Harley Benton JB-20 SB Standard Series

I own quite a few basses, from lower-end Ibanez 4 strings, to mid-end Brice 6 strings. However, I've never owned a jazz bass. I wanted something with some more punch to it, and I do quite enjoy how J basses look, but was entirely uninterested in paying for a Fender. I figured for under $200, I might as well take a gamble and try out one of these Harley Bentons I've been hearing about.

Since I've received this, I've rarely picked up anything else. The fretboard was a little dry looking, but everything looked very nice right out of the box. I was a little concerned about how it might travel in shipping since I didn't buy it alongside a hardbody case, but it survived the trip just fine. Packaging seemed sufficient to me.

The actual construction is a bit above what I'm used to at this price point. No sharp frets, back of the neck is perfectly smooth, the internal electronics appear to be properly set. I plug in and record through an Eleven Rack, and I notice a hearty amount of hiss whenever I plug in other basses, but this particular bass is nearly silent. Quite pleased.

As for actual tone; it's great. Quite huge and colorful on its own and sits in a mix very nicely. Slapping and plucking sound as they should; slappy and plucky. It's fairly light, so I can play with it for hours before feeling it resting on my neck or leg. To call it comfortable would be an understatement.

I have nothing but positive things to say about the instrument.

More than pleased with my purchase. I'll certainly be back for more.

This happens to be my second purchase of an instrument under the Harley Benton brand. I purchased a TE-20 (T-style Electric Guitar) last month and was very impressed, so I thought I would take my chances at the JB-20 with my main instrument in mind! This bass surprised me even more than my previous purchase with Harley Benton.

It came packaged very well, including a cable and all the necessary tools to make adjustments. I was a little worried initially, as my TE-20 had some fret buzz which needed taking care of, but this JB-20 had no such issues. The fret ends were perfect, and no playability issues were found by myself at least. The included cable is rubbish in my opinion, so I would recommend buying a better cable alongside this bass.

Comparing this to another beginner bass I have, a Stagg basic P-bass, it far outshines my first bass. It plays very nicely. The sound is very pleasant for such a cheap bass, although of course upgrading the pickups would be a nice upgrade one day. The finish is gorgeous, as my first sunburst style instrument it really caught my eye. You won't be disappointed by the finish at all in my opinion.

Here are some general thoughts:

Pro's
- Playability was perfect out of the box!
- Sunburst finish is very pretty.
- Very nice sound for such a cheap bass.
- Fret-ends are very smooth.
- Price!

Con's:
- Included cable is rubbish.
- Knobs/dials are a bit worse than on my TE-20, but they do the job.
- Stock strings aren't the best.
- The protective film was a pain to remove completely! (without disassembly)

In conclusion, this bass really blew me away in terms of quality. I think I'll be using this for some fun more than I expect. It's important to remember that not all JB-20's will be equal out of the box, so I would say I got quite lucky with the experience I had immediately (when comparing to my TE-20). A good setup would be something I would recommend, seeing as it isn't likely going to be perfect out of the box. I am still going to get this serviced, just to make sure everything is in the best shape it can be. I would highly recommend this bass however! Perfect if you're a beginner. Can't go wrong.

First, I got this bass for my wife. Really. After the ukulele I thought it would be fun to play together (I play guitar). Second, would be great having a bass around for adding bass tracks on my blues. So the question is, does JB-20B does its job?
Pros
I recall low price basses in the 90's and 2000's feeling really cheap but this is is not what you get. Smooth, accurate, frets feel good, great for practicing and having it in the studio. Impressive quality for such a price tag.
Cons, none. You can compare the brand to other entering level brands though as happy owner of an HB Extreme-76 and Custom Line Manhattan, it's always an impressive quality for the price.
To conclude, yes it does its job so let's name this bass THE starter bass. Anyone starting playing bass or needing one for a home studio, this is the one. Congrats to Harley Benton, having such a quality for this price means more players for sure. And that is impressive.

First I must say that I am a guitar player and I got this bass only for recording purposes, since none of the plugins did the job for me. Thomann team sent me this really nice instrument which performs above all expectations. It looks and plays beautifully, and sounds great plugged in my audio interface. The action is excellent, strings are really good, it stays in tune and has great intonation, the finish is flawless... I have to admit, I cannot tell the difference between 3 times more expensive Squier or even a Mexican and this. I have played several Fender basses, Cort and similar, and this one stands shoulder to shoulder to most. I was also very sceptical because of the 100¤ price, but trust me - you can gig and record with this instrument - what else do you need? :)

If there was Fender or any other famous logo on the headstock I am 100% positive that many would not be able to tell the any major difference - I couldn't. I have been playing guitar for almost 15 years, and I have never encountered such value for money and expertise such as this in Thomann. Actually, I am quite sure that I will buy some more Harley Benton instruments in the future. They got my trust to that extent that I am more comfortable with ordering an instrument online than going to a local music store. And the warranty is 2 years longer. Great job Thomann team.

Bought this as a base to try some modifications (pickups, electronics, etc.) but for the money this is a seriously fun bass!
Sure, there are some issues, but they're minor. In my case some of the fret-ends are a little sharp and the nut isn't cut deep enough. Easy enough to fix. The pots aren't the best quality (they're more like on/off switches) but again, not a big deal.
The pickups sound really nice and deliver a good passive "growl".
Fit and finish is really nice. And the neck has a great feel.
Was pleasantly surprised to see all the cavities are shielded (paint) and even grounded. Someone was paying attention when setting up production on these basses.
So, overall I'm really pleased with this one. Specially at this price.
You get a lot more than you pay for!

So, Santa brought me this bass. Is it any good?

I am a complete novice on bass but have been in bands playing drums for 40yrs, so I know how things should be.

This instrument should be rubbish. It only costs 98 euros right?

I took mine out of the perfect boxes (having had it delivered by courier to France) and not a scratch was on it.

The finish is excellent. You cannot see the joins in the body the woodwork it's so good. The paint job is immaculate. Not a ding or scratch in sight.

The sound is amazing, a real pleasure. I do get a little fret rattle but I am putting that down to my crap playing technique for now.

Played through an amp the sound is beautiful and powerful, rich and metallic, just how I like it. New strings helping there too, clearly. Without an amp, it sounds fine to play in a quiet room.

The only "issue" if you can call it that are the three knobs. I thought there were two tone controls and one volume control, but there are two volume and one tone. Not really a big deal for me at this stage. All tone control issues can be sorted using a decent pre-amp later if needed.

One of the knobs was slightly higher than the other two as one of them was different in design, but I opened up the cover and stuck an extra washer in and now they're all lined up nicely - more my OCD than anything else.

Look, just go ahead and buy this bass. Take my word for it, you will not be disappointed. So what are you waiting for???

I've tried a couple of jazz basses in music shops (mostly squiers and fenders) before deciding if I wanna switch from a p-bass.
Since the instruments I've tried were more like intermediate to professional instruments, I wasn't expecting much for this money.

I was wrong. The bass that came looks, feels, plays amazing. It has a beautiful J-bass sound. I did it a quick setup to my taste and all I can say is that this is a totally gigable bass. The neck is slim, easy to play on, the fretwork is great too.

Definately worth the money. Awesome budget bass.

Just unboxed my latest Harley Benton birthday bass. to be honest , i was expecting a little less. having read the reviews i was expecting something that was just "ok" ! while it does have its minor issues ,Namely slightly crackly pots and the odd unfinished fret edge , they are so minor i feel petty mentioning them. this bass is very very playable, the neck is fast and the action is beautifully low out of the box. the sound is to my liking , sure you will get a better sound for more money , but hell its far far from shabby ! the finish is faultless (and trust me i have had a magnifying glass on it). It's not a top end bass , it doesn't pretend to be, but what a fun guitar ! I have marked 5 stars across the board because for what it is honestly marketed as and the price , it exceeds what i was expecting.