Post by JAC on Feb 10, 2015 17:55:12 GMT
The PB-Shorty is my "noodling in front of the PC" bass.
It's official name is Harley Benton PB-Shorty BK Standard Series. It is a 30" scale, P-Style neck (42mm at nut) with a single split P pickup.
I purchased this while I was in Germany for a while, so I had something to play with. It cost me 58€, and as I was in Germany, free shipping.
The bass out of the box had an action that was a little high, but definately playable. The strings were total rubbish and the pick up sounded a little hollow, although I was playing it through an HB-20B (20w 8" combo).
The neck is very comfortable, and the small size is great, so I decided to upgrade it. At the time, I had a DiMarzio PJ set destined for another bass, so I installed the DiMarzio Model P (DP122) pickup and strung it with LaBella Flats.
The sound was great, for that old school P tone (running it through a Zoom B3 on the SVT patch) and it is probably the bass that gets most use, as it is small enough to play comfortably on my lap while in front of the PC.
I have had the bass for about 3 years, and so far the only issue has been that the bottom strap pin has pulled out. This was when I removed a very cheap strap, with a hole that was too small, from the bass. I have not yet fixed this as I only ever play this bass sitting down.
Recently I removed the DiMarzio pickup, and installed the PJ set in a Squier VM Jag (sounds amazing with GHS flats). I have an SPB-1 for this bass, but when I removed the DM, I realized that the pickup is in storage, so I ended up reinstalling the original pickup. With the stock pickup I have only played the bass briefly (I have been busy setting up the forum ) but it seems to sound pretty good.
I am currently GASing for a new Short Scale, so my plan is to refin this bass and swap the pickup to the SPB-1. This is a rough idea of my planned refin (sorry for the crappy photoshop):
It's official name is Harley Benton PB-Shorty BK Standard Series. It is a 30" scale, P-Style neck (42mm at nut) with a single split P pickup.
I purchased this while I was in Germany for a while, so I had something to play with. It cost me 58€, and as I was in Germany, free shipping.
The bass out of the box had an action that was a little high, but definately playable. The strings were total rubbish and the pick up sounded a little hollow, although I was playing it through an HB-20B (20w 8" combo).
The neck is very comfortable, and the small size is great, so I decided to upgrade it. At the time, I had a DiMarzio PJ set destined for another bass, so I installed the DiMarzio Model P (DP122) pickup and strung it with LaBella Flats.
The sound was great, for that old school P tone (running it through a Zoom B3 on the SVT patch) and it is probably the bass that gets most use, as it is small enough to play comfortably on my lap while in front of the PC.
I have had the bass for about 3 years, and so far the only issue has been that the bottom strap pin has pulled out. This was when I removed a very cheap strap, with a hole that was too small, from the bass. I have not yet fixed this as I only ever play this bass sitting down.
Recently I removed the DiMarzio pickup, and installed the PJ set in a Squier VM Jag (sounds amazing with GHS flats). I have an SPB-1 for this bass, but when I removed the DM, I realized that the pickup is in storage, so I ended up reinstalling the original pickup. With the stock pickup I have only played the bass briefly (I have been busy setting up the forum ) but it seems to sound pretty good.
I am currently GASing for a new Short Scale, so my plan is to refin this bass and swap the pickup to the SPB-1. This is a rough idea of my planned refin (sorry for the crappy photoshop):