View other reviews for this product:
BigB « Excellent case for half the price »
Published on 05/26/13 at 12:08Chinese violin (yes bin a half box at this price huh) but with a schedule of charges and serious quality control quite Germanic.
Maple or spruce top (the specs are contradictory ...), maple neck, central beam spruce, stopbar tailpiece and bridge tune-o-matic, quite standard configuration (2 humbuckers each with its own volume and tone controls and a 3 positions). What is not standard is the body thickness, thinner than most solidbody, which provides playing comfort despite the size of the box.
The neck profile is a C hair a little thicker than the profile "slim type" Gibson, 1mm over, it's enough to make a difference but not enough to turn the handle log, instead it makes my more comfortable taste and CUNE friend of mine who has very small hands is just perfect.
The violin is of good quality (it feels and it is), very clean finish - in fact almost flawless (a tiny defect on the binding inside a horn on mine, but even knowing where I see it is not the first time, it's really brief history of nitpicking) - the frets are leveled and do not exceed, in short, as I said earlier, even if the Asian manufacturing quality achievement breathes seriously.
Setting mine (purchased from Thomann) was pretty dismal by against, but half an hour later (time to change the strings, check the curve and adjust the action and intonation) the guitar was in perfect condition. The hardware is not high end but nonetheless done his job - no problem adjusting or tuning stability, just horrifying bzz small wire that holds the screws on the bridge saddles.
UTILIZATION
In use, the handle is very comfortable, with a good grip without making log, the only flaw in my opinion is the poly varnish "gloss" that deserves a little frosted (I make the most of my guitars anyway). The fine box (more than Tele) is also very practical, despite a slightly higher than an area ES was not that feeling of having "open arms", they found contrary to their natural position.
The guitar is very light and well balanced, it is soon forgotten (physical huh <g> ), And requires only a few seconds of adaptation from a solid body - in fact the main "trap" (for me) is the largest distance between the strings and knobs. Access to acute is excellent, almost as good as a SG.
SOUNDS
At the point of his view, has the qualities expected of a semi-hollow, this side both deep, warm, a little "woody" and lively, with a bit more gloss and responsiveness to attack on the type ES guitars. The pickups are quite correct for the price (see below for what I mean), and the most versatile guitar you can not think, of course we can go from jazz to blues to rock to indie big rock that task, but also, and in a much more brutal register (hard rock, grunge, stoner ...), where they do not necessarily expected. Obviously you have to manage the feedback but it is in this case much easier than an ES-like, and it quickly became a "feature" of this guitar more than a problem.
NB: the grade with the microphones and the bridge of origin, see below ...
OVERALL OPINION
It's been a year and a half I use this guitar, and to my surprise I was able to use in a situation where I did not expect (oriented punk / grunge / stoner group). I had long wanted a semi-hollow and toured that fell within my budget (Epiphone, Hagstrom, etc. Ibby), without finding anything that really satisfies me, I bought this one in without Thotho be able to try it in advance and waiting for me to return half of the week ... frankly I do not regret it, I honestly think this is the best current half body in this price game - the hardware and pickups are generally what you would expect at this price point, the violin enough above competition, and she has a personality that is lacking in its competitors.
Now make no mistake, for this quality at this price, even with an Asian production need to save somewhere, and as usual it is on the hardware and pickups. Not that Hofner is below this alternative point of view, but it is not over, in fact it is exactly the same as on a Epi Sheraton (bling-bling gold less) or Hagstrom Viking reissue, but the quality of the violin well justified upgrades, including the bridge, the capas and microphones.
For my part I upgraded mine with an easel tone-pro, the Russian PIO capas and a pair of Bareknuckle RiffRaff (to accentuate the brilliant and biting of this guitar, I could choose to Stormy Mondays instead increase vintage side) - knobs (alpha) is in my opinion (after a few weeks of testing) of sufficient quality to be preserved - and even if this guitar was already perfectly usable and very nice before, the quality of violin is really revealed after this mod, knowing that BKP pickups do not forgive anything, just as they magnify the defects that the qualities of a guitar. From this point of view, except make it a little more obvious one or two "dead spots" on the handle (but there are very few guitars that do not have this problem, I met him on LP Custom Shop 4000 + €), guitar passes the test with flying colors.
NB: I put a 7 for the previous chapter, but after upgrade it deserves a 8.5
To summarize: no, of course not as good a guitar that upscale ES (or vintage Gibson Custom Shop, Greco 80s etc), but in my opinion (after testing a bunch of half -cases) and by far the best in this price range (with perhaps some Ibby but I can not hang with, I find too clean and "neutral", I prefer shovels with character), and unlike Epi (dot and sheraton - which is ultimately a dot "gold-plated") justify largely invest in upgrades. In addition it is beautiful, it does not hurt.
Maple or spruce top (the specs are contradictory ...), maple neck, central beam spruce, stopbar tailpiece and bridge tune-o-matic, quite standard configuration (2 humbuckers each with its own volume and tone controls and a 3 positions). What is not standard is the body thickness, thinner than most solidbody, which provides playing comfort despite the size of the box.
The neck profile is a C hair a little thicker than the profile "slim type" Gibson, 1mm over, it's enough to make a difference but not enough to turn the handle log, instead it makes my more comfortable taste and CUNE friend of mine who has very small hands is just perfect.
The violin is of good quality (it feels and it is), very clean finish - in fact almost flawless (a tiny defect on the binding inside a horn on mine, but even knowing where I see it is not the first time, it's really brief history of nitpicking) - the frets are leveled and do not exceed, in short, as I said earlier, even if the Asian manufacturing quality achievement breathes seriously.
Setting mine (purchased from Thomann) was pretty dismal by against, but half an hour later (time to change the strings, check the curve and adjust the action and intonation) the guitar was in perfect condition. The hardware is not high end but nonetheless done his job - no problem adjusting or tuning stability, just horrifying bzz small wire that holds the screws on the bridge saddles.
UTILIZATION
In use, the handle is very comfortable, with a good grip without making log, the only flaw in my opinion is the poly varnish "gloss" that deserves a little frosted (I make the most of my guitars anyway). The fine box (more than Tele) is also very practical, despite a slightly higher than an area ES was not that feeling of having "open arms", they found contrary to their natural position.
The guitar is very light and well balanced, it is soon forgotten (physical huh <g> ), And requires only a few seconds of adaptation from a solid body - in fact the main "trap" (for me) is the largest distance between the strings and knobs. Access to acute is excellent, almost as good as a SG.
SOUNDS
At the point of his view, has the qualities expected of a semi-hollow, this side both deep, warm, a little "woody" and lively, with a bit more gloss and responsiveness to attack on the type ES guitars. The pickups are quite correct for the price (see below for what I mean), and the most versatile guitar you can not think, of course we can go from jazz to blues to rock to indie big rock that task, but also, and in a much more brutal register (hard rock, grunge, stoner ...), where they do not necessarily expected. Obviously you have to manage the feedback but it is in this case much easier than an ES-like, and it quickly became a "feature" of this guitar more than a problem.
NB: the grade with the microphones and the bridge of origin, see below ...
OVERALL OPINION
It's been a year and a half I use this guitar, and to my surprise I was able to use in a situation where I did not expect (oriented punk / grunge / stoner group). I had long wanted a semi-hollow and toured that fell within my budget (Epiphone, Hagstrom, etc. Ibby), without finding anything that really satisfies me, I bought this one in without Thotho be able to try it in advance and waiting for me to return half of the week ... frankly I do not regret it, I honestly think this is the best current half body in this price game - the hardware and pickups are generally what you would expect at this price point, the violin enough above competition, and she has a personality that is lacking in its competitors.
Now make no mistake, for this quality at this price, even with an Asian production need to save somewhere, and as usual it is on the hardware and pickups. Not that Hofner is below this alternative point of view, but it is not over, in fact it is exactly the same as on a Epi Sheraton (bling-bling gold less) or Hagstrom Viking reissue, but the quality of the violin well justified upgrades, including the bridge, the capas and microphones.
For my part I upgraded mine with an easel tone-pro, the Russian PIO capas and a pair of Bareknuckle RiffRaff (to accentuate the brilliant and biting of this guitar, I could choose to Stormy Mondays instead increase vintage side) - knobs (alpha) is in my opinion (after a few weeks of testing) of sufficient quality to be preserved - and even if this guitar was already perfectly usable and very nice before, the quality of violin is really revealed after this mod, knowing that BKP pickups do not forgive anything, just as they magnify the defects that the qualities of a guitar. From this point of view, except make it a little more obvious one or two "dead spots" on the handle (but there are very few guitars that do not have this problem, I met him on LP Custom Shop 4000 + €), guitar passes the test with flying colors.
NB: I put a 7 for the previous chapter, but after upgrade it deserves a 8.5
To summarize: no, of course not as good a guitar that upscale ES (or vintage Gibson Custom Shop, Greco 80s etc), but in my opinion (after testing a bunch of half -cases) and by far the best in this price range (with perhaps some Ibby but I can not hang with, I find too clean and "neutral", I prefer shovels with character), and unlike Epi (dot and sheraton - which is ultimately a dot "gold-plated") justify largely invest in upgrades. In addition it is beautiful, it does not hurt.