Harley Benton JB-62CC DR

I purchased this instruments based on reviews and out of pure curiosity, as times are hard for most people, not everyone can afford an instrument. I own and play instruments from custom boutique to the old made in USA big names as well as vintage. I’m also a hobbyist handmade guitar builder.

Now, the 62cc J style bass

The most important part of an instrument is in the way it feels in the hands while we play. This bass did not disappoint in quality and craftsmanship. Let’s forget about the cost of this instrument for one moment. The use of roasted maple, silky smooth satin finish, appears that it has a dual access truss rod as well the poplar body is well done, no finishing issues, neck is properly seated in the very tight and solid neck pocket make this a very fine, workable instrument for any situation.

Like mentioned in other reviews, you will need to put some « elbow grease » to bring this instrument to it’s maximum potential ie: I have gone over the fingerboard edges, rounding it off into a nice « broken in » like I do on my instruments then dressed the fret ends ( some tools and know how required !!) To my amazement the nut was cut « bang on!! » all that needs to be done is to smoothen the sharpness of the nut, the entire fret board on my instrument arrived with zero inconsistencies with regards to the levelling.

After a nice set up, this instrument is as enjoyable to play as any other instrument in my collection. It does not exhibit the feel of a entry level instrument.

The pickups, hardware and electronics all do their job very well. I have never been one to change or experiment with the constant pickup change of pickups in an instrument, at the end of the day, you’ll always sound as good as you play, as long as the pickups do their job and are not microphonic, pickup type is a whole other discussion.

PS: I can dial in and make this sound like I want … Go HB!!!

What can I say, this bass blew my expectations away! I'm a guitarist but I love bass and wanted to buy one. I've played basses of varying prices from my bandmates believe me when I say that the moment I started playing this instrument, I was flabbergasted. It feels like a £400-500 bass and sounds amazing! There are three things I look for in an instrument. Playability/Features, Look and Sound in that order, so I will evaluate this bass. based on that.

Out of the box, the neck was dead straight, and it was playable, however, it had too much buzz for my liking. I needed to add some relief after which it played beautifully with minimal buzz. I added a bit too much relief initially and the truss rod was difficult to tighten however I got the right adjustment. The frets were polished, no sharp edges and were overall well done. The roasted neck is very comfortable to play on and I love the smooth satin finish. The bass weighs around 4.30 kg which is average for a jazz bass and is comfortable. The neck can be a bit divey when sitting down but it's easy to correct by changing your posture.

The tuners aren't the best, but they get the job done. They aren't very sensitive and skip when lowering the pitch, but I can live with that for the price. The inclusion of a graphite nut is nice, and I think the saddles are brass but I could be wrong. Overall, the hardware looks great and is very functional.

Now I love the look of this guitar, Harley Benton make some top notch finishes IMO. I went with Dakota Red as the burst finishes on cheaper guitars don't look great and I liked the tortoise shell pickguard. The fit and finish were great except for a couple of minor issues, (the side of the 18th fret was sunken in, so it wasn't flush with the side of the fingerboard but the issue is purely cosmetic, also the truss rod cavity had some marks on the paint). The hardware all looks amazing and the matching headstock is a nice touch!

Now sound is the last component because even the cheapest of the cheap nowadays can sound like more expensive instruments with the right EQ + Plugins. Needless to say, the two single-coil pickups absolutely nailed the sound of a J style bass and give you a ton of tonal variety!

To conclude, I really love this instrument! This is my 3rd Harley Benton and I've been pleased with all of them. You just can't beat their value and Thomann's excellent customer service and for me, there is no reason to spring for the higher-cost alternatives at all.