Whether you're new to bass guitar, looking to expand a collection with a five-string or a guitarist wanting to bring some four-string bass action to their recordings, Harley Benton's new MV series is worth a look. There are six different models to kick things off, and some very tempting prices.
Let's take a look at the specs.
MV-4JB
The MV-4JB has an alder body, bolt-on caramelised Canadian hard rock maple neck, and laurel fretboard with pearloid block inlays. Pickups and a pair of alnico 5 single-coils.
- Body: Alder
- Neck: Bolt-on caramelised Canadian hard rock maple with roseacer skunk stripe
- Neck shape: Soft-D
- Fingerboard: Laurel with pearloid block inlays and glow-in-the-dark side marks
- Neck binding: Creme
- Frets: 20 premium silver nickel 2.9mm medium frets
- Nut: White graphite
- Nut width: 38 mm (1.49")
- Scale: 864 mm (34.02")
- Fingerboard radius: 305 mm (12")
- Truss rod: Double action spoke wheel
- Pickguard: 3-ply black
- Pickups: HBZ-Custom Wound AJB-B alnico 5 single coil (bridge) - HBZ-Custom Wound AJB-N alnico 5 single coil (mid)
- Controls: 2 x volume, 1 x tone
- Bridge: Sung Il WB401CR with brass saddles (19mm string spacing)
- Hardware finish: Chrome
- Tuners: HB die-cast 22:1
- Original strings: D'Addario EXL165 .045 - .105
- Colour finishes: Natural, Shell Pink, Seafoam Green, Daphne Blue, Burgundy Mist, Black
- Left-handed option: Black
Harley Benton MV-5JB
This is the five-string version of the model above and available in Natural, Daphne Blue, Burgundy Mist, Black. Almos available in left-handed Black.
Harley Benton MV-4PJ
- Body: Alder
- Neck: Bolt-on caramelised Canadian Soft-D hard rock maple with roseacer skunk stripe
- Fingerboard: Laurel with pearloid block inlays and glow-in-the-dark side marks
- Neck binding: Creme
- Frets: 20 premium silver nickel 2.9mm medium frets
- Nut: White graphite
- Nut width: 38 mm (1.49")
- Scale: 864 mm (34.02")
- Fingerboard radius: 305 mm (12")
- Truss Rod: Double action spoke wheel
- Pickguard: 3-ply black
- Pickups: HBZ-custom wound AJB-B alnico 5 single coil (bridge) , HBZ-custom wound APB-N alnico 5 split single coil (mid)
- Controls: 2 x volume, 1 x tone
- Bridge: Sung Il WB401CR with brass saddles (19mm string spacing)
- Hardware finish: Chrome
- Tuners: HB die-cast 22:1
- Original strings: D'Addario EXL165 .045 - .105
- Colour finishes: Natural, Shell Pink, Seafoam Green, Daphne Blue, Burgundy Mist, Black
- Left-handed option: Black
MV-5PJ
The MV-5PJ is a five-string configuration of the MV-4PJ spec. It offers the same construction and pickups. It's available in Natural, Daphne Blue, Burgundy Mist, and Black. The latter finish is also available as a left-hand model.
MV-4P
The MV-4P offers an alder body, caramelised Canadian hard rock maple neck, and laurel fretboard. The pickup is a single alnico 5 pickup. Finishes are Shell Pink, Seafoam Green, Daphne Blue, Burgundy Mist, and a Black that's also available as a left-handed option.
- Body: Alder
- Neck: Bolt-on Soft-D caramelised Canadian hard rock maple with roseacer skunk stripe
- Fingerboard: Laurel with pearloid block inlays and glow-in-the-dark side marks
- Neck binding: Creme
- Frets: 20 premium silver nickel 2.9mm medium frets
- Nut: White graphite
- Nut width: 38 mm (1.49")
- Scale: 864 mm (34.02")
- Fingerboard radius: 305 mm (12")
- Truss rod: Double action spoke wheel
- Pickguard: 3-ply black
- Pickup: HBZ-Custom Wound APB alnico 5 split single coil (mid)
- Controls: 2 x volume, 1 x tone
- Bridge: Sung Il WB401CR with brass saddles (19mm string spacing)
- Hardware finish: Chrome
- Tuners: HB die-cast 22:1
- Original strings: D'Addario EXL165 .045 - .105
- Finishes: Shell Pink, Seafoam Green, Daphne Blue, Burgundy Mist, Black
- Left-handed option: Black
Harley Benton MV-4MSB
A 30-inch short-scale model, the MV-4MSB is ideal for smaller players or just those of us looking for more compact scale. It features an alder body, caramelised Canadian maple neck, and laurel fretboard with pearloid dot inlays.
The pickups are a AJB-B alnico 5 single-coil at the bridge and an APB alnico 5 single-coil at the neck. Finishes are Shell Pink, Seafoam Green, Daphne Blue, Burgundy Mist, and Black (the latter, again, is also available as a left-handed option).
- Body: Alder
- Neck: Soft-D shape bolt-on caramelised Canadian maple with roseacer skunk stripe
- Fingerboard: Laurel with pearloid dot inlays
- Frets: 19 premium silver nickel 2.9mm medium frets
- Nut: White graphite
- Nut width: 38 mm (1.49")
- Scale: 762 mm (30")
- Fingerboard radius: 305 mm (12")
- Truss rod: Double action spoke wheel
- Pickguard: 3-ply parchment
- Pickups: HBZ-custom wound AJB-B alnico 5 single coil (bridge) - HBZ-custom wound APB alnico 5 split single coil (neck)
- Controls: 1 x volume, 1 x tone, 3-way toggle switch
- Bridge: Sung Il WB401CR with brass saddles (19mm string spacing)
- Hardware finish: Chrome
- Tuners: HB die-cast 22:1
- Original strings: D'Addario EXL170S .045 - .100
- Finishes: Shell Pink, Seafoam Green, Daphne Blue, Burgundy Mist, Black (latter also available in left-handed)
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“A sophisticated, detailed design that produces highly expressive tones with immersive depth and dimension”: Boss unveils the Katana-Mini X, a portable $149 10W amp with FX, tuner and Bluetooth
“The bass solo in My Generation is one of the classic bass things of all time. And John Entwistle said it was the bane of his life”: Rick Wakeman explains the problem with recording a classic solo, and how he experienced it with Yes’s Close To The Edge
