The Harley benton DB02 is Thomann's in-house, extremely-affordable electric upright double bass. With a consumer price of $493.29 + freight, the purchase to at the very least try-out this instrument seemed like a no-brainer!
Thomann very adequately prepared the DB02 for shipping to the USA. Inside the package there is a canvas gig bag cover (unpadded) with an outer pocket for bow and accessories. The bass must employ the use of its active pickup system (with 9V battery) to be heard. Tonally, the instrument provides a surprisingly good sound for the cost, although the string height is extremely high out of the box.
The DB02 has an unfortunate weakness by design: its wobbly endpin. The instrument simply cannot be played at appropriate height without its unsteady drawback.
Another uncomfortable annoyance is the DB02's optional playing shoulder feature. This piece of hardware calls for two threaded inputs to be screwed into the body of the bass each time it is made ready to play. But, the inputs are extremely tight, and every time a player goes to screw-in the tips, it feels as though they might break at the connection. Moreover, the shoulder is unadjustable, making the playing position forced at the given angle, per the height of the player.
Is the Harley benton DB02 right for me? If you're asking this question, all I can advise is to try it for yourself in order to make the final judgement. There is a cost involved for shipping this oversized package, so keep this in-mind. If the experience of trying electric uprights at home is your chosen action, get used to the freight expense for both directions to-and-from the seller.
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