Is there any way from what you can see in the photograph, that it could be a Hofner? The photo is all I have access to as well, but from what I have read, the true original basses had no steel truss going up the center of the neck, which was what made them so hard to keep in tune.
Any opinions?
Thanks
Q
Looks exactly like a real Hofner Beatle bass to me. The bassist in a band I was in had one, so I’m pretty familiar with them.
I don’t know anything about whether they had truss rods or not, but I do know enough to check facts very carefully with regard to any information found online. People talk all sorts of crap, particularly on guitar forums.
Hofner basses have “Hofner” on the headstock. Plus that white triangle piece above the nut is most likely covering a truss rod access hole.
Looks like a cheap knock-off to me. The finish doesn’t look very good. Hofner basses indeed have the name on the headstock. The headstock of the real thing is solid black, not sunburst. Tuning machines look different, too.
Compare to a bunch of photos.
As you can see here, there were a bunch of clones:
http://www.fuenfhunderteins.de/gallery.htm
My vote is for Conqueror. They have a model that looks pretty much exactly like that, including the triangular cover piece on the headstock. They are basically a cheap Japanese knock-off from the 70s, and were often made without any visible brand name, just like the one in the OP.
I had a fake Hofner in my Garage Band days. I think it cost $50 at the PX. I traded it in for a fake Fender. 
Another vote for knockoff. I’ve seen a few Hofners, and they all have had the name on the headstock. Plus, the pickup rings look a tad too fat, and the tailpiece is too plain - every Hofner I’ve seen has had a tailpiece with extra bits on it - see detail here: http://imm.io/715f.
your topic heading is a short story in itself; what kind of pain/disappointment could make a person chuck their means of musical expression into a dumpster?
forget whether it’s a real whatever…if it has the sweat & tears of that person (seeped into the wood) it’s going to CRY when you play it, & hopefully sing…
(BTW…my mother was given an average, cracked guitar once in exchange for a meal, & she gave it to me. years later, an appraiser said it sounded as good as my husband’s Taylor)
Q: What do you call it when your average musician tosses his instrument in a dumpster?
A: The musician’s sole example of perfect pitch.
Odd. Usually it’s the DRUMMER who gets this kind of treatment, not the bassist.
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Though the bassist may crawl in voluntarily after the singer swipes his girlfriend. Agian.
I have a friend who is a drummer, and he was a supervisor at a landfill. Once he brought me a Zildjian cymbal he found in the trash to give to my son, who plays drums. Although the cymbal was in perfect condition, he didn’t like the sound of that model, so he gave it to me.
But he once saw a set of Roland V drums go into a crusher before he could rescue it.
I can’t even imagine the stories behind these.
The sole reason I clicked this thread was in expectation it was a joke I haven’t heard. Haven’t heard this one, so bravo!
No no no, “perfect pitch” is when you toss your accordion in a dumpster and it lands on a banjo.
