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Post by kodiakblair on Mar 1, 2015 21:32:57 GMT
My things are getting quiet here. A couple of weeks back I ordered the Harley Benton Bass Uke. Having never played one or truth be told even thought about them I'd no idea what to expect. So after watching any YT videos with bass uke I could find I paid the money.This tiny little package arrived and inside was an even smaller uke. That's it alongside my Harley Benton acoustic bass. Weighing in at just 1Kg how can it do it's job ? Well unplugged it's fine to play alone but I think it would struggle to be heard over an acoustic guitar but plugged in it sounds amazing.Very similar to a Double Bass,which for something so small is incredible. The thick silicone strings take some getting used to and can be quite sticky.You can solve this by using talc. Care also has to be given to fretting notes as you are cramming a large string into a smaller fret. Think .190 E string into 5th fret thats only 21.8mm wide instead of .105 into 36.2mm. A huge difference. Really you can't think of this as just a wee acoustic bass it needs to played differently. A lighter attack is also needed or the strings just bounce off the fretboard. So the key tips are Talc,correct fingering and a lighter touch. Build wise I've no complaints,the built in tuner isn't that great and the preamp is basic but does it's job. A very usable instrument and I can see the fretless version in my near future.
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302 posts
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Post by TitaniumRX on Mar 5, 2015 17:08:05 GMT
Thanks for the review Kodiak.Nice little bass monster you have
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Post by JAC on Mar 6, 2015 21:14:30 GMT
Thanks for the review! After hearing the sound samples, it really is amazing how loud such a little thing is!
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Post by JAC on Mar 12, 2015 18:02:33 GMT
A brief sound sample of the Uke Bass:
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1,481 posts
Disclosures: Everything I don't like I can modify.
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Post by blablas on Jun 12, 2015 9:52:20 GMT
There is also a left handed version available, guess who bought one.... Finally a HB that was okay straight from the box, a first for me! Those thick floppy strings feel really weird but I'm getting used to them. Like kodiakblair said the built in tuner isn't that great and in my opinion is pretty useless. The volume coming from the preamp is rather low and I need to crank it up on my amp - when cranking up the tone above roughly halfway on the preamp it starts hissing, no big one you get too much highs then anyway. The only thing I did on it was adding a 'de afwerking' thumb-rest. Funny little bass, sounds nice acoustically and surprisingly good amplified.
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Post by kodiakblair on Jun 16, 2015 19:36:31 GMT
Glad they made a left hand model.
Even better it was a goer right out the box.
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1,481 posts
Disclosures: Everything I don't like I can modify.
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Post by blablas on Jul 26, 2015 15:16:28 GMT
Mini update: New strings. Aquila Corde 91U Thunder Reds Ukulele Bass, big improvement over the stock thick yellow rubber strings. They sound almost the same but have a higher string tension and are thinner, they also have a smoother surface finish.
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Post by JAC on Nov 20, 2015 22:21:37 GMT
I am sure that I have asked this before, but I can't find the answer blablas or kodiakblair , can you tell me what the overal length and width at the widest point is of the uke bass? Thank you kindly
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1,481 posts
Disclosures: Everything I don't like I can modify.
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Post by blablas on Nov 21, 2015 0:46:31 GMT
Body width 30 cm, length (including neck and headstock) 82 cm, thickness 10 cm.
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Bass Uke
Nov 21, 2015 7:39:27 GMT
via mobile
Post by JAC on Nov 21, 2015 7:39:27 GMT
Thank you kind sir, I'll buy the beer next time we meet
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Post by GKon on Nov 23, 2015 23:00:13 GMT
So the key tips are Talc,correct fingering and a lighter touch.
Sounds like a lot of my dates...
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Post by Deleted on Nov 23, 2015 23:39:31 GMT
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Post by GKon on Nov 24, 2015 0:03:23 GMT
I'm a cut above!
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Post by Lm2 on Apr 28, 2016 17:50:10 GMT
Nice
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1,481 posts
Disclosures: Everything I don't like I can modify.
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Post by blablas on Oct 12, 2016 14:45:03 GMT
R.I.P. Harley Benton Kahuna Bass. Thought it would be a nice idea to change the strings this afternoon, what a disillusion, whatever I tried I could not get the A and D strings on in a proper way. Been trying for almost two hours. If things are working this hard against me either I or it will break, it lost, I got so fed up I threw it at floor, that will teach it to irritate me! This is what's left over, firewood... And what's really left over, spare parts and a set of unused strings.
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