Höfner's famous "Beatle Bass" with its distinctive violin shape has been popular since its launch in the mid-1950s, and the German guitar manufacturer now offers a smaller and more space-saving version: The Shorty Violin Bass. Despite its diminutive looks, however, this bass is no toy, but a genuine short-scale instrument with a bolt-on maple neck, a rosewood fingerboard, and a body made from mahogany. The bass features Höfner's typical "Shorty" headstock design, and a covered Höfner humbucking pickup in the neck position provides a full (if slightly nasal) sound. The scope of delivery also includes a basic gig bag.
With a full 24 frets at their disposal, bassists who pick up the Höfner Shorty Violin Bass can look forward to virtually limitless playing enjoyment, and the pleasantly flat neck profile and dot fingerboard inlays will ensure both comfort and easy orientation for playing single-note runs and melodies. The Shorty Violin Bass also features the 76cm (30") scale length found on the majority of short-scale basses, together with the same proven fret size and spacing, so this instrument will not take any getting used to, and its slim neck taper - with a nut width of just 42mm - also means that guitarists will not feel out of their depth. The flush-mounted pickguard covers around a third of the Shorty Violin Bass's top in order to prevent damage to the finish when it is played with a plectrum, and its solid-body construction also ensures extra-long sustain.
The Höfner Shorty Violin Bass is the ideal companion for anyone who wants a bass with a standard short scale length to take on the road. And fans of retro instruments will certainly appreciate its authentic "Beatle Bass" flair, which is complete right down to Höfner's characteristic "tea cup" knobs for the volume and tone pots and enhanced further by the red finish, chrome-coloured hardware, and vintage-style open-gear machine heads. An additional bonus is the fixed bridge with its four individual saddles, which allows the intonation of each string to be adjusted easily and accurately. The compact, one might almost say "pocket-sized" Shorty Violin Bass thus gives players a fully-fledged instrument at a budget-friendly price.
The Höfner company has a long tradition and was founded by Karl Höfner in Schönbach at the end of the 19th century. Initially, the product range consisted mainly of bowed string instruments, and the first guitars were added around 1930. After the Second World War, the company was relocated to Möhrendorf in Bavaria. In the 1950s, the company flourished thanks to new musical trends, and basses were now introduced in addition to guitars. Legendary models were created during this time, such as the President, the Committee, and the 500/1 short-scale bass, which made music history a short time later with the Beatles. The subsequent boom in Beat music quickly brought Höfner enormous demand and enduring world fame. Today, Höfner is one of the best-known and largest manufacturers of bowed string instruments and of archtop, semi-acoustic, and solid-body guitars, as well as a wide range of basses.
The reduced length of the Höfner Shorty Violin Bass makes it very easy to transport and thus the ideal travel companion for everyone who can't NOT play bass while on vacation, and its scale length also makes it ideal for practising scales and exercises while watching TV at home or while colleagues are out of the office. Combined with a small battery-powered amp - and of course with a buddy playing a Höfner Shorty guitar - it can also provide the perfect musical accompaniment for garden parties, barbecues, and even around the campfire - time to ditch those hiking songs in favour of some good old Beatles classics.