Hofner builds a bass for the working man.

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 11:01 am

Dan, if the wood block bothers you that much, just save up for one of the German models. I know they are expensive, but it sounds like that's what you really want. I would think you could find a good used one or lay a new one away, if that's possible. For me, that wood block plus the authentic Hofner pick-ups are the main selling point in buying the Contemporary.

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 3:09 pm

In case anyone might be interested North Coast has the Icon bass in black. To be honest, it looks pretty good. Better than the sunburst in my opinion.

qmoder · Post by **qmoder** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 10:45 pm

I have a black Turser that looks better than the Icon LOL.. The burst Turser might still be the best value. I did spring for two knobs and four dollars for Ivoroid pegheads. Then I cut off the squigglie thing with my trusty Dremel.
I looked at the Contemp again and it looks good. But Bless my poor old soul LOL.. At 868? My Tenny cost me 899. Thats a Gretsch guitar, case, the fab free shipping and automatic free return if I didn't like and all.
After the case I'd still have to buy two twenty dollar knobs. But then again the German Hofner is a thousand big ones more.
Perhaps Hofner will come off two thousand like Gretsch did on the Tenny and just give it to me LOL.. Maybe Behringer will make one and we'll still have that famous German engeneering LOL..
Well gotta go pray. Merry Christmas, I did get a Tenny this and I never thought I'd be getting one any time soon.
Its probably the Best George guitar deal to come along in who knows when.

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Wed Nov 22, 2006 10:23 am

I know. I bought my old '79 Hofner new for $800. I never thought the German models would ever get to the prices that they are now. If Macca hadn't picked his back up they might be selling for maybe $1500 list price but not almost $3000 MSRP. Even discounted, they are way over priced IMHO. Especially compared to American made Rickenbacker basses. The Hofner bass is quite nice for what it does. But I've played both the V63 and the V62 Hofners, and I just can't see putting two grand on one. When I can get a Rickenbacker bass, made in the USA, high quality and all, for less. Which is why I'm going with the Contemporary. If those basses were much higher, I would have to think twice. Oh BTW Dan, you will find the German Hofner you want eventually. Just keep looking and you will find a deal on one. I never thought I would be able to get a Rick V63, C64, or 4003. Now I have all three, so it can happen. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone here on the forum.

qmoder · Post by **qmoder** » Wed Nov 22, 2006 6:21 pm

You're right on all accounts Randy. They are too high. Especially compared to a nice Ric. I didn't pay a whole lot more than that for my Ric 360 in 03. The same goes for my 50th Annie Deluxe Strat. That Strat is so nice its like a Custom shop model.
Macca has been what drives Hofner sales almost since he first picked it up as a cheap bass to get started with. So his touring is the best thing that can still happen for Hofner. But they are sure taking advantage of it with their pricing.
I think that you are right in going for the contemporary too. Two to four K is just too much for one of the other model 500/1's. I'm looking forward to hearing about your Contemporary too when you get it.
They are a nice looking bass. If they were some where around 550 I'd be with you. I was taking some weight out of one of my Strats tonight by making a swimming pool route with the good old Dremel tool. I'm sure that thing could do wonders for the Hofner Contemporary too LOL..
Happy Thankgiving to you too Randy.

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Thu Nov 23, 2006 4:32 am

If you look carefully the hardware on the Contemporary looks a little sturdier than on the Icon. I might be wrong here, but that's the way it looks to me. That sunburst on the Icon looks more like Fender 3 color sunburst to me too. The black Icon dosen't look too bad. IMHO the Icon is meant for beginners. The Contemporary is for semi-pros that can't shell out the big bucks for the German basses like me.
Dan, I hope you find what you want. There are German Hofners on E-bay for a few hundered less than you would pay for a new one. I will wait until after the first of the year before I get that Contemporary bass. I have a Fender Jazz that I don't play any more, that I'm trying to sell to help fund the Contemporary purchase. If you get one, I'd be interested to see what you do to modify it. Happy Thanksgiving to all!

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Thu Nov 23, 2006 8:42 am

But you know after all I've said........that black Icon is starting to grow on me. With a few after market upgrades,(new tailpiece, teacup knobs, new pickguard ect.)that might be a nice little bass. Dan if you could modify a Contemp like you want it, I might, just might do the same to that black Icon. Plus right now, it would be much easier on my wallet. And the reviews I've been reading on that bass have been pretty good. I wonder.......

qmoder · Post by **qmoder** » Thu Nov 23, 2006 2:47 pm

Randy, if I were you and were gonna buy an black Icon bass. I'd go to somewhere to some store that has one in stock and hold it first. I own a black Turser Violin bass. There are no finish problems with it like reported of the Icon's, no black stuff coming off the fingerboard on your hands, and it has no dead spots on it.
I gave less than 300 for it and the case. I got the black one because I already had a brown burst Rogue and brown burst sixties Violin bass. Thats why I thought I'd try the black.
After I got it I did a few inexpensive mods that really improved it to me with almost no cost to me.
Only one of them cost any real money and thats because they were Hofner made parts. First I got some pearloid pegheads from Stewmac. You unscrew the old ones and screw these new ones on. Simple as that. I did cut off the pedastals from these pegheads with the dremel tool.
If you do they look more like the old football Hofner pegheads than even the present Hofner ones do. Then I cut that squigglie thing off the tailpiece with the ever trusty dremel tool. Thats really a free mod. The only one that costs any real money were those two *&%$# Hofner teacup knobs. Another rip off as far as I'm concerned. How much can it cost Hofner to make those little things away? But I digress.
My idea was to have a good playing and good sounding look a like from ten feet in a typical club inviroment. I got it.
If you wanted just put on a Hofner decal then as long as you have no plans to try and pass it off as and orginal if you were gonna sell it then I see no problem with that.
After my mods my little bass weigh less than five pounds. It looks great and sounds great. Just What I wanted in a black bass.
As I've said the Contemporary looks good and if it were 550 I'd jump on it as I really like that finish. But at the present price there are just too many things that I need or want more for that much cash more than another chinese bass guitar.
Such as some subs for the Pa, home recording unit, sampling keyboard, or and AC30CC for instance.
It also makes you wonder. If Turser can make a Chinese verision for this price just how much is costing Hofner to make one? Since they cost about three times more than the Turser. Its bound to be several times what Turser makes out of every bass.
I own a Turser copy of the Hofner 500/6 Verithin. Its even got a nice Hofner style tailpiece on it in gold and its still about the same price as the black Violin bass.
But if you do get a Contemporary I'll be waiting for you to post a review of it here. I know that you know what you are talking about and I know that you'll shoot straight from the hip with no sugar coating on the review.
I have a feeling that the funny noises from your first orginal Hofner were due to poorly potted or none potted at all pickups.

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Thu Nov 23, 2006 7:10 pm

That's why I really don't wan't to spend a lot of money on a bass like this. I really don't need it as I'm extremely happy with my Rickenbackers. I do like the feel and light weight of the Hofner basses. And the vintage look of the Contemporary is nice, plus the sound block in it makes me think it won't be as prone to feedback and strange noises as my old one was. But the more I think about it, $900 is a lot to spend on a Chinese bass,even a nice one like this. I would never even attempt to try to pass an Icon off as a real German Hofner. I'm not that much into the Hofner Macca thing. If I do get a Contemporary bass, I'm going thave to find a better deal than what I've seen up to now. There are some violin basses on e-bay now that are very nice and less expensive that the budget Hofners. They are probably made by the same factory too. A Hofner bass would be a luxuary purchase only since my gigging basses are my Ricks and my OLP/Music Man SR. I'm selling my Fender Jazz to help fund this partially because I don't play it much anymore. So I'm really in no hurry. If I decide to get one soon, I'll let you know what I think of it. Depends on if and when the Jazz sells. Regardless, IMHO nothing can touch a Rickenbacker bass.

wolfgang · Post by **wolfgang** » Thu Nov 23, 2006 10:05 pm

Sorry, but:
4001 vs. 500/1?
What a funny discussion..., something new, isn't it?
Well, I am waiting for an original "Rickenbacker 325C58 Contemporary" guitar with sound block and potted pickups for $350, the real working horse, made in China or Vietnam...
The original Rickenbackers 325C58 are about
4,400 Euros list price (about $ 5,700) here in Germany.

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Fri Nov 24, 2006 6:02 am

If it looks anything like a Rick, JH will have issues with that. We all know what happened with the Ibanez knock-offs. BTW, the point I was referring to in an eariler post wasn't really 4001 vs 500/1. It was the pros and cons of spending quite a bit of money for something like a Hofner bass, when IMHO a Rick bass is more versitile. A Hofner does what it does, and very well too. But all I meant was if I was going to spend a large amount, I would be more reluctant to do it on a Hofner. And even more so for one made in China, unless the quality was outstanding.
Am I having second thoughts right now....yes.

qmoder · Post by **qmoder** » Fri Nov 24, 2006 7:00 pm

If I were a tried and true bass player like you Randy, I'd probably have a Ric myself. I got into the little Violin basses as the first two bands I was ever in way back in the day that made any money I happened to play bass in and not guitar. I used a the sixties Violin bass because it was available not because it was good or the best.
That probably why Paul had his too. But after that I developed a sentimental attachment to the little things.
I had a chance years later to buy the orginal one that I used and did. The light weight and short scale Violin basses are perfect for someone like me who wants to change back and forth between bass and guitar with out much or any of and adjustment period.
So thats why I have three Violin models, a EBO, and the bigger 32 inch scale Hollow body bass. My Rogue was made in Korea, the Turser in China, and my orginal in Japan. So even though they are not made in the same factory all of them are very simular.
The Icon and the Contemporary are both asian made basses. Nothing wrong with that. But I just don't think that they are worth anything near nine hundred for the Contemporary just because it looks a little better. But then again I don't think the German ones are worth two to three K either.
These little basses are nice but just because they were played by Paul doesn't mean that they are Les Paul's LOL..
No C58 is gonna come along made in Asia and that doesn't bother me in the least. But then there was a sale on a considerable amount of C58's for less than one K. Its obvious anyway that a C58 is still gonna be worth more than a Chinese copy of a German bass.
So one just just has to ask yourself if its really worth it to you or not? As for me while I find the Contemporary to be far nicer looking than the Icon I don't think its worth double the money. So I'm gonna set this one out for a while and see how it goes.
Its like my Tenny it was and opportunity buy. I would have never payed the over two K asking price for one. Its easily worth what I paid for it but not over the over two K price to me.

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Sat Nov 25, 2006 6:50 am

I admit I'd like to have a violin bass again. But I don't want to pay almost a thousand dollars for one like Maccas. I admit when I saw that Contemporary, I started GASing a bit beyond my means, now that I've come to my senses financially. I think I might go for the Epi Viola bass. All the reviews I've seen are very good and it's more affordable for me. And after all, isn't that why Macca bought the Hofner to begin with?
As far as a Chinese C58 is concerned, like I said eariler JH would be all over that in a heartbeat. So I agree it won't happen. They would change it enough not to look like a real Rick. If I'm correct, I think Rickenbacker is the only US guitar and bass company to strictly enforce it's copyrights around the world. Gibson and Fender have always been very lazy in that regard. In fact, the Hofner violin bass is a German copy of the first Gibson EB model from the 50's.

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Sat Nov 25, 2006 9:32 am

"If I'm correct, I think Rickenbacker is the only US guitar and bass company to strictly enforce it's copyrights around the world. Gibson and Fender have always been very lazy in that regard."

Fender and Gibson had nothing to protect. Their protection back then was in the form of mechanical patents (which were enforced) and design patents (which are very difficult to enforce). No "trade dress" protection such as that which RIC maintains.

I feel that this situation reflects the myopic vision of Gibson back then, and of Fender,too, in the time before CBS

rick36 · Post by **rick36** » Sat Nov 25, 2006 10:25 am

Speaking of 'value' as far as these instruments go, I was recently struck by the way that they were treated by these great artists. Just look at the "Hard Days Night" video - those guitars were never taken care of, covered with fingerprints, knocked around, you name it.
The (true) story of Paul in Hamburg cutting an A string out of a piano for his bass, simply because he couldn't afford one (there goes the Pyramid Strings endorsement!). I can just see his glee at receiving a brand new bass from Rickenbacker in 1965 (Oh, it's free? I'll have one then...)
The Beatles looked upon the guitars that we now covet as nothing more than tools of the trade - a means to an end. Rock and Roll music. They hacked them up, painted them poorly and had Neil and Mal do the restringing and whatever little maintenance that was required.
In short, I don't think that they really gave a damn other that the instruments were in working order and in tune. Just an observation. I treat mine like Royalty. Go figure...