Rogue VB100 Violin Bass

Just an up date to my previous post.

I fanally got around to putting flat wounds (Fender 9050M, .055-.105) on my Rogue. I thought this baby BOOMED before? That was nothing. It sounds absolutely fantastic now. And with the heavier strings I was able to lower the action a bit as well. How the heck can they sell such a superb axe for so little bucks?

(Pssst. Hey MF...if your listening. Upgrade the chinsy knobs and pick guard, put some decent strings on it and charge a grand. It's worth it.)

Just got it from MF and I assume it is a 2002 issue. It has all of the features you have come to expect from a Hofner copy. Back in 1966 when I was first learning bass I owned a Univox Copy of a Beatle Bass.
It played well but did not really approach the aesthetics of the Hofner. I have played Hofners (friend's basses not mine) and I recall them being "delicate". The Rogue (probably SAMICK) is not delicate. It is well made and very aesthetically close to the Hofner basic issue model. I like this bass. No buzzes on the neck. I did lower the action and I put GHS light guage flatwounds (not because this is a retro bass but because I hate roundwounds on any bass!!!)
I had to adjust the position of the floating bridge and ironically it looks arranged the same way McCartney's bass appears in the photo in Ulatimate Guitars (the hard cover photo book)that is, the treble end is angled further away from the neck than is the bass end of the bridge.) However, the finish on this bass is the plasticky polyeurathane (but what do you expect for a bass that sells for anywhere from $400 to $200 new....I paid $199 on a MF special deal)
I would have paid a bit more for it especially when compared to an actual Hofner. I love short scale basses not only because I have smallish "girly" hands...but I do rather like the bassier and deeper sound more...

as for the sound...well it has a mellow tone and it sounds like a bass...but before I would invest in replacement pickups (I won't)...after all some of my favorite players used a washtub bass to good avail (The Jim Kweskin Jug Band, for example)I would just buy a good DI/preamp for tone manipulation...simple as that...

it was set up nicely from the shipper..but as I said I did lower it a bit action wise....and re-intonated the bridge, which is fine as long as it lasts...you can easily replace this with a high quality ebony bridge if you like...
take the pickguard off...it is tacky....
it looks better without one anyway...if this were still the 1960's and I were still playing in DREAMLAND CHOO CHOO (go to the "My First Band" website and look up DCC)I would leave it on for the "mod" look..but not now...

nothing lasts forever...(even the 1960's...darn...)but it will hold up to most responsible playing...if you do a "Who thing" and smash your equipment...well, then no...but under normal conditions...it will age gracefully....I put a straplock system on it...and I have to tell you...when I unscrewed the old screws..wood dust did not fall out...as it does on so many NAME BRAND instruements...go figure...

MF seems fair for the first 45 days..after that you are on your own...

I like this instrument...I would have preferred a nitrocellulose finish...but not for $199,right? It looks the part and it sounds close enough....maybe a little different but not inferior to a Hofner.
It is not photogravure as some reviewers have stated...it is just a film thin veneer of flamed maple..but what do you want for $200....????
the wood construction is solid and it sounds good...what more do you want...besides don't you all agree that guitar prices are completely out of the realm of reality today.....??? I can no longer afford the class of instruments I used to readily buy back in the 60's and 70's....way too much inflation...some is expected but this is ridiculous....

Great features on this bass.. 4 strings..violin shaped..although made in Korea, very well put together. Nice neck and easily accesible higher frets. Read other reviews for the technical mumbojumbo. Came with a allen wrench and a cord.

I play only Beatles!! This bass is a Beatle fan's dream. The neck pickup roars with McCartney bass and sound. This bass provides great, powerful bass when needed and more trembley bass when asked for. I love it! Runs circles around my Ibanez bass.

The action on this bass was low (the way I like it). No humming or feedback occured at all. The finish is a dream and to someone who isn't obsessed with the Beatles (like me), is a dead ringer to Paul McCartney's. Everything seems to be great on this bass! The finish is glossy and a real eye catcher. I can't seem to keep my eyes off of this new bass.

Haven't took it outside yet, although I wish I could take it everywhere (to show my pride as a Beatles fan).... this bass is just beautiful!

I like dealing with Musiciansfriend.. although some of their operators on the phone can tend to be a bit rude like you're wasting their time. Not all of them though. I saw it advertised in one of their catalogs for sheaper than their online price.. they refunded the difference with no problem. I reccommend them.

I have been playing bass for about 2 years now. I have been playing guitar for about 8 and drums for 3. I have no regret in buying this bass. Great looks and superior tone make this Hofner knock-off an excellent buy. Great vintage tone for 60's Invasion music.. please don't disgrace this guitar and buy it for metal music.

Ya'll know the features by now. Mine ain't no different. The construction is supurb. The finish flawless. The only reason it doesn't get a 10 is due to the chinsy looking knobs and the fact that the switch combinations seem to be backwards, or something. Not logical anyway. Or maybe I'm just dense.

I have no problem giving it a 10 here. This baby get exactly the tone I've been looking for. Neck pickup, played with fingers right over the end of the neck....BOOM. And this is with the stock, round wound strings. Can't wait to try flat wounds on it.

Tons of volume too.

Oh, and you can get brighter tone by using the bridge pickup, or a combination of both pickups, but that ain't what I was going for, so I ain't played around at that end much.

9 hear folks. Only 'cause I get a little fret buzz sometimes. The action is exactly where I like it. I may try adjusting the neck to get rid of the buzz. After I change the strings.

As I said before, the finish is flawless, and the frets are dressed well. The pickgaurd is a little cheap looking but I don't notice it that much. I've also had no problem with the bridge. And I was able to get nearly perfect intonation by just "twisting" it a bit. I moved the E string side towards the neck about 1/16" and there is was.

hard to say. Haven't had it that long. But it seems well built. So I not to concerned right now. Maybe in 20 years I will be.

As I understand it Rogue is Musician's Friend's house brand. And I haven't had the best of relations with MF. They've messed up a number of orders, and even mis advertised a product and refused to make good on it.

I've been playing bass since 1972. Back then I was doing gigs, now it's just at home for my own enjoyment.

I also have a Washburn AB-10 acoustic/electric bass, which took some work (the action was atrocious when I got it). For guitars I have a Fender AmStd Strat, Epiphone Riviera, Washburn D17CQE acoustic/electric, Ibanez Concord acoustic (made in '76) and an Epiphone AJ15 acoustic. All my amps are practice amps. A Peavey MicroBass, Park G15 and an Epiphone EP1000 bass.

I'd love to have a Hofner (played one back in the mid 70's, loved it) but I'm ain't willing to spend that much for living room concerts. Maybe if I was still gigging.

I looked at a number of short scale basses before choosing this one. I didn't much care for the Epi EB-3 & Viola and the Rivoli cost too much. Thought about a Squire Bronco but decided against it. The Rogue suits me very well. It's light, feels good in the hands and sounds terrific. If it was stolen I'd buy another, then hunt down the dog and shoot 'im.

Hofner violin Beatle bass copy made overseas somewhere. Made of plywood... nice finish though. Has 2 p/u's, one volume per p/u, switches for either or both p/u's, and a rhythm/solo switch which seems to cut the highs at the rhythm setting. All passive electronics, with nice closed-back chrome tuners (better than hofner tuners), rosewood fretboard and floating bridge, short scale 30" hollowbody... yada yada...

This bass is really nice for plunky real old skool rock and soul tone. Pickups are nice and quiet. I set it on Bass-ON, Treble-OFF, and SOLO, which I believe is the way Paul McCartney sets his, by the way. I use some cheap light gauge short scale flatwounds on it and run it through an Ampeg B100R combo and it kicks pretty good. The intonation is never really perfect, especially up the neck, but that's all in the design. I would NOT recommend this for modern or heavy music, period.

I bought it used and I set it up myself as far as neck relief, string height, intonation, etc. It is cheaply built, and it has those typical cheap bass quirks, like slightly missaligned hardware and sloppy fretwork... but with some 0000 superfine steel wool and just a little elbow grease, you can work the fretboard and frets pretty smooth.

It's a cheap lightweight bass, and I wouldn't use it on my 4-5 hour club gigs without a backup, ever. But for what it is, it seems pretty reliable.

I've been playing bass/acoustic guitar for 15 years, and my mainstay bass is a Fender Am PBass. If this bass were stolen, I probably wouldn't buy one again. It's just a cheap, fun, little novelty bass that's cool because it looks like Sir Macca's bass, at a tenth of the price of the real deal!!

Purchased in 2001 from Musician's Friend. Won't go into a lot of the features... already covered by most of the other reviews. I can say it is truly very similar to the Hofner, which I have owned as well. I bought my Hofner while in Germany for 200DM ($50), all the money I could scrape together at age 16 in 1966... from a music shop in Munich where I was attending High School. I sold my Hofner about 8 years ago because I was offered an embarrassing amount, as the buyer had to have it and I could resist his offers no longer... (this was in the early 90's, in the days of eBay's infancy which has since really taken off and has made the market for originals and reissues very available and relatively inexpensive). However, I missed having it to play so decided to try one of the clones.

The sound is excellent and I can not tell any difference the Rogue sound that is produced vs my old Hofner. The neck pickup has a nice warm sound, but it (like the Hofner) sounds best in the Solo, and both pickups on mode. There is very little hum (unlike the Hofner which had some unless you grounded out the bridge pickup with your hand). So, I would have to say overall, it really sounds better. I play through a Peavey 60W KB60. So, comparing with the original, it sounds better, therefore very high marks.

Action is good, the bridge is cheap looking, but functional. Didn't care for the strings. I like the Nickle flat wound like my Hofner originally came with... flat wound produces less buzz too. I was very pleased with the finish...very nice workmanship.. I did not care for the pick guard's quality or the quality of the switch panel. The Hofner was OK, but this is a little worse than that. The tone switches are flimsy indeed. I think I will switch out the knobs with original Hofner as well (I have an extra set).

My Hofner was a work horse and very durable. I played it for many years, toting it around in a bag I made myself out of old ticking. The tuners are much better than Hofner. My sense is the switch won't hold up as well and will probably require repair or replacement in the years to come. I have used this bass several times since it's purchase and I feel very confident in its durability so far. Be very careful with the switches though.

have never dealt with Rogue, but have always been satisfied with my dealing with Musician Friend.

Have played on and off since the early 60's, Have another Hofner (strat style) bass, as well as a Framus 335 type guitar I also bought used in Germany, a Mosrite Ventures guitar that I had shipped to me in Germany in 67, more recently a LesPaul, a Fender Stat, and a Yamaha single cutaway acoustic electric. I used to play the surf/beatles/stones/yardbirds stuff when it was just being released. I still do, for my own pleasure, and use this bass in a little blues group I sometimes play in. It produces some very nice blues sounds. I recommend a hard shell case for this guitar, wish I had gotten one for my Hofner way back when. I would definitely replace it if it were lost or stolen. For the price it is actually better than my old Hofner.

Hofner Beatle bass knock off. Two pickup hollowbody with a set neck. Flamed maple top and back. Nice solid feel to the tuners very smooth. Two volume controls, no tone controls at all. An on/off switch for each pickup and one that's marked solo/rhythm that seems to drop the volume controls out of the circuit. 30" scale, very slim very playable neck. Korean made I think (no country of origin sticker)

Very ROUND on the neck pickup Bridge pickup is a little tinny but then again I think that about all bass neck pickups. It's quite quiet not a hum to be heard. I had a Hofner back in 1965 and I really think this sounds better, the Hofner staple pickups were very weak. For the genre I play 60's and blues it sounds perfect. I don't miss the tone controls at all. Punchy with both pickups and the Solo switch engaged. As stated in other reviews put .050 - .100 round wound strings on right after you get it out of the box.

Finish is almost flawless. I bought this as a blem and could not find a blem anywhere. Until I took off the bridge to remove the packing foam, there was a hole in the finish directly under the bridge. Sunburst is very well done and the gloss is smooth and even. I can't believe I paid less than $200 for this guitar. Factory setup was non existant since you have to remove the bridge to remove the little piece of foam that protects the body during shipping. I had to raise the bridge to get rid of a little 12th fret buzz. Intonation was not a problem it's within 3 cents at the 12th. The bridge is a bit cheesy looking and I will probably make a new one out of ebony. As stated in other reviews the pickguard is a really cheap piece of plastic and the knobs appear to be off a Chinese toy radio. A piece of nice pearloid from StewMac and a little time will fix the pickguard, and replacement knobs are cheap.

It feels very solid and if doesn't get used as a canoe paddle or cricket bat it should last a good long time.

I've bought a lot of stuff from Musicians Friend over the years and have always had very good service. They took back stuff that was crap even though it was on closeout without so much as a whimper. All and all very nice people.

Overall I give it an 8, 8 1/2. It sounds good, very playable, finish is beautiful. I've been playing almost 40 years and have owned a lot of basses. This one is a real value. I am amazed at the quality that can be purchased now.

Well, you know the features by now... mainly it is small made for GIRLIE hands!

What a wimpy guitar. Get a Fender Bass. The only bass is the Fender Bass!

My HUGE manly fingers cover like 4 frets at once... this would be more playable for a GIRLIE man!

This bass will stand up fine if you treat it like you treat dinner when you cook it for the man coming home like the girl you are. But if you are a big MAN like me, you will wish you bought THE Fender Bass

They were okay for a second, but they seemed too woosie to me so I got REALLY super pissed and hung up. What a bunch of SISSIES!

This bass is for people who want to get in touch with their feminine side. It is fun, true, but I am truly too manly for it. i heard to get the full effect of this bass you need to shave your legs and wear pantyhose and high heels like a real panzie girl. STUPID!

If you've read the previous reviews, then you'll know the features. Like every previous review, MAKE SURE YOU CHANGE THE STRINGS! I'd like a better bridge, and I can't say I'm a fan of the big tuners. But it DOES stay in tune, which is the important thing, right?

A nice, warm, round tone. I have a GK 410RB head with a Line 6 Bass Pod. My cabs are GK 4x12 & 1x15. It sounded great live, and it also records great. It sounds both GEAR and FAB.

The bass was set up pretty well. The action is great, and the neck is very playable. The finish is beautiful. I get a very slight buzzing at the 4th fret, but adjusting the bridge, or getting a new one, will take care of that. I took off the pick-guard, but only because I wanted to.

It seems pretty reliable and durable. I mean, I haven't dropped it yet. But I haven't done that with any of my other basses either. If you take reasonable care of it, I don't see why it won't stand up for years to come.

This is the 4th guitar (the others a Guild acoustic/Epiphone Casino/Danelectro 58 Longhorn) that I've bought from Musician's Friend. I've never had a problem with them. The only problem -- if you call it that -- was the gig bag was on backorder. I got it about a week later.

I've been playing for about 27 years, and the past 19 in the same band. I've sported a few basses...my most recent a Rick 4001, and a Danelectro 58 Longhorn reissue. Until further notice, this will be my stage bass with the Dan as my back-up. I'm a huge fan of the short scale neck, and the tone is warmer than the Dan. For the price and features, this is really a nice value. And yes, when I strapped on the bass, I stood in front of the mirror. It IS cool looking, and let's face it, and probably one of the reasons we all bought it. If you're in a band that does a lot of KISS covers, this probably isn't the bass for you. But if you're doing stuff in the Beatles/XTC/NRBQ vein, then this is a nice find.

Really nicely finished bass. 4 string made in Korea. Laminated body. Passive p/u's. Violin bass

The tone is killer... but here's the catch: The particular bass that I had would not intonate correctly despite all of my efforts and considerable know-how. I was very dissapointed with it in that reguard. I know, it's a Hofner copy and Hofners aren't known for dead-on intonation, but I play in a cover band 2-3 nights a week with some crackerjack players and I don't need a bass that sounds like it's always out of tune. It's great for Beatle tone, however.

The action and finish was very good. I had to slide the bridge up on the body in my attempts at intonating it but it really was a looker!!!

This really is a primo bass as far as hardware, tuners, etc. The rosewood bridge is kind of soft but this isn't a bass to be played like a wild man either.

Distributed through musician's friend. Despite many bad reports, I've always had good experiences with the company.

I've been playing bass for 15 yrs. I own several nice acoustic guitars and a '95 American standard P-bass. Classic ampeg svt amp, etc.
I should note that I returned this bass for a refund for the reason stated above. If you can stand a cool retro vibe Beatle bass that sounds like it's all out of tune, this may be your ticket. Not for me though.