!
I absolutely love my JB75. It has PHAT tone. I just wonder whats should be the next upgrade after that instrument?
Great Video. Honest review. Just what we need.
Recently picked up one of these & am very pleased with it
Love that Distressed Blue look of the Fender. Kinda like a dark sky with clouds, very cool. Fender should take a hint and offer that finish .
Another excellent review! Thanks Patrick. 👍
I married a 51 p bass body to a jazz neck with flat wounds from Thomann and Lindey Fralin pickup and wow what a bass upgraded the pots as well and it’s a beast
Interesting - right away, at 0:18, you can see clear differences in body shape. The HB upper horn cuts away much less deeply than the Fender, and also cuts away a wider piece of wood (distance from the edge of the neck to the edge of the horn is more on the HB. Less certain, it looks to my eye like the "swoop" of the body on that same side is at it's narrowest a little further down the body on the Fender, making the horn a bit longer appearing. Some of this could be due to the two guitars being photographed from slightly different angles.
Then there's the pick guard, which on the HB is much closer to the edge of the bass than on the Fender. There are other subtle shape differences as well in the pick guard.
Patrick you kick ass keep doing your thing!
Sounds like a nice Bass for the price. But i would defintly change the pickups. Especially in the slap part I hear the Roswell-Pickups producing some kind of clipping sound if you dig in harder.
Yeah, that sanded down fender finish is amazing! You made the right choice in that IMO.
Squier affinity basses are great for the money as well. $199 new and even cheaper used. I got mine (a 2016 lake placid blue model) for $129 (around $160 with tax and shipping) mint condition and I love it! Im not even planning on changing the pickups or electronics. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it right?
"This jazz bass in particular is a 2003 or 2004, if I remember correctly, from when I dated it..."
I'm sorry it didn't work out between you two :/
🤣🤣🤣🤣
Looks like they're still good friends.
i'm a guitarist but ROSWELL are an after market brand and though I mostly use Seymour Duncan and Dimarzio on my guitars I can tell you that Roswell make some great pick ups at half the price. For Example I tried a number of P90 pick ups from big name brands and the Roswell P90's were the best sounding to my ears. Now not all Roswell are like their P90 models but they are a great option if you're on a budget.
People are LOVING the Harley Benton instruments lately. 🤔
Great quality considering the price 🤷♂️
@@Empyrean55 Seems to be the case. I'm gonna have to look into shipping costs. I'm in the States, and from what I understand, they're in England, right? So it might be just as cost effective to just go out and buy a Mexican Fender.
John Conti I believe it’s a flat rate of $35 to ship to the states from Germany
@@Cru2o2 That's not bad....that's really, really not bad. I believe I also saw some Stingray style ones on the website. The plot thickens.
Totally. Was thinkin that myself
AMAZING PLAYING !
The Roswell pu's are not a main Harley Benton brand. The used to go with Wilkinson pickups but they got fakes from some manufacturers. You can order Roswell pickups by musicstore colone separately Thomann doesn't list them anywhere. For Thomann it's kinda like a prestige model or pro series just to lift them a little from the regular models
Love the color on the Fender. Even with it being worn.
I like the Fender for a few reasons other than price the ability to touch and see how it feels in my hands before buying is the most important to me.
I've had my Harley Benton JB-75 for a year now. The sound and build quality is nothing short of excellent. The big drawback for me is weight. The thing weighs a ton. Has anyone tried any weight reducing techniques? Would it be feasible to drill out some of that wood and replace it with something lighter?
You could drill everything under the pick guard and up under where the knobs are, and you could drill the headstock too but it looks horticole
@@alexkna8808 I was thinking of filling it with epoxy resin and respraying it.
Innasoul Φ Music Φ does epoxy weigh less than wood? that's news to me...
Thats such a plus for me, I love heavy basses.
Awsome Harley Benton Jb75 bass tone.
I love my HB JB75 ! It's an amazing bass for a great price! I also have the Harley Benton passive Stingray model and it's a great sounding bass as well !
So Patrick. I have a set of Fender Pure 74s which need a home. The Harley benton jb75 just might be a great fit?
What model is the Fender jazz bass? That color is gorgeous.
I bought today a second hand Harley Benton JB 75 and I feel so happy. I had good deal... With and amp and a bag.
The bass is amazing. Simple as that.
For what I paid for my Harley (£88), I can tell you it is absolutely a magic bass and a joy to play
I have the black JB-75, which I put black tapewound flats on - and a graphite nut. My guitar tech was amazed at what I'd got for the money. A further upgrade may be the tone capacitor - but I'm more than happy with it.
Hey, I just got a JB-75 and thinking of getting tapewounds. What brand and gauge did you go for and did you have any grounding issues?
@@gvasilev92 - Hi, I went with Rotosound tapewounds - 45 - 115 (I think). I have since sold the bass, not because there was anything wrong with it, it’s a great instrument, but I needed the money.
I really want to see. Glarry vs ammoon jazz bass video,the 2 cheapest basses on the market currently,that you can actually use in a gig situation ,
The HB is amazing!
I had a 2005 standard Jazz bass. The neck pickup was killer! For shows, i turned the bridge pickup completely off. Late 90s-Mid 00s Fender Basses are the shizzle.
I bought a Harley Benton ‘51 p bass a few months ago and I was really impressed with it. Just needed a small fret dressing. For €109 amazing value
The Fender sounds slightly warmer and the HB has a slightly more aggressive sound. I'm sure many bass players have figured out that they could buy a HB JB-75 and then swap in some high end pickups and still be cheaper than a MIM Fender. Even though the prices are rising , the HB is a steal at this price.
I was watching this, thinking that the Fender was the sunburst model and noticing that it sounded better! I know what my next bass will be!
I like maple fretboards and block inlays. HB for me!
What's the colour of the fender? Is it transparent?
Harley Benton fan boy checking in. Been playing bass since 2000 and HB is my new preferred. RIP to my other instruments!
Do you play in standard tuning? How do you get the strings so loose and floppy (for lack of a better word) but still have the tone so tight?
21 fender players attempting to get that fat HB tone :-P just received my jb75 ... can't believe this thing!
Hey man thank you for your reviews! I’ve pretty new to playing bass and I’m interested in the HB jazz bass. Do you think a jazz bass is more “well rounded” than precision style bass? I don’t realy actually play much jazz style bass lines. I’m more into rock and metal and country style music Some slap and funk too. Do you think it would be a mistake for me to purchase a jazz bass? I’ve been told by many people too because it’s just so well rounded.
If the Harley Benton neck was on the fender I would like it.
Love a maple neck
That's the video of yours that I watch.
Kind of cool!
But I'll go with the fender.
Love your playing by the way
Great review!
I prefer the Harley Benton sound best. The fender is nice though.
Can you do a video on recording bass? And how to get consistent levels in a mix?
Haha i thought about Spectre media with Glenn Fricker. But as a bassplayer not sure thats the way to go.
Got both of it. HB for home to praxis and the Fender for stage! 🤣😉😎
An Alder body and Canadian hard rock maple neck and even swamp ash body on Natural Finish HB JB, they are perfectly the same DNA at a way fraction of a price that's why I'm grabbing one Harley Benton JB with the swamp ash body! Good shoot out! Hardly there's no difference of the sound just paying the name Fender. This HB JB could knock off some Boutique Basses without breaking your bank!
Always played Fender Jazz Basses. Tried other makes/models but the Fenders always won it in the end :)
The mics on the HB sounds a bit harsher and a with a bit less punch but it's not a big difference! Most people swap the electronics on them anyways. I changed the bridge pup on my HB MP-4EB to a Seymour Duncan MM alnico humbucker and the pre-amp to a Glockenklang 2-band and now it sounds and feels like a 1500$ bass! :D
Do you date all your basses before buying them?
I liked the sound of the Harley Benton better which surprised me. Thinking about picking one up after watching the video and I’m not even a J-bass guy. P-basses are usually more my style but that HB sounds killer
The HB JB75 punches hard for the price, actually prefer this to my older G&L bass.
$250? That's a steal. I've never seen one sold that cheap.
The only difference is the sun burst finish, and the price.
I'll have the Harley Benton thank you 😎
Would you compare those with Cort GB 64JJ?
Why jazz basses with black pickguard is sooooo beatiful??
For you, not for me!! xD
@ido809 I hate pearl pickguards.
To get to the other side.
hi patrick....so do you have a lessons/school on bass guitar too??
What's the story on that Fender's finish?
I prefer the Harley's sound with a pick. But I think Fingerstyle the MIM sounds better.
I’d love a Harley Benton bass. But shipping to the US right now is $80. I can get an Ibanez or Squier for about the same price. Hopefully shipping will go down in price. When I ordered my first HB guitar a year or so ago shipping was about $35
Very true and if you want to send back to Germany it costs big bucks.
Surely any slight tonal differences could be rectified with the tone controls of the guitar and amp. Also, once you're bass is in the mix, who would know, or even care?!?
I've made tonal adjustments for certain songs that sound awful alone, but once you're playng with a band, sound amazing.
In my experience, Harley Bentons are definitely equal if not better built than MiM Fenders. I've got a friends JB-75 here and the neck pocket is in the Sadowsky, USA Fender league (really). My pj74 it's a joy to play too. But when you perform live you notice that the pickups lack some clarity. Put some CS's and still it's cheaper than a Squier.
I've had my Harley Benton JB-75 for a year now. The sound and build quality is nothing short of excellent. The big drawback for me is weight. The thing weighs a ton. Has anyone tried any weight reducing techniques? Would it be feasible to drill out some of that wood and replace it with something lighter?
You haven’t reviewed the enhanced jazz from HB.
Are you interested in s-1 switches in jazz basses? Would love to hear what a jazz bass would sound like in series with your playing style + bass rig!
wait... you have a Gibson Ripper???
I ordered one Friday, got a confirmation email but they never charged my card for it. I hope it doesn't take 6 months to show up🤨
The "messyco" 😂 bass is smoother and deeper, the HB has sounds good but you hear that string click or pick up distortion of whatever is called, a pick up change and i bet its on the same level 👌
I like The Harley Benton
Very Good Sound
And Good Price
Do The Make a 5 string
Jazz with just J pickups
I've Never Seen One
Thanks
Sounds the same to me. The Benton being cheaper, right!
You upgrade those pick ups on the HB and it will blow the Fender away
The highs were more transparent with the fender ,sounds better for slapping. like a flea sound, but maybe that's the pick ups and I'm a guitarist so i could be guessing wrong.
Are the necka that diffrent?
Got the Natural JB-75, and I have two other basses, a MusicMan Ray 4 and a V7 Marus Miller, and I still like my JB-75 better. It feels better in my hand and plays much better than both. I don't like my stock MusicMan Ray 4 at all. It fills thin and unstable; I will likely mod or dump it. I bought it, so I didn't bring out an expensive bass, but I would rather play on it, and now I almost don't want to take it out to junk gigs. I could easily do so for the price. You can't go wrong with this model.
When buying a Harley Benton you should do yourself a favor and order 2 cheap items that will make a huge difference:
-Tad orange drop capacitor 0.047nf. It really brings the Roswell pickups to life. (can also go for the 10 times more expensive Emerson paper & oil but why?)
- A good nut. (Got a pre-cut Graftech)
Investing €11- and taking the time to replace those 2 wil make a big difference in the tone, versatility and playability.
After doing this to my fretless HB and reshaping the imo ugly headstock and thinning the nek just a tad, I sold my old USA Fender JB for a scandalous high price. Scandalous if you think that I sold it because.. well.. (please don’t hate me to much..) the HB sounded and played better. Again: In my very humble opinion. But I am the kind of idiot who doesn’t give a crap about the brand I play. So for me having an instrument I enjoy more together with enough money to take the wife & kids on vacation was more than enough to justify selling my Fender..
Also, the Benton is THÉ perfect gig-pig as I’m not getting stressed anymore by our clumsy drummer every-time he approaches my rig..
I've had my Harley Benton JB-75 for a year now. The sound and build quality is nothing short of excellent. The big drawback for me is weight. The thing weighs a ton. Has anyone tried any weight reducing techniques? Would it be feasible to drill out some of that wood and replace it with something lighter?
review the harley benton bass di too
most reviews vs ive watched i did notice the fender sounds fuller and warmer