Reviewed by:
Warmflash, on july 12, 2005
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
Features: Introduced in 1956, the 500/1 Bass, aka "Beatle Bass" is perhaps one of the most easily identifiable instruments thanks to Paul McCartney's liberal use of the model with Beatles.
- Body: hollow; 2-piece laminated spruce top, laminated maple sides, 1-piece laminated maple back
- Finish: sunburst, nitrocellulose lacquer
- Neck: 2-piece maple, set-in
- Fingerboard: rosewood; pearloid dot markers
- Number of frets: 22
- Pickguard: single ply pearloid plastic
- Bridge: Hofner, ebony
- Nut: plastic with zero fret
- Tuners: open, chrome
- Pickups: two, Hofner Nova-Sonic humbucking
- Controls: volume for each pickup, selector switch for each pickup, bass/treble switch
- Scale length: 30"
- Neck width at nut: 1 9/16"
- Body width at lower bout: 11 1/4"
- Body depth: 2 1/4". // 10
Sound: The Hofner can't be played with out compression. As soon as you strap a compressor across it, you're home safe and free. It sounds great with a fairly heavy dose. So start around 4:1 and go from there. I've tried finger picking and it sounds lame. I've tried picks, and they sound better. When I saw McCartney play his live, I realized he uses the side of his thumb alot. When I got hip to the thumb business, things improved dramatically. Make it sound like an upright at times. Really sweet. The intonation gets suspect as you climb up the neck. But with time, you quickly find way to find the correct tone base. It just takes some practise. And a keen ear and experience. You can also put a capo on a Hofner. Which makes for a really interesting bass sound. // 8
Action, Fit & Finish: The action was set up too high on the G and D strings. And too low on the E and A strings. That's an easy adjustment to fix. // 10
Reliability & Durability: // 10
Impression: I play pop music, gospel, new orleans etc. I've been playing for 30 years. Although I have a Ricky, which I love, the more I learn about the Hofner the more I prefer it. It's an odd bass. It's not on Main Street. So getting info about compressors and what sort of strings to get is often a mystery. Part of the reason I'm writing today is to demystify the workings of a Hofner. So you to can have a happy and rich musical experience. One thing you should note. You can't pop or snap on a Hof. Grab another bass for that. But if you want a beautiful rich woodsy warm sounding bass, that has so much melodic surface, get yourself a 500/1. I love pops and snaps, but I leave it to Flea and Co. When you've had enough snapping, check out a Hofner. And don't forget to scope the Hofner Delux. Lastly, after you start playing a Hofner, you'll quickly begin to recognize the sound of other Hofners on recordings. Bryan Adam's plays one, Maurice Gibb (rip) played one, the bassist in KD Langs band plays one. // 10
/ my profile 
Was this review helpful to you? 