Harley Benton Shorty v Jack & Danny mini

[flowersdie]

Hi all,

My girlfriend is currently looking at buying a cheap beginners bass and is looking at the HB shorty and the J and D mini. What would you recommend (if at all)? Are there major differences between the two?

It's for a lo fi project thing although the band has already been offered their first gig!

Best wishes

Jeremy

Edited July 9, 2020 by flowersdie
misspelling

[stewblack]

I know a few people here have the J&d mini. 

I very much doubt there will be much, if any, difference. 

The HBs are way better than they have any right to be at the price they charge. I gig with Harleys on a regular basis, never let me down, always sound great. 

[hooky_lowdown]

Not any real difference between the two, other than the J&Ds come in various colours, and the HB only in black.

Alternatively if you look second hand SX short scale basses are I would say a step up over the others. Also older Encore short scale basses are arguably better than HB or J&D mini, in terms of build quality and sound, but you'll probably need to give it a good set up before you see the difference. 😃

[Bassfinger]

My Daughter as a J & D Mini and I'm astonished at how nice it is.  Solid alder body, lovely poly body finish, very nicely set up and needed little in the way of tweaking out the box, and feels like a much more expensive instrument.  Genuinely very impressed, can't knock their quality for the asking price.

Edited July 9, 2020 by Bassfinger

[flowersdie]

Thanks for the replies all, we're going to the DV247 Romford shop next week so she can try one of the J and Ds. She likes the colour of the surf green one (as do I)! She is going to try one of the J and D full size basses too; do you know how they would compare to the full size HBs? I guess similar. She has been practicing on an old 1970s  short scale Kay Ric copy (K20-B?), which a friend has lent her, which she really enjoyed.

 

[flowersdie]

Will also have a look at the short scale SX basses.

[Burns-bass]

It’s slightly more expensive, but the Ibanez Talman is a really well built bass you could gig with. And it comes in cool colours (I’m saving up for a pink one!)

[stewblack]

Be interested to hear your thoughts on the surf green j&d @flowersdie I have been eying them up online but seeing one in the flesh is a whole different ball game. 

[Rumple]

I had a full sized J&D JB Vintage 1975 SFGR Bass, it looked and sounded really good.

[Bassfinger]

3 hours ago, stewblack said:

Be interested to hear your thoughts on the surf green j&d @flowersdie I have been eying them up online but seeing one in the flesh is a whole different ball game. 

Wee Bassfinger has the surf green.  I think it looks lovely.

[hooky_lowdown]

Surf green is by far the coolest colour. 😎

[Bassassin]

No mention of the J&D Mini Jazz?

There's a J&D Mini Jazz! Wonder how these stack up against the 4x more expensive Sire shorties?

 

[stewblack]

1 hour ago, Bassassin said:

No mention of the J&D Mini Jazz?

There's a J&D Mini Jazz! Wonder how these stack up against the 4x more expensive Sire shorties?

 

Tell you what, with a modicum of pressure I could be persuaded to find out. 

[Rumple]

On 11/07/2020 at 17:17, stewblack said:

Tell you what, with a modicum of pressure I could be persuaded to find out. 

Go for it!

[stewblack]

14 minutes ago, Rumple said:

Go for it!

Aargh, I bend, I break. 

[stewblack]

... and they're out of stock. 

[Rumple]

8 minutes ago, stewblack said:

... and they're out of stock. 

☹️

[Bassassin]

2 hours ago, Rumple said:

☹️

In stock in black!

https://www.musicstore.de/en_GB/GBP/J-D-Bass-guitar-JB-Mini-BK-Black/art-BAS0007167-000

I'd be waiting for see-through blue.

[stewblack]

11 hours ago, Bassassin said:

In stock in black!

https://www.musicstore.de/en_GB/GBP/J-D-Bass-guitar-JB-Mini-BK-Black/art-BAS0007167-000

I'd be waiting for see-through blue.

Yeah they're nice too

[flowersdie]

Well, Mrs Flowersdie chose the J and D mini jazz bass which was the only short scale in the DV247 shop, she says it's perfect for her little hands. She got £15 off due to it being a display copy, so it was £80 (she bought a deluxe bag for it too). She is very pleased, they are getting new stock of the other colours in the next few weeks. She has named the bass 'craddock'!

 

Edited July 17, 2020 by flowersdie
more words

[stewblack]

OK forget it  Apparently the US slang for bottom is a swear word now? 

 

Edited July 17, 2020 by stewblack
not allowed to type an entirely inoffensive word

[Paul S]

Another new member of the HB PB Shorty Society - bought it on Tuesday and it arrived a short while ago.  Took it out of the box, tuned it up.  Hey Presto - nothing else needs doing.  Absolutely nothing.  Set up is to my liking.  Fit and finish is extremely good.  The maple in the headstock even has a little speckle running through it.  Sounds like a Precision bass.  Possibly not as much character in the tone as my more expensive P basses but it absolutely does the job.  3.2kg/7lbs.  2x allen keys for truss rod and bridge and a cheap lead.  £80 and, with the Powerbank I also bought, free shipping.  I am flabberghasted, frankly.

£80.  I *may* stick a better pickup in it.  I have a 62 Custom one kicking about.  I *may* get a black pickguard made as I am not keen on white ones.  Then again, I may just leave it be.  I mean, £80 ffs. 

[Paul S]

Just put my favoured TI Flats on it.  Golly Gosh. 

I'd sell all my expensive basses except I haven't got any.

[stewblack]

2 hours ago, Paul S said:

 

I'd sell all my expensive basses except I haven't got any.

That's it. That's exactly it. I haven't any either and now I have literally zero desire to buy any.

If these basses were a couple of hundred quid cheaper, well maybe you'd get something worth the upgrade but they are like 10, 11, 12 times as cheap. It's crazy.

Congratulations and jubilations, now get the pics up.

[hooky_lowdown]

I have no idea why HB don't make the Shorty and PB20 in any other colour than black?