Hohner B2A

Im pretty sure most people looking at this very differnt bass will know what it is atleast by the time they are reading this. Its the same dimensions as a steienberger bass, the tunners on the thing is fantastic, all licensed from steinberger

I bought 2 of these bass's, thats right i have 2 of the same bass. I had a fender jazz bass, i moved to a muscicman bongo which im ironically selling tommrrow...the first hohner b2a i got last xmas and it was well used but not used up. I was so blown away by the bass and loved how i felt i felt this tremendous urge to get a brand new one which i did in june. The sound on both of them is differnt, my older hohner bass has EMG clone pick ups with hohner written on them. And then my brand new one has pick ups in with no label on them at all.

Its full of sound, you can dial the pickups in very nicely, and its great because you have so many sound options with the two pick ups and dialing between the two is static noise free. The music i play is this..
chic
kajagoogoo
duran duran
lots of funky soul stuff
fun dancy stuff.

the bass can get very low i you set it that way, the fact it is active gives it alot of lower kick and boost, but since im no rocker i dont use that and i rarely use both pick ups full on anyway simply because the music i love isnt like that.

When i bought my second bass i found the neck was a little differnt than the first. Which is interesting because both bass's are through bodies and necks...I like my newer bass neck, the older one is fine but they must have made some modification in the nexk..what ever they did it was good.

I cant say anything bad about this bass because there isnt anything i can find with it, i would not own two of them if i did not find them amazing instruments. I think the pick ups are fine, the whole bass is easy to set up..

Again ive got 2 of these..I think my first one has to be atleast 10 years old. I did buy it used off ebay. Its not very pretty but its far from a piece of crap say..since they are so minimalistic they are the easiest bass ive ever carried around..just becareful because the soft case made for them makes them look like a gun, i had some stranger out ask me once if it was a gun!

My new one is under warranty for one year...
im not really wporried about the bass because ive got 2 of them and my shop i go to see me as a good customer, i equally like them as a shop and 7 years cant be wrong.

im 35 i started playing bass in 1984, John taylor from duran duran was a huge influence on me.DO i wish i had another bass? THats sort of absurd! If i had the money or won the lottery, you can bet my collection would be something to be proud of, though i love my 2 hohners,,if i were rich id have them painted differnt coloures.
I love the way it feels in my hands, when i play my musicmanbongo it doesnt feel nearly as good as playing the neck on the hohner, this is why the bongo is getting sold, alot of people would think i was a fool to do so, but i dont feel this way. The musicman is sorta like a rickenbacker in the way they do one thing and one thing amazingly well with a distintct legendary sound...BUT out side those sounds and ranges thats what they do..but, there are bass;s out there that can do a hell of alot and i have to say i love the hohner b2a, it is the most comfortable bass ive ever played...I guess my only gripe with them is you have perhaps 4 or 5 string companies you can get the double ball strings from, I tend to order several packs at a time because i have to order them at all. What i mean is you dont have nearly the range in strings you would have with a traditional bass..but i think the ghs strings are nice and livley...the Labellas are ikky..they dont have great tone and feel cheap..but thats no fault of the bass.

Loved the shape from the first time I saw one in the 80's. Had to get one but didn't until this year. Wasted so much time and money (and energy) using other 'normal' basses. Wanted a fretless for Blues and Jazz but ended up with a normal B2A but love it all the same! Sound is amazing!!! Don't even need to put it through the Zoom B2 that I usally do. The only time that gets used is to tune it. And even then it's usually in tune! The only thing that affects it is heat; then it goes out by only a fraction. Once in, it stays in. The only thing that took me a while to get used to was not being able to move my right leg forward so that I could see the front of the fretboard, due to there being no body - you move your leg and the bass stays still!!!
The main thing about this bass isn't the fantastic shape, it's the fact that it's perfectly balanced and pretty light too - no pulling on your neck.
I've marked it down 1 as the neck is so long and the body so short, you have to re-think how you play...

The Hohner B2A suits all styles - well it did until I managed to get some HD flatwound strings. Now it plays MY kind of music in the style I like. With the two active pick-ups working, the bass control on full and the treble on 3/4 the sound really suits Blues and Jazz. I thought I'd never better my old Fender PB Fretless through the Zoom B2 with bass boost on but this is so much better, I sold the PB!!!

The action is real easy to adjust and I play it real low. The fit and finish is good but the nut at the top of the neck is a low point (see below)

I have one thing to say here, the nut!!! The screws holding it on are WAY TOO SMALL!!! The pull of the stardard strings was too much for them and pulled it upwards causing the neck to split!!!!!! A good friend of mine who makes guitars and me took it into his workshop, glues and clamped the neck and went home to think it over. Next day it looked a lot better but I had to rethink about the nut. We came up with the idea of using Araldite two pack rapid adhesive to help it along. This also helped to make up for the fact that the nut wasn't flush with the neck. We clamped it again and left it for a couple of days to completely set then fitted the standard string. With breath held, I took it to the recording studios and gave it 3 hours of use - no problems! I then fitted the HD Flatwounds - no prolems either! In fact, I've played it every day since (9 months) and it's never missed a beat (maybe Hohner should do the same?!)

Didn't use it as it was secondhand...

Taking the nut completely out of the equation, the bass is everything I thought it would be. I've adjusted my playing style so that I can reach the end of the bass and still see the fretboard when needed. I still find it hard to play near the neck for my prefered softer sounds when playing moody Jazz and Blues but that's something I just have to get use to.
Like some of the others have said, I've dropped this bass a number of times and it still comes back for more - but still in tune!
The only thing I might change it for is a genuine Steinberger L2 - but that's just snobbery. In fact having looked at an L2 for sale tonight on ebay in the US at around $3000 (starting bid) - I paid $200 - I really don't think it'd make THAT much difference to my playing. I think I'd keep this bass but would also like to add a 5 string fretless (if I could find one) just for the few times that I'd like to have a change when playing smooth Jazz.
(the score for this section DOESN'T include the nut)

Same as above....

pretty damn awesome. I used it about (mumble, mumble) years ago when
80's sounds where getting harder. loved the fact that it managed to do everything from Jam covers through to Blues with no issues. used
active about 90% of the time, liked the sound better.
HAve lent it to friends doing dirty-country and it fits in there just fine.

an awesome product. i'd been learning on a Fender jazz at school (sold to buy more sports equip!!) which had a similar sound.
Found the neck not too long (for a girl anyway). string replacement is the easiest thing i've done.

It's now 16 years since i brought it. i've dropped it (too) many times, but it just keeps on going. maybe it's German reliability, but it's a good product.

Never had to call them up for anything. Never had a problem with it.

I'd reccomend it for anyone wanting to get a basic, all purpose bass.
I played for about 5 years, then had to get a real job to pay bills.
I replace the bass if it were stolen, if i could get another in NZ that is...
i like the fact that it's small enough for a girl to play, but still enough of a gadget that guys like it too.
Also own a heavenly 65yr old Broadwood piano. fostered by a concert pianist at present - she loves this piano. beautiful crisp sound without the plinkyness of modern uprights.

This bass is a black Hohner B2A neck through bass bought new. It has a two octave neck and is fretted. The pick ups are 2 EMG Soap bars. This bass has an active passive toggle (no 9V battery, so not sure exactly how that piece works, but it does), the Steinberger bridge and a headless neck. This bass is equipped with two volume buttons (1 for each pick up) and a third button at the back that acts as a master volume and tone.

There are two main possibilites active and passive. This bass is not very interesting in passive mode I won't waste time on that. In active mode this bass has a precise almost piano sound with new strings. The lows are clear yet powerful and the highs are bighting and aggressive (a little too much some times). Depending upon how you use the pick up volumes and the tone you can go from a deep thunderous Reggae sound to a clear trebly contemporary jazz sound. I would say that in active mode this bass can handle the majority of musical situations with ease, however I don't picture it doing the same work as say a 'P' bass in a blues number.

The first bass that I received had to be replaced. It arrived (by mail) with a chip in the fret board, the master/tone buttom that would fall off during playing and a 3 CM crack in the finish at the knut area on the back of the neck. I contacted the dealer who contacted the distributor whom immediately offered to change the bass.
The replacement bass does not have any of these flaws, however I note that this bass generally seems fragile and I believe it could damage easily.

Both the original bass and the replacement were set up very well in terms of action. I had to tune the bass, but this took less than a minute thanks to the incredible Steinberger system.

The bass works very well in use, is not noisey, is very light and very easy to get used too (playing standing up, forget it in my opinion sitting down).

Time will tell. I'm sure that the hardware shall weather time well, however i am not so confident about the black finish.

When the first bass arrived damaged i was furious. I contacted the dealer but also Hohner in Germany. I could not believe it when the head of sales in the Hohner central called me and told me to get back in touch if problems were had with the local distributor (try that with Fender!!!). Luckily there were no further problems.

I wanted one of these for a while and Hohner don't make them in Lefty anymore. I was over the moon when I found MB Music and a lefty version on the net (the UK distributor seems to have a few left over, so grab em while you can). I would certainly buy one again if this instrument was stolen or damaged. It's a fabulous little instrument for the money, it's a pro sound for a starters price. In addition these basses are so cool (string changes in 2 minutes) and practical.
For it's unique design, value for money, great sound, fast string changes and lightness, I'm going to give it top marks for the price.
My other instruments are a Fretless StingRay and a US Precision Bass. Comparing the Hohner to these would be like trying to compare apples to oranges, so i won't. Hohner B2A is top value for money, go for it...

Entirely bog standard, black, fretted, tiny bodied, active, headless Steinberger type thingy. As far as I know, it's just like it was in the catalogue, but worn and a bit rusty around the hardware. It came in a nice, tiny hard case, but I don't know if that was specially built.

I use it completely passive - with the battery taken out you can use the active switch as an on/off switch for the guitar - and it gives me the punchy, trebly sound I'm after. I play through a Trace Elliot 712SMC combo with no effects, and if I want a warmer, bassier tone, the amp will give me that. I just have the volume and tone controls full up and use the amp's 7-band graphic. It gives me all the tone I need.

The bass came with a slightly high action, and medium gauge strings. I prefer lighter strings, so I whipped 'em on and the action dropped so it's just right. In six years nothing has needed to be adjusted.

The hardware has rusted slightly, which might have something to do with me sweating all over it and then leaving it in the band's freezing trailer between gigs.....

The guitar's finish is still glossy and lovely. The neck is slender and very fast, and with the little flippy thing underneath it, it's comfortable to play sitting down.

I've used it live for around 250 gigs over the last five years, and it's been horribly abused. I got in to the bad habit of leaving it in the trailer in winter, never cleaning it, leaving the strings on too long and getting fluorescent body paint splattered all over it (it's a long story)and it's been 100% reliable.

The tuners are a little stiff, but who cares? I never use them. Every time I pick it up, it's still in tune. If reliability is important to you, this is your instrument, and because it's tiny, it weighs nothing and is much less likely to collide with my trumpet player.

I have never had a back-up instrument, and the one time I broke a string on stage, I had a new one on and tuned in about 45 seconds. A complete restring takes less than five minutes! THIS IS A WORKING MAN'S BASS!!!

Haven't needed any help.

The Hohner B2A is no longer my #1 bass, as I finally got around to buying my dream instrument, a 4001, this year. But I've had it for years and worked it very hard, and I'm not sure many basses would have withstood the abuse so well. I might try using the active circuitry to get some new sounds and revive my interest in it.

Its small dimensions have many practical advantages, but I suppose it does look a bit daft. I've got photos of me playing it, and it's very eighties in look, but like I said, it's a working instrument, a practical tool.

I've been playing bass for twenty years, and have a 1972 Rickenbacker 4001 in natural wood and a purple Tanglewood 5-string for those bottom B moments. All put through the Trace Elliot 712SMC, sometimes with a huge Laney 4x12 bass cab for added air movement and visual overkill.

I also have a six string rig - a New Gibson SG Standard, Boss ME-50 floor effects and a Fender M-80 solid state combo

I love the B2A, and I think I'd replace it if I ever lost it. It's an awful lot of instrument for hardly any money. I downgrade it to a 9 on the basis of the looks alone.

Hohner B2A Headless Red Finish Black Hardware (used).
I have omitted the features since they are already listed here.

Suits my playing style very well. I use it live and in the studio. Very quiet, rich full sound (neck through and active!). I use it with a L6 Bass Pod, so tons of tones can be achieved!

Since I bought it used, I cannot comment on setup from the factory. The action was set very high when I recieved it, and the strings were in bad shape. The pickups were set low. The neck needed adjustment. This was a good test as far as seeing how easy or hard it would be for me to setup. I got out my allen wrench set and bought new strings (Labella) and went to work. Trial and error and a couple hours later, my mission was accomplished! Intonation was the most difficult part of the setup. The finish has a few dings which the previous owner touched up. The tuners are stiff, some worse than others, but I can overlook this since it holds it tuning even after sitting for long periods of time.

I have only used this bass once live. The sound was great and I didn't have any problems whatsoever. The hardware seems very durable. the same can be said for the finish, even with the few dings and dents. The original strap buttons were replaced with strap locks, as is with all my basses! Seems to be a very dependable bass and since the initial setup I have made no adjustments. I never gig without a backup but I would with this bass if I had to.

I have never dealt with customer support. I would like to buy a detunable bridge but have had no luck in locating parts.

When I purchase a bass I'm quick to compare it to other great basses in my arsenal. If it can't measure up to the big guns I get rid of it. This bass made the grade! Plus it's very easy on the shoulder. Also has a nice thin neck. If it were lost or stolen I would buy another, most likely a 5 string cherryburst!

This is Hohner's licenced headless/bodyless design from Steinberger. Unlike a Steinberger, there's more wood in it. 2 pickups (branded Hohner), switchable 9V preamp. Active tone control only. Headless with bridge tuners and drop-tuner lever on the E. If you want a Steinberger for no money, where else do you go?

It's fretted.

I use the bass passive only. In this mode there is no tone control, but you can alter the balance between the pickups for different tones. I find this fine for the 60's jazz that I play.

I use a Polytone Minibrute 15". I like the sound - very warm, and more powerful than my other bass (Fender Jazz - stock pickups). The sounds I get are 'standard neck PU', 'standard bridge PU', and various shades inbetween.

I don't hear problems with noise, but have not recorded with the bass.

I bough the instrument secondhand. I haven't altered the setup. It seems very stable. The finish is well-applied for what I assume is a budget bass.

I think Steinberger must have positively influenced Hohner on quality so as to not cheapen their brand name.

It's a solid budget pro instrument. I've gigged with it for 2 years (don't know how old it is) without problems. The jack has just started to play up, so I'm looking for a new jack socket.

The bridge tuners are a bit stiff, but the bass keeps its tuning well. I don't have confidence in the drop tuner.

No unusual vices noticed. Because of its shape, the bass seems to get fewer knocks. The strap came off once - the buttons aren't great.

I e-mailed Hohner UK today about the jack socket. No reply yet :-)

I am a little concerned that their website seems not very well-maintained.

I've been playing bass (elec & URB) for about twelve years. I had been looking for one of these for a year before I found this one, and it delivered exactly as promised. I carry it in a rifle case; through airports; even after Sept 11th, without problems.

I really like this bass. I can take it anywhere (with a Korg Pandora - it don't make any noise unplugged) and, until the jack wore out, it has been very reliable.

If I lost it, I would buy another one immediately. If I saw the fretless one, I would buy it too.

Neck type: Maple, through-neck, headless, two octave
Fingerboard: Ebony on fretless, rosewood on fretted
Body Type: Maple, Steinberger shape
Finish: Black gloss body and neck
Pickup(s): Twin EMG soapbar active pickups
Bridge: Steinberger-style with built-in tuners
Controls: Individual pick-up volumes, bass and treble cut and boost, active/passive selector switch with red LED

I'd always associated Hohner with cheap harmonicas but this bass just blows that away. I bought a pair of these little basses secondhand, one fretted and one fretless, after a nightmare gig last December when I literally had to carry all my gear three miles to the gig. From a portability point of view they are superb - with the headless construction and Steinberger shape they're little more than a long stick. Quite comfortable to play, being light, although they take a bit of getting used to and are equipped with a leg-rest for playing when sitting down. The pickups are quite powerful and you get a surprisingly deep tone and good sustain considering the lack of body weight. Active electrics are powerful and switching from passive to active could be a recipe for disaster for your speakers; there is a little trim pot beneath the electrics cover to adjust the gain on the on-board pre-amp so you can minimise this risk.

The bass is fairly well made and all the hardware looks well engineered. The only real gripe is the bridge. The tuners are a bit stiff but work well, but the adjustment for string height and intonation is a bit primitive, although with some effort you can get the right set-up.

I have had these basses for nearly a year now, with no problems being evident. The toggle switch is vulnerable and could easily be bent or snapped off if not careful. Otherwise, it's all quite solid. I'd use it on a gig without a backup if the active capability wasn't critical - you can switch to passive and still carry on if your battery dies. The neck is stable and doesn't seem to need any adjustment. String availability is the only problem - it uses double ball end strings which are harder to get hold of.

Have not needed to contact the company, so no knowledge here.

I've been playing 17 years and also own a Warwick. These basses complement the Warwick quite well and make good everyday instruments for playing and practising with. The portability is the real plus. They look really cool, too, especially the all-black fretless. A minor drawback is that the unusual shape means that if you want a flight case for it then you'll have to have one custom-made, which is expensive. Hohner supply a padded gig bag which is quite good and makes carrying easy (you could put one over each shoulder, leaving your hands free to carry your amp, if you end up in the "nightmare winter gig" situation I described earlier). The only problem with the gig bag is that it's shaped like a rifle case, and with the strict gun laws we have in the UK you need to leave extra time to get to your gig because you're probably going to get stopped on the way by the police!