Harley Benton RB-414BK Classic Series

Having read the numerous,varied reviews of the RB-414 I ordered one, fully expecting to have to give it a full set up to get it playable, which I was happy to do (and have the tools and experience), as I really like the look. For a instrument in the sub £200 range, you should really expect to have to tweak it a little to get it exactly to your taste.
It was delivered remarkably quickly,well packaged and in perfect condition, no sharp or unlevel frets, truss rod, intonation, action all set up beautifully. I have played this for about a week now ,to allow for climate/humidity changes, with no adjustments necessary.
My main amp is an Ampeg head and 2x10 cab and with just a variation of the gain and tone you can get a very acceptable comparison to the 'Lemmy' or 'Chis Squire' sound,or whatever sound you want. Plug it through an amp modeller and you would barely notice a difference to the real thing.
As others have said the bridge pickup is pretty good (you can get a nice growl out of it), the neck is not so good,but still ok. It has also been mentioned that on the middle pickup switch setting, if you turn either pickup volume setting all the way down it turns both off. You are, however, still able to back either pickup off in order to get the mix you want. If you want to back either pickup off completely just flick the switch! It can be rectified by rewiring...but I won't be bothering.
The only thing I probably will change is the nut, it deserves better than the plastic nut it comes with.
It appears that I struck lucky with mine as I've had no problems with it, the setup was very good straight out of the box and the overall finish is faultless...I'm really enjoying playing the 'Harleybacker' and will be happy to gig it as well.

UPDATE in 2025: THIS BASS ROCKS!

The bass itself is pretty damn good for the price but Thomann only sent it in one box and damage occured during shipping. There is a dent on the headstock, a ding on the neck near the nut and the lower strap lock is slightly damaged. The bass plays and sounds great but could have been packed and shipped better. I didn't want to go through the hassle of sending it back so I contacted Thomann and they gave me a discount which was very fair. Overall, this is a really solid bass for the price and pretty much the only legit Ric copy you're gonna find.

First of all, about my skills, to put things into context - I'm a 2/10 bass player and a 4/10 guitar player.
Now I can say: WOW, what a great bass!!

I was worried that it would have just that growling tone. I wanted good fat tone, and also a nice slap tone along with the growly one. Turns out - it has it all! Unlike the guitar, where I never touch tone knobs, this thing can produce a wide range of sounds just by using them and the pickup switch.

I'm using the bass for home recording. I don't have bass amp, and I probably won't get one. I've connected it to a mixer and then into HiFi, and the sound is great.

The finish is great too. I bought it for the looks. There are two minor flaws, and it took me 4 days to notice them. Fret ends are very nice (actually covered by that white plastic line, so I guess it will be a mess if you try to refret the neck, but why would you do it...). Unlike my new twice more expensive Squier strat that has a neck like a chainsaw.. I love it.