Harley Benton JB-40FL 3-Tone Sunburst 4-stars Reviews

Very impressive bass for a sweet price!

I've been playing basses from all sorts of price levels and brands for a good 30+ years now, and still this HB JB40FL impresses! This is my first HB bass and I was skeptical at first because of the lower price, but I am 100% proven wrong. The fit and finish is really good, playability is as good as most medium priced Fenders, and although the pickups aren't top notch, they still deliver good quality. Overall this bass is punching way above its price tag - it's that good!

A good Jaco replica

I bought this bass because I wanted the Jaco tone for a cheap price. It delivers, but there is one peeve of mine with it: the neck is pretty thick. It's not unplayable - I still enjoy the bass - but it feels like it belongs on a P bass and not a J bass. I would have also appreciated it if the guitar had a lacquered fretboard like Jaco's, but that would be a bit much to expect at this price point. It sounds fine, although when slapping its tone goes out the window and it becomes sound rather than music. For what I bought it for, it works.

Great bass

It's a great bass . Great materials, a little heavy I would have rated higher but mine came not set up at all. The strings buzz on the 1st 2nd and 3rd and the intonation is off a bit. It's a shame cause I know nothing of setting up a fretless so I will have to take it to a luthier(more expense😭). It's a beautiful bass tho and the hardware is alot better than I expected .

Good for study

I liked the sound and the quality of the body of this bass guitar. But initially there were problems with the height of the strings, it was impossible to play, the strings lay on the fingerboard. After going to the guitar master, everything was fine. The bass is very heavy, my guitar weighs 5.3 kg, the strap on the case came off from such a weight. I really liked this sound, the markings are quite clear, the pickups are quite high quality. I immediately changed the strings to flatwound ones and I advise everyone who is studying to do this, since the overlay from round strings deteriorates. I liked the guitar and I would recommend it for purchase.

Really good Value

Super playable, nice sound. Great finish etc. Will probably swap out the pickups but they are good for the price point. Only thing of note is that it is extremely heavy. Overall I am very happy and would definitely recommend

Best fretless for the price

Really nice bass, a bit heavy.

Tonewise is a bit deaf when using flat wounds.

If you want to try out a fretless with no risk moneywise this is your guy.

not bad but...

... definitively so heavy! The body is really heavy.

I changed the strings and the sound improved a lot.

Impressive...most impressive.

Really,really, REALLY good value for the money.

I needed a fretless for home studio. This fit the need at an affordable price.

Wood quality is top notch as well as the finish on the body and neck. 2 piece body and I could not find the joint! Hardware is what you would expect, functional. Pickups and electronics are 'meh' or underwhelming to say the least. Will most likely swap out for EMG's and a high mass bridge. Tuners are fine.

Overall I am very happy with this bass. I will buy more Harley Benton instruments in the future.

Good Value for money

I wanted to get into playing fretless and this is an excellent starter especially for the price.

My biggest issue with this was the weight, nowhere online does it mention exactly how heavy this bass is but I can say that my leg would go numb after playing seated for long periods.

Best bass for the money, anywhere

Don't even think about buying a second hand bass, when you can get this for such a bargain price. Colour and finish is flawless. Neck if we'll finished with Matt finish so doesn't get sticky. The tone pot could be better, very little tone change, but has the tone I want so not bothered. A couple of extra euros at manufacture could sort this out with very little difference in selling price and would be weĺ worth it. Only reason for 4 stars are the strings. Roundwound on a fretless bass? Damages the fretboard and is wrong wrong wrong. Flatwound or tapewound please.

Gorgeous

It might cost 400 ¤ more and be still a good purchase.

Unbelievable value for money

If you are considering trying out fretless playing but don't want to break the bank then this is the instrument for you.

This was my first Harley Benton and my first fretless and I have to say I am very impressed with the the whole buying experience.

In terms of looks this bass is stunning. The paintwork is spot on with no marks or blemishes at all.

Playing comfort: it's nicely balanced and sits well on the strap for standing playing.

The slim jazz neck is a delight to play. I have small hands but this neck is very comfortable for me. The fret lines make it so much easier for the novice fretless player to get awesome tones.

It is a touch on the heavy side but that's what you get with a good quality ash body.

There are a some issues that mean I can't quite give it 5 stars.

1. Setup; the neck is perfectly straight with no relief which is exactly how it should be for a fretless. However, the action is set too high and the nut slots need to be deeper to bring the strings closer to the fingerboard. It has the same nut and slots as a fretted jazz. The strings are flat rather than radiused to match the fingerboard radius. This is stuff that I can fix but not everyone has the tools.

2. Shielding / earhing: there is a significant amount of pickup hum unless the volume controls are even for both pickups. Again a fairly easy fix although it does entail taking the bass apart to shield all the cavities with either copper foil or conductive paint and ensuring the earth wire to the bridge is making good contact.

3. Strings: the bass is factory fitted with D'darrio round wounds which are of course really good strings. However, round wounds are not ideal for the fretless fingerboard. I would prefer to see them fitted with flats or pressure wounds. I replaced mine with D'darrio nylon wounds which give awesome warm tones that suit my playing style very nicely.

Overall this is an exceptional instrument for the price and I do recommend it.

Great fretless bass for the price

I bought this because I wanted to try a fretless bass but didn?t want to spend a lot of money and it works well, sounds good, but it doesn?t have too much ability to shape the tone. I do not regret buying it and I think if you want to try one try this one before spending a bunch of money only to find out it?s not your thing!

Excellent fretless bass for the price!

I bought the B-Stock option of this model and I have to say it is amazing value for money. There were a few small signs of use, but nothing to worry or care about, almost new condition overall.

The bass is well made with a reassuring weight and is certainly not too heavy. The bass has a great finish on the body, a comfortable and well attached neck/fingerboard (tight pocket, no gap at all) and the Roswell passive pickups are even better than I had heard and read about, very impressed with them. The bridge is solid, made and attached well, the tuners are not the best ever but hold tuning well and are functional enough.

Pros:

- Amazing value for money

- Construction is solid

- You can get the classic fretless jazz sounds out of this bass

- Works well with Nickel roundwounds (more zingy and even more mmmwwaahh) and Flatwound strings (upright sounds & warmer/punchier sounds)

Cons:

- Some people will find it too heavy, personally I don't mind a bit of weight to a bass.

- Tuners could be better but are functional enough

Overall oustanding for the money. I have given it 4 stars, but really it should get 5 stars for this price range. It is a compliment to the bass that my 4 star rating is a result of comparing it against my other much more expensive instruments (Classic Musicman Stingray, 1997 Warwick Streamer Stage 1, Lakland 55-02, Marcus Sire V7, SB-MusicMan sting-RAY35.) Excellent.

Great value for money

It's quite astonishing that you can pick up a more than acceptable fretless J-bass at this price. Yes, it is a bargain but it's not a Fender or Squier so you're not going to get that level of quality, but then again it costs far less.

The sound is sweet and everything works fine out of the box. The only trouble I had was a buzz at the top of the neck (where fret 1 would be) but this was sorted out quickly and cheaply at my local guitar shop.

Really great value for money.

Lovely entry level fretless bass. Only issue I have is the pickups are a little low on output but for the price I cannot complain really. It has been my main gigging bass for the last few months and I've less issues with it than my Fender Mex P-bass.

good value!

I needed a cheap bass for home recording and to experiment with a fretless. Very pleased I bought this harley benton.

I couldn't believe when I opened the box. This is the cheapest instruments I have ever bought and really does not feel like it. The fretboard is nice and comfortable, the paint on the body (looks like 3 pieces) is spot on, very solidly built. It was almost in perfect tuning straight out the box even after 6 days of travel in freezing temperatures!

PROS:

- keeps the tuning perfectly. It was almost in tune when it arrived. I changed the strings one day after and didn't touch if for 3 days and still it was perfectly tuned

- very solidly built and looks awesome

- no buzzing or humming when plugged in

- very decent sounding

CONS:

- the strings it comes with (very good D'Addario) are roundwound so they scratch the fingerboard

- the PU are rather quiet, although they sound good

- the electonic is average, the PU volume knobs only really works as 0 or 10, so no fine tune volume blending between neck and bridge PUs

- the tuning pegs are not the most precise and tad stiffy, although they keep a perfect tuning

All in all, if you are searching for a cheap bass or your first fretless, you can't go wrong with this instrument. Change the strings to flatwound and you'll have a reliable and decent sounding bass. Thumbs up!

Good bass, some compromises

The good:

- great neck, and the overall construction is good

- overall sound is good

- very playable

- tuners are fine

Middling:

- Pickups could be a little smoother sounding but not bad overall

Compromises:

- Bridge hardware a little cheap (jammed screw)

- A little heavy

Overall, it's great value as a backup rosewood fretboard fretless for a warmer sound.

great value for money bass

I was delighted with my purchase of this fretless bass. Like other reviewers I wanted a fretless to add to my fretted instruments without blowing my budget. Firstly, the strings are excellent and unusually are supplied on a budget bass. I have bought much more expensive instruments that need a new set straight away!. Neck is smooth and the action low. Sound from the Wilkinson pickups is good, great "fender type" growl on the bridge p.u. Overall they are very acceptable for the price range. I guess the pickups could be upgraded later if you wished to modify without spending huge money? The body is excellent and very solid. The pickup holes have been well routed and sunburst finish fantastic. Overall a great purchase.

Great for the price

I bought this as I was after a cheap fretless to dip my toe into the fretless world.

It's proven to be a good purchase so far.

I'm a huge Jaco Pastorius fan so this bass was an obvious choice. You can really get a nice Jaco esque fretless tone out of it.

The wilkinson pickups are nice, the bass could possibly benefit from some shielding in the control cavity to prevent buzz but that is an easy job to do.

The action was a little high for my tastes but this is easily changed and allen keys are provided with the bass to do this.

The neck is a regular jazz profile so is nice and thin.

It's quite a heavy bass but not the heaviest I've owned.