Affordable left-handed semi hollow guitars are not easy to come by so I was excited to see Thomann offer the HB-35 LH.
The HB-35 is a semi-hollow inspired by classic designs with maple body, maple neck and mahogany sustain block. Arched top and back of course. I really wanted the shape of their previous E-35 model but that was discontinued a few months ago. This latest design has sharper horns, jack on the outside edge (a la Les Paul) and pickup toggle switch on the upper horn (also similar to Les Paul style). The only one of these design changes that concerns me is the position of the toggle switch. On my LP style guitar I often accidentally hit the switch.
It really is beautiful...finish is perfect, binding front and back is flawless to my eyes. No rough edges in the f-holes.
The only flaws are - a roughly cut pick-guard, a small dent in the neck pup cover and a nut that's cut slightly too deep on the low E.
Oh..and in common with all Harley Benton leftys the tone pots are reverse wired righty logarithmic pots.
Action out of the box was okay.. about 2mm on low E at 12 fret. I've lowered it but am getting some fret buzz on low E open string, neck is dead straight so some truss adjustment probably needed. Frets are level but could do with a polish. Fret ends are smooth as any I've seen.
Intonation on most strings was perfect out of the box. Exception was the low E with the catching nut slot - I need to put some pencil graphite into the nut slots and will probably replace it entirely at some point.
I haven't weighed her but it feels about the same as the L400 les paul style. Hefty enough.
As regard how it actually sounds...well it's much brighter than expected. I was kinda hoping to be able to easily dial in some BB King tones but what I have been able to dial in fairly easily are some Tom Petty/early REM type tones. I'd imagine it would be perfect for rockabilly sounds too.
Also it has really great sustain to my ears...better than the L400. That mahogany center block really does the job.
It's very comfortable (much better than LP shape when seated) and has great upper fret access..about a fret better than a Tele or Strat ...about a fret less than the SG style. The tuners feel pretty solid too.
In summary, this is an excellent guitar for the money. Harley Benton's still deliver the good in terms of price/quality ratio.