Höfner Unveils Limited Edition Eco Violin Basses
A classic bass is getting a limited edition contemporary makeover. Höfner has announced two new versions of their German-built Violin Bass featuring composite material in place of their typically rosewood fingerboards.
“Traditionally most fingerboards have been faced with Rosewood or Ebony, but these are becoming restricted in use in some countries as world wood resources dwindle or there is a need for forest preservation,” the company shared. “There is no intention to stop using rosewood but we are looking to be able to offer customers an environmentally friendly alternative.”
The Höfner Eco Violin Basses come in Black and Ivory finishes with the Ivory model offered with a blue fingerboard. They will retain other typical Violin Bass specs, including a spruce top, flame maple sides, a maple and beech neck, a pair of Höfner staple pickups, and the Höfner control console.
The Höfner Eco Violin Basses are shipped with Höfner bullet cases. They are available for order now with prices around $3,078.
Höfner Eco Violin Bass Specs:
Finishes: | Black and Ivory |
Body Top: | Spruce |
Body Back and Sides: | Flame Maple |
Neck: | Flame Maple/Beech/Flame Maple |
Fingerboard: | Composite (Blue color on Ivory Model) |
Scale: | 30″ |
Nut Width: | 42mm |
Number of Frets: | 22 |
Pickup Configurations: | Two Höfner Staple Pickups |
Hardware: | Chrome volume knobs |
Other: | Black finish Höfner Control Console |
For more information:
Höfner
Never really liked the controls and switches. really distracts from the guitar.
Eco? Wow… a composite FINGERBOARD and nothing else, seems the name is a bit foolish.
“The Ebola outbreak may have been sparked by cutting down the West African rain forest. Now, Norway will pay Liberia to halt deforestation. The benefits for the African nation could extend well beyond public health.” in http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/earth/norway-pays-liberia-halt-deforestation-first-kind-deal/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=pbsofficial&utm_campaign=nova_next
Thanks Hofner, even if people here still choose to voluntary ignore the major consequences behind ebony cutting, you are showing the RIGHT example.
The idea of stopping to use endangered wood species is a good one, but I wonder where this composite material come from … and I’m afraid it’s probably of the phenolic nature, wich mean it’s probably petrol based. Well … switching from a problem to another …
It’s actually a bit of a half-assed decision because phenolic-based chemistry based on renewable sources (agriculturally sourced phenols and agro sourced plastics) is already available. With a price tag this high, they could have afford to go the long way and make their composite material a really environmentally friendly one …
Reply to dAs: the other wood species in this bass (spruce, maple and beech) are nothing close to endangered, they are endemic in germany and abundant in prefectly cared forests all across europe ;) .