Harley Benton JB-20 SB Standard Series Reviews

Amazed

Not bad for a beginner bass. The bass helped me get better in the way I'm playing. So for all my bass players that are learning or are looking for bass, try this one, It's worth it.

Unbelieveable value for money

I expected this would be good value given the reviews that I read but I was not prepared for just how good this is. It is good out of the box but I got a friend to set this up and it is really exceptional now. It feels good and it plays easily and it sounds good - what is not to like? I would totally recommend this an excellent entry level bass. To improve on it you will have to by a fender, and it wont be that much of an improvement so you will wonder why you spent that £1400!

Good for begginers

This was my first bass. Suitable for those who are just starting to learn how to play. But for professionals it is better to take more expensive. I recommend immediately taking it to the master for revision, as the frets are too "biting". The pickups are good for the price. The bass itself is generally well made. The hardware is holding up. An ideal bass for those who want to play punk rock, but for jazz lovers I would not recommend it.

Beautiful guitar

couldn't believe the quality of this guitar when i received it. excellent guitar and excellent price.

A truly excellent instrument.

I own quite a few basses, from lower-end Ibanez 4 strings, to mid-end Brice 6 strings. However, I've never owned a jazz bass. I wanted something with some more punch to it, and I do quite enjoy how J basses look, but was entirely uninterested in paying for a Fender. I figured for under $200, I might as well take a gamble and try out one of these Harley Bentons I've been hearing about.

Since I've received this, I've rarely picked up anything else. The fretboard was a little dry looking, but everything looked very nice right out of the box. I was a little concerned about how it might travel in shipping since I didn't buy it alongside a hardbody case, but it survived the trip just fine. Packaging seemed sufficient to me.

The actual construction is a bit above what I'm used to at this price point. No sharp frets, back of the neck is perfectly smooth, the internal electronics appear to be properly set. I plug in and record through an Eleven Rack, and I notice a hearty amount of hiss whenever I plug in other basses, but this particular bass is nearly silent. Quite pleased.

As for actual tone; it's great. Quite huge and colorful on its own and sits in a mix very nicely. Slapping and plucking sound as they should; slappy and plucky. It's fairly light, so I can play with it for hours before feeling it resting on my neck or leg. To call it comfortable would be an understatement.

I have nothing but positive things to say about the instrument.

More than pleased with my purchase. I'll certainly be back for more.

Good bass for starters

It's a good bass guitar, well built and finished.

The only problem I found with this bass was that it tends to neck dive which can be really annoying but for the price you can't ask for a better instrument.

Overall, would recommend.

Once again surprised by Harley Benton!

This happens to be my second purchase of an instrument under the Harley Benton brand. I purchased a TE-20 (T-style Electric Guitar) last month and was very impressed, so I thought I would take my chances at the JB-20 with my main instrument in mind! This bass surprised me even more than my previous purchase with Harley Benton.

It came packaged very well, including a cable and all the necessary tools to make adjustments. I was a little worried initially, as my TE-20 had some fret buzz which needed taking care of, but this JB-20 had no such issues. The fret ends were perfect, and no playability issues were found by myself at least. The included cable is rubbish in my opinion, so I would recommend buying a better cable alongside this bass.

Comparing this to another beginner bass I have, a Stagg basic P-bass, it far outshines my first bass. It plays very nicely. The sound is very pleasant for such a cheap bass, although of course upgrading the pickups would be a nice upgrade one day. The finish is gorgeous, as my first sunburst style instrument it really caught my eye. You won't be disappointed by the finish at all in my opinion.

Here are some general thoughts:

Pro's

- Playability was perfect out of the box!

- Sunburst finish is very pretty.

- Very nice sound for such a cheap bass.

- Fret-ends are very smooth.

- Price!

Con's:

- Included cable is rubbish.

- Knobs/dials are a bit worse than on my TE-20, but they do the job.

- Stock strings aren't the best.

- The protective film was a pain to remove completely! (without disassembly)

In conclusion, this bass really blew me away in terms of quality. I think I'll be using this for some fun more than I expect. It's important to remember that not all JB-20's will be equal out of the box, so I would say I got quite lucky with the experience I had immediately (when comparing to my TE-20). A good setup would be something I would recommend, seeing as it isn't likely going to be perfect out of the box. I am still going to get this serviced, just to make sure everything is in the best shape it can be. I would highly recommend this bass however! Perfect if you're a beginner. Can't go wrong.

My HB jb-20sb

Great bang for the buck. Fast shipping. Great sounding bass. A little heavy but OK. Fit and finish excellent!

Great guitar for a beginner player!

Terribly rough condition

This is my first bass i've bought, purely for mixing. The frets are really rough and will tear skin off from your hands, making it basically unplayable until you fix that, sound is decent at best. The tuners are loose and not screwed on properly. This bass can work for those of you who have/want to spend an extra $20-40 on bass/guitar maintenence items. I can't call this a price worth bass. you'd probably way be better off spending $20-30 more on another one.

it is a good bass,i bought this bass becaouse i wanted a bass to learn something and for playing with my friends i like it a loot and the sustain of this bass is awsome also it is heavy

ONE OF THE BEST!!!

For the price that this Bass has, its really really good. It sounds amazing. To be honest, I'm in love with this bass.

Perfect thing to start with

This is my first bass that I really play on. I bough it just to support my home recordings. I play guitar. Own various budget but good guitars, like semi-acounstic Yamaha APX700II-12 NT, Yamaha APX500II, Epiphone Les Paul Pro Plus Top, Ibanez RG2570 Prestige. Eventually, I wanted to get myself a Epiphone Les Paul bas, but decided to give this one a try. I can't really compare it to anything, because obviously, I have not much experience with basses, but it looks good, plays good, sound comes out clear, fair in terms of looks. The strings are fine, but I remember playing other sort of strings about 15 years ago (flat strings they were) and they felt better, so I think I finally am going to get myself a pack of those, but apart from that, for the price I paid, this is more than sufficient. Again, I don't have much experience with basses, but for my eyes and ears, this is certainly not bad.

EXCELLENT BUDGET GUITAR

There are small flaws on the thresholds, but everything is fixable. The guitar itself is the best for the money

JB-20

Few bits of excess plastic on the pickguard, action is a bit high out of the box but plays in tune even after 12th fret, comes with set of hex wrenches and a short cable, sound is beyond expectations, best bass for the price

Very nice quality for the price.

Less than 100 Euro? No way...

Listen,... I got the bass for playing around at home, have an extra instrument and record some basslines because I was tired of using bass plugins for more rock style songs.

I was expecting a meh bass and I was fine with that,

Well NO! It's SOOO good for the price. The tone nob does actually change the tone a lot, it can have some noise when using high gain but nothing too bad. It is in fact a bass for beginners, but way above many basses I've tried, even over 250 Euro. So that says a lot.

A few cons: it is quite heavy and it neck dives.

Harley Benton JB-20 SB Standard Series

I really love this bass. More than good construction and finish for an electric bass at this price. The instrument arrived practically already setup and ready to play. It's my combat bass and I won't leave it anymore.

amazing value

for just 99 euros you get a great bass, it looks amazing, the grain of the wood is awsome, sounds great, it just needed a bit of intonation and that is it.

Probably the best budget bass you can get for that kind of money.

Outstanding value for money!