Harley Benton RB-414CS Classic Series Reviews

god on the wall.

appearance is good. surfaces and other aesthetic things are good. but the neck is bent several directions and has fretbus almost anyway. has spent about $ 200 on professional setup to get it almost playable. original bridge is completely useless. but it feels good when you hold it to play.

Great Looking Bass, Didn't Have The Sound I Wanted

I was NOT looking for a Ric copy, but I didn't like the playing position, which is probably due to a lifetime of playing FSOs and MM-shaped basses. The build quality was excellent, and I had no trouble selling it for what I paid for it (a cheaper option than sending it back).

Great bass, be ready to do a bit of work on it though

It’s a beautiful bass, with really great tone right out of the box. Pretty decent setup for the most part. I however got a bit unlucky and got one with not the greatest fret leveling. I like my action pretty low, and I can’t get there due to 5 high frets especially on the E string. No problem for me as I will just do a fret leveling and re-crown. On a bass this price I expected something like this. Just be aware if you don’t have the skills to do this, you might have to pay someone to do it for you. It’s worth it to me since it’s a real looker. The finish and edge binding is wonderful, and no sharp fret edges. The sound is very good, especially the neck pickup, huge and ballsy. One last thing of note is that the electronics are a bit of a mystery. There are some strange oddities with how the pickups work together with volume and tone controls. I have to open her up and check out what is going on. However I get a great Geddy tone with both tones up full and the bridge pickup rolled off slightly and the neck full.

Update: I determined why the Rick tone is not quite there. The pickup placement is off a few cm from the Rick as they are both moved towards the bridge. The bridge pickup is approx 1.1cm closer to the bridge, and the neck pickup is 2 cm closer to the bridge. Not only that the more important thing is that the stock Rick pickup spacing of 11.2cm, but on this bass it’s narrower, at 10.2cm. I fixed this by converting the humbucker pickup to single coil using the coil closest to the neck, now the spacing is correct at 11.2cm, much improving the tone and thump by getting the phase of the pickups right on.

The bridge is a mess...

The instrument was not playable out of the box so I decided to set the action higher. Most of the allen holes seem to be "eaten" because, when I screw with the allens which came with the instrument (therefore are the right ones) nothing happens. I think it's at least embarassing to create new instruments with worn out materials... I can't imagine this peice of gear taking approval of a quality control check

The Sleeper Hit of the Year!

I was looking for a bass to help me reach a certain "classic" sound and this nailed it. Reviews were positive and I pulled the trigger. You should, too! You won't be disappointed. I get a nice bass growl and I cut through the mix in all the right places. I recommend this bass and plan to try other guitars. Affordable, reasonable and dependable. A+++++

Looks the part.

Great value for money. required a bit of setting up no neck relief.

Amazing Bass everyone sing it's praise

I have been playing many years and know a great bass guitar when it's in my hands. This bass is as the title says just amazing. The bass right out of the box was set up well, fit and finish were flawless, controls were of good quality and fret work was really good, there were no sharp frets or dead spots. I tuned it and did a demo on my You Tube Channel, this is my second Harley Benton bass and it won't be my last :) If your looking for a quality built bass at a great price point look no further than what Harley Benton has to offer.

Seriously impressed

This is a very nice bass! It really sounds close to the classic model it was inspired from. With a few effects (a little bit of drive and a fast tremolo), it feels like a Chris Squire tone.

I found 2 minor inconveniences, that might just be on my particular unit:

-There is a bit more ground hum than other basses with the same amp rig.

-There is a small notch on the top of the neck, at the 19th fret. It's hard to see but can be felt with a finger, but this is not a place where you would put your fingers anyway.

Otherwise, the neck is very well adjusted out of the box and frets are well cut / filed, no issue there.

Overall, I'm very happy

Way cool

My conclusion for this bass is not only is it gorgeous but it is made well and plays well.

Blown away with this bass

Was super surprised with the build quality, sound and playability of this bass.

Never mind how good it looks!

Looks Killer

I love the Rick style.I own a slew of basses and this is one I like very much.Came ready to play but I modded this into a monster.

So so for the price.

I've had a couple Harley Benton electric guitars that I considered pretty good for the price you pay. This is the second Harley Benton bass I've bought and they both were duds. Especially when taking in to account the significant shipping cost to the US. The volume pots on this bass are horrible. You go from zero to full volume in less than a 1/4 turn. Sound is dull. In the US, you can do just as good or better at your local music store for the price I paid with shipping.

RB-414CS

its a bit shocking how good this bass is for the money. bit lost for words if im honest. Think ill order the black one.

Excellent Bass - looks great, plays great, sounds great!

I’ve been playing bass for a good number of years and have played a wide variety of basses. This RB-414 is easily right up there with the best of them. Fit and finish is great - a few rough frets but easily smoothed out. It played well right out of the box. I just adjusted the neck a touch and lowered the action to my liking. I’m really enjoying this bass! Highly recommend this instrument to anyone - beginner to pro!

What a great value!

I have a hard time believing they don't charge more for these instruments. This is an amazing looking and sounding bass. I have a Fender Professional II Jazz bass that this sounds just as good as. The looks match the sound as well.

Rick bass copy

Great player,fantastic quality and much more than I had hoped

Harley Benton RB-414CS Classic Series

Wow, much better than expected. Sounds and feels great. Pickups are a bit unbalanced but still do the job. Nice finish and hardware does what it's supposed to do. Very satisfied.

It's NOT a Ric.. it doesn't have to be!

I bought this Bass strictly because of its similarity to the overall look of a Rickenbacker. I've owned several Ric Basses & Guitars (& even a small Ric practice amp!) over the years. After reviewing many online videos featuring this Bass, I purchased it even though it was back ordered up to 15 weeks. Fortunately it only took 12-ish to arrive. Since then I've customized it to my liking such as removing the treble PU cover, changed out the knobs & selector switch cap (everything accented in red), added an aftermarket thumb-rest, changed over to flat-wound strings, etc., etc. It is not my goal to have this Bass "sound" like a Ric. It's a great sounding instrument all on its own. Perhaps in years to come other companies or individuals will try their best to sound like MY Harley Benton! ;)

Great Ric look at a great price

I honestly have no complaints on this bass. The build quality is fantastic. The pickups do a great job. It stays in tune and the finish is absolutely superb. A hell of a bass at this price point. You really can't find something similar for this price.

great guitar so pleased

I wish you sold a hard case for this bass