CHEAP Guitar EXPENSIVE Upgrades | Harley Benton Project

It's DIY time! Let's improve Harley Benton Progressive Line guitar with some Gibson USA hardware and Fishman Fluence pickups.
Harley Benton Guitar - www.thomann.de...
Fishman Fluence Moderns - www.thomann.de...
Grover Tuners - www.thomann.de...
TOM Bridge - www.thomann.de...
Stopbar - www.thomann.de...
String Butler - www.thomann.de...
Equivalent Spec LTD Guitar - www.thomann.de...
#harleybenton #guitar #upgrade
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[@ScienceofLoud]

It's DIY time! Let's improve Harley Benton Progressive Line guitar with some Gibson USA hardware and Fishman Fluence pickups. Harley Benton Guitar - www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_l1000_vb_progressive_line.htm?offid=1&affid=367 Fishman Fluence Moderns - www.thomann.de/gb/fishman_fluence_modern_aln_hb_set_bk_n.htm?offid=1&affid=367 Grover Tuners - www.thomann.de/gb/gibson_pmmh030.htm?offid=1&affid=367 TOM Bridge - www.thomann.de/gb/gibson_pbbr045_nashville_bridge.htm?offid=1&affid=367 Stopbar - www.thomann.de/gb/gibson_stop_bar_02.htm?offid=1&affid=367 String Butler - www.thomann.de/gb/dietrich_parts_string_butler_v3_full_black.htm?offid=1&affid=367 Equivalent Spec LTD Guitar - www.thomann.de/gb/esp_ltd_ec_1000s_fluence_blk.htm?offid=1&affid=367 #harleybenton #guitar #upgrade More from CSGuitars: Gain access to exclusive content at: www.patreon.com/csguitars Join CSGuitars Discord - discord.gg/d7b6MY8 Buy CSGuitars Merchandise - www.csguitars.co.uk/store Website - www.csguitars.co.uk Contact - [e-mail]

[@frankn4skeen]

I love chamber music!

[@ziggylayneable]

Goddamn...this shows how frucking old I am."Dinosaur Death Metal"?(when you first said that I thought you were taking pot shots at late 80s early 90s death metal saying that we were old dinosaurs)....LMAO. After hearing it now I understand what you meant...🤣🤣(sometimes I'm a damn fool).

[@lashedandscorned]

harley benton now makes headless guitars aswell

[@Macspanish2b1s]

i did almost exactly the same. fishmans are killer, i put some planet waves locking tuners, and did the same with bridge and stop bar. couldn't be happier watching the video, no doubts if it worth it!!!! looking forward for an update with the wiring.

[@troyperkins9593]

Sounds awesome!

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

Amazing band logo! I couldn't make any sense of it at all!

[@ScienceofLoud]

Highly intentional, I count that as a success.

[@unclerico9323]

@@ScienceofLoud Antorbital Fenestra

[@shughy1]

Looks like it was designed by my doctor, it's his handwriting alright 🙂

[@conservat1vepatr1ot]

Is it real black metal or death metal, for that matter, if you can read the band name? Buncha’ casuals out here 🤣 (Granted, I read this original comment as a compliment).

[@pteeng1]

That's the whole point with Death Metal bands' logos. One might as well grab a handful of cooked spaghetti, twist them for a couple of seconds and there you have it: a death metal band's logo!

[@finlayyearsley_guitar]

Finally a Scottish guitarist that’s not kmac.

[@elijahwhistler4795]

You’ve been missing out for yeeeeears brooo

[@finlayyearsley_guitar]

@@elijahwhistler4795 yeah I have tbh

[@lunytoonz3466]

Secretly i thought about the same thing just now 🤔💭😂

[@elijahwhistler4795]

@@lunytoonz3466 you too broooo. Catch up there’s years of good videos 🤘🏼🤘🏼

[@enmanuelaponte677]

Is Kmac a guitarist?

[@gabewilliams7462]

Just a tip for any newbies out there, chances are, if you don’t enjoy playing the guitar before all of the upgrades, you won’t like it after them either. There can be some exceptions, but usually that’s the case. In this case, instead of spending $500 on upgrades for a $200 guitar you’ve never played, just get a used ESP LTD EC-1000, or something along those lines. There will be an immense jump in quality. Speaking from experience, btw. Edit: if you already have the guitar and like it, spend as much on upgrades as you can! It will only improve it.

[@ScienceofLoud]

Just as well I really enjoyed this guitar before the upgrades then.

[@ScienceofLoud]

The equivalent spec LTD listed in the links is still an Indonesian made instrument. There's very little wrong with the eastern manufactured instruments these days.

[@gabewilliams7462]

CSGuitars Awesome! I love doing that too. I’ve swapped out every part but the body on my trusty squier (now nicknamed Squender) p bass and love it just as much as the day i got it. Sorry if my comment came across as rude, I’m nearly asleep and it’s harder for me to get my point across when I’m drooling onto my pillow with one eye closed lol. I’ve edited my comment to sound less hostile.

[@gabewilliams7462]

CSGuitars this is the kind of guitar i was referring to btw reverb.com/item/35768012-esp-ltd-ec-1000

[@gabewilliams7462]

CSGuitars one more thing, just wanted to say that you’ve taught me so many things about guitar, and its related gear, and i feel like i owe you thanks.

[@Axel_Xirics_Music]

Can't help but notice how much your playing improved, those leads are smooth asf and those riffs, yo, uff boiiii

[@gisibah]

9:20 - My curse - Killswitch Engage 10:15 - In dying days - As Blood Runs Black

[@BTCTim]

ABRB! It's been too long, I couldn't figure out what that was!

[@janerickallado8881]

Collin was once a core kid

[@void-jp6nc]

Thankyou

[@Ursoc91]

@@BTCTim song always takes me back to freshman year

[@inflameslp311]

I am not familiar with the second riff but it reminded me of this kid: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p4Goo3eVg9Zoirs

[@nordicguitar8395]

When I heard “extreme dinosaur death metal” I lost focus on this video and started to ruminate on those possibilities.

[@drpibisback7680]

Dinosaurs are metal as fuck.

[@charlesfowler7419]

Dude . I'm an electronics student right now. I've been playing for years and you're the only dude I've seen to go through these videos and explain things accurately and in the depth they really should be addressed. My hats off to you. Fuck yeah

[@underdogg0]

You are a legend. You did a better job of explaining how to wire Fluence Moderns in 3 mins than Fishman has done in years.

[@XscudX]

....never thought I'd see the day you'd install active pickups

[@ScienceofLoud]

I can't decide whether I hate Fishman Fluence unless I've tried them. Also having one guitar with actives is useful for demo purposes. Even if I don't like them, other people do so it's only fair they get representation.

[@XscudX]

@@ScienceofLoud very good point. Just find it funny how it was one of your videos that swayed me off them. Unless they are on bass obv :D.

[@AllTheCoolNamesAreTaken84]

*peckups

[@Kylora2112]

@@ScienceofLoud I hated active pickups because all I had tried were the solid plastic cap EMGs (that just don't sound natural). I love the Fishman Fluence Classics I put in my PRS SE Custom 24.

[@jonahmoore1779]

Peckups*

[@imeowmeowkat]

You and Agufish should collaborate on a HB high intergrity project

[@ScienceofLoud]

I'll have a word with my boi, see what he thinks about that.

[@hazrod13]

@@ScienceofLoud A CSGuitars HB signature guitar is a wild dream, but damn, that's a gooood idea

[@imeowmeowkat]

OOOOOH DID I START A CROSSOVER OF MY 2 FAVOURITE MUSICAL TUBERS

[@flyingwondercat739]

HIGH INTERGRITYYY

[@imeowmeowkat]

IT'S HIGH INTERGRITY TIME BOIS

[@HankScorpio1982]

The way you explain things is brilliant and educational. Saying "those extra pins need to go to a ground by way of grounding or a switch" just really helps explain electronics to those who need it, like me!

[@someguynamedrob581]

Anyone else think that Harley Benton should create a Colin signature series Singlecut model in this exact configuration? Using the economy of scale, HB should be able to get this exact configuration in at under 450 GBP

[@michaelcottle6270]

Agreed - so long as Colin gets paid a royalty

[@bpabustan]

That would be a good idea.

[@Kylora2112]

It could be in the vein of Agufish's signature model :)

[@someguynamedrob581]

@@Kylora2112 I was thinking more along the lines of Colin's Gothic V with the brass hardware. Or, a full blackout model, including black binding.

[@Firespirit233]

It’s not that easy that should sign contracts with fishman and others and it’s gonna cost a fortune.

[@ThatBaritoneGuitarGuy]

Really, you are turning this INTO an Eclipse.

[@ScienceofLoud]

That's precisely the idea. I think I got pretty close.

[@3badthebad]

It was basically an Eclipse out of the box

[@blacktoothfox677]

@@ScienceofLoud I play the real thing, and LOVE what you did. I mean, ffs, I most often change bits here and there even at the higher end... It takes a shrewd outlook to spot the good playing guitars and tweak them to your spec. Buying the Harley Benton has the great benefit of being playable straight away, throughout the upgrade process. Plus you start to understand what upgrades make what difference etc so I can only praise what you've done here as eminently sensible. Great playing at the end, by the way. Love peace regards and good health from the New Forest UK

[@AJPMUSIC_OFFICIAL]

Maybe better

[@Noone-of-your-Business]

Before watching: cool topic! Here's what I treated my Harley Bentons to: Schaller locking tuners, a Stetsbar trem, a Duesenberg Les Trem with roller bridge, String Butlers and, of course, Schaller strap locks. And I don't regret a single Euro I sunk into them. Solid bodies, straight necks, beautiful finishes - these things basically _beg_ for upgrades. And some HBs are considered on par with expensive names by some, if not slightly better. I do not disagree.

[@ComercialLasTorres]

ONE OF THE BEST COMPARISONS I HAVE SEEN. THAT THE GUITAR WORKS IN "TOCK BAND", AND THAT IT SOUNDS ALONE, EXCELLENT GOOD MAN.

[@connoragnewmusic]

As a long time fan of your channel, I can honestly say it’s inspiring how far your guitar chops have come!

[@sebjulien3]

At a younger age I bought a Godin guitar. It was a joy to play with, the sound was amazing, the pickups sounded like Iron Maideon tone on Seventh Son (yeah the Gallienkrueger era and I like it), there was no noise with the pickups even thought they where hot for my taste. So I decided to upgrade everything, I changed the pickups for Seymour Duncan. And I still regret the move to this day. Even if they are worth 400$ more they are noisier and I am not sure they sound better, they obviously do not sound like the tone I was happy with. Think carefully before you change the hardware of what you think is cheaper than the big names. And think just a second that in 2020 with the technology almost everything sound better and have less noise than the old band we are listening from the 70-80 for a lot less money. And crap from China/Korea these days are a lot better than some of the best stuff we where buying in the 90s. I spent 150k$ on gear in the 90s, and if I would spend the same amount of money today I would have better gear and be able to fill 3 houses like mine instead of a room.

[@DarrenWaters75]

HB make some great bang for the buck guitars, I laugh every time I think about how the single Seymour Duncan in my HB strat cost more than the guitar itself.... lol.

[@eliasaltman4439]

Holy shit that mix sounded incredible, perfect for the style. I personally prefer a more prominent bass but still god damn that sounded good

[@Bemaritohtori]

I upgraded my 70€ EC-50 with 80€ Grover locking tuners, 20€ schaller strap locks and 150€ zack wylde emg active pickups. Now I will never sell it and it stays in tune practicly for ever👍🏻

[@CS_Mango]

And meanwhile gibson won't stay in tune for 8 times the price.

[@mudfightmaster4275]

@@CS_Mango gibson is only for old grandpas that sees everything through the nostalgia glasses, gibson put that price because they knew someone's stupid enough to buy it lol

[@SarahAndreaRoycesChannel]

I came here directly from the Pickup video, owning a Custom II with passive Roswell pickups. So I found it fascinating that even with quite different pickups there is still a part of the sound that seems to stem from the rest of the "rest!" of the guitar - a part I quite like.

[@sherwin1717]

Colin: "let me take an all black guitar and make the accenting parts gold!" Also Colin: "let me take a guitar with gold accents and make them black!" Just playing around. Love your videos

[@haikoheinz7359]

I did the same with the SC Custom but chose P94, 50s Wiring and Tone Pros Hardware. Works great, the most Harley Bentons are great platforms!

[@davidef.riccio1822]

Dude, you're amazing! I've been a guitarist for almost 8 years now and last year, around March, I decided to buy a bass. Since I never played BASS I went with something really cheap and got me a Harley Benton. Gotta say, they kick ass and they're cheap af!

[@Krullmatic]

It's all good! These upgrades to a cheap guitar, reminds me of the old farm pickup truck with a kickass engine on the show Street Outlaws. It'd be funny watching people who didn't see you mod this and say, "You're playing a crappy Harley Benton?", and then you proceed to melt their face off with this metal beast!

[@finaljesus]

I have never heard a hatley Benton sound so damn sick I thought it was an esp ltd at first a very good job well done

[@armax00]

Dude, I remember you saying you are bad at playing.. should I give it up then!? :P Great Jurassic music, let the Dyno be with you.

[@ScienceofLoud]

I'm just good at only showing the stuff I can do. Extreme editing.

[@armax00]

@@ScienceofLoud I guess is a skill too :)

[@JBouch33]

This video game me the knowledge and confidence to get an inexpensive, used Epi SG and turn it in to a black and gold beauty. Great content

[@Klaymore]

He really did it. He said something good about active pickups

[@ElGattoPT]

The mix sounded awesome, looking forward to try the fluence modern set myself. The riff at 10:15 is killer! Can’t get enough of that

[@hedbngr18]

If I'm not mistaken, that's an old As I Lay Dying riff.

[@MrRomangm200]

@@hedbngr18 thnx

[@deathblow777]

@@hedbngr18as blood runs black, in dying days

[@bwgti]

The song made the whole video worth it. Really great tone demos - those are frequently lacking in these sort of videos on other channels.

[@DEADPEDAL]

I just heard a song about the Pachycephalosaurus and I'm hype about it. 🔥 Now do a song about the Eustreptospondylus.

[@alanst.4417]

Great upgrade vid, Colin and entertaining as always. But it would be nice to hear the guitar back to back before and after to hear if it's worth the money...

[@themightymoosh9788]

I can relate to this, my personal guitar is the body of an english squire with the pickups of a japanese strat and a custom neck, pick guard and headstock, the body isn’t as polished as a regular strat but it’s a lot lighter.

[@blakecurtis7809]

A dinosaur death metal project!?! With intelligent lyrics!?! I am down with that!!! As long as blast beats are involved some way you are golden my dude.

[@fknucklewit]

I've got a Squier Bullet made in China Strat I bought on facebook marketplace for $50. It was okay but obviously had been played a lot as the pickup magnets were pretty flogged and the pickguard and knobs were beaten up. I put in a genuine Fender loaded pickguard from USA. Had to wood putty some old holes and drill some new ones. The hardware on old vs new was trash vs treasure. Ernie Ball slinkys and lemon oil on the fingerboard. Like a new guitar. Now it's a $140 dollar guitar but sounds and plays friggin awesome! Locking tuners are next. My mate is a real muso and reckons it's pretty good!

[@jernejperdan3178]

Logo of your new death metal project is unreadable. APPROVED 🤟😁

[@WendellSexson]

I approve. I put Fishman classic humbuckers and GraphTech bridge and tailpiece on a $200 USD Ibanez "bolt on" SG shaped guitar.

[@scottv4186]

Awesome. Video. Though I wish you had a “before clean” and an “after clean” video so we could hear what the actual difference was before all the pedaling and amping for death metal.

[@ANRQAngel]

Damn!! That's a gorgeous guitar!! Really love the black chrome pickups and bridge with the matte black body..

[@tankermanjake]

8:52....that little turn around was sick!

[@Salkinmusic]

Recently bought a HB SC Custom Line, the one with gold roswell pu’s and straplocks for a £100 with a gigbag and I’m satisfied for the price 🤘 Barely used too!

[@mefirstandthegimmiegimmies5160]

in some videos his hair is majestic, in others he has that grunge look from my high school days. lol, no real reason why i wanted to mention that but love the videos. keep them coming.

[@lachlanbaensch1999]

You should try some of the harley benton kits, that might make a cool series

[@ScienceofLoud]

If I can think of a fun, silly project to do with one then it would be an excellent idea. I'd have to get weird though.

[@SgtStinger]

@@ScienceofLoud I'm sure you can think of some utterly freaky thing to do with it!

[@rasky1991]

Have mercy for Colin's elbows and his sandpaper...

[@conservat1vepatr1ot]

Your riffs are absolutely brutal. I need more of this Dinosaur Deathmetal project 🦖 🤘🏽💀🤘🏽

[@StephenGallacher]

Your advice on push/pull pots being 2 items in one housing is invaluable - I was modifying one my guitars yesterday -5 way switch with coil splitting in positions 2 &4 and a preinstalled push/pull- the previous wiring job was a bit of a mess (23 year old guitar) and I had to remind myself a few times that the tone control was fine and didn't need to be touched, just the switch element. Excellent video as ever, and a great sounding guitar.

[@ssm445]

Picked up the same guitar for €40 with dead pickups. Put in a used EMG 60/81 pickup set for €80. It's a *beast*, and it was only €120.

[@marcotixxx]

extreme dinosaur death metal is exactly the genre we need in 2020 🤘🏻 PS this sounds so good, it makes me want to upgrade from the stock BC Rich BDSM pickups on my warlock to Fishman Fluence Modern

[@DeputatKaktus]

Your videos made me want to get my black Epi LP Delux again which has been neglected for far, far too long. The only upgrades I made to mine is a set of new tuners - Gotoh self-lock, in black of course - I hated those vomit-green plastic thingies and when one of them broke off I was only too eager to get the lot replaced. And I put on black volume/tone knobs. I had thought about getting some new pickups for it, but given mine has those mini humbuckers this limited choices for my always-broke butt back then. But no matter, I shall first off get familiar again with the old girl. BTW, it was only after I purchased the guitar in the very late 90s that I realized that her serial no. ended in "666". If this is not a sign...

[@gabrielvelloso9834]

First time I saw a video of his... I subscribed as soon as he said "the science of loud" love already

[@n1ghtmar3mach1n3]

Toy dinosaurs sitting on your gear? I see you, also, are a man of culture...

[@ScienceofLoud]

As my title card reads, I'd rather be a paleontologist.

[@n1ghtmar3mach1n3]

@@ScienceofLoud I did notice that 😉. That was my childhood dream as well. Turns out, though, I'm not so great a student. Who knew? 😁

[@aninfinitemindofmusicandreams]

I intend to do a couple of upgrades to my Jackson JS22-7, including stripping away the paint and giving it a nice new coat of paint (something flashy, bright blue or lambo orange) and replacing the pickups and changing the bridge and tuners. I bought myself a brand new Sterling JP60, so now I can give my Jackson JS22-7 some down time from use and do these mods on it. This 7 string used to be my main guitar for the last three years for recording and practice until I got my Sterling. I think a lot of people don't realize that you can simply make a cheap guitar sound like a million dollars just by intonating it properly and giving it some good pickups and some other mods if it needs it.

[@Robjurado995]

I have a Jackson RR JS32, put some Seymour Duncan on it and guitar is fiiire, now I have a cheap Ibanez that I want to customize (is a guitar that doesn’t matter to customize for the price, but it has a big personal value for me, so…).

[@briw4647]

brilliant video, informative, well articulate and easy to follow. coupled with the hilarity of the death metal song in the middle, brilliant

[@jessetate9701]

Thought about getting this for my buddy in Christmas and upgrade the picks up for fishman moderns he will definitely love it and passing down my line 6 pod go to him

[@werewolflover8636]

You are going to throw away a whole lot of money then! The pickups alone cost more than this POS! I had this exact same guitar and it feels like plastic! Every single part is cheap and it will not stay in tune! Your friend is just going to be disappointed, even if he doesn’t say it.

[@anthonyrojas2205]

Got so happy when heard the verse riff of as blood runs black

[@nobnobnobnob]

I've been here on this channel. Not just the production quality has been so much better, but also Colin's guitar playing.

[@minkorrh]

If you have any plans to remove the bridge posts, take a microfibre cloth and a small piece of wood or stiff plastic, about 6 cm by 3 cm. Then lay the cloth down at the foot of the insert with the thin plastic/wood piece above it. Grasp the insert with a pair of sidecutters (if you don't know what these are, google it), then use them to leverage the post out of it's hole, like a claw hammer would extract a nail, but with a piece of protection under it. You will avoid damage to the finish this way. Most people don't even understand what electricity is, let alone how to wire a pot and a pickup, or what is actually going on with them.

[@petesorensenguitar]

I have two ESP Horizons and for some reason I'm watching this video, but I just love shit like this.

[@RedHeadGuitar]

Found a dirt cheap Cort M-100 on ebay this spring. It's an old model and was cheap even back then, but I like the shape so I turned it into an upgrade/revival project. God I love this thing now. Mod everything!!!

[@crashbangpow1649]

The wind swept look in the sound clip made the video for me 👌🏻

[@bushgnome]

your videos are rad, man. keep em coming! Im in the middle of upgrading my own guitar that Ive had 19 years,. 260 when I bought it in 2004. Its been with me a long time and been a part of every wrighting process no matter what better/more expensive guitars Ive owned. I feel its time to let this little gem shine!

[@drphalanges1520]

I put a Nordstrand Big Blademan in my Harley Benton bass and it made it even better.

[@figjam9530]

i've never been a fan of active pickups until i heard/played the fishman fluence moderns. to my ear they have much better "string separation" than other actives.

[@TySutherland]

Dude! Those sound GUD! Lots of brutality and bite and zero overdriven buzz and sizzle like the old HBZs.

[@cenaspunk]

That As Blood Runs Black song was of the first things I learned when I got my first electric guitar. Jesus... the nostalgia

[@FCGREGOR]

Did not know that the string butler thing exist. Already ordered one. Thanks for this informative video

[@AlvarooPK]

That ending is the best to finish this wonderfull sunday evening. Thank you Mister!

[@bigweirdo9947]

I literally bought a pair of Fishman Fluence pickups for my Harley Benton SC-Custom II Lefty (Literally this exact guitar, but lefty) about 4 hours before I found this video. Thanks for letting me hear what I'm likely to get from this.

[@legoharry100]

You're dino death metal project better include a Jurassic Park sample and/or cover of the theme.

[@ScienceofLoud]

That's a terrible idea and I love it. It's going on the list.

[@legoharry100]

@@ScienceofLoud if Oxygen Destroyer and Mortician can sample Toho and horror movies, then you can sample Jurassic Park.

[@massttrshrdrharmonicminor2002]

Look up the band Graf orlock, they turned Jp into a break down of sorts. The band weekend nachos did a great thing with the theme from lavender town

[@WiktorA96]

That moment when you can understand growling more then his Scottish accent lol just kidding man, grate job, keep on creating good content! 🤟

[@jreagle58]

I've got plans for buying the white version, changing the hardware to gold, upgrading the tuners, gutting the electronics and refitting with an Entwisle HDN pickup set. Guitar and all the parts together (including shipping) : under €450.

[@PeterMoore350]

i only just saw this today thx to my YT fed !! Thankyou for putting the links to this in the comments. That string butler is interesting !!

[@currentlyvibing9916]

I’ve been wanting to get into guitar tech stuff for a while now and I think I just found the perfect channel so thank you for existing👌

[@dw22509]

I did this with a Yamaha pacifica 112. I replaced the tuners with hipshot locking, bridge with PRS Mannmade 6 screw, pups were Suhr Thornbucker in the bridge, Fender Texas Special in the middle, and a Seymour Duncan lil '59 in the neck. Got it all painted up for an EVH tribute and after I put it together and setup I find out that the frets are in the wrong place and half of the note are flat... Lol I should've tested it beforehand, oh well, live and learn.

[@charlesdavall4474]

Great channel. As a fellow guitarist I could watch these videos all day.

[@Xaltar_]

All that matters for a project is the quality of the "bones" and the skill of the person doing the upgrades. There is no reason a mid range or better Harley Benton (SC450 and up) can't sound better than a big G LP or ESP. Colin has gone for some expensive parts here but there are cheaper parts that are just as good, if not better (depending on use case). Gotoh makes quality hardware for a lot less than big G parts and there are a huge number of boutique pickup makers out there these days that make custom pickups for not a lot of money. Colin has used what he had laying about from other upgrades and provided a cost on those parts, a good set of Gotoh hardware (bridge, tuners and tail piece) will run you a fair bit less and as an added bonus, you can get models that will fit right into the original mounting holes on the HB SC1000. I picked up a set of Alnico II humbuckers "inspired by" the classic 57 PAFs for about 50 pounds, they sound dead nuts like what I wanted, better than what I have in my '98 LP Studio that cost my at least 3 times more than my little project guitar, including all it's upgrades. Bonus is, I don't feel bad at all thrashing it and it plays and sounds just like I wanted it to. The TLDR is that I feel the best way to achieve a particular sound and feel today is with a project axe. We no longer need to look for good bones on ebay or in second hand stores, we can pick up cheap, new, decently made guitars built with decent woods for under 200 euro/pounds/dollars, not to mention the very affordable kits that will allow you to apply the finish of your choice as well as hardware/electronics.

[@joerushing1593]

Wind in your hair is a great touch 😆.

[@pskemster]

The string trees is a new concept I have just now seen. Very cool!

[@aspiringgame-dev4509]

That BMTH riff goes so hard. Mad props for showing it off

[@minkorrh]

I loved the uplifting lyrics.

[@boomerbassmeme]

Nice upgrades and that lovely uplifting song was just the thing to start my day!🤘😎🤘

[@bobafatty111]

I actually have a Harley Benton SC-1000 lol. The guitar is actually great. If you're going to buy one, the guitar really doesn't need any upgrades. Well worth the price. Also, they look dope. (No I do not work for Harley Benton or Thomann)

[@AWMJoeyjoejoe]

Sounds great. Have you thought about staining the fretboard so it looks a bit more like ebony? Would suit the aesthetic more than rosewood imo.

[@bruffx9736]

I've watched in like the couple of your older videos... But this one earned my subscription. I love to take sheep guitars and make them better. And more importantly sound. Excellent work with this one., 👍

[@danieltravis5082]

I havent watched one of your videos in a long time Colin, you've gotten much better at leads!

[@haydenbrown353]

Good to see a fellow Scot doing so well on KZbin... Well deserved! 🤘🏻🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[@HEMIJackking]

Well I went the cheapo way: Used SC-1000 for $150, Direct swap from HBZ's to used EMG 81-85 for $110, no rewiring needed. A gruvgear, a set of straplocks, and be happy with it. In my humble opinion this guitar does not worth a twice the price upgrade. Maybe, maybe a set of locking tuners but that's all. If you want something better for studio and stuff, later you will go over $1k and buy an EC-1000 anyways.

[@Raul1971xxx]

I love upgrading a low cost guitar with top parts.

[@randymiles904]

Man, that thing is sick. Im considering doing a mod project with one of these and now the new active jazzmaster they just launched. Nice work. Love it!

[@rudybigboote3883]

I have an LTD EC-256 and your Harley Benton is the EXACT SAME GUITAR, which means that both brands are made in the Cort factory in Indonesia. I also have a PRS SE guitar and the LTD feels just as good except for the pickups which will be upgraded soon.

[@werewolflover8636]

Except for I had this same guitar and it had a “made in China” sticker on the back when I got it. They might of moved all their production to Indonesia now but at least some of the older Harley Benton gutairs was made in China.

[@TheCrimsonIdol987]

Man Colin's been woodshedding. Guitar rocks now! Awesome vid!

[@simpson6700]

those two copper coils are more expensive than my entire guitar, musicians really throw money at everything

[@Qban220]

Apart from very well upgraded guitar that turnout awesome, your playing improved like hell Colin! You started proper shredding now! Well done mate.

[@mike42356]

I think Epiphone hardware (bridge, nut) are more compatible with the HB than Gibson. The Duesenberg vibrato, for instance, comes with two sets of screws. A separate thing: often replacement parts from Harley Benton are way better quality than those found on their guitar. For instance, the vintage single cut green tuners they sell are really great, while those coming on the SC-450Plus are thrash, though they look perfectly identical! (they use different hole size, though, drilling is needed)

[@matthiasfoo1217]

"but that can only be the case if you don't know which end of the soldering iron is the hot bit" hahahahaha damn that was good

[@darkphotographer]

a cool upgrade will be also a piezo bridge , thos lespaul style bridge with piezo are quite affordable , thinking of installing one on my lespaul style guitar ,

[@davesuddreth3749]

I love it. The body controls sustain. Lol It’s an electric guitar. The pickups are the only deciding factor. Here is a project for you.’slowly cut away the body and see if it affects the sustain. You will see that the pickups control sustain

[@ScienceofLoud]

Wrong, completely wrong. Apparently I really need to do a video explaining basic science to people as they just have completely the wrong impression on how physics works.

[@jmscnny]

Just use some small decorative black screws for the spare tuner holes. If you use low profile heads, you will hardly notice them, and if you do, they will probably look like they belong there.

[@poochstyle]

This video was way more informative than I was expecting I've just bought a HB explorer with actives that I intend to put blackouts into And I think I'll be making some more modification now thanks very much