Höfner Shorty BL

Start 360°

Electric Guitar

Classic from the '80s
Instrument length: 86 cm
Body: Basswood
Bolt-on neck: Maple
Fretboard: Rosewood
24 Frets
Scale: 628 mm
Nut width: 42 mm
Pickup: 1 Höfner humbucker
One-piece "Fixed" tailpiece and bridge
Colour: Blue
Bag included

30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

3-Year Thomann Warranty

Available since November 2004

Item number 168547

Sales Unit 1 piece(s)

Colour Blue

Soundboard Basswood

Neck Maple

Fretboard Rosewood

Frets 24

Scale 625 mm

Pickup System H

Tremolo No

Incl. Case No

Incl. Gigbag Yes

Electric Guitar 1

Design Miscellaneous

Body Limewood

Top None

Saddle Width 42 mm

Pickup Configuration H

Show variations of this product

Höfner Shorty BL

Höfner Shorty BL Electric Guitar * Classic from the '80s * Instrument length: 86 cm * Body: Basswood * Bolt-on neck: Map...

2.069 kr

to the product

Höfner Shorty Deluxe RD

Höfner Shorty Deluxe RD Electric Guitar * Classics from the eighties * Basswood body * Bolt-on neck: Maple * Blackwood f...

2.299 kr

to the product

Höfner Shorty Deluxe BK

Höfner Shorty Deluxe BK Electric Guitar * Classic from the '80s * Body: Basswood * Bolt-on maple neck * Blackwood fretbo...

2.444 kr

to the product

Höfner Shorty Cadillac Green

Höfner Shorty Cadillac Green Electric Guitar * A classic from the '80s * Body: Basswood * Neck: Maple * Neck attachment:...

2.059 kr

to the product

Höfner Shorty BK

Höfner Shorty BK Electric Guitar * A classics from the 80s * Instrument length: 86 cm * Basswood body * Maple neck * Nec...

2.059 kr

to the product

Höfner Shorty Turquoise Blue

Höfner Shorty Turquoise Blue Electric Guitar * Limited edition * Body: Basswood * Bolt-on neck: Maple * Fingerboard: Jat...

2.048 kr

to the product

Höfner Shorty R

Höfner Shorty Red Electric Guitar * Classic from the 80s * Instrument length: 86 cm * Basswood body * Bolt-on maple neck...

1.933 kr

to the product

Höfner Shorty Gold Top

Höfner Shorty Gold Top Electric Guitar * Limited Edition * Classic from the 80s * Instrument length: 82 cm * Body: Bassw...

1.929 kr

to the product

Höfner Shorty Purple

Höfner Shorty Purple Electric Guitar * Limited edition * Classic from the 80s * Instrument length: 82 cm * Body: Basswoo...

2.048 kr

to the product

Höfner Shorty Deluxe Blue

Höfner Shorty Deluxe Blue Electric Guitar * Limited edition * Classic from the '80s * Body: Basswood * Bolt-on neck: Map...

2.438 kr

to the product

Höfner Shorty Pink

Höfner Shorty Pink Electric Guitar * Limited edition * Body: Basswood * Bolt-on neck: Maple * Fingerboard: Jatoba * Scal...

2.048 kr

to the product

2.069 kr

Including VAT; Excluding kr200 shipping

187

Sales Rank

in Alternative Design Guitars

Good things come in small packages

The Höfner Shorty is a classic travel guitar that was launched back in the 1980s and has been available again since the early 2000s. What makes this instrument special is that it combines an extremely compact body with a full-size guitar scale length. The basswood body is finished in blue, and the bolt-on neck, which is made from a single piece of maple for enhanced sustain, features a rosewood fingerboard with dot inlays and a bone nut. The guitar features the typical "Shorty" headstock design and a full-sounding open-coil Höfner humbucking pickup in the bridge position, and the scope of delivery also includes a matching gig bag.

Small guitar, big fun

You can't play full-on guitar solos on a travel guitar, right? Wrong. The Höfner Shorty BL features a full 24-fret register, and its scale length, at 628mm, is the same as that of classic single-cut electric guitars, so lead guitarists can get their mojo working here in complete comfort. The neck is 42mm wide at the nut, meaning that it also has a comfortably slim "vintage medium" profile, and as players have long come to expect from guitars played with a pick, the standard version has a screw-mounted scratchplate that covers and protects the guitar's circuitry.

For frequent travellers

The space-saving (one might even say "pocket-sized") Höfner Shorty BL is the perfect budget-friendly guitar for players who love to travel but don't want to be without a high-quality instrument with a "real" guitar scale length when they are on the road. The Shorty features a fixed, one-piece wraparound bridge/tailpiece unit, which needs to be completely removed when changing the strings, as these are anchored on the underside of the bridge. Players who opt for this guitar should therefore allow themselves plenty of time when re-stringing. Allergy sufferers should also note that the machine heads on the Höfner Shorty are made from nickel.

About Höfner

The Höfner company has a long tradition and was founded by Karl Höfner in Schönbach at the end of the 19th century. Initially, the product range consisted mainly of bowed string instruments, and the first guitars were added around 1930. After the Second World War, the company was relocated to Möhrendorf in Bavaria. In the 1950s, the company flourished thanks to new musical trends, and basses were now introduced in addition to guitars. Legendary models were created during this time, such as the President, the Committee, and the 500/1 short-scale bass, which made music history a short time later with the Beatles. The subsequent boom in Beat music quickly brought Höfner enormous demand and enduring world fame. Today, Höfner is one of the best-known and largest manufacturers of bowed string instruments and of archtop, semi-acoustic, and solid-body guitars, as well as a wide range of basses.

From practice session to party performance

The Höfner Shorty BL measures just 86cm in total, which makes it easy to transport and thus the ideal travel companion for everyone who can't NOT play guitar while on vacation. It will fit diagonally into a standard XL hardshell suitcase, and the included gig bag mentioned above will keep it safe on shorter journeys as well. The Shorty's scale length also makes it ideal for practising scales and exercises while watching TV at home or while colleagues are out of the office. Combined with a small battery-powered amp, it can also provide the perfect musical accompaniment for garden parties, barbecues, and even around the campfire - time to ditch those hiking songs in favour of some good old Rock classics.

81 Customer ratings

5 23 Customers 4 33 Customers 3 17 Customers 2 6 Customers 1 2 Customers

3.9 / 5

features

sound

quality

Review guidelines

51 Reviews

Nice travelling guitar with some bearable flaws

hammerh34d 19.10.2018

Bought exclusively as a trevelling guitar.
It is quite nicely built, fretboard is nice and neck is just fine. Hard to balance when sitting; after a series of experiments, including attaching the strap to the head, I found that it sits on your lap the best if you attach the strap normally and hang it on your right shoulder ONLY (!).
As for build quality, intonation adjustment screw fell off after a few days (guess it was not properly fixed), and tuners are very poor quality, you need to tune the guitar almost every time you play it, even several times a day. But the neck is full size gibson, and it is just fine for travelling. This little broomstick went with me to several places in Europe and to the States, and was always fun to play. And it's cheap. But if you have some more money to spend, take something more solid, especially in tuners department.

Report

Do you believe this rating to be inaccurate or unacceptable for some reason? Please give us the reason for your assessment in the following text box and – if possible – your e-mail address for further questions.

Great budget guitar purchase one of the best I've ever tried!!!!!

Michael3520 30.06.2015

All this guitar needs was a fresh set of high quality strings and a small adjustment to the intonation and it was perfect. It has powerful and good quality sound from the pickups and build quality for the price range is great. Buy one because its a great first guitar for a beginner and even a fun addition to any seasoned players collection. Also its really comfortable to sit on the couch practicing with so you will pick it up more!
I can't fault this guitar in any way I was so surprised with it!
I tried this guitar through a small 30watt practice amp and it sounded nice and warm and when I tried it through my 100watt marshal it sounded even better. The tone is well above its price range.
I've played it more than any other one of my guitars in the last week not because its my newest addition but because it actually is so much of a pleasure to play.

Report

Okay for the money

Ethiopian 17.10.2022

I needed a travel guitar but didn't want to spend a whole lot of money so I decided to oder this Höfner Shorty. The first one I got had some chips and dents in the fingerboard and a dirty gig bag so I went to Thomann and got a replacement.

Pros:
- Light and compact
- Comes with a gig bag
- Sounds okay

Cons:
- Fret buzz
- Neck dive (I can only play with a strap attached to the headstock like a classical guitar)
- Fingerboard was painted to look more black and the paint left stains on fingers after playing. So I had to first clean it up with lemon oil a couple of times before I could play the guitar.

Also the neck is a bit chunky and kinda feels like a baseball bat. But it's a personal preference, I just like thin necks like on my Ibanez.

So overall I'm still happy to have a guitar I can take on vacation with me and not care much about it, but if I would buy a travel guitar now, I'd probably spent a little bit more and got something else.

Report

Baseball bat with a red hot humbucker!

Robbie P. 18.08.2017

The title says it all really. I bought this with a Fender twin mini amp. The humbucker is ridiculous, it's over wound and uber hot!
It is awkward to play, but you get used it ( Pro Tip: You'll need to get used to playing with the side of your palm on the bridge for balance sake)
It's an amazing travel companion for when you need to bust out some licks around a camp fire or party or like me where I play it from the boot of the car on my lunch breaks when in work!!
BUY IT, YOU WON'T REGRET IT!

Report

Read all reviews

Höfner Shorty BL

Electric Guitar