Have we reached Peak Harley Benton? - SC-DLX GOTOH Review

[@TheGuitarGeek]

Get it here : thmn.to/thoprod/503574?offid=1&affid=288

[@PeterMoore350]

Mine arrived today. The neck is great. No issues to report and I love the colour!

[@MrRanzaman]

This is unfair. I was thinking about buying this guitar and now I HAVE TO. Great video, perfect descriptions and finally I can hear the tones clearly, really good job BLUE SPARKLE

[@Bigscott4130]

Got my SC-DLX back in December as an early X-mas present to myself (along with a CST-24) and I just love it. Much more in line with and ESP/LTD EC (Eclipse) then a Gibson or Epi. Total stoner/doom rock machine when you tune it down and put a fuzz pedal with it.

[@sakulefkada7010]

Hello, I'm interested for both SC & CST-24. Which one you think sounds better?

[@zeththedarkmage]

My SC DLX is coming in the mail tomorrow in Daphne Blue. Very excited to get it. Haven't played in years and wanted something good and cheap to get me back into the swing of things. Love the review and glad to have the confirmation that I made the right choice! Blue Sparkle!

[@gedleytighe]

Late to the party, got a used one on the way (in pink). Great vid as always. Blue sparkle

[@Xaltar_]

That clean split neck is just lovely. It's always nice to hear a usable split tone.

[@bradleyclosson5042]

Your playing has gotten a lot better lately and your videos have been entertaining and informing. Good job!

[@bretsager749]

The BLUE SPARKLE finish is very cool. Great review.

[@onbedoeldekut1515]

I hope HB can continue with the stainless, and even introduce it on the cheapest models as mass production drops prices. Heck, I think they should put it on the kits, imagine how well they'd sell! I'd love to see 'uncut' kits, where the body's only been routed for pups and has no 'shape', what'd the kit contest end up with?!

[@fighterx4133]

The price of mass production won't decrease as the price of raw materials sky rocket as of lately. The theory that mass production will always decrease price has a ceiling on it as we reach ever closer to as close to perfect efficiency as possible. Then the cost of raw materials will always rise so the days of getting more for less are more than likely a thing of the past.

[@onbedoeldekut1515]

@@fighterx4133Asian steel production hasn't been affected by the war in Ukraine, Brexit or anything else. Price is engineered just like everything, to ensure profit. I'd be happy if the people doing the work benefited instead of just the people at the top.

[@fighterx4133]

@@onbedoeldekut1515 as the availability of easily accessible oil dwindles in the next 100 years it doesn't matter where things are made. My outlook isn't right here right now its a projection into the future that the stance that products will always be made more efficiently and cheaper is not correct.

[@Anjohl]

Stainless steel frets as standard would be a bolt move.

[@tomdameek]

That’s one lovely guitar. They really have upped their game Andy. My own experience with the Sc550 EMG version is that it’s 99 out of 100. I will not have to mod mine except for the switch which is the wrong way. Amazingly well setup too. I really do like the Blue Sparkle in this. Excellent review and demo mate. 👍❤️👍

[@jessebatchelor]

Blue sparkle. 300 Euro,if unblemished, would negate my desire for the Antique Blue Ibanez Iceman. Great value once again Harleu Benton. Nice job of presenting it Andy!

[@NWTMasterWolf]

I love that "blue sparkle" I am getting very interested in HB.

[@TheGuitarGeek]

If you are in the market for an LP style that is more Modern a la ESP, this is a phenomenal choice.

[@PeterMoore350]

@@TheGuitarGeek i too didn’t realise that it is a blue spakle finish when I ordered mine but tbh I’m excited to see how it looks when it gets down to NZ. Order was processed Tuesday due to long weekend affecting my international funds transfer 😕 but that’s ok

[@mikelytou]

I thank you for that blue, sparkling review 👍

[@joncole8793]

Blue sparkle.... If I hadn't just got a Ormsby Goliath I'd probably get this to go with my Black and Gold Harley Benton SC with Floyd Rose. They do make some remarkable guitars for the price. And that colour looks fantastic.

[@king708708]

Gold is really not my cup of tea, but you are right. In contrast with this lovely blue body, it looks astonishing. Thanks for another great in-depth review, Andy. Cheers!

[@tramlad2]

Brilliant sparkle on that blue, an excellent and honest review, i have two HB guitars both i love, great value for money, and getting better every year

[@michaelolz]

I made it to the end of the video and it was no problem whatsoever, my friend. Nice guitar!

[@TheGuitarGeek]

Cheers Michael!

[@poopoo-qz7sw]

Thanks for all your hard work much appreciated

[@AVM-Music]

Recently got my hands on a Harley Benton SC Custom II Active and absolutely love it

[@pedroinacio_maths]

Been a member of the Blue Sparkle Club since Christmas. Love the guitar

[@robinmatjanoski5318]

I got the black one 4 months ago and I can say this review is very accurate.

[@taz4965]

Blue sparkle! Just got mine in daphne blue. I only paid £214,( b stock but i can't find what would make it a B stock)... For the price, unbelievable. Batting way above its price point and as good as any Epiphone you care to mention.

[@patrickunderwood5662]

As a pitiful beginner, I bought this lovely Blue Sparkle guitar as a B-stock-one of the tuners was cocked. (Fortunately, it wasn’t loaded.) It seemed really slippery and unstable-always going sharp or flat under my fingers. I replaced the tuners with Hipshot locking but no improvement (duh). Of course the problem was me. Returning to it after playing others for several months… I love it. And yes it is beautiful, very light and well-made. There is a visible screw hole on the back of the headstock, from the cocked tuner. WTF cares.

[@ShreddedShredder0]

I bought mine on B-stock for $220. When I received it I couldn't find any flaws on it, other than a scratch on a couple frets from a file slipping at the factory. Probably the best guitar deal I've come across.

[@BigBirbzMusic]

I love my DC which you reviewed! One of the biggest 'issues' I have encountered is the trussrod cover which only has 1 screw, vigorously vibrates/rattles when playing specific notes/chords. I'm debating on either removing the cover plate all together or use some sort of temporary adhesive to semi-permanently secure the cover in place. Nonetheless, the DC is nothing short of amazing for the price point. Thank you for always providing your unbiased opinions.

[@PeterMoore350]

Glue or use double sided tape some foam to the back of the truss road cover. Cut it to the size of the cavity

[@BigBirbzMusic]

@@PeterMoore350 Excellent suggestion!! Have a blessed day!

[@PeterMoore350]

@@BigBirbzMusic no probs. Actually you could probably just place the foam in the cavity without needing tape or glue 😎🤘🎸

[@claudecat]

I'm conflicted when it comes to LP style guitars. I love how they play - scale length being the prime factor there - but I don't really like the sound of most humbuckers. You can make (almost) any electric guitar sound decent of course, but the intrinsic "Gibson" sound is nowhere near as appealing to me as the Fender sound. Someone needs to start mass producing single coil guitars with a shorter scale length that are real guitars, not minis. I do like HB though. I have the Prince Tele thing with the mother-of-bratwurst scratch plates, and man is that a nice guitar! Weighs a ton, but very very nice indeed.

[@jeffreyweathers8491]

I've been playing off and on for many years, big break for kids n all. I have a Ib Prem. I spent 4 x as much for. I love her, but this Harley Benton I got today is just incredible! I'm going to have a hard time going back to old faithful. Got mine in shell pink, and it's a looker! Don't tell my wife, but there will be many more Harley's in my future. At $200, why not? Ain't got any more kids to feed!

[@PeterMoore350]

I only caught the last few minutes of the livestream so I’m watching the video now. Blue sparkle 😂 and as I mentioned I ordered one of these last Friday. Greetings from NZ 😎🤘🎸

[@TheGuitarGeek]

oh yes Peter. I think you will be happy.

[@robruzza3611]

Great review. Thanks. Just bought one for my son for Christmas. Was not familiar with the brand, but the look of the guitar and price point attracted me. This review is confirming what I hoped/ expected. BLUE SPARKLE.

[@TheGuitarGeek]

Glad I could help!

[@AllanGildea]

Man, that is a beauty! Sounds great too. Blue sparkle, my geeky friend!

[@brucelangsteiner4599]

I just ordered the Shell Pink version of the same guitar. Very excited to receive it and play it.

[@waspcatcher]

If you hadn't already persuaded me to join the #DIYKitChallenge22 I would be so tempted to join the Blue Sparkle club. Great video as always :).

[@PikaStu666]

I had one of the B-stock silver ones which were sold off for £150ish (SC Custom II?). Something to do with the "rough" paint finish which I didn't care about. However the fretwork sucked with higher notes choking out. To be fair I got it second hand for about £80, it didn't make any sense to fix the frets so ended up selling it for a small profit. Unfortunately it's put me off considering Harley Benton in the future. "Blue Sparkle" is nice though!

[@FroL_Onn]

What a great review! Thanks a lot!)

[@snap-off5383]

Chibson ordered with the name "Harley Benton" on it and resold at 100% markup. If you're a "purist" just buy the Chibson with "Gibson" on the headstock and buy used USA Gibson pickups and pots with the money saved!

[@dalepal]

That's a beautiful guitar with the blue sparkle finish and gold hardware.

[@PaulCooksStuff]

Blue Sparkle! It's almost a Thomann Tommy Thayer. That's a lot of T's.

[@R6Guitar]

Blue sparkle. I will get mine on friday. Thx for the review.

[@TroyNaumu808]

it is indeed a gorgeous guitar in both looks and in sound.

[@chupavi89]

I have been looking for aguitar to get me back into playing (I stopped some 10 years ago) and this blue sparkle (see what I did there?) is probably the right choice. Thanks for an awesome review!

[@lindamarx1256]

What a nice blue sparkle!

[@rkphilpot]

Blue sparkle. It looks incredible, but I do wonder where the cost cutting is coming from in order to produce something like that. Unsustainable timber? Unfair labor where it is made? I don't know, I'm just speculating. Sometimes things seem too good to be true. But I'm really hoping I'm wrong.

[@TheGuitarGeek]

It's mostly bulk buying.

[@yetimatzenightcat8702]

They cut out the middleman

[@KrachWerke]

Just got mine a few days ago. I like it a lot

[@TheDrunkenScoundrel]

That neck pickup is crazy good for the price-especially clean. Only 'criticism' is that the pickups could have a little more bass. Ridiculous to complain about that at the price. Blue Sparkle.

[@mattdoliver1984]

Lovely Blue Sparkle 🤘🏼

[@mctribble]

The Blue Sparkle is nice.. it's all nice.. but as I told Rich.. a lot of old gits need to know the weight. It's one of the specs which are never listed. As part of an otherwise romping review this is information critical for many geezers of my advanced years. Tell HB to make a decent Thinline. If you've strapped a guitar on for 40 years you're looking for a comfortabe and great sounding guitar that's not much heavier that 2,8 kg. Be the first one to always mension the weight old bean. Thanks.

[@driverbass1554]

Very, very interesting. The Blue Sparkle is very nice with the gold! All around very tempting. Very versatile.

[@damasterkarej]

BLUE SPARKLE that I would definately play. Pickups are very my taste. No need for a change

[@voyager7]

Very lovely! Reminds me in color of a Sweetwater exclusive (Radio Blue) Epi LP modern which I love!

[@spearchuckerbear2817]

Blue Sparkle, love your videos, personality and playing.

[@colboysigmax]

I love HB guitars and have four of them. The best is the the Fusion II with Floyd Rose. By the way there's no way I'm saying blue sparkle!

[@MarquesAnt]

Blue sparkle here! 🙋

[@Furtheronmusic]

Blue sparkle. Harley Benton seem to be knocking it out the park still.

[@joedavis8481]

I got the "blue sparkle" DC and it is just killer ! I've bought four Harley Bentons in the last month and have two more in my basket 🤣 I have several higher end guitars but there is just something about these guitars. Hey just a thought on the long wiring, I don't know alot about it but is it possible that the long wire is in the design to get a certain tone from the pickups ? Because in my opinion all of the Roswell and the Tesla pickups that I have heard sound pretty damn good. They are not Duncans or EMG'S but I don't want those in every guitar anyway. Good video 🎸🤘🍻

[@avh9394]

Blue Sparkle! Is there anything more to say?

[@onbedoeldekut1515]

When the lights hit the fretboard, it looks almost chocolatey. I think it's more down to perspective and your lighting getup. Or one of us needs to change his prescription! (had I better get to specsavers)

[@camerongibson6797]

Bought One! Superb 🤓 Blue Sparkle

[@onbedoeldekut1515]

That 'shielding' shouldn't be an issue. Like a Faraday cage, there are gaps between the bits where there aren't gaps.

[@johnrogers2826]

blue sparkle. is that your pirate name as well? lovely guitar. i like it!

[@onbedoeldekut1515]

Also, remember that the screws on pups are (meant to be) there for a reason, Andy! You 'should' be able to tweak things slightly if they're made (and set up) properly.

[@onbedoeldekut1515]

You've gotta think of the electromagnetic field surrounding everything, when a pole is raised, that 'should' raise the field accordingly.

[@s3any1977]

I'm after a new guitar. I only have 2 😀 I'm on a budget and this bad boy is looking pretty good, over an Epi. LP. I can't decide on a colour though. I quite like the pale blue.

[@MikeLute]

Blue sparkle and a good build quality for a price which is a steal. I am tempted but I allready have a 594 an three authentic Bully guitars (2 LP and a SG) if it hat hotter pickups I would order one.

[@sdeprato]

Blue sparkle! And now the question: how much does it weigh? Please mention weight whenever you review a guitar.

[@docdoc8556]

At the time of writing this comment, the shell pink version is £215 and the black version is £275 !!!! ive read the spec sheet and as far as i can tell they are identical!! Why on earth the massive price disparity? At £215 is this an absolute must have??

[@TheGuitarGeek]

You gotta do it. They won’t be back

[@Rem1Gnova]

That certainly looks beautiful. Sorry to hear about your truss rod cover issues, but that can happen as you get older. Blue sparkle

[@izachu904]

what do you mean getting older

[@achimdg6335]

Gold hardware fits to Blue Sparkle, I would not want golden hardware with anything, but this is great. And Teslas are around the same retail price as Tonerider, so need to replace them. I think I'd prefer a guitar with Roswell, I would have no Problem with getting rid of Roswells, but I would have an issue with replacing pups with pups that cost the same. At least I could replace the Alphas with CTS.

[@summerboy1958]

Wish I was in the market for a LP model. Really attractive color combo, tho, not sure about gold hardware. Not for the traditionalists, I suspect. Did you say gloss neck? I'm still thinking the TE-62DB in pelum blue (not really a pink fan, like yours). BLLLLUUUUUEEEE SPARKLE! Edit: you made an effort to measure the radius. Was that just for information or does radius make a difference for you?

[@ivicaglavocic665]

Great review, just one more detail please, what's the situation with neck diving? I had to sell my HB SG model because of too heavy neck.

[@eupraxis1]

Blue sparkle. I think I'll order one.

[@jeromeb.]

It seems to be a coooool guitar ! What is the one with P90s at left of the amps ?

[@linusheeda]

I'm not really a fan of gold hardware, but it looks great on this beautiful blue.

[@saarangnarayan123]

Just realised that blue sparkle is my new favourite finish... or maybe it's that £249 price tag that's shining a little extra ;)

[@TheGuitarGeek]

This is the same price as a fuzz....

[@saarangnarayan123]

@@TheGuitarGeek slightly less than some fuzzes even 😂

[@FrugalFretter]

Blue Sparkle Beauty!

[@estwrios3983]

do you prefer this or the DC and why?

[@jmbzrx1200]

Have the same one and the only thing I’m not super happy with is the muddled bridge pick up and it’s volume drop. Weird thing is it sounds great split. Blue sparkle gang.

[@damianojeda4728]

Blue spark!! Beautiful guitar. Does Tesla do sound!!

[@catapl93]

The distance between the neck pick-up and the strings should never be the same/similar to the distance between the bridge pickup and the strings. The neck is not louder than the bridge, you just don't know basic guitar setup rules. Strings vibrate more above neck pick-up than they do above the bridge. That's why the distance should always be bigger at the neck. That is a rule for setting up any guitar. The distance might vary depending on the output difference between the pick-ups, but it's a general rule. Before complaining about an instrument, make sure that you know how to set it up correctly.

[@CROSSFIRE_TACTICS_SOFIA]

Great video.

[@JJames666male]

What makes this so much better than the DC? I was thinking of pulling the trigger on that one because I don't own anything sg-shaped, but this one looks so good... And if it's literally a better instrument I struggle to see why I should get the other one

[@666Duiveltje666]

Lovely guitar , on all amps it sounds exceptionally well considering the price. question : Where did u get that matrix sign that is in the background? :)

[@JustinWoo]

Blue Sparkle!

[@FrankLafone]

Well, Blue Sparkle, I mean, who doesn't like Blue Sparkle....? I'll have to say that if I were to get a blue LP style guitar, Blue Sparkle would be my blue of choice because Blue Sparkle is clearly much more sparkly than non-Blue Sparkle. I've yet to try a HB but I keep eyeing them. I really should just for kicks. I'm not a LP fan in general, but I've dreamed of dropping some P90's into a cheap one... and this could be it!

[@graemegourley7616]

Blue sparkle...Which is one thing I have a bit of an issue with. That's not pelham blue. It's just blue. Lol And I'm not liking the gold. It sounds Ok i think. And for the price it's a good sounding guitar. But as someone from Canada who would have to pay extra for shipping plus exchange rates and likely import duties. There are probably better options. Which I find frustrating because I'd really like to try some Harley Benton guitars.

[@FroL_Onn]

Blue sparkle, man!)

[@patrickmeaney6743]

Good video, blue sparkle-p

[@PolishHammer]

that is an amazing value wow

[@ronniboi312]

I don't need another guitar, I don't need another guitar, I don't need another guitar... Oh Bugger... !!! Why fight it.? Blue Sparkle for me

[@jonathanvisser1814]

Blue sparkle looks good. :)

[@HavoJavo]

Absolutely sold on this, but split between the satin finish or this one. Would you say this finish feels sticky ? I hate non satin guitar necks so I might just get the daphne blue. Love the blue sparkle though. 👍

[@TheGuitarGeek]

Hey, no the finish isn't sticky at all.

[@Arthur_My_Dear]

I think maybe your SV is set up a bit too spike and thin so the crunch tones were the least compelling

[@BenjaminBERTRAND]

It looks amazing... But no where to find the #BlueSparkles version... :'(

[@primaskateboutique]

blue sparkle 🤙🏼

[@Gi_Zero]

Hello Could u tell why sc better than dc? Just matter of preference or quolity?

[@Forest_Fifer]

That's a very nice colour. I didn't quite pick up what it was though, did anyone else notice? I'm tempted to sell my Epiphone Tribute plus, with the money I got I could have this and a cst24t. Decisions decisions.

[@Winterhe4rt]

Is the neck with a matte finnish like the daphne blue one? or is it as glossy as the rest of the guitar?

[@wildatlanticman128]

Blue sparkle ...aaaahhh I was planning on the DC - is it a lot better?

[@Nissan570Lsx]

If I didn't already have a sweet LP style guitar in gold, I'd buy this blue sparkle up but i have mouths to pay and bills to feed.

[@TheGuitarGeek]

Those bills can learn to feed themselves ;)

[@insidious.92]

Hi there. I'm a new subscriber on channel and I have some question/s. The guitar with the F-holes in the background... Can you tell me the name of the brand and the model and do you have a demo/video on you channel. Thanks. Cheers.

[@TheGuitarGeek]

Hi Vic. That’s a Maybach Little Wing. I’ll post the link for you asap

[@brucelangsteiner4599]

Okay, blue sparkle. Didn't want you to think i didn't finish the video. 😁

[@naszekrobi]

When will I be able to buy a 6 string fanfret from Harley Benton? 😭😭😭 When it was available I bought a 7 string, and when I sold it to buy a 6 string there was no 6 string version of it. 😭