Harley Benton HBZ-2004 Deluxe Series

Overall this bass is good for anyone looking for an affordable bass and it’s a perfectly decent instrument however other budget brands offer better quality control for the same price. The one piece neck feels great and the fretwork is excellent. The electronics are also surprisingly decent for the price point. This bass looks and plays great and the set up on it was also excellent out of the box and the bass played great out of the box which was nice and surprising. At $366 CAD the price is appealing at first glance. The quality of the wood is also very good for the low price. I definetely dig the ovankol body and the neck is really nice and I LOVE the walnut fretboard. The bass is perfectly weighted and is super comfortable to play and the playing feel is good. Not gonna trade my custom shops in for this thing but again playability is honestly excellent overall.

I own several basses ranging from Fender Custom Shop Jazz basses to an entry level Sterling Ray4’s and Squiers. I have to say apples for apples that the quality of the hardware on the Ray4 and Squiers is superior. The end of the bridge on the HBZ-2004 I bought is so sharp i literally cut myself on it and the tuners are definitely lower grade and have a weird play in them that make tunning this bass a pain. Again, you don’t expect top shelf hardware at this price point however other budget brands deliver better hardware at the same price. Some brass is visible through the black finish and the finish on the black bridge is flaking in some spots and the serial number is literally a sticker. The hardware definetely feels cheaper and overall the build quality overall feels a bit less refined than the Sterling Ray4. After factoring in shipping and customs duties, the price point difference is a moot point as I paid the same for my Sterling from long and mcquade as I did for my HBZ-2004.

As expected on an instrument in this price range there are some small QA issues that are not present on the Ray4 ans Squier jazz i own . The bass I got came with a small crack on the fretboard from when the nut was installed at the factory. Not a big deal however again the attention to detail on the Ray4 is noticeably better for the same price. Thomann has a good return policy and great customer service but if you’re outside of Europe returning/buying a HB is more complicated than going to your local Long and McQuade to find a good Squier, Epiphone, Ibanez or Sterling. Don’t get me wrong, these brands have their QA issues as well however it is easier to deal with returns for the other brands and you can have the opportunity to try before you buy and overall it feels like QA is still a bit better with the other budget builders. Not a huge difference but enough for me to say I’d feel more inclined buying a Squier or Sterling sight unseen over getting another Harley Benton.

Also the packing of these is absolutely atrocious. It came packed in a super cheap box that offered no protection. There was no bubble wrap or anything and many buyers have complained about broken guitars. My Sterling came in a factory box that could survive shipping. With the packaging on thiese it’s a wonder that it made to Canada intact.

If you want a unique bass for a cheap price as a mod platform, the HBZ-2004 is a great buy. As a beginner bass, shop around as you can likely find better for the price. d’accord comment tu vas faire hier

After reading all these rad reviews I was really expecting something good from this bass. Sadly, it is not as good as expected.

The guitar itself is beautiful of course, but the craftmanship is poor - the nuts and bolts were drilled in crookedly, making it hard to take them out and generally making it look a bit sloppy. It already came with string buzz which did not go away after adjusting the truss rod.

Also a major problem is that the first and third string emitted a slight pop in the amp when you let go of them, which is very noticeable when playing on low volume and very annoying. Tried with different amps - it's the guitar's problem.

After about 9 months of playing a 10cm long crack appeared in the body where the battery is located. Note - the guitar was never dropped and never hit any hard objects.

The tone control is pretty good, lots of different tones can be found after tinkering with the knobs.

Overall it's a good guitar for learning the bass, but if you were planning to keep your first bass and use it for more than just learning i'd recommend to save a hundred or more euros and just buy a Fender.

I bought this with the expectation of making it a project bass. It is a very attractive neck-thru bass. There were some minor finish issues, uneven lacquer,some small dings, nothing drastic. However on loosening the strings the nut fell right off the bass! The barrel input jack is also at a very odd angle and needing tightening to stop noise. The action was too high and the set screws were too long had to replace them after scraping my hand on it. The bridge is very cheap with sharp corners. Paint comes off easy. The pickups are a bit noisy and odd sized and set way too far from the bridge. The neck is slightly thicker than I like but plays very well.
All this sounds like its not a good bass. It most certainly is good for the money. It plays (and looks) better the something like a Fender Squire.
I could have sent it back but nothing bad enough to go to the trouble since I'm in the USA ,they probably know that.
As a project bass it first got a Lustihand Twin filter preamp,upgraded shielding. New pickups on the way, Delano skinny soapbars.
Next will be a Schaller Bridge. This turns a budget bass into a more expensive bass. For me worth it to have a unique fun ,project bass as I have done this to other low and midpriced basses.