Hohner HS-40

Guessing it was made in 2007-08
22 frets
lam maple top, very clear grain
standard 3 way selector, 2 tone 2 volume pots
2 Tesla Humbucking
passive
the ebay ad claimed the top was spruce and the neck mahogany....I am no wood expert so this is just my observation, BUT top back and sides appear to be lam maple, neck appears to be solid one piece maple with rosewood fretboard...not a complaint as these materials are still very good, but I believe the spruce top only comes in the trans amber model of this guitar.
multi-ply binding on body, fretboard, binding on f-holes
finished in vintage tobacco sunburst (hence the VS designation)
335 style body
tune-o-matic bridge with stop tail
non- locking cast sealed tuners
neck is on the fat side, but not huge, medium frets, 24 3/4 scale
included allen key and cable

I play rock, blues, a little bit of jazz and funk....this guitar is well suited with a wide tonal range and great playability. not a shredder, but can overdrive with very good sustain. I would gauge the pickups as somewhat hot, with the measured dc resistance of 8.5 at the neck and 11.5 at the bridge.
Overall the guitar is dead quiet.
Rich and full, but a LOT of high end for a guitar of this type. I guess I would call the tone "wide"
if you play with the tone control , you can go from rich to edgy.
lots of sustain when driven, I actually like these stock pickups, and even tho I had planned on replacing them (expecting them to suck) I have decided to keep them for the meantime...I certainly dont feel limited by them, and generally feel satisfied by the tone, especially when driven.

The most important thing that shows the quality of the build, IMHO, is the intonation.....even tho I replaced the strings right away with 9's(I like to bend a lot), the intonation was absolutely right on.....further, even tho I expected the stock tuners to be worthy of replacement, they actually work just fine and the guitar tunes easily, does not drift out of tune, and seems very stable indeed...
The top is very simple maple with very clear grain, and as such is not book matched per se..
looks to be well built in general
the hardware seems very well installed and well built
the fretwork seems to be really very good, WAY better than any DOT, and it looks like the actually polished the frets...they are not huge but not small, but feel very good, and the action was low and fast out of the factory box.
I really like the playability of this guitar, and it is faster and better feeling than a DOT by spades..
the binding looks to be vert good with just a tint spot at the very bottom of the neck where the bottom and side binding meet where it could use just a tad more filing, but its really only noticable if you look for flaws very carefully...
regarding finish, I found two very tiny spots, one around the switch and one at the bottom of the neck heel where the clear coat seemed to dry a bit higher than the rest of the finish - it is not noticeable to the eye and I am just barely able to "feel" the imperfection by rubbing my fingers around the finish. outside of that, Overall finish is excellent.
Nothing loose, the nut was well filed, no binding by strings anywhere, switches and pots are quiet , and the guitar over all is handsomely finished.....I would have expected this guitar to fetch way more considering this kind of quality...say....$600- $800
Feels better that a DOT or Sheraton, and I would say rivals Japanese quality....too bad its not finished in lacquer, but hey, it is what it is...
I have had several made in Japan fenders, and I'd say the poly finish on this model is better than any of those, and the MIJ Fenders are quite good.

should do just fine playing live...
hardware seems good. should last a while...
strap button are standard, seems just fine
seems dependable, but I think its smart to always have a backup for a paying gig
hard to predict the future however.....

its new, so who knows?? but the warranty is Lifetime...

been playing on and off for about 30 years , as a hobbyist...
I have several other guitars, a MIJ Strat thats been customized, a '83 Ibanez Artist , and am in the process of building a thinline Tele, and have owned lots of others....bought this sort of on a whim just cos I wanted something with a wide tone range - and it was cheap...I find myself playing it a LOT and really enjoying it....it's way under-rated, and under-marketed, and considering how many folks buy DOTs,(I was looking originally for a DOT or Sheraton) I am surprised there isn't at least a bit of a cult following for this guitar, since its actually way sweet....if it was lost or stolen, I would run right out and get another....its sounds great and feels really nice.....I cant say enough about how much I like this guitar, it's very satisfying to play...oh, and it's a great looking guitar as well, the binding and pearloid blocks are a nice touch

Nice flamed body and straight neck impressed me immediately.I really like this jazzbox once i intonated it.For the price you couldn't ask for anymore in my opinion.

This hollowbody puts out rich warm tones and i can use it for anything really.

Well,i won't say anything bad about the action because even though it was a bit high,it was very easy to lower strings and has no string buzz.I like it better now than when i first recieved it,but i have had time to tweak 'er and am happy with finish etc...also.Remember i am judging this box according to price paid.I just bought an Ibanez as103 which puts the Hohner to shame..but i also paid three times the cost of the hohner.

I have owned about six months and she seems to be well constructed.As long as i don't drop her on the garage floor,i think she will be very durable.

n/a...not needed so far

I like this guitar for all the reasons already said..i would look for another if i lost this one definitely.A good inexpensive and fun jazzbox.

Hollowbody electric. Two humbuckers. 22 frets. Maple body. Rosewood fretboard. Jumbo frets. 2 tone, 2 volume. 3 way switch. Blonde/natural finish. Gold hardware. Inlad markers, logo, etc. Ivoroid bound body, neck, F holes. 24.75 inch scale. Beautiful. Give it a 9 to leave that little room for improvement.

I love the sound of this thing. Good variety of sound between the two pickups. I even tried "upgrading" to some "bvetter" pickups, & went back to the originals wondering what the @#$!!! was I thinking?! I'm really happy with this, why try to improve on it? I went looking for someone else's review of this guitar & found no reviews. Doesn't anyone out there have one of these? Somebody's got to say something about this guitar, or else people won't know what they're missing!

Like I say, why mess with perfection. I admit, I changed the strings to flatwound 10's, & that's it! Maybe the guys at the place I bought from set it up, I don't know. But when I got it, It was READY.

Solid. I'd bet your life on it!

No need to contact these mothers yet, & I've had it for two years.

I've been playing for 35 years. Other than some of the guitars that I've built, this is definitely my favorite store bought guitar. The main reason for that is because of the price. I've got some nice guitars, but none that can deliver it for this price. Sweet & honest is what it is. Of course, that doesn't mean that I'll stop looking.