PB-Shorty BK Standard Series : Fantastic value for the money

Unboxing Harley Benton PB Shorty was really a nice surprise. I have to say that I did not expect too much for the price I paid for this one. My feedback is based on the quality of this bass considering the very low price. After a few months of playing it I am very sure that this bass is the best bass in the market for the price. This one also beats all of the basses I have tried in local music stores that cost up to 10 times as much as this one.

My first impression was the looks of it as I unboxed it. It looked just fantastic and the finish was perfect. This bass is very light and is really easy to handle. Setup, intonation, playablility and feel was great right out of the box so I just had to tune it.

After playing for a short while I noticed that the fret ends kind of cut the skin on my left thumb. This was no big deal. It took no more than 5 minutes to file the sharp fret ends and after that it has been a dream to play. I give 4 quality stars because of the sharp fret ends.

I also have to add that the neck has got a kind of satin feel to it, something I prefer over a gloss neck since they tend to feel kind of sticky. This is my first short scale bass and as a guitar player I find this a lot easier to play than basses with longer scale.

After plugging the bass in I was sure that this was a good deal. It is quite easy to find the different tones with this one. I use this bass in the studio and have played it clean and with lots of different effects. It sounds a bit thin and weak played clean, and that is the only reason it get 4 stars for the sound. The machine heads is doing a good job and this bass stays in tune. I also want to add that this bass is usually perfectly in tune even if I have not played it for a few days.

Pros:

Fantastic value for money

Perfect finish

Stays in tune

Great playability

Good sound

All in all a great product

Cons:

Sharp fret ends on the "thumb side" of the neck.

A better patent for picup height adjustment. I would prefer a better solution than the kind of foam block under the pickups. It hardens and then it becomes an issue to adjust the height.

To wrap up my opinions on the Harley Benton PB shorty I have to say that you really can't go wrong with this one. I will say that this bass is perfect for the beginner (even if you have to pay someone for a setup), but I will also recommend this for more experienced players. This is really a great instrument.