Harley Benton TE 40 TBK Deluxe Series Review

A review of the Harley Benton TE 40 TBK Deluxe Series T-type guitar.
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[@Bu7asoOon]

Just ordered mine last month and eagerly waiting. Would love to learn that cool tune you played

[@andysimpson8974]

I have one of these. I've had it a few years and it's still plays well. The selector switch died and the neck needs a fairly frequent tweek to keep it sweet, other than those minor points, it's a 👍 from me.

[@morrion00]

To be fair, Vesta used to make a reasonable Beef Risotto. Thanks for the review John. My eldest grandchild asked for my Gibson Les Paul or one of my Fenders. But, as she’s only just started music lessons at school…..😮. So, looking at reviews, I’ve ordered this for her. The write ups on the Fender starters were horrendous, so Harley Benton it is. I do hope QC hasn’t dropped since you posted this review.

[@paulsnee6656]

John is the kind of guy that can make any guitar sound good - even the least expensive Harley Benton = brand snobs take note. Thanks for the review John, love the playing and the channel.

[@andybrown8293]

Thankyou Sir, you have just made my decision much easier, that guitar looks stunning

[@draganm7823]

I thought it sounded somewhat like a strat. Looks very nice and its good to still have a tele like sound as well as a bit straty. Would like to see it with black hardware, waiting for that video! Thanks for posting.

[@johnwillard6198]

Thanks, I have one on order , I never thought about the gold tarnishing , I’m sure it will in time , all black sounds like a good idea .

[@TheJdad1206]

I really appreciate all you put into your reviews. Very well done! Thanks John

[@nonrevnosnibormetalbeerrev6251]

Reminds me of a schecter guitar, I have a marlin sidewinder and it is a great guitar still and I bought it new in 1989

[@Theintruder100]

I've got a B stock one little bit of tarnishing on the tuners but thats it £99 use it all the time gigging wise

[@MartinJG100]

Well John, with all this Macron Mania abounding there was a danger of my cunning plan on the Euro being derailed so I hedged my bets and pulled the trigger. Very pleased with it. The pickup plastic housings are not straight for some reason (there is always something to remind you of its budget status) but the all important pickup poles are more or less in line with the strings. Had to adjust the pickup height a smidgen. Not quite sure about the pickups though. A bit shrill for me. The tone pot does the usual off a cliff dive after a 50% turn. I have it toned down for a more mellow sound. I don't want that Strat 'quack' on this one. Pots are also very close to the body so I would be worried about potential chafing although it seems OK. Great neck. Very flat, and slightly wider and chunkier than say a Pacifica. A few frets slightly scratchy in places. Be interesting to see how it goes with 10 gauge strings which I generally prefer. Super comfy body and so light. It just feels very workmanlike. Black finish looks very smart. I usually prefer natural wood if I can get it. Just prefer that organic touch and feel of wood. Besides, I sometimes think a generous dollop of lacquer can hide all manner of sins and we all know about eye candy. Funny little machine head that seems slightly out of proportion to the body but that is a Tele thing I suppose and down to aesthetics. Tuners are very smooth but I just wonder if they will hold their tune over time. Thanks for the rec and bringing my attention to this one.

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Glad you took the plunge, mate. I agree with you about the pickups... a bit shrill. But I fitted some Vanson Alnico V 59s and it's now got a warmer more "vintage" sound. I use mine all the time & have used it on a couple of recording sessions where it absolutely shone.

[@mikewoike9429]

Wow this is a while ago, they've changed the pick-ups but everything else seems to be the same. It's a little heavy after an hour or so sitting in my lap but I like it just the same. Have a nice Christmas yep I said it and hope many more do as well.

[@berniarmstrong]

"Steroid enhanced telecaster" 😂. Great review, I had not thought about this model before, but you have given me food for thought.

[@DTRider1]

Excellent! Your playing sounded great, and I just bought oneI

[@draganm7823]

Hi Devon.Im considering the same guitar. What is your opinion of it?

[@sexyguitarboy69]

Hi John. A very good and comprehensive review! Nice playing, too, btw. Maybe it was just because of this finish thing that you got this guitar as a B stock? You said there were no visible traces of use, and it looked like mint. Perhaps the initial buyer wanted to get that translucent charcoal grey finish, and now look what he got. So he sent the guitar back, it was classified as B stock - then you hit the order button and now look what you got :-) A beauty with a very decent sound at a price which can hardly be beaten. Cheers!

[@carlosclaptrix]

Good review, great playing.

[@alanwingate7508]

Great Demo!!, I think I will order one now it looks good ,and a great price to.I like it

[@perthguitar5160]

Nice review. Great playing too by the way.

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Thanks mate :-)

[@user77434]

What kind of neck shape does this guitar have? Is it modern C?

[@jockstrap1701]

I really like the TE-40. My only issue is that that bridge humbucker seems to be a bit to far away from the bridge.

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Yeah... that was my problem with it. In the end I got rid of the guitar as I couldn't get a "proper" bridge humbucker sound from it. I liked the guitar for it's feel & playability but it just never made me fall in love with it. I sold it and got a HB CST24... now THERE'S a guitar!!

[@timnoble4137]

I guess that Thomann had taken extra care to set this one up. I tried one and the fretwork was terrible and the nut was cut badly, grabbing the strings, making some strings sound dull and tuning difficult. QC? Quite Crap.

[@rfd66]

hi, John. which jet black bridge would you recommend for it? and tuners? some suggestions? i'm in the states. I always enjoy your videos. thanks.

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Axesrus do a pretty good one. They're in the UK but ship worldwide so just Google them & see what they have. Failing that, you can't go wrong with Gotoh 👍

[@rfd66]

@@JRobsonGuitar thanks for the quick reply. BTW I am a big Harley Benton fan. I have almost a dozen of their guitars. Have you ever played or done a review on their Sc-450 P90 GT Classic? would like to know what you think. It has the P90 ceramic single coils. I'm thinking of getting it. Thank again!

[@domdud190]

thats a really nice review Sir! I know this guitar is a bassword and will be probably not good bright tone, but can it handle the palm mutes? thank you

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Yup👍

[@genemckeel1432]

Great vid man!😀

[@MartinJG100]

The string holes are staggered. I realise that in theory this should not affect the scale length but have you noticed any subtle changes in the playing characteristics or is it just a style thing?

[@JRobsonGuitar]

It's hard to say. I normally play with 10 gauge strings and this guitar comes with (what feel like) nine gauge, I'll probably get a better idea once I've put a set of 10s on it. The only other time I've had anything like this was with a reverse headstock strat a few years ago - in theory that should have made a difference to the string tension, but it wasn't noticeable to me.

[@henrikboklund5083]

Nice review and good playing.You make my decision little easier.

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Thanks mate! These Harley Benton guitars are insane value for money - Pro quality instruments for beginner prices.

[@jayjkayhouseofharleys3151]

GREAT PLAYING...LOVE THE HARLEY.......\M/.......

[@terrycooper2309]

Marlin sidewinder. Had one ... It's was pants.

[@kiivje]

Nice guitar!

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Thanks :-)

[@nigelgarland8468]

Crikey, I watched this 3 years ago and you still haven't done ironing..

[@ezrakamari8123]

not sure if anyone gives a damn but if you're stoned like me during the covid times you can watch all of the latest movies on instaflixxer. Been binge watching with my gf recently =)

[@korbinbrayan4794]

@Ezra Kamari definitely, I've been using instaflixxer for since december myself =)

[@joeredfield7647]

Wtf? You sound like Adam Gontier and Trent Reznor... I really admire the timbre of your voice

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Thanks mate... you've obviously never heard me sing!

[@joeredfield7647]

John Robson Guitarist i haven't...would love to!

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Joe Redfield Sorry, mate... Can't sing to save my life 😀

[@joeredfield7647]

John Robson Guitarist why is it so? You are wasting that awesome timbre!

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Just never been comfortable singing tbh. And it never was an ambition... the guitar players I most admire have (mostly) been instrumentalists: Jeff Beck, Mike Oldfield, Kenny Burrell & Satch all spring to mind. The only "guitar hero" of mine who DID sing was Gary Moore & I always thought he was borderline as a vocalist to be frank. I hate to say that about one of my favourite musicians, (especially since he died), but I'd have loved his work a lot more if he'd had someone like Danny Bowes as a chanter... Imagine those two working together, it would have been perfection!

[@strangersinbedband9986]

Wow John with hair this must be old

[@Intensecure]

Hair! Nice hair!