Harley Benton PB-20LH SBK

I am new to bass guitars and have had my PB20LH for a couple of weeks now, my review may not be as good or informative as experienced bassists, I have been looking to buy a good 'learner' bass for some time and in my opinion this bass is probably the best there is and not just to learn on! The build quality and finish is as good as, if not better, than comparable basses costing 2 or 3 times as much, well balanced and the satin finish allows for easy and smooth movement up and down the fretboard without any stickiness you get on gloss finished necks, sound quality is also very good with the single passive pickup, when it arrived it only needed tuning for me to start playing and it's a pleasure going to the music room each day to practice😊! Would I recommend the PB20? Yes without a doubt and thank you Harley Benton 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

My second Harley Benton, after my PB-50 and quality not as good. The matt black finish was nice on bridge and main body but was very uneven as moved up the fretboard and neck area. The fret finish was much better on PB-50 compared to PB-20 (very sharp in places in comparison) suggesting mixed quality control. Only suited, if an absolute beginner and not sure if Bass is the instrument for you but want to take a punt. It did also help me decide whether to use as a mod platform or spend more on better quality and went with latter. If you are decent with carpentry, then it might suit as a mod platform and would definitely upgrade tuners and probably bridge but found pickups to be pretty decent. Both basses needed jack soldering, so be prepared for that too.

I'd heard positive comments online about HB basses recently. So I found the Thomann website, started perusing it, and took a chance on this particular model, It's a beautiful, modern update of the classic P-bass design (with all-black satin body/neck combined with tort pickguard). Great fit & finish, good sound from the split-P pickup, nice lighter weight, and did I mention great looks? Also, kudos to Thomann/HB for offering a decent selection of basses for us lefties at reasonable price points.
My only complaints concern condition of the shipping box upon delivery (broken/split across the middle, yikes!) then finding the bottom back of the headstock slightly chipped. I touched it up and gave the bass a chance anyway. Luckily, it seemed otherwise unhurt during shipment, and still looks & sounds great. Even if you buy it as a mod platform for different tuners/pickup/bridge, it's still a great looking bass to have in your arsenal.

At this price point, your expectations should be set to the very minimum. That being said, this bass was great at exceeding my expectations. It came already set up and ready to go. No sharp frets or buzz, even after I almost bottomed out the saddles (I like my action low). The pickups are a little noisy with overdrive or if its too loud, however in a practice setting with a mid volume setting, the noise is unheard of. If you do want to play with overdrive or other distortion pedals I do recommend shielding the bass first to reduce the noise. It has one pickup, one volume knob, and one tone knob so you wont be getting the same versatility as 2 pickups. Regardless, its still a very nice sounding bass for the price point. My only complaint is neck dive. Not a deal breaker since its understandable due to the light body.

First of all, it's a 100+€ product, so I knew that flaws could exist with such a price. There is scratch on the neckplate, the tone knob is unevenly big, and the fret and body was full of dust when I opened the package. But to be fair, the sound worth the price. It's totally capable for the practice and casual performances. As is mentioned by other people, the style of pickguard doesn't fit the black body, and if you want to replace it, there won't be too many options other than customizing. BTW: The delivery spent much more time than I expected, and the bass almost didn't make it before my first rehearsal (but I blame it for DHL). In conclusion, it is a good bass, but you need to prepare yourself with possible bad quality in manufacturing.