Kevstein Posted May 14, 2014 Share Posted May 14, 2014 Hi all, I was just wondering what like the make Zenta is? I have seen a bass from the 60s made by Zenta that i thought looked really cool but i have no experience with them whatsoever. Just wondered what you think of this make? Is it a cheap, poor quality make? Anyone got any experience using a 'Zenta'? Cheers in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted May 14, 2014 Share Posted May 14, 2014 Hi - like most of the brands you see on old 60s & 70s cheapos, it's not a "make" at all, just a brand name chosen by the importer/distributor. In this instance the distributor was John Hornby Skewes Ltd, from Leeds. Without seeing the bass I can't tell you definitively whether it's junk or not, however Zenta was JHS' low-end starter range, so quality is unlikely to be great. However, like all of these brands, there was a price/quality range and the dearer Zentas will have been better instruments than the rock-bottom ones. Any chance you can show a pic or two? It might be possible to tell whether it's Korean/Taiwanese (very ropey quality back then) or MIJ (generall more likely to be useable). These old instruments can have a sort of kitschy collectability, and if you are lucky enough to get a decent one (quality control was pretty much non-existent) it might be fun & sound interesting. Whatever you do, don't pay much - these don't have any real value as such so around £50-£60 should be the ballpark. Jon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoo Posted May 14, 2014 Share Posted May 14, 2014 I've had one of the Gibson EB0 style ones. Quite a nice looking thing, but had a neck like a baseball bat and sorting the action out to something nice to play would have taken more setup skill than I had at the time. The electrics were all hopeless on it so I replaced the pickup with a closed top guitar humbucker, and made up a new loom for it. I ended up giving it to my GF's son who loves SGs and wanted a bass - but he got bored of it fairly quickly after he got given a Squier Jazz which was much easier to play. One day I'd like to dig it out again and see if I can sort it out properly... [URL=http://s10.photobucket.com/user/scrapperstoo/media/guitars/juan_lauda_zps12915777.jpg.html][IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a111/scrapperstoo/guitars/juan_lauda_zps12915777.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevstein Posted May 14, 2014 Author Share Posted May 14, 2014 Ill give it a miss then. It looks cool, but i assumed it wouldnt be worth it. Asking price is £120. Im not one for buying a guitar for looks but just thought it would be a nice toy to add to the collection. Ill just put it towards the bass i was planning on buying originally. Cheers for the advice mate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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