Harley Benton PB-Shorty SBK Standard Series

Electric Bass

Body: Poplar
Neck: Bolt-on maple
Fingerboard: Amaranth
Dot fingerboard inlays
Neck profile: Modern C
Scale: 762 mm (short scale)
Fingerboard radius: 350 mm
19 Frets
Pickup: PB-style split coil (middle)
Volume and tone controls
Double-action truss rod
Classic PB-style machine heads
Black hardware
Factory strings: .040 - .095
Colour: Satin Black
Suitable replacement strings: Art. 205074 / Art. 238524
Suitable gig bag available under Art. 142777 (not included)

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3-Year Thomann Warranty

Available since January 2024
Item number 554121
Sales Unit 1 piece(s)
Colour Satin Black
Body Poplar
Neck Maple
Fretboard Laurel
Frets 19
Pickup System P
Elektronic Passive
Incl. Case No
Incl. Gigbag No

B-Stock from 111 € available

119 €

All prices incl. VAT

Sales Rank

in Short Scale Basses

Bundles & offers

Harley Benton PB-Shorty SBK Standard B-Stock
May have slight traces of use

111 €

Shrunken classic

Harley Benton PB-Shorty SBK Standard Series Shortscale Electric Bass

For a few years now, short-scale basses have been all the rage once again, and of course Harley Benton has not let this trend go unnoticed. The PB-Shorty is a four-string P-style bass with a shorter scale and the look and sound of a classic. With its split-coil pickup and passive electronics, it follows the model from the 60s and is similarly at home in almost every playing style. For children and young people in particular, a short-scale bass makes it easier to get to grips with the instrument and embark on a rockstar career. With all of its features, the PB-Shorty offers an extremely well-priced overall package, as one has come to know and almost expect from Harley Benton.

Body of the Harley Benton PB-Shorty SBK Standard Series Shortscale Electric Bass - front view

All the features a bass needs

A poplar body, a maple neck, and a laurel fingerboard are the basis of the Harley Benton PB-Shorty. The scale is 762mm long and is about 10cm shorter than the 864mm of a "full-size" instrument. The nut width of 42mm and the C-profile of the neck provide a familiar playing feel and a comfortable grip for the fretting hand. The split-coil pickup and the passive electronics with a volume and a tone control have defined the typical P-bass sound for over 60 years, and the PB-Shorty is no exception. But the sound is not the only thing that matters – a pleasing appearance is also important. The PB-Shorty's design, finish, vintage-style machine heads, and pickguard create a suitably authentic look. The black lacquer finish is also absolutely timeless and fits every style.

Body of the Harley Benton PB-Shorty SBK Standard Series Shortscale Electric Bass - back view

For players of all sizes

It goes without saying that smaller basses also fit smaller hands, and the Harley Benton PB-Shorty is thus perfectly suited for children, teenagers, and all those who find it difficult to play "normal" electric basses because of their size. Even guitarists who occasionally pick up a bass will certainly find it much easier to switch between instruments with a short scale, as the scale of the Harley Benton PB-Shorty is very close to that of a guitar. Of course, a small bass also takes up less space, which comes in handy if you often travel with your instrument on public transport such as buses and trains. Here too, the Harley Benton PB-Shorty can make life easier.

Headstock on the Harley Benton PB-Shorty SBK Standard Series Shortscale Electric Bass

About Harley Benton

Since 1998, the Harley Benton brand has been catering for the needs of numerous guitarists and bassists. In addition to an extensive range of stringed instruments, Thomann's house brand also offers a wide choice of amplifiers, speakers, effect pedals, and other accessories. In total, the range includes over 1,500 products. Built by established names in the industry, all Harley Benton products combine quality and reliability at attractive and affordable prices. The continuous expansion of the range ensures that Harley Benton always provides new, exciting, and innovative products that keep players perfectly in tune with the musical world, day after day.

Small bass - big sound

With short-scale basses, it is not only practical aspects such as size that make a difference. They also have a very special sound that is indispensable to music history - consider Paul McCartney, for instance. The shorter the scale compared to the same string gauge, the bassier the sound - some definition and sustain is also lost, however. These traits are ideal for styles like Blues, Rock, 60s Soul, and almost anything that can be labelled “vintage”. Here, a transparent and defined bass sound tends to push itself too much into the spotlight and doesn't really want to be integrated into the mix. In these cases, short-scale basses like the PB-Shorty offer a great alternative, especially in combination with flatwound strings.

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23 Customer ratings

5 17 Customers 4 4 Customers 3 2 Customers 2 0 Customers 1 0 Customers

4.7 / 5

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18 Reviews

I like it

Markinhos 12.02.2024

I am an amateur guitarist. I have an electric guitar, two classical guitars and one acoustic. It's my first bass. It has hum sound and it is the only negative point that I see, although I suppose it has an easy solution. For the price and taking into account that I am far from being an expert, the quality-price ratio is great.

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A shorty that doesn't come up short...

Mrpix75 02.02.2025

Just recently received this bass, need to scale down in respect of neck for health/functional reasons, and this is the answer to my problems, may upgrade or modify the nut as I have fitted it with Pyramid "Rooftop" stings and the E is .112, so it's guage is causing a small amount of fret buzz, but this is in no way the a fault of HB,

The finish is flawless, the frets are smooth, the tuners are solid and the pickups are as punchy as you like, may upgrade to EMG Geezer Butlers, but again, this is a personal choice, all in all, does it sound like a £1k bass? No, but equally it sounds nowhere like a £99 bass, imho, it can stand up against my £380 Squire Jaguar (with flatwounds) that cost near 4X more, HB definitely got this one right 🤘🏼

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Heavy head, short neck, strong output

Midwinter Apathy 12.07.2025

I had an elbow injury 2.5 years ago and had to sell my Jackson 5-string and Marcus Miller 4-string basses due to intensive pain and stuff...
I was looking at various options neck wise, since I still needed a bass guitar for my recordings, when someone advised me to try a short-scale.
I didn't want to spend a lot of money, nor I am fond of returning products to the dealers, so I bought this one and never really looked back!

The guitar is cheap, but the build quality does not really lack!
For this price, you can't really buy a decent bass guitar, let alone a short-scale.

Pros:
- It plays well and stays in tune
- Neck and fretboard are really comfortable, frets are nicely done
- The pickup delivers quite a punch, sometimes it's even hard to tame it :)
- Finish is flawless and for a satin one it's not really hard to mantain
- The overal build quality is really good

Cons:
- Cheap electronics; volume knob is really sensitive and works weird, while the bass sometimes buzzes and "rumbles" when turning the knobs, so I may replace both pots and pickups someday
- A very strong neck-dive (can be fixed by changing the tuning heads and adding some weight at the back strap holder and the electronics cavity)
- I really dislike the pickguard color, but it's nothing since it doesn't affect the funcionality or playability

Overall, I would really recommend this guitar for beginners, occasional/everyday home use or if you're looking to try something new.

For this price, you can't really go wrong with this little guy! :)

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Bardzo fajnie!

B K 13.06.2024

Kupiłem go jako prezent dla przyjaciółki, która mieszka w Polsce. Bardzo jej się spodobał!

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Harley Benton PB-Shorty SBK Standard Series

Electric Bass