Hey Glenn, I think a great series idea would be how to actually care for and repair your guitar, anything from basic repairs, diagnosing problems, fixing any fret issues, and just actually learning the instrument. Like another commenter said, beginners will take their guitar to a tech every time they break a string. They aren’t difficult to do, I just think most other videos do a bad job at showing how easy it is, and a better job scaring people that they might break something.
Usually when a guitar is played on this channel, I'm like "Yeah, alright, that's a usable guitar tone", but this one actually made me go "Ohh, that's nice".
Wow, that was a clever and clear explanation of the grounding issue, Glenn! You would have been a very effective teacher, but I wouldn't wish the crappy pay and lack of gratitude upon you.
You aren't kidding about unrealistic expectations. Seeing other seemingly flawless performances made me not even want to pick up a guitar for many years until very recently. I'm not great but I'm learning which is awesome. Thanks for keeping it real.
what i can play sounds pretty good...what im learning to play makes me feel like its my first day....some stuff has been quick...some stuff has taken me months/years....the unrealistic expectations cost me 10yrs of never picking up and im never gonna get back
Absolutely. I personally am tired of flawless performances on youtube. Much more interesting to hear people how they actually play 99% of the time rather than that perfect 1% take that may or may not have been spliced together from multiple performances.
I agree. There is a separation between playing and learning. I'm at the point now where I can play whatever I think of but I'm almost 45 and and playing for 30 year. I've taken a year off here and there but it's been the one thing that's always there and even at the worst of times it can put a smile on your face because while we may never be jp, we can always get quantitatively better in a measured way. I spent 3 years playing 8 to 36 hours at a time about 7 years ago. I'm not naturally talented and had to work. I'm the only person out of every person I knew that played growing up. Well dedicated time to getting better still even at my age I should say haha. I know a guy my age who hasn't finished his silly chase for tone and owns 8 American fenders and 6 gibsons. It's pathetic.
I bought a "Glary" strat with a finish so ugly I had to buy it, and paid a grand total of $95 WITH SHIPPING. Shockingly the frets were not sprouted or rough on the edges. They did need a polish real bad but with a slight truss rod adjustment and good strings and it's shocking how well it plays. Having a basic knowledge of fret work is definitely handy to have. A little effort goes a long way.
I taught myself out of necessity how to do a full fret leveling, crown and polish etc. It is such a great feeling, that after a few hours work, the sheer difference you feel in playability. I've now done it to all my guitars.
I have 2 music stores near me. I am a "shade tree" luthier. I do better work to my guitars than the 2 luthiers at both of those stores have done to my guitars. It's just better to learn it.
I've done the same thing over the years after noticing every guitar comes with a bad fret job. I've gotten pretty good at it and like you said the difference in feel and playability is day and night. I also roll the fretboard edges if they're not already for more comfort.
Yeah I had to figure everything out on my own also. There's no guitar shops near me , with the drive and cost of taking it to a professional it wouldn't be worth it. Plus I think it's better that any player learns this stuff , it comes in handy and saves you money!
It's not about unrealistic expectations for me, it's only about I don't want the neighbors think that I AM THE ONE PRACTICING the damn instrument when I'm just watching a TH-cam video!!!! :D Keep rocking. You inspire me! Well done on salvaging that scrap.
Great work Glenn. I put together a Partscaster a few years ago and went through a huge learning curve on what you are showing here. From fret dressing & levelling to learning how to spray and finish nitro paint. Keep on showing this stuff it's excellent to see.
I learned myself to do about any job on a guitar except the fret work. Thanks Glenn, you made me give fret work a try to! keep up the good work that you do! Greetings from Holland!
Hey Glenn, I too learned about dressing fret ends from Phil and it’s been a great addition to my skill set. Learning how to do a proper setup early on definitely helped my paying as well. Playing on a guitar with a proper setup just feels so much better when you compare to one that needs some fine tuning. Also promote practice if the instrument feels good in the hands, like you said, just don’t want to stop playing. Keep up the good work love the content.
Loads of respect to you sir, you made a dud become a winner! 🤘🏼 And totally agree with the 80's hair metal shredders, many talented guitarist back in the day!
Great job Glenn! Sometimes just doing the fixing and problem solving is so satisfying, specially when you make a low budget instrument sound so decent!
I'm really glad I came back to this channel again, thank you Glenn for providing such knowledge! Well, I don't know if I'll buy one of these, but now I know what to do with them if I get one Suscribed without a doubt
Glenn, your videos have been popping up in my feed for a while and the videos you’ve posted recently got me to subscribe. Your videos are entertaining and informative, I laugh quite a few times each video! Keep up the great work man
I'm happy to see this video. I wasn't expecting the follow-up so quickly. I agree that beginners/noobs aren't going to want to go through all that, nor should they. Then again, neither should more advanced players. Ideally, other than adjusting the action, tuning and neck relief, which can shift during transport, the guitar should otherwise be good to go. I think this video is a good lead-in for doing a full "guitar set-up" video, showing how to take a guitar from the box to "ready for the stage and studio". Thanks for this!
Very glad you took the time to figure out and fix the noise issue. I never would of thought of paint causing issue. A good thing to remember for the future. Nice job.
I don't watch every video, but from the ones I've seen recently, I have noticed a lot of improvement in your playing. Keep up the good work! Also, the tone in this video with that guitar is killer! Reminds me of KSE.
Glad for you that you have learnt to do the work, nothing more satisfying than playing a guitar that was poorly finished, after you have changed it into a beast by yourself! 🎸🤘🎸
Hey Glenn, great video for the at home luthier. I’m sure there are many who will learn from this video. I have a request for you and Specter. I think another run of the cock blocker in pedal form would be awesome. I recently missed out on a guy selling one which is very rare. I missed the damn thing by actually asking if it was not broken. Within that time someone slid in and scooped it. I’m sure it’s a shot in the dark asking but I’m sure I’m not the only person who is seeking out this grail noise gate. As always keep slaying it with the great content. 🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻
Glenn!! Check your HB 8 string as well. I got mine about 2 years ago, and I’m having the same issue. I thought it was the older amp I’m using, but after seeing these video you made about this, I did a side by side comparison with another guitar. It turns out the HB 8 string with its black painted hardware has the same problem. But at least now I’ve identified the problem, and now the solution, thanks to your videos. Thank you Glenn & keep shredding!
Oh, so many many hours I have dressed frets while watching TH-cam... All the repair and solutions are legit something I do to every guitar I find. RARELY do I find a guitar that couldn't be improved with a bit of treatment... GOOD Episode, and F you Glenn!!!
Glenn, I really wanted to thank you for the extended Spectre sale, I know ELE is worth so much more than the normal price, but this really gives us cash-strapped musicians/hobbyists the best opportunity to step up our game, so very thankful that I was able to get it for myself, you really are there for us, Cheers!
Now this is the Chad like content I yearn for. Killer work, more of this TLC sort of content! Anyway, I imagine most folks would be happy to charge an extra 30-40 (insert currency) to ensure the thing is set up decently. You're guitar work is fine, you've made leaps and bounds of anything!
I'm a guitar player but I don't know it all. I want to be educated. That's why I subscribe and watch this channel. What's great about metal is you get honesty. This channel you get the best of both worlds. Plus listening to Glenn rip priest riffs make me giddy and happy
I have to say, after around 7 years of buying/trading/selling and teaching myself amateur/novice level tech-ing, I stand by the thought of "cheap can be good too, just needs a little work." After seeing the first, and now this second video, I'm tempted to get one for myself. Thanks Glenn.
Love your content. I've been binge watching the past few weeks. This was a great video. Would love to see more where you pick up dirt cheap guitars and see what it takes to get them to decent level playing and sound status. I also truly appreciate the fact that you give off the sense you're looking out for the young new players, too many people out there just wanting to rip them off and crush their spirits
Hey Glenn, grettings from Ecuador! Nice Video and learning process description. I think another way to solve it. I had that problem in a ESP LTD Viper 400 and I changed the bridge tail to a Gotoh Stop Tailpiece Black and the issue was solved. This thing has conductive paint and proper metal to cover it. Some manufactures as Hipshot, Gotoh, Graph Tech have this hardware covered, but obviously this could be expensive $$$ but this upgrades worth it . I did the same thing with a HB 1000 Proggresive Line and everything changed radically!! Shielding the pots and pick ups cavities will help too. Really Fan of yours and your work! Keep Going, No compromising, no sellouts, stay true!! MARVIN
Interesting that in the end it was the paint used on those stock bridge pieces, because as I said in a previous comment there are other models with stock black hardware as well without this issue, so at some point they changed the paint used to make those stock bridge parts for one that acts as insulator. Hopefully Thomann checks on that because otherwise any future guitar/bass model will have the same issue, or even existing models that also make use of black hardware and get built with the faulty component instead.
I'm a little bit of a V collector and currently have 13.... The latest addition being one of these! I actually paused your first video with this half was through to place my order and was very disheartened when it came to the end!! Happy to report though that the example I got has PERFECT frets and is as quiet as you like!....... And to be totally truthful it's one of THE best playing and feeling V's I own! Not a fan of the pup's but that's an easy fix. Glad you got yours sorted!
Your playing has been getting so good man. Been playing for 11 years. I was self taught, and the exorcize you showed us has helped me more than anything. I'm finally able to get my fretting hand to do what I want it to do now. I feel like such a dunce lmao
Glen, glad you saved it! I learned to do all my own work. I have 40+ guitars and gravitate towards the affordable. I do fret levels, electronics, replace nuts, ext. They are skills worth learning.
Hey Glenn... This is my first time watching your videos. I was searching for a way to fix the grounding issue on my B-Stock Harley Benton Progressive Explorer ($150!!!). After checking all the continuity between all the electronics, there were no issues there. But! After watching your video I was able to file off the paint from the tailpiece post, the slots where the strings go in, and even the slots on the bridge where the strings rest. Voila!!! I now have a pretty sweet guitar for a mere $150!
Glenn, Thanks for doing the ground work to get this guitar up to where t is playable. It’s not my thing now but when I was a teenager, this would have been a cool guitar to play.
Just recently bought a Jackson rhoads js22 ht 7 which feels amazing in my hands. Except for a buzz which this video helped me find the problem. The black coating on the bridge. Now to get a metal file to remove the coat on the back of the bridge. Thanks Glenn.
Nice work man- it's always satisfying ti fix your own guitars. Glad it came out well! And I'll be keeping a lookout for the "Nut Sauce- Shot in the Slot" t-shirts.
Nice work here ! Bought a IBG Epi Firebird back in June....only one 'shop' had one so bought it. Del'd quick but pak'd like trash. Inner box banging around. Should have refused it . Wanted to love it. Great for few weeks then problems. Output jack, and the br pup stopped working. Check and missed the return time by about a week. Got it fixed locally, $180 which included a complete set up,,,,action is half of what it was. Not great but the guitar was a gift (65 BD) . I love it !!
GLEEEEEEN!!! Seriously impressed with your guitar playing man, love seeing your hard work paying off! You're even making "guitarist faces" now, y'love to see it. Keep it up man!
Covered Lay it Down with my band. We do death metal but love the old school stuff too. Noticed it was in drop C so we threw it in for a mix up of old school classics. It is a challenging riff at first but you can pull it off dude. Also, I want one of those V's now that you showed us how to fix the thing. Thank you so much for the great content!
Glenn i think you said it best...im glad i learned how to fix the issues instead of taking it somewhere for someone else to fix or sink some money into it. so many players out there clueless on how to do simple repairs or basic up keep. and i agree 1000% that this guitar is not for new player and Harley Benton does need to address this issue it would have never been an issue is proper QC was applied from the affordable to the high priced guitar. in this world its about credibility, quality and reliability. you miss or lack any of those 3...you might as well close up shop . i love all 6 of my Harley Benton guitars and they all play great and i have been lucky to not have the dreaded lemon.
Glad to see you helping troubleshooting noise issues for guitar players of all skill levels. One thought or question about this guitar specifically? Are they really active pickups, or are they passive pickups with a preamp tacked on. If truly active design top to bottom, then yes they should be quite quiet. If they're passive, and amplified through a preamp, then any noise from anywhere will go up exponentially and be much harder to tame.
Great video Glenn! You're initial reaction to the HB V was completely justified imo. A new guitar should not come with those type of issues. It's a guitar I was looking at myself. Thanks for showing us all how to fix this if we tread down that road. Enjoyed your jam too! You really are doing some nice shredding there.
Heyy Glenn if you do see this, I have a plug-in I highly recommend checking out. A few weeks ago I purchased the Audio Assault AHM 5050. It is by far the best 5150 plug-in I've tried. Unlike the Fluff 5134, it includes all 3 channels, as well as a resonance control. It's also got a blend knob to go from 6L6 to EL34, and anywhere in between. It's like a texture knob for the distortion. The stock IR aren't half bad either. After loading up and blending 2 IR from Bogren Digital, I was in tonal Heaven. It's currently on sale for $10 USD.
Great video Glenn!! In depth with detail and a real treat for anyone looking to take more of their guitar care into their own hands. And in before some knucklehead comes in with the “why put so much energy/$ into a cheap guitar”…🤦🏻♂️ First many higher end guitars won’t have these issues, but many of us in your audience also aren’t in that market. And there is nothing wrong with learning/tinkering on any level of guitar to hone your skills. Use what you have. Thanks dude!
Thank you so much! I have this guitar and love the look and feel, but the noise just bothered me a lot! I ordered gold pins to switch and I even went as far as upgrading the tuners with locking ones as well - just an acquired taste! I'll let you know how it goes once the parts come in. It really is a sweet guitar though!
Super cool! Phil’s channel is a very interesting channel to tune into, he had his McKnight guitars in Chandler AZ for years great place back in the day to talk shop and see cool gear! Crazy enough I have one of his old Project guitars. A 7 String Strat that he had custom made to fill that fender 7 string void. Plays wonderfully!
Hey Glenn, First I want to thank you for putting up entertaining as well as informative content. I appreciate how much common sense are in your videos. So I just did an unboxing and review of a New Harley Benton that I just got. There QC definitely has gone down since I have been getting them. The nut for the toggle switch was cross threaded and stripped, I had to take one off of one of my other guitars just to get through the review. I was disappointed because in the past I have always had good luck with HB. By the way I'm a Blues Guitarist that thinks your channel is fantastic (I'm disabled and will never be able to shred unfortunately so I stick to the blues) I am an old school rocker thought. Thanks man.
Amazing. Instead of just trashing the cheaper guitars... Glenn shows you how to fix it. - Anyone can sit back and be a critic. Not everyone uses the most important piece of equipment for any musical project - their brain. Whether making purchases... practicing... writing... or recording. Your brain is THE most important piece of musical equipment It should be adjusted and properly maintained regularly with upgrades and new perspectives. It tells you when to join a band and when to leave a band. The brain - a highly overlooked essential tool for every musician. Bravo to Glenn for demonstrating how to properly use our brain and figure out how to overcome yet another TH-cam misconception about music. Cheap guitars can be excellent tools and affordable for those seeking tone. This way Glenn shows us how to save money for the real sound upgrade - our speakers. All this time many thought it was a Gibson paint job and vintage wood. Great video - next up in my TH-cam cue is "The Spoon Lady" What? You can't hear those Blue Ridge Mountain floating paradiddles? Listen again with your brain - she's a metal beast on isolated tracks - joking. But she is damn good. Love the videos and of course - fuck you Glenn 🤣😂🤣😂
Hey glen great work as always , a little tip that I use for strings sticking in nut is: use a grey lead pencil and sharpen the tip then put a stripe of graphite (from pencil) in each string nut groove, works perfect and is only the cost of a pencil and can be used hundreds of times
Dude, Glenn. Your chops are on fucking fire. I've been watching and rewatching your betterment of guitar practicing video and running through your practices as well as watching more of Bernth's videos to try and better myself. Course I'm still stuck on basically playing man in the box, but hopefully sooner or later I can be half as good a guitar player as you have managed to achieved
Glen I saw the first video and decided to buy it anyways because I knew that Someone would find a solution. Just got it this morning and "boom" this video popped Thank you so much for this video God bless you dude!!!🤘😎
Glenn, first and foremost love the fix you did and that you gave it another chance. Agreed beginners shouldn't have to deal with this bs but you gave them an option to fix it up if they wanted. Secondly holy shit your chops have gotten great since I started watching. Keep up the practice as it always makes perfect and keep the great content flowing.
Glenn I love you man, I'm always amazed at how much you know about recording. That being said it always blows my mind how little you know about how a Guitar works. I've had custom shop Guitar show up in my shop with some of these same problems, this is really an "all"guitar problem. Granted some companies do put in a little more care but it's not a guarantee that the guitar won't have a problem a few months after it's been made. The guitar in this video is a good guitar and the pickups are good even the hardware, they just decided to powder coat the parts. I've done this myself you buy the cheap Chrome Hardware and you powder coat them whatever color you need. Generally I remove the powder coating on contact points for a bridge or a tail piece. The black one that comes on it can easily be fixed with a little more care and Ingenuity than a wire brush. The tailpiece on the guitar is a three-part system. The tail bar the stud and the mounting feral. All three parts are powder coated therefore all three parts need to have a little powder coat removed at contact points, this includes where the feral contacts the actual ground wire inside the guitar.(You should probably do this too even though you quietened it down it's still a little noisy.) This is definitely not something a beginner child could do but any adult beginner or advanced player could perform this procedure.
@@ByDesignKatonah I've seen it on an LTD, had a PRS where the springs in the tremolo are not conducting, they needed a little sandpaper taken to them. Had this problem with black Hardware on a Gibson. When you first powder coat, it can be conductive but after leaving the factory and the Finish cures sometimes a problem arises. You could have this problem happen with any guitar that you purchase that is not Chrome or gold. You could have two guitars from the same factory made on the same day one might have a continuity problem and the other one might not. No matter the brand there is no guarantee that you're not going to get a guitar that has a slight problem. It may have been fine when quality control checked it in the factory but a month passes and there could be a problem. It matters not how much money you spend on the guitar, you're still taking a Gamble whether or not something is awry. All guitars need a little maintenance, some win they're brand new some after a year. No company can put out perfect guitars every time. But all guitars can be repaired and become reliable instruments.
Dude. I have a Harley Benton explorer, don't know the exact model but the headstock is that of a leftie Stratocaster, and it has the HBZ pickups. The noise is driving me insane! I tore it apart and resoldered the ENTIRE electronics and nothing. I will give your solution a shot since my guitar also has black painted hardware. After watching this video, I'm 99% sure I have the same issue with the bridge ground wire. Keep up the good work!
I just bought your Northern Mauler! It is absolutely insane! It is the tone I've always wanted. I can't recommend it enough to people.
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Learning how to set up your guitar is a skill all guitarists should learn. I taught myself 25 years or more ago, after paying some joker for a setup who wiped down the fingerboard with linseed oil, changed the strings and jacked up the action. I was not a happy shopper, but it saved me a fortune ever since. Nut lube is good, but now you have thicker strings, you should open up the shoulders of the string slot where it’s sticking, Glenn. A few strokes with a file will prevent the string being grabbed, because if it is that tight, the lube won’t be a permanent fix.
So once in a while I listen to this guy. He is high energy and entertaining. He's kind of like the antithesis of Darrell Braun. He did a good job showing fret files. I had to do similar work on my Solo guitars. However, he said he was in the small town of Windsor, Ontario and stuff is hard to get.stuff. That struck me as odd since Detroit, Michigan is within walking distance. (I guess I wouldn't want to go to Detroit either.) Good he could fix the guitar.
Good job! Glad you got it fixed, and it is satisfying doing it yourself. As far as the grounding, you could probably could have used a wire wheel on a bench grinder to clean the paint off the parts black part where you needed to (easier than filing). Or you can use a wirebrush bit on a drill. Just some ideas. If you are substituting the gold (or chrome/nickel) posts, then you could get some matching black spray paint and hit the visible portion of the parts, so they match - just keep the inner conducting parts clean and free of paint. Black anodized parts or conductive paint would also have eliminated that issue with the bridge and tailpiece not grounding, if they wanted to continue to use black hardware. You can get new/different black hardware cheap enough and most of the cheap stuff is standard sized now, so you might be able to pick up a replacement metric black tailpiece and posts that fit that will conduct. I am saying that for Harley Benton's sake, and if anyone does not have other parts handy. It would be easy to test, just take a meter and test both sides of the stop tail piece for conductivity. As far as the chunky neck on the guitar I kinda like those, so I'd probably like that particular guitar. I have some other Harley Benton guitars and they are good for the money, but mine were from a different series. I did not have as bad as fret issues as you with these so far at least. But mine have roasted maple neck which because of the roasting process are a bit more stable and mine were a little bit more money. No, mine didn't have the black hardware or the active pickups either. One thing at least partially in their defense, the frets on many guitars experience fret "sprout" in the fall/winter because the wide humidity swings dries out the wood and the wood shrinks more than the metal frets with the low humidity. This makes the frets stick out of the edge and feel sharp as heck. I am not saying this is why this happened, only that it may have contributed to it. It happens with many guitars including sometimes very expensive ones. But it is especially so with cheaper guitars where they may not have had much care or time with the fretwork, or the wood may not have been as seasoned and dried when assembled. Any sharp or unfinished fret edges will be much worse as a result. Not making excuses, but depending on when it was built and transition of the seasons between building and unpacking and playing (you're in Canada right? Late fall? Cold, and low humidity in the air, same as here, even though I am much further south). I have to do this with many of my guitars eventually, sometimes have to repeat this process next winter - but after a while the wood shrinks less and you have filed the edges more, so you are eventually good). I bought a very expensive and well-made guitar that came from the Salt Lake area, which is pretty well desert dry, and quite cold in the winter (very dry) it its finish is all checked and affected by the exceptionally dry climate. It is NOT a newer guitar, but you'd think it was 20-30 years older. But it plays and sounds amazing, and it is not really an issue to me (it is basically a real relic guitar, not a fake one).
I actually bought one for about a week ago. No problem with the fret finish or sharp edges. Had the problem with the grounding though. Polished the screws with a Dremel, worked like a charm 😉
Good point about the imperfection! I wouldn't say tho that the performances we watch aren't entirely honest as much as that in Instagram guitarists' work, we only get to see a final product that seems effortless only due to hours of sweat and sore fingertips
Great video Glenn. That HB sounds killer now! I'd recommend using a Dremel tool, with a sanding or grinding sleeve, for grinding that paint off or for enlarging holes & cavities. It's cool seeing your playing skills evolve, getting better all the time. I wish I had your vibrato.
Hey Glenn, I think a great series idea would be how to actually care for and repair your guitar, anything from basic repairs, diagnosing problems, fixing any fret issues, and just actually learning the instrument. Like another commenter said, beginners will take their guitar to a tech every time they break a string. They aren’t difficult to do, I just think most other videos do a bad job at showing how easy it is, and a better job scaring people that they might break something.
If I could pin this, highlight it with a bright color just so that everybody notices I would. Glenn is the right person for the job!
This 💯
Go check Phil McKnights channel. He's great and super knowledgeable and has videos for everything.
Phillip McKnight does this very thing.
I learned how to repair and set up a guitar and repair guitar amps before I could play.
I still can't play.
Usually when a guitar is played on this channel, I'm like "Yeah, alright, that's a usable guitar tone", but this one actually made me go "Ohh, that's nice".
That’s the new V30s. They sound amazing!
@@SpectreSoundStudios It's the harley benton tonewood.
@@SpectreSoundStudiosdo you like the band wintersun?
@@InfiniteDesign91 *toanwould
@@BlazertronGamesHarley Bentonewood
Wow, that was a clever and clear explanation of the grounding issue, Glenn! You would have been a very effective teacher, but I wouldn't wish the crappy pay and lack of gratitude upon you.
he'd have to identify as alphabet mafia to be a 'teacher' these days.
@@miserychannel666=🤡
@@miserychannel666Glenn has addressed his hatred for bigots in the past, I don’t think it’s that far off
@@lilgarbage3796 did he delete a comment? i feel like i'm missing something here.
You aren't kidding about unrealistic expectations. Seeing other seemingly flawless performances made me not even want to pick up a guitar for many years until very recently. I'm not great but I'm learning which is awesome. Thanks for keeping it real.
what i can play sounds pretty good...what im learning to play makes me feel like its my first day....some stuff has been quick...some stuff has taken me months/years....the unrealistic expectations cost me 10yrs of never picking up and im never gonna get back
Keep going, King.
that is why Kurt cobain was such a great player in terms of of inspiring people to pick up the instrument
Absolutely. I personally am tired of flawless performances on youtube. Much more interesting to hear people how they actually play 99% of the time rather than that perfect 1% take that may or may not have been spliced together from multiple performances.
I agree. There is a separation between playing and learning. I'm at the point now where I can play whatever I think of but I'm almost 45 and and playing for 30 year. I've taken a year off here and there but it's been the one thing that's always there and even at the worst of times it can put a smile on your face because while we may never be jp, we can always get quantitatively better in a measured way.
I spent 3 years playing 8 to 36 hours at a time about 7 years ago. I'm not naturally talented and had to work. I'm the only person out of every person I knew that played growing up. Well dedicated time to getting better still even at my age I should say haha.
I know a guy my age who hasn't finished his silly chase for tone and owns 8 American fenders and 6 gibsons. It's pathetic.
I bought a "Glary" strat with a finish so ugly I had to buy it, and paid a grand total of $95 WITH SHIPPING. Shockingly the frets were not sprouted or rough on the edges. They did need a polish real bad but with a slight truss rod adjustment and good strings and it's shocking how well it plays. Having a basic knowledge of fret work is definitely handy to have. A little effort goes a long way.
I taught myself out of necessity how to do a full fret leveling, crown and polish etc. It is such a great feeling, that after a few hours work, the sheer difference you feel in playability. I've now done it to all my guitars.
I have 2 music stores near me. I am a "shade tree" luthier. I do better work to my guitars than the 2 luthiers at both of those stores have done to my guitars. It's just better to learn it.
I've done the same thing over the years after noticing every guitar comes with a bad fret job. I've gotten pretty good at it and like you said the difference in feel and playability is day and night. I also roll the fretboard edges if they're not already for more comfort.
Yeah I had to figure everything out on my own also. There's no guitar shops near me , with the drive and cost of taking it to a professional it wouldn't be worth it. Plus I think it's better that any player learns this stuff , it comes in handy and saves you money!
@@Stratisfied22 the day after I bought my Charvel I went and rolled my fenders fingerboard edges. It makes a big difference I was honestly surprised.
Do you level from end to end with a full length straight edge? And how straight does a straight edge need to be? Where can I get one?
It's not about unrealistic expectations for me, it's only about I don't want the neighbors think that I AM THE ONE PRACTICING the damn instrument when I'm just watching a TH-cam video!!!! :D
Keep rocking. You inspire me! Well done on salvaging that scrap.
Glenn, your playing has really improved over the years. Thanks!
Love watching your videos and seeing your enthusiasm! I feel like I'm right there with you.
Great work Glenn. I put together a Partscaster a few years ago and went through a huge learning curve on what you are showing here. From fret dressing & levelling to learning how to spray and finish nitro paint. Keep on showing this stuff it's excellent to see.
finding your channel again is a blast from the past, glorious
Welcome back, Dante!
I learned myself to do about any job on a guitar except the fret work. Thanks Glenn, you made me give fret work a try to! keep up the good work that you do! Greetings from Holland!
Hey Glenn, I too learned about dressing fret ends from Phil and it’s been a great addition to my skill set. Learning how to do a proper setup early on definitely helped my paying as well. Playing on a guitar with a proper setup just feels so much better when you compare to one that needs some fine tuning. Also promote practice if the instrument feels good in the hands, like you said, just don’t want to stop playing. Keep up the good work love the content.
Loads of respect to you sir, you made a dud become a winner! 🤘🏼 And totally agree with the 80's hair metal shredders, many talented guitarist back in the day!
Phil's channel gave me confidence to work on my own guitars. A wealth of info and a great channel.
Glenn!! Your playing improved dramatically, congrats! Cheers from Brazil 🤘
Glen thank you for posting this video. Your channel is awesome and a great resource for us all!
Big HELLO from Croatia . Thanks for clearing out strings grounding on active pickups in this video,i goto do some soldering on my kids guitar !
Glad you got this one sorted out, looked forward to seeing if you get the other sorted too
Your guitar playing has improved a ton. Well done, keep up the great content
Great job Glenn! Sometimes just doing the fixing and problem solving is so satisfying, specially when you make a low budget instrument sound so decent!
Great job finding +fixing the issues!!
You are getting pretty dang good at playing guitar! Thank you for making these videos and explaining how things are supposed to work!!! 🤘
I'm really glad I came back to this channel again, thank you Glenn for providing such knowledge!
Well, I don't know if I'll buy one of these, but now I know what to do with them if I get one
Suscribed without a doubt
Glenn, your videos have been popping up in my feed for a while and the videos you’ve posted recently got me to subscribe. Your videos are entertaining and informative, I laugh quite a few times each video! Keep up the great work man
I'm happy to see this video. I wasn't expecting the follow-up so quickly. I agree that beginners/noobs aren't going to want to go through all that, nor should they. Then again, neither should more advanced players. Ideally, other than adjusting the action, tuning and neck relief, which can shift during transport, the guitar should otherwise be good to go. I think this video is a good lead-in for doing a full "guitar set-up" video, showing how to take a guitar from the box to "ready for the stage and studio". Thanks for this!
Very glad you took the time to figure out and fix the noise issue. I never would of thought of paint causing issue. A good thing to remember for the future. Nice job.
"would of thought"
Is your mother your sister??
Nice job on this Glen 👍 Glad you found a solution to the issue.
Glad to see you got the V fixed and it’s playable!
I don't watch every video, but from the ones I've seen recently, I have noticed a lot of improvement in your playing. Keep up the good work! Also, the tone in this video with that guitar is killer! Reminds me of KSE.
I really, really, really appreciate the effort you made here. Keep up the good work Glenn.
Glad for you that you have learnt to do the work, nothing more satisfying than playing a guitar that was poorly finished, after you have changed it into a beast by yourself! 🎸🤘🎸
Dude, your face at 13:04. That's genuine and awesome!!! 🤘🤘🤘
Hey Glenn, great video for the at home luthier. I’m sure there are many who will learn from this video. I have a request for you and Specter. I think another run of the cock blocker in pedal form would be awesome. I recently missed out on a guy selling one which is very rare. I missed the damn thing by actually asking if it was not broken. Within that time someone slid in and scooped it. I’m sure it’s a shot in the dark asking but I’m sure I’m not the only person who is seeking out this grail noise gate. As always keep slaying it with the great content. 🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻
Glenn!! Check your HB 8 string as well. I got mine about 2 years ago, and I’m having the same issue. I thought it was the older amp I’m using, but after seeing these video you made about this, I did a side by side comparison with another guitar. It turns out the HB 8 string with its black painted hardware has the same problem. But at least now I’ve identified the problem, and now the solution, thanks to your videos. Thank you Glenn & keep shredding!
Oh, so many many hours I have dressed frets while watching TH-cam... All the repair and solutions are legit something I do to every guitar I find. RARELY do I find a guitar that couldn't be improved with a bit of treatment... GOOD Episode, and F you Glenn!!!
Glenn, I really wanted to thank you for the extended Spectre sale, I know ELE is worth so much more than the normal price, but this really gives us cash-strapped musicians/hobbyists the best opportunity to step up our game, so very thankful that I was able to get it for myself, you really are there for us, Cheers!
Now this is the Chad like content I yearn for. Killer work, more of this TLC sort of content! Anyway, I imagine most folks would be happy to charge an extra 30-40 (insert currency) to ensure the thing is set up decently.
You're guitar work is fine, you've made leaps and bounds of anything!
I'm a guitar player but I don't know it all. I want to be educated. That's why I subscribe and watch this channel. What's great about metal is you get honesty. This channel you get the best of both worlds. Plus listening to Glenn rip priest riffs make me giddy and happy
This may will be your best video ever, and that is not small compliments!
I have to say, after around 7 years of buying/trading/selling and teaching myself amateur/novice level tech-ing, I stand by the thought of "cheap can be good too, just needs a little work."
After seeing the first, and now this second video, I'm tempted to get one for myself.
Thanks Glenn.
Congratulations on the victory and great jamming!
Love your content. I've been binge watching the past few weeks. This was a great video. Would love to see more where you pick up dirt cheap guitars and see what it takes to get them to decent level playing and sound status. I also truly appreciate the fact that you give off the sense you're looking out for the young new players, too many people out there just wanting to rip them off and crush their spirits
Hey Glenn, grettings from Ecuador! Nice Video and learning process description. I think another way to solve it. I had that problem in a ESP LTD Viper 400 and I changed the bridge tail to a Gotoh Stop Tailpiece Black and the issue was solved. This thing has conductive paint and proper metal to cover it. Some manufactures as Hipshot, Gotoh, Graph Tech have this hardware covered, but obviously this could be expensive $$$ but this upgrades worth it . I did the same thing with a HB 1000 Proggresive Line and everything changed radically!! Shielding the pots and pick ups cavities will help too. Really Fan of yours and your work! Keep Going, No compromising, no sellouts, stay true!! MARVIN
Interesting that in the end it was the paint used on those stock bridge pieces, because as I said in a previous comment there are other models with stock black hardware as well without this issue, so at some point they changed the paint used to make those stock bridge parts for one that acts as insulator. Hopefully Thomann checks on that because otherwise any future guitar/bass model will have the same issue, or even existing models that also make use of black hardware and get built with the faulty component instead.
I love how much you love playing your axe homie.
It is FUN! Period!
Keep rocking Glenn
I'm a little bit of a V collector and currently have 13.... The latest addition being one of these! I actually paused your first video with this half was through to place my order and was very disheartened when it came to the end!! Happy to report though that the example I got has PERFECT frets and is as quiet as you like!....... And to be totally truthful it's one of THE best playing and feeling V's I own! Not a fan of the pup's but that's an easy fix. Glad you got yours sorted!
Glen goes guitar service tech. So great. - These vids are always such a treat.
Good on you for giving Philip McKnight props. Love your channel man!
Your playing has been getting so good man. Been playing for 11 years. I was self taught, and the exorcize you showed us has helped me more than anything. I'm finally able to get my fretting hand to do what I want it to do now. I feel like such a dunce lmao
Exorcize? So, what demons have you been driving out?
Glen, glad you saved it! I learned to do all my own work. I have 40+ guitars and gravitate towards the affordable. I do fret levels, electronics, replace nuts, ext. They are skills worth learning.
Hey Glenn...
This is my first time watching your videos. I was searching for a way to fix the grounding issue on my B-Stock Harley Benton Progressive Explorer ($150!!!). After checking all the continuity between all the electronics, there were no issues there. But! After watching your video I was able to file off the paint from the tailpiece post, the slots where the strings go in, and even the slots on the bridge where the strings rest.
Voila!!! I now have a pretty sweet guitar for a mere $150!
Glenn, Thanks for doing the ground work to get this guitar up to where t is playable. It’s not my thing now but when I was a teenager, this would have been a cool guitar to play.
Just recently bought a Jackson rhoads js22 ht 7 which feels amazing in my hands. Except for a buzz which this video helped me find the problem. The black coating on the bridge. Now to get a metal file to remove the coat on the back of the bridge. Thanks Glenn.
Nice work Glenn 😉🤘🤘
13:03 just pure happiness! I LOVE IT!
Wow. Glenn did a thing. Good show great job
Looks like I found my next v thanks for all the info
Nice work man- it's always satisfying ti fix your own guitars. Glad it came out well! And I'll be keeping a lookout for the "Nut Sauce- Shot in the Slot" t-shirts.
Nice work here ! Bought a IBG Epi Firebird back in June....only one 'shop' had one so bought it. Del'd quick but
pak'd like trash. Inner box banging around. Should have refused it . Wanted to love it.
Great for few weeks then problems. Output jack, and the br pup stopped working. Check and missed the return time by about a week. Got it fixed locally, $180 which included a complete set up,,,,action is half of what it was.
Not great but the guitar was a gift (65 BD) . I love it !!
well done man happy for you glenn enjoy the new axe iv learnd agen a big thanks 4 shareing
GLEEEEEEN!!! Seriously impressed with your guitar playing man, love seeing your hard work paying off! You're even making "guitarist faces" now, y'love to see it. Keep it up man!
Ty!!
Your playing got a lot better! 🤘🏻
Covered Lay it Down with my band. We do death metal but love the old school stuff too. Noticed it was in drop C so we threw it in for a mix up of old school classics. It is a challenging riff at first but you can pull it off dude. Also, I want one of those V's now that you showed us how to fix the thing. Thank you so much for the great content!
Glenn i think you said it best...im glad i learned how to fix the issues instead of taking it somewhere for someone else to fix or sink some money into it. so many players out there clueless on how to do simple repairs or basic up keep. and i agree 1000% that this guitar is not for new player and Harley Benton does need to address this issue it would have never been an issue is proper QC was applied from the affordable to the high priced guitar. in this world its about credibility, quality and reliability. you miss or lack any of those 3...you might as well close up shop . i love all 6 of my Harley Benton guitars and they all play great and i have been lucky to not have the dreaded lemon.
nice work on it Glenn!!!
Glad to see you helping troubleshooting noise issues for guitar players of all skill levels. One thought or question about this guitar specifically? Are they really active pickups, or are they passive pickups with a preamp tacked on. If truly active design top to bottom, then yes they should be quite quiet. If they're passive, and amplified through a preamp, then any noise from anywhere will go up exponentially and be much harder to tame.
Well done... & thanks for the suggestion to get the "Nut Lubricante"... LOL was fun to watch you play RATT... I'm on that same road too. Thanks Glenn.
Great video Glenn! You're initial reaction to the HB V was completely justified imo. A new guitar should not come with those type of issues. It's a guitar I was looking at myself. Thanks for showing us all how to fix this if we tread down that road. Enjoyed your jam too! You really are doing some nice shredding there.
You’re turning me into a Vee lover. Always thought it would be cumbersome for those of us who sit when playing, now it looks kind of perfect. 😊
Glenn, love that RATT riff! Looking forward to you working on that one and nailing it!
Heyy Glenn if you do see this, I have a plug-in I highly recommend checking out. A few weeks ago I purchased the Audio Assault AHM 5050. It is by far the best 5150 plug-in I've tried. Unlike the Fluff 5134, it includes all 3 channels, as well as a resonance control. It's also got a blend knob to go from 6L6 to EL34, and anywhere in between. It's like a texture knob for the distortion. The stock IR aren't half bad either. After loading up and blending 2 IR from Bogren Digital, I was in tonal Heaven. It's currently on sale for $10 USD.
Love It, bought It for 6 bucks almost a year ago
@@Davix-tt9sh nice! I caught it for $5
Great video Glenn!! In depth with detail and a real treat for anyone looking to take more of their guitar care into their own hands. And in before some knucklehead comes in with the “why put so much energy/$ into a cheap guitar”…🤦🏻♂️ First many higher end guitars won’t have these issues, but many of us in your audience also aren’t in that market. And there is nothing wrong with learning/tinkering on any level of guitar to hone your skills. Use what you have. Thanks dude!
Thank you so much! I have this guitar and love the look and feel, but the noise just bothered me a lot! I ordered gold pins to switch and I even went as far as upgrading the tuners with locking ones as well - just an acquired taste! I'll let you know how it goes once the parts come in. It really is a sweet guitar though!
Super cool! Phil’s channel is a very interesting channel to tune into, he had his McKnight guitars in Chandler AZ for years great place back in the day to talk shop and see cool gear! Crazy enough I have one of his old Project guitars. A 7 String Strat that he had custom made to fill that fender 7 string void. Plays wonderfully!
Hey Glenn, First I want to thank you for putting up entertaining as well as informative content. I appreciate how much common sense are in your videos. So I just did an unboxing and review of a New Harley Benton that I just got. There QC definitely has gone down since I have been getting them. The nut for the toggle switch was cross threaded and stripped, I had to take one off of one of my other guitars just to get through the review. I was disappointed because in the past I have always had good luck with HB. By the way I'm a Blues Guitarist that thinks your channel is fantastic (I'm disabled and will never be able to shred unfortunately so I stick to the blues) I am an old school rocker thought. Thanks man.
Amazing. Instead of just trashing the cheaper guitars... Glenn shows you how to fix it. - Anyone can sit back and be a critic.
Not everyone uses the most important piece of equipment for any musical project - their brain. Whether making purchases... practicing... writing... or recording. Your brain is THE most important piece of musical equipment It should be adjusted and properly maintained regularly with upgrades and new perspectives. It tells you when to join a band and when to leave a band. The brain - a highly overlooked essential tool for every musician. Bravo to Glenn for demonstrating how to properly use our brain and figure out how to overcome yet another TH-cam misconception about music.
Cheap guitars can be excellent tools and affordable for those seeking tone. This way Glenn shows us how to save money for the real sound upgrade - our speakers. All this time many thought it was a Gibson paint job and vintage wood.
Great video - next up in my TH-cam cue is "The Spoon Lady" What? You can't hear those Blue Ridge Mountain floating paradiddles? Listen again with your brain - she's a metal beast on isolated tracks - joking. But she is damn good.
Love the videos and of course - fuck you Glenn 🤣😂🤣😂
great stuff Glenn
Fixing stuff is very gratifying.
Nice work on the fix. I plan to get one of these guitars, and Im glad I won't have to drive myself nuts trying to figure it out. Lol 🤘
Gleeeeeeennnnnnnn!!!!! What a great video to learn all the ins and outs of guitar electronics!
Hey glen great work as always , a little tip that I use for strings sticking in nut is: use a grey lead pencil and sharpen the tip then put a stripe of graphite (from pencil) in each string nut groove, works perfect and is only the cost of a pencil and can be used hundreds of times
That's a trick I learned 20 years ago when I first started playing and it works wonders
Dude, Glenn. Your chops are on fucking fire. I've been watching and rewatching your betterment of guitar practicing video and running through your practices as well as watching more of Bernth's videos to try and better myself. Course I'm still stuck on basically playing man in the box, but hopefully sooner or later I can be half as good a guitar player as you have managed to achieved
Well someone has been practicing great progress Glen.
Glen I saw the first video and decided to buy it anyways because I knew that
Someone would find a solution.
Just got it this morning and "boom" this video popped
Thank you so much for this video God bless you dude!!!🤘😎
Glenn, first and foremost love the fix you did and that you gave it another chance. Agreed beginners shouldn't have to deal with this bs but you gave them an option to fix it up if they wanted. Secondly holy shit your chops have gotten great since I started watching. Keep up the practice as it always makes perfect and keep the great content flowing.
Lay it Down was my introduction to drop tuning and I LOVE that riff!
Warren was/is great player but boy oh boy King Crosby was also something.
Glenn I love you man, I'm always amazed at how much you know about recording. That being said it always blows my mind how little you know about how a Guitar works. I've had custom shop Guitar show up in my shop with some of these same problems, this is really an "all"guitar problem. Granted some companies do put in a little more care but it's not a guarantee that the guitar won't have a problem a few months after it's been made. The guitar in this video is a good guitar and the pickups are good even the hardware, they just decided to powder coat the parts. I've done this myself you buy the cheap Chrome Hardware and you powder coat them whatever color you need. Generally I remove the powder coating on contact points for a bridge or a tail piece. The black one that comes on it can easily be fixed with a little more care and Ingenuity than a wire brush. The tailpiece on the guitar is a three-part system. The tail bar the stud and the mounting feral. All three parts are powder coated therefore all three parts need to have a little powder coat removed at contact points, this includes where the feral contacts the actual ground wire inside the guitar.(You should probably do this too even though you quietened it down it's still a little noisy.) This is definitely not something a beginner child could do but any adult beginner or advanced player could perform this procedure.
@@ByDesignKatonah I've seen it on an LTD, had a PRS where the springs in the tremolo are not conducting, they needed a little sandpaper taken to them. Had this problem with black Hardware on a Gibson. When you first powder coat, it can be conductive but after leaving the factory and the Finish cures sometimes a problem arises. You could have this problem happen with any guitar that you purchase that is not Chrome or gold. You could have two guitars from the same factory made on the same day one might have a continuity problem and the other one might not. No matter the brand there is no guarantee that you're not going to get a guitar that has a slight problem. It may have been fine when quality control checked it in the factory but a month passes and there could be a problem. It matters not how much money you spend on the guitar, you're still taking a Gamble whether or not something is awry. All guitars need a little maintenance, some win they're brand new some after a year. No company can put out perfect guitars every time. But all guitars can be repaired and become reliable instruments.
Dude.
I have a Harley Benton explorer, don't know the exact model but the headstock is that of a leftie Stratocaster, and it has the HBZ pickups. The noise is driving me insane! I tore it apart and resoldered the ENTIRE electronics and nothing. I will give your solution a shot since my guitar also has black painted hardware. After watching this video, I'm 99% sure I have the same issue with the bridge ground wire.
Keep up the good work!
I just bought your Northern Mauler! It is absolutely insane! It is the tone I've always wanted. I can't recommend it enough to people.
Learning how to set up your guitar is a skill all guitarists should learn. I taught myself 25 years or more ago, after paying some joker for a setup who wiped down the fingerboard with linseed oil, changed the strings and jacked up the action. I was not a happy shopper, but it saved me a fortune ever since.
Nut lube is good, but now you have thicker strings, you should open up the shoulders of the string slot where it’s sticking, Glenn. A few strokes with a file will prevent the string being grabbed, because if it is that tight, the lube won’t be a permanent fix.
Good work Glenn
So once in a while I listen to this guy. He is high energy and entertaining. He's kind of like the antithesis of Darrell Braun. He did a good job showing fret files. I had to do similar work on my Solo guitars. However, he said he was in the small town of Windsor, Ontario and stuff is hard to get.stuff. That struck me as odd since Detroit, Michigan is within walking distance. (I guess I wouldn't want to go to Detroit either.) Good he could fix the guitar.
Good job! Glad you got it fixed, and it is satisfying doing it yourself. As far as the grounding, you could probably could have used a wire wheel on a bench grinder to clean the paint off the parts black part where you needed to (easier than filing). Or you can use a wirebrush bit on a drill. Just some ideas. If you are substituting the gold (or chrome/nickel) posts, then you could get some matching black spray paint and hit the visible portion of the parts, so they match - just keep the inner conducting parts clean and free of paint. Black anodized parts or conductive paint would also have eliminated that issue with the bridge and tailpiece not grounding, if they wanted to continue to use black hardware. You can get new/different black hardware cheap enough and most of the cheap stuff is standard sized now, so you might be able to pick up a replacement metric black tailpiece and posts that fit that will conduct. I am saying that for Harley Benton's sake, and if anyone does not have other parts handy. It would be easy to test, just take a meter and test both sides of the stop tail piece for conductivity.
As far as the chunky neck on the guitar I kinda like those, so I'd probably like that particular guitar. I have some other Harley Benton guitars and they are good for the money, but mine were from a different series. I did not have as bad as fret issues as you with these so far at least. But mine have roasted maple neck which because of the roasting process are a bit more stable and mine were a little bit more money. No, mine didn't have the black hardware or the active pickups either.
One thing at least partially in their defense, the frets on many guitars experience fret "sprout" in the fall/winter because the wide humidity swings dries out the wood and the wood shrinks more than the metal frets with the low humidity. This makes the frets stick out of the edge and feel sharp as heck. I am not saying this is why this happened, only that it may have contributed to it. It happens with many guitars including sometimes very expensive ones. But it is especially so with cheaper guitars where they may not have had much care or time with the fretwork, or the wood may not have been as seasoned and dried when assembled. Any sharp or unfinished fret edges will be much worse as a result. Not making excuses, but depending on when it was built and transition of the seasons between building and unpacking and playing (you're in Canada right? Late fall? Cold, and low humidity in the air, same as here, even though I am much further south). I have to do this with many of my guitars eventually, sometimes have to repeat this process next winter - but after a while the wood shrinks less and you have filed the edges more, so you are eventually good). I bought a very expensive and well-made guitar that came from the Salt Lake area, which is pretty well desert dry, and quite cold in the winter (very dry) it its finish is all checked and affected by the exceptionally dry climate. It is NOT a newer guitar, but you'd think it was 20-30 years older. But it plays and sounds amazing, and it is not really an issue to me (it is basically a real relic guitar, not a fake one).
Félicitation
Great work
Glenn on t'aime
I actually bought one for about a week ago. No problem with the fret finish or sharp edges. Had the problem with the grounding though. Polished the screws with a Dremel, worked like a charm 😉
Good point about the imperfection! I wouldn't say tho that the performances we watch aren't entirely honest as much as that in Instagram guitarists' work, we only get to see a final product that seems effortless only due to hours of sweat and sore fingertips
Great video Glenn. That HB sounds killer now! I'd recommend using a Dremel tool, with a sanding or grinding sleeve, for grinding that paint off or for enlarging holes & cavities.
It's cool seeing your playing skills evolve, getting better all the time. I wish I had your vibrato.
Glad to see you got it right! Just found your channel today. SUBSCRIBED!
🤟😆🎸
Wow Glenn, your playing is really improving big time!