Harley Benton pb50 pickups

[hooky_lowdown]

Did anyone notice when Harley Benton changed from using Wilkinson pups to Roswell pups on the pb50?

 

I read a red version of the pb50 is coming out next month with the Roswell pup, but the current sunburst foto version also ships with the Roswell pup.

[Bigwan]

Been sometime in the last year. I bought a PB50 for my brother's birthday this time last year and it was still Wilkinson. Pretty nice bass if you don't mind a bit of fettling and a proper baseball bat neck!

Edited February 6, 2018 by Bigwan

[johnDeereJack]

Yeah, as Bigwan mentioned Thomann swapped pups from Wilkinson to Roswell some time last year. The new PB50 has a 'FR' designation so I can only assume it's gona be Fiesta Red?

Have always hankered after an early 50's P bass, and the Thomann PB50's get great reviews, so maybe one of these is the way forward? Will wait to see what the new colour is like.

[Andytre]

my college bought a left handed HB Jazz that was one of the first i knew of with the Rosewell PUPS, they seem pretty comparable to the Wilksinson i have in the bridge of  a PJ bass. also looking forward to seeing the red version its been teasing on the Thomann website for sometime now! along with a LH PB50.   

[Jack]

Downer, I was just about to get one. What's the consensus on how the new pups compare to the Wilkinsons?

[hooky_lowdown]

I just got a new hb pb50. I owned the old one with Wilkinson pup, the new pb50 with Roswell pup sounds better. Output is around the same, but the larger poles on the Roswell pup give a more vintage sound, which I like.

[yorks5stringer]

I swapped out my Roswell pickup for a Henning one, although the Roswell sounded fine: reminds me must put it up for sale in the For Sale section.

[kodiakblair]

I tried the JB-75 with Roswell pickups today, can't say I noticed any real difference from the Wilkinson JB-75 I had.

[hooky_lowdown]

What are the pros of the Henning over the Roswell?

[Jack]

That's me resting a little easier, thanks folks.

[kodiakblair]

@Jack

It's 4 year since I bought my first PB-50, I actually ended up buying 3 in quick succession  Getting ready to buy No4,Im just waiting to see what the Fiery Red looks like. 

If you don't like the Roswell, though I heard from a fella on Friday that it's a decent pickup, £40 to £75 will get you a replacement and you'll have a belter of a bass for less than Squier Affinity money  

[yorks5stringer]

55 minutes ago, hooky_lowdown said:

What are the pros of the Henning over the Roswell?

It is hand made in UK and depending on which version, a different tone. There's also an Alnico version which is different to mine.

[Jack]

13 hours ago, kodiakblair said:

If you don't like the Roswell, though I heard from a fella on Friday that it's a decent pickup, £40 to £75 will get you a replacement and you'll have a belter of a bass for less than Squier Affinity money  

I appreciate that, but a big draw of the original was that it was a £90 bass with a £40 pickup. :-)

[kodiakblair]

£40 for a Wilkinson pickup ??? 

Never knew folk paid that for them.

[Jack]

I just tried to find a shop selling them to check the price and nowhere has them. Have they been discontinued?

[kodiakblair]

4 minutes ago, Jack said:

I just tried to find a shop selling them to check the price and nowhere has them. Have they been discontinued?

They were never for sale as an aftermarket item, least I never found them.  Checked now and again over a 3 year period, always drew a blank. 

[hooky_lowdown]

HB stopped using the Wilkinson pups because manufacturing switched to China and quality control became hit and miss, hence use of Roswell pups. The Roswell pup used in the pb50 retail at £40!

[kodiakblair]

13 minutes ago, hooky_lowdown said:

HB stopped using the Wilkinson pups because manufacturing switched to China and quality control became hit and miss, hence use of Roswell pups. The Roswell pup used in the pb50 retail at £40!

$31.50 but minimum order is 10 

 

http://wscmusic.com/itemView.php?&query=view&code=00000507&no=4132&lv=2