Hohner Professional PJ Bass

mid 80's
fretless four string PJ configuration
pasive pick ups with two volume knobs (one for each pick up)
and one tone knob
tuner pegs are located on the top side of headstock
1 5/8" at the nut
black gloss plywood body, ebony fretboard, matching black gloss headstock
I give it an eight cause it has what any bassist should need and nothing more

I've gotten lots of complements over the years on my bass sound,
Sound guys as well as fans give me props for my tone
I play mostly rockin various bands, with strong roots in rockabilly, postpunk,country, funk, and experimental weird jazzystuff
Peavey MarkIVw/ a 2 15" cab, Peavey TKO, and Ampeg SVT3pro w/ four 10 cab
And an armada of effects (mostly synths, filters, and distortion devices)
a few years ago I replaced the pick ups with seymour duncan quarter pound passive P and J pick ups as the old ones succumbed to too many outdoor rainstorms and in door beer fests
I've always thought that this bass sounded very cool but now it has grown(aged) with me and now it really rocks!
I also replace the regular round wounds with ground wounds to help the fretless fretting board last longer (flat wounds as well as heavy gauged strings sound like total shit on this bass)
the Jazz pick up is noisy, but that is normal for a single coil pick up
It has been my only bass for 10 of the 16 years that I have been playing the bass
and it is much more special to me than the $1200 fender 50th anniversary P bass
that i bought for my growing collection of various basses and guitars
I give it a 7 But it is a 10 when you have the right stings and pick ups

i've always thought that this bass looked good!
and it looks as good to me 16 years from the day that it was given to me.

I have treated this bass like shit. I,ve shattered the pickguard(replaced custom),
stored it in the trunk of a car for a few years while looking for a home...
i live in florida and the sun and the humidity made the neck unplayable
everything that can happen has happened short of fire and submersion...
Had it set up by experienced friends as well as professionals
Made my own choices for strings and pick ups and it has become my favorite bass
The Hohner was the first bass given to me by a guitarist friend who needed to replace the bassist in his steadily gigging band. 8 is because this thing has had to be repaired and adjusted from all of the abuse I have suffered it (ergo; not indestructable), however, it is probably better because of it!

?

Hohner professional PJ Bass left handed, made around 1990 i think.
20 medium frets, rosewood fingerboard, 4 string.
Volume for each pick up and a master tone.
PJ Pick up configuration, passive pick ups.
Body style seems to be like the precision style but with much better contouring for comfort, also very light weight.
Standard die cast bridge.
Non locking tuners, unsure of make but very solid.
Neck is thinner than a precision but slightly wider than a jazz.

Features is a six because although its not that special whats there is capable of doing its job well.

This bass combines P and J pick ups so it can give a good heavy rumbling sound with just the P, or with just the J there is a nice biting funky slap tone.
Using both pickups together gives a great array of interesting tones suitable for nearly every style and allows the bass to be heard. With both pickups rngaged the bass has a lot of charater.

I rate this a 7 because, again, although nothing mind blowing, the bass gives a lot of flexibility for tone which is always appreciated.

The action is easily adjustable so can be quickly set however desired. I prefer a medium to low action on this bass as the frets are only mediums so the lower action helps me play faster and with less effort. I cannot complain about any set up details at all, its all down to personal preference and everything is easily adjustable.

The fit and finish are all sound and have lasted possibly 14 years of being played and rested, played and rested. There are no flaws from manufacturing. The tuners and bridge show no signs of corrosion etc. because this bass has been very well looked after.

I rate this an 8 because the bass deserves high marks considering its price.

This bass is awesome for playing live, the light weight really helps.

The tuners and bridge feel very solid and feel like quality straight away. The truss rod keeps the neck perfectly straight and im not aware of it ever having been adjusted.

I rate this bass a 9 because it is very reliable and has proved to be very durable.

I have never dealt with hohner but im sure that such a big name would give good customer service.

This bass is a great all rounder, the only htings it cant do is fretless! The variety of tones is excellent for a passive bass of this price and the overall value for money is excellent. It is miles in front of starter basses ( i had owned a tanglewood P copy costing only #25 less than this and the difference is amazing )

This bass would be excellent for a serious beginner, but also is good as a fretted bass for mainly fretless players ( like me! ) or would be a fantastic back-up bass to a semi-pro.

I dont know what year it was made, but it was in near perfect condition when i bought it used a year ago. It's made in Japan.
It's a four-string, 20 fret bass.
I think it's plywood, but I'm not sure since it's black.
It has two volume knobs and a tone.
Pickups are: bridge: J-bass-style pickup. Neck: P-Bass-style pickup (Hence the name "PJ Bass") Both original (to the best of my knowledge)
All passive.
Neck is made of some not too dark wood, with a very dark fretboard.
Bodyshape is that of a P-Bass, but the pickguard is shaped slightly different around the controls.
Bridge is not string-through
pretty decent tuners.
full scale neck.

its a 6 cause it has what most basses have and nothing more.

It plays most genres. It doesn't have a very distinct sound, and therefore plays ok in most cases.
I play it on a Trace Elliot head and cab, and it sounds allright, nothing extraordinary.
The best sound for me is with both pickups on, and tone all the way down. It doesn't blur/slur as much that way. (not that it sounds bad on other settings.
The bridge pickup on its own sounds very thin, but just fine for slapping.

again a six for versatility and "okay-ness"

The bass was setup at Woodstock Guitars, ?rhus, Denmark, Europe and they did a great job. They set it up so it was easy to play, because I used to play guitar most. It didnt have any scrathes when I bought it, but now... it doesn't scratch easily though, I dropped a bongo drum on it once...

One major flaw though: It has no balance, and that makes it virtually impossible to sit comfortably with. The headstock (or neck i dont know) is much too heavy. Standing with it is possible if you pull it up under your chin, and if you have a really good strap. It' a bit slow to play too, but I'm not that fast myself, so it's not a problem for me.

The setup really suited my needs, and i didn't pay any extra, but it's a four, due to the poor balance.

This bass will withstand everything, it has no apperent weak spots.
Hardwares solid, nothing fancy though. Strap buttons nice an big, they wont let you down. It has never failed in any way, except for being mediocre. as to the question of gigging without backup, I would fight a war with this bass withuot backup. It's strong and solid and massive and it can take a beating.

it only gets a nine, cause the knobs tend to come loose, but that's easily fixed.

Never dealt with company, but Woodstock guitars is the best guitar place in Denmark, always helpful.

I wish I'd tried the bass on before buying it, and not just played it sitting down, but hey. If it were stolen or lost, I'd collect my insurance and use the money on beer. This bass has never been my favourite instrument in the world, and never will be, but for goofing around it's allright.

I got cause i needed one bad, cause we didn't have a bassplayer in the band. It took 5 minutes to pick it out, and 15 minutes to have it adjusted. I took it because it was cheap.
If you ever should come across one at a reasonable price, and if you happened to need a bass that does what it's supposed to and nothing more, buy it! It's not that bad, but it's of course not very good either. I don't know.