I bought one of these...I love it! So much so that I bought a second one in candy apple red, which I strung for Nashville tuning...what a jangly sound! Tuners on both are ok and they stay in tune well. Beautiful finish and very solid. For the price quite amazing! I will eventually upgrade the pick ups for a bit more oomph.
Very nice! I was really blown away by the build quality, especially after the desaster with the first two Squier Affiniy guitars. I think there's nothing more to wish for in terms of build quality for this price tag. Do you already have a certain pair of pickups in mind?
@@Bandforge Fender Tex or Vintera probably, just to get that sound. They'll cost about the same as the guitar did...lol, but I did originally buy it to spec it up a bit. Although, I have delayed doing anything apart from the initial basic set up, as I am not gigging. Just using it for recording at home. For that it's been really good enough..to be honest surprisingly good for the price. In the meantime the new TE-62's have appeared and they also look great for the price.
This is the first time that I've seen this channel, and I really enjoyed this review. You are very thorough. I am definitely subscribing. Thanks for posting this
Harley Bentons are great guitars offering brilliant quality for very little money, I love them. You can't go wrong with one of these TE-20's as a solid basic Tele clone. I was surprised you didn't highlight the metallic paint finish as well as the lovely colour. The red version is also lovely.
Yeah, I was very impressed! :) Oh, I didn't…? Maybe it was because I was too impressed by the neck that I got carried away! The paint is super nice! Do you own one of these HB Teles?
I'd love to present my TE20 as a give away once I'm done with all the mods, but I'm a little scared of the shipping costs, haha! Oh, and, also don't tell anyone because it's still a well kept secret! ;)
I have one of the same color and I really can’t believe the quality myself. I’ve had it for two years. I did change the nut, saddles and tuners as I was really getting it to experiment with modding. But I’m lately thinking about getting another one to just keep as-is because it was really just my pride that made me change it to begin with.
Thank you for you kind words! :) I try to improve at least one thing each video. This of course, can be production details that are invisible in the video itself but it helps me to fight my perfectionism and finish (kind of) on time.
@@Bandforge I discovered you just the other day and I’ve seen some of the earlier videos, and you’ve improve quite a lot. You seem more comfortable in front of the camera now, and I like the less stiff presentation in the newer vids.
I think they are really nice guitars! Honestly, I didn't expect so much of a 89 € guitar but now I'm laying an eye on the Fusion models… ;) Do you record a particular style of music? Also, did you change anything on your guitars?
@@Bandforge Heh, it's all in my channel. I do anime & gaming related covers. Latest one is kind of a gothic metal type of track. And the previous is a simple classical track. Ofc, I also collab with my friends quite a bit 😈 I've done zero modding to my instruments. Well, I did shim my other benton bass. The action was too high. I needed a lot of strength to play at the upper frets. Now it's good though.
@@Bandforge Hah, was that a suggestion ;D If so, I shall keep that in mind~~ As for copyright, it's kind of random. Some songs get it more easily. But it's never a strike or anything. They just put ads on them. Occasionally. I'm not concerned with them making money for me either at this point. Since you need to be a partner and the money won't make a difference to me at this stage. And yea, I've seen K-On! Not the movie yet though. I need to finish it ;)
Let me keep practicing for a while and then, sure, why not? :) I'm still rusty… Thanks for sharing your experience with copyright! I've read about distrokid. Have you heard about it? It's a service that is quite cheap and takes over all the legal stuff for cover songs. I was thinking about recording some covers myself and would try that out. :)
Thomann is able to sell HB guitars much cheaper because they have them made at a factory in Indonesia and then sell them only at their store. Squier has them made at a factory in Indonesia and then sells them to music stores who mark them up again. From what I can find, some of the HB guitars are made by Cort, the same place that makes the PRS SE series, some of the higher end Epiphones, and the Squier Affinity and Classic Vibe series. Harley Benton is the same quality at a lower price because there's no middle man or second mark up in price.
Thanks for sharing this interesting insight! This makes a lot of sense! Do you think the Squier Affinity (or the Bullet) would be at the same price tag, if Fender had no middle man in between? Also, can you recommend a certain website with further information on that? I have an Epiphone SG 400 Deluxe from 2004 or so. The headstock says, it's made in Korea. Do you happen to know which factory that might be?
The possibilities for playing around with all the specs is no problem for that low price. Opportunities to learn hands on alterations without worry. I like the Thomann line. I have 6 of them and have just changed and rewired, and filed, and swapped something on every one of them.
@@Bandforge TE-90 FLT, SC-Custom, 2x SC-550's, CST-24-T, and TE-70. I enjoy the SC=550 the most. The woods, the necks, and the price. All good. Fret boards and frets usually need work, meaning condition and polish. Dry and scratchy at times. So what... they wear in well.
They all look beautiful! I have layed an eye on the Fusion-T HH. Do you happen to have tried it out? In a guitar like that, all I would probably do is change the electronics at a certain point. Which mods did you perform on the SC-550s?
@@Bandforge I would take a silver sparkle HH Fusion. The new ones may rival the 550's. On those 550's everything is changed except the nut, the tailpiece and the bridge. I have one wired 50's but with 2 tone CTS split coil. The other is 60's wired with no splits. Both have Orange Drops. Full length switches on both with braided wire, and both with Grover Deluxe vintage. Drilling for all spes were needed. Metric to standard.
Do the Fusion-III / Fusion-T have any difference expect for the shape? I prefer the looks of the T-style on this one but I'm always open for suggestions. :) Nice mods!! Over what kind of amp/cab do you play them?
Realistically, when it comes to some finishing work, it doesn't take hours and hours and hours ... just a few minutes sanding to a higher level, or whatever makes a guitar feel amazing... and ... basically Fender-Jackson and Ibanez fail and refuse to do that on the lowest end guitars to eek out as much value as they can out of the material cost and labor. Harley Benton is amazing that they spend the necessary work to get quality finish to happen.
Yeah, that's what I was thinking, too. Only that I've read that the ash Teles from HB are very heavy! If I was looking for another guitar, I'd be very tempted to get a Harley Benton Fusion. I really like the more modern take on the Telecaster theme and tbh there would be next to nothing that I'd change. It even comes with a GraphTech nut! As I know me, I'd certainly fiddle around with the electronics, but that's all, I guess. :D
@@Bandforge the TE 70 is basswood i think not ash contrary to the TE 52. I think they have Klusson tuners too :) ! The TE 70 has a better bridge and saddle than the TE 52 with the wilkinson hardware ... just need to be ready for the Black Paisley finish ! If only they could do an alternative version with a more classic colour :(
Oh my… the paisley! xD I think, I've mixed them up in my head. Now I know exactly which one you're talking about, sorry! :) Yeah, sometimes I really wonder who makes the color decisions there, but it doesn't change the feel and tone of a guitar. I think there is a shop that sells custom made stickers for guitars, maybe that's an option! ;)
Definitly impressed by the build quality of this beast ! I hope you will be able to share your impression about the pickups and the flat radius neck in the next deep dive video ;) ! The colour seems a bit darker than the Affinity and the headstock / tuners are less sexy but its a minor thing if the sound & feel are better for less than half of the Affinities price :) 22 frets like on the Player series too, this is a +
Same here!! :D I think, after the two detailed reviews, I'll make a head to head comparison of the two guitars. There we can compare the colors next to each other and do a side by side sound demo. What would be something that would interest you most in the comparison? I thought of getting some calipers and measure everything to help clear the differences up a little bit better.
@@Bandforge Agree with previous guy, pickups sound is the most interesting thing but even if it will be worse than affinity, HB has already won in build quality :)
Hahaha! Thanks! My Fender Player is a Strat so sadly I can't compare the two. In terms of Teles I prefer the sound of the Squier Affinity Telecaster. The Harley Benton full review is out now, bth, if you want to compare the sound yourself. ;)
@@Bandforge Aww, cool! (: Ja, alsoooo ich müsste mich momentan zwischen der CST-24T Black Cherry Flame und oder der HB-35Plus Cherry entscheiden. Ist aber so schweeer, haha. Mal sehen. Die 35Plus in Cherry ist natürlich schon mega mega gut. Aber die Andere eben auch. Hmmm xD :)
Yes indeed, incredible for 89 Euros. I got the Candy Apple Red, and I must say/write, what a great guitar. If you change the pick upps. you've got a fenderish axe!
Thanks for letting me know! What do you exactly mean by 'wobble'? Does it move back and forth on axis? My guess would be that there is a bit too much space in the pick guard. Once you're happy with your pickup height setup, you could try to stick a tiny bit of electrical tape between the gap and see if that helps. If it does, you could carefully cut any overlapping tape with an exacto knife. In case the wobbling is not on axis, check the screws and see if the springs are correctly in place. I hope this helps a bit! :)
@@Bandforge Hi! It's all stock, as it came. If you like you can hear me playing it in a recent video: th-cam.com/video/qHpUpBG9ezg/w-d-xo.html Please forgive my amateur playing; still I think it gives a good idea of the sounds it has. The neck is also very very nice IMO. If you get one I will love to see you play it on your channel!
Oh, it sounds really nice! :D Thanks for sharing your exact setup, too! It's always helpful to get an inside of which components were part of the overall sound. I'm far from being a pro, myself and everyone started as an amateur! ;) If you need some advise from someone who's still struggling, let me know!
Haha, thank you! :D Hmmm… that's a difficult question. There are some subtle differences that could decide in one way or the other. It depends a bit on your hands, too. The HB has a bulkier and wider neck which makes it more difficult to play with my hands. Also, the Affinity sounds better on a decent amp. On the other hand, the build quality of the HB is very good for the price and changing pickups is no big deal, even if you are not familiar with electronics. :) What do you think? Which criteria would be most important for you?
@@Bandforge I think the most important criterias are the sound of the pickup/electronics & the feel of the neck. But the finish is also quite impressing too on this one :) !
I'll do my very best! :) In that case, I'd advise you to get the HB, not the Affinity. Hm… I'm just thinking. If someone had the funds for the Affinity but go for the HB, that would leave a lot of room for interesting modifications and make the HB maybe even better than a CV for half the price!
Gibt's auch Harley Bentons ins weiss?? Und darf ich fragen: was ist ihre Meinung von Musicstore Köln? Wir fahren nächste Woche dahin. Liebe Grüße aus die Niederlande
Ja, es gibt die Harley Benton TE-30 BE für ca. 120€ in weiß. Die Gitarre hat sogar einen Body aus Esche. Das letzte Mal als ich beim Musicstore Köln war, befand sich das Geschäft noch neben dem Kölner Dom, aber mir hat der Laden damals gut gefallen. Die Gitarren von Fame sind sehr interessant! :)
I think you can dare to try it! ;) I was blown away by the quality for this price tag! Of course, don't expect the best pickups but I think this is something that's easily changed. Which Telecasters do you own? I'd love to buy a Player Tele one day…
@@Bandforge I Have a player series in ice white and a player plus in lake placid blue 😈 plays another white road worn Squire that I mod changed the pickups and set it up.
Hahahaha!! xD So true! I've put a Seymour Duncan SH-4 in a Hagstrom Super Swede and love it for playing crunch and distortion. Thb, I only recently started with single coil guitars and I'm still looking for good replacement pickups for the Teles. The Quarter pounders are noted! ;) Do you have a prefered style of music when playing?
Die habe ich vor ca. fünf Jahren zum Geburtstag bekommen. Leider gibt's die nirgendwo mehr, deshalb sieht sie auch so ramponiert und ausgewaschen aus, aber ich liebe sie immer noch! ;)
@@Bandforge Hey, vielen Dank für die schnelle Antwort :) Ja sehr schade, ich hab auch schon gesucht. Ach was, die sieht noch super aus, steht dir gut ;) LG
So true ! Even lake placid blue is very limited on the Fender range. This year is an exception on the Squier Affinity range but otherwise they keep all the cool colours for the overpriced Vintera series. The MIM players are stuck with the most dull ones in my opinion ...
@@Bandforge Tidepool Strat should be cool for sure :)! Honestly if i cant find satisfaction for now on my Telecaster quest i might consider a beautiful Classic Vibe 60 Stratocaster in LPB ... not the same budget but i guess at least i don't have to change the pickups or any other parts.
Hahaha! I can relate to that very well! :) I'm sorry, that it takes me to long to make the videos while you're waiting for answers. Even on my Strat to do list, there's changing the pickups, but maybe that's just me. Not that the stock PUs sound bad or anything. I just fell in love with the sound of the Performer which is good since the pickups are not as expensive as other options. ;) In the end I got the Player (because of the price and) because of it classic looks with yet a modern design (two point tremolo, classic headstock).
Ich habe die TE-20 in Candy Apple Red und sie ist fantastisch bezogen auf den Preis. Absoluter Nobrainer. Und ja, der Hals fühlt sich an wie Samt, absolut erste Sahne. Nur die Tuner sind etwas naja.
Freut mich sehr, dass dir die Gitarre so gut gefällt! :D Die Candy Apple Red ist auch eine sehr schöne Farbe. Bei meiner sind die Tuner ganz gut, da hatte ich auf teureren Gitarren schon schlechtere. Die müsste man aber ganz gut durch Kluson MS6LC bit.ly/3d0ce7W ersetzen können. Das wollte ich mal testen, habe aber die Bohrlöcher noch nicht nachgemessen. :)
@@Bandforge i removed the steel saddles and put compensated brass saddles on it, and changed the strings. I also tuned it to open G and removed the low E string. I play slide blues and rock ala Keith Richards on it.
@el el z have you tried a TE-20 for comparison? I find the bridge pickup of the TE-20 to sound a bit thin and I'm currently investigating possbile reasons. It could be because of the cheaper pickups.
There was a time I wouldn't have been caught playing a Harley Benton...I used to run my own guitar repair business in Paris between 2006 and 2011 and back then Harley Bentons were so bad it used to be a joke between me and my customers and friends 😄😄😄 Well...I stopped laughing after that : One day after I had moved to the US someone brought me a HB PRS-style and I was BLOWN AWAY... I bought their SG Junior then their SG custom with 3 humbuckers then the TE-20-HH and I'm getting this one too 😁😁I may end up with 20 Harley Bentons but at this price who cares ??
I posted a comment and some more tips on this video as I've used inexpensive instruments before regarding writing and recording commercially licensed music. I looks like you deleted that comment... They can be great and I stand behind what I said that "some" Chinese manufacturer instruments can have small to very large issues.. Not "all"... But some. I again do use "some" inexpensive guitars. Maybe it was because I referenced that Harley Benton is made in those same Chinese factories, just the quality assurance and control is better? I apologize if that was offensive to you. I deleted the other comment also on your Squier guitar video. I hope you have a great upcoming holiday season, and I wish you all the best going forward.
I honestly don't know what happened to your comments!! I absolutely did NOT delete any of them, this must be a YT thing and I really don't see why! To me they are very valuable information and tbh, I was not writing back for two days here, because I'm still trying out your guitar recording tips!! :D But thank you a lot for pointing that out. If it happens again, I'll try to get in touch with YT. Maybe it's their AI that's deleting posts? Would you be so kind and share your full latest tips again, please? I'm really sorry for the inconvenience! And I really enjoy the exchange!
@@Bandforge That is very strange. Well, I'll offer some more tips to get us back on track then. :-) With "any" telecaster type of guitars you may or may not want to do this things.. but some "upgrade" ideas. Take the control plate off, and solder / replace the 0.22uF capacitor with a .047uF capacitor to give you more lower and mid frequencies (darker tone) on the roll off of the tone pot. Look around for reviews on Dual Rail humbucker pickups for the bridge, I bought one for one of my telecasters and it give you a bit more sustain of notes when using distortion, they are also less noisy as well to note there are A LOT of Chinese pickups out there and again SOME are good and inexpensive. It does help, to take off the pick guard and use copper tape (Amazon is a good place buy it) in the body cavity to block electro magnetic interference (emi / hum). Some people think that replacing the three traditional chrome bridge saddles with real brass ones with improve sustain of the notes and over all tone, I may try that at some point. Don't forget to check the nuts around the tuning posts on the headstock, they can become loose in shipment.
That's interesting tips again, thank you! :) I'm still in the 'never touch the tone pot'-phase of my playing. ;) When and how would you use a sound that's even darker than the standard rolled off tone pot? Do you have a recommendation for a pickup supplier? Also, I'd love to build a pickup winder in the future for more experiments. I've never tried a dual rail PU before and am very curious about the sound! I did the shielding with copper tape on my 2020 Affinity and the copper foil is already waiting. ;) Do you know, if there's a good option for the five saddle bridge in brass? I tried to find one because I really like how easy it is on the hand when playing palm mutes and also for the setup of the intonation. I've upgraded my Epiphone SG with a new brass bridge and tail piece and I love the sustain! Will check the nuts on the tuning posts once I'm restringing. Thanks for pointing this out! :)
@Mr Tom It's a shame, really! I don't know why it happens, but it seems like YT has deleted our comments again! There's not even a notification mail and I just noticed that my comment is gone, too… I'm currently mixing the "three (not so) evil triples" for this week's video and wanted to have a look, if you've replied to my comment and saw that in YT itself, there's a notification but it only shows me the first sentence of your post. This is frustrating and I don't seem to be able to do anything about it. The settings on my side of the channel are normal. Would you mind sending me your feedback again as an e-mail? You can find it under my channel info. I'm really sorry for the inconvenience! :(
@@Bandforge Yes I have one, it sounds great (specially for the price), also I like the (only 2 colors) looks, but be prepared for 4.5 kilos of rock and roll, come on it can't be perfect. Anyway, the pickups, the neck, the fret/board, the nut and the (vintage) tuners do the part, so it completely justifies and more its price
Wow, 4.5 kilos… I've read they're heavy but I wasn't expecting a full Les Paul! ;) I can imagine how good it is after trying the TE20! I bet they spend the rest of the budget on some really nice hardware and electronic parts. Which amp do you use with it? I find the TE20 a bit too much on the brighter side than I'd like. But after all, these are only ceramic pickups.
@@Bandforge I have and transistored MG50FX, I once had an DSL40 but you can't play a mammoth tube amp in a small room, I learned my lesson:-) It serves my purposes. And don't be afraid of the brightness, you always have multiple options: Tone knob, volume, even the 2nd, and finally the amp eq
That's interesting! :) I think we had a similar amp back at school and we would always fight about who gets the Marshall and not the other (uncool) amp which was a Peavey, haha! ;) You could also change the speaker. This can really improve the sound, if you're not happy! Also, have you tried taming the tube beast with an attenuator? This has helped me with my JCA50. Also, I don't know what happened, but some years ago, there was a period where you could get tiny but nice tube amps for a small budget. From this era, I also have a VHT combo with… hmm… 5 Watts? 10 Watts? Somewhere in this range. It's perfect for the living room when you have neighbors! :D
eh, Du, die Telecaster is eine delikates Gitarre, kein plöte riff instrument (mit neck pickup), spiel zuerst in clean tonen wie am akustik, lass die reverb klingen, atme die Vibration !
I have the sunburst version which I bought 2 yrs back for only €77 . Havnt changed anything on it just new strings when needed. Unbelievable for the price and I've used it for recording. Looking to pick up the new 62 double bound. Which is also getting great reviews. Cheers K
I bought one of these...I love it! So much so that I bought a second one in candy apple red, which I strung for Nashville tuning...what a jangly sound! Tuners on both are ok and they stay in tune well. Beautiful finish and very solid. For the price quite amazing! I will eventually upgrade the pick ups for a bit more oomph.
Very nice! I was really blown away by the build quality, especially after the desaster with the first two Squier Affiniy guitars. I think there's nothing more to wish for in terms of build quality for this price tag. Do you already have a certain pair of pickups in mind?
@@Bandforge Fender Tex or Vintera probably, just to get that sound. They'll cost about the same as the guitar did...lol, but I did originally buy it to spec it up a bit. Although, I have delayed doing anything apart from the initial basic set up, as I am not gigging. Just using it for recording at home. For that it's been really good enough..to be honest surprisingly good for the price. In the meantime the new TE-62's have appeared and they also look great for the price.
This is the first time that I've seen this channel, and I really enjoyed this review. You are very thorough. I am definitely subscribing. Thanks for posting this
Thank you very much! :)
Harley Bentons are great guitars offering brilliant quality for very little money, I love them.
You can't go wrong with one of these TE-20's as a solid basic Tele clone.
I was surprised you didn't highlight the metallic paint finish as well as the lovely colour.
The red version is also lovely.
Yeah, I was very impressed! :)
Oh, I didn't…? Maybe it was because I was too impressed by the neck that I got carried away! The paint is super nice! Do you own one of these HB Teles?
@@Bandforge I don't but I would love a blue one just like yours! :-)
I'd love to present my TE20 as a give away once I'm done with all the mods, but I'm a little scared of the shipping costs, haha!
Oh, and, also don't tell anyone because it's still a well kept secret! ;)
I have one of the same color and I really can’t believe the quality myself. I’ve had it for two years. I did change the nut, saddles and tuners as I was really getting it to experiment with modding. But I’m lately thinking about getting another one to just keep as-is because it was really just my pride that made me change it to begin with.
Which exact parts did you take as replacements? And did you consider a TE-62 in the same color? It sure looks promising!
How have I not come across your channel earlier? Your video quality is really nice. Keep it going 😌
Thank you for you kind words! :) I try to improve at least one thing each video. This of course, can be production details that are invisible in the video itself but it helps me to fight my perfectionism and finish (kind of) on time.
@@Bandforge I discovered you just the other day and I’ve seen some of the earlier videos, and you’ve improve quite a lot. You seem more comfortable in front of the camera now, and I like the less stiff presentation in the newer vids.
I can vouch for the benton guitars. I use them all the time for recording.
I think they are really nice guitars! Honestly, I didn't expect so much of a 89 € guitar but now I'm laying an eye on the Fusion models… ;)
Do you record a particular style of music? Also, did you change anything on your guitars?
@@Bandforge Heh, it's all in my channel. I do anime & gaming related covers. Latest one is kind of a gothic metal type of track. And the previous is a simple classical track. Ofc, I also collab with my friends quite a bit 😈 I've done zero modding to my instruments. Well, I did shim my other benton bass. The action was too high. I needed a lot of strength to play at the upper frets. Now it's good though.
Oh, that's very nice playing!! :)
How you deal with the copyright? And do you like K-on!? ;) I'd be in on Fuwa Fuwa Time or Fude Pen, hehe…
@@Bandforge Hah, was that a suggestion ;D If so, I shall keep that in mind~~ As for copyright, it's kind of random. Some songs get it more easily. But it's never a strike or anything. They just put ads on them. Occasionally. I'm not concerned with them making money for me either at this point. Since you need to be a partner and the money won't make a difference to me at this stage.
And yea, I've seen K-On! Not the movie yet though. I need to finish it ;)
Let me keep practicing for a while and then, sure, why not? :) I'm still rusty…
Thanks for sharing your experience with copyright! I've read about distrokid. Have you heard about it? It's a service that is quite cheap and takes over all the legal stuff for cover songs. I was thinking about recording some covers myself and would try that out. :)
Thomann is able to sell HB guitars much cheaper because they have them made at a factory in Indonesia and then sell them only at their store. Squier has them made at a factory in Indonesia and then sells them to music stores who mark them up again. From what I can find, some of the HB guitars are made by Cort, the same place that makes the PRS SE series, some of the higher end Epiphones, and the Squier Affinity and Classic Vibe series. Harley Benton is the same quality at a lower price because there's no middle man or second mark up in price.
Thanks for sharing this interesting insight! This makes a lot of sense! Do you think the Squier Affinity (or the Bullet) would be at the same price tag, if Fender had no middle man in between?
Also, can you recommend a certain website with further information on that? I have an Epiphone SG 400 Deluxe from 2004 or so. The headstock says, it's made in Korea. Do you happen to know which factory that might be?
@@Bandforge Korea Unsung plant,I believe!
i actually really like a Cort g100 i have a lot.
Hey cool, endlich mal ein Gitarren-Kanal mit weiblicher Besetzung! Direkt abonniert! :)
Danke für's Abonnieren! Ja, weibliche Besetzung bei Gitarren-Kanälen ist tatsächlich selten. :)
The possibilities for playing around with all the specs is no problem for that low price. Opportunities to learn hands on alterations without worry. I like the Thomann line. I have 6 of them and have just changed and rewired, and filed, and swapped something on every one of them.
Oh, that's nice! Which ones do you exactly have? And do you have a favorite? :)
@@Bandforge TE-90 FLT, SC-Custom, 2x SC-550's, CST-24-T, and TE-70. I enjoy the SC=550 the most. The woods, the necks, and the price. All good. Fret boards and frets usually need work, meaning condition and polish. Dry and scratchy at times. So what... they wear in well.
They all look beautiful! I have layed an eye on the Fusion-T HH. Do you happen to have tried it out? In a guitar like that, all I would probably do is change the electronics at a certain point. Which mods did you perform on the SC-550s?
@@Bandforge I would take a silver sparkle HH Fusion. The new ones may rival the 550's. On those 550's everything is changed except the nut, the tailpiece and the bridge. I have one wired 50's but with 2 tone CTS split coil. The other is 60's wired with no splits. Both have Orange Drops. Full length switches on both with braided wire, and both with Grover Deluxe vintage. Drilling for all spes were needed. Metric to standard.
Do the Fusion-III / Fusion-T have any difference expect for the shape? I prefer the looks of the T-style on this one but I'm always open for suggestions. :)
Nice mods!! Over what kind of amp/cab do you play them?
Realistically, when it comes to some finishing work, it doesn't take hours and hours and hours ... just a few minutes sanding to a higher level, or whatever makes a guitar feel amazing... and ... basically Fender-Jackson and Ibanez fail and refuse to do that on the lowest end guitars to eek out as much value as they can out of the material cost and labor. Harley Benton is amazing that they spend the necessary work to get quality finish to happen.
I absolutely agree! :)
If they can achieve such quality on their "standard" serie, i cant even imagine what the TE-52 and TE-70 could be like with their Alnico V pickups !
Yeah, that's what I was thinking, too. Only that I've read that the ash Teles from HB are very heavy! If I was looking for another guitar, I'd be very tempted to get a Harley Benton Fusion. I really like the more modern take on the Telecaster theme and tbh there would be next to nothing that I'd change. It even comes with a GraphTech nut! As I know me, I'd certainly fiddle around with the electronics, but that's all, I guess. :D
@@Bandforge the TE 70 is basswood i think not ash contrary to the TE 52. I think they have Klusson tuners too :) ! The TE 70 has a better bridge and saddle than the TE 52 with the wilkinson hardware ... just need to be ready for the Black Paisley finish ! If only they could do an alternative version with a more classic colour :(
Oh my… the paisley! xD I think, I've mixed them up in my head. Now I know exactly which one you're talking about, sorry! :) Yeah, sometimes I really wonder who makes the color decisions there, but it doesn't change the feel and tone of a guitar. I think there is a shop that sells custom made stickers for guitars, maybe that's an option! ;)
@@Bandforge Guitar stickers for refinish ? never saw that haha !
@@Bandforge My squier CV 50's telecaster is very heavy (the body is made from pine) and I personally love that
I got a red one two days ago and it is amazing for the price. I like it.
Definitly impressed by the build quality of this beast ! I hope you will be able to share your impression about the pickups and the flat radius neck in the next deep dive video ;) ! The colour seems a bit darker than the Affinity and the headstock / tuners are less sexy but its a minor thing if the sound & feel are better for less than half of the Affinities price :) 22 frets like on the Player series too, this is a +
Same here!! :D
I think, after the two detailed reviews, I'll make a head to head comparison of the two guitars. There we can compare the colors next to each other and do a side by side sound demo. What would be something that would interest you most in the comparison? I thought of getting some calipers and measure everything to help clear the differences up a little bit better.
@@Bandforge i think that the tone of the pickups could be drastically different, and i would love a side by side color comparison indeed :) !
@@Bandforge Agree with previous guy, pickups sound is the most interesting thing but even if it will be worse than affinity, HB has already won in build quality :)
Will do that after the reviews! :)
So true!! Yeah, I will make a detailed comparison after the reviews! :)
Neck looks fantastic! For the money, sounds great. Nice review!
Hey, thank you for the review. Do you still think the squire bullet is better?
Impressive for the price. I sincerely hope that this sounds worse than your fender player? what is your opinion, which do you prefer?
Hahaha! Thanks! My Fender Player is a Strat so sadly I can't compare the two. In terms of Teles I prefer the sound of the Squier Affinity Telecaster. The Harley Benton full review is out now, bth, if you want to compare the sound yourself. ;)
Halloo, meine Liebe! Ich liebäugle schon länger mit einer HB :). Coole Review, echt!
Alles Gute aus der Eifel :* (und weiter so!!)
Ich danke dir! :D
Welche HB soll's denn werden?
Liebe Grüße von der Enkelin eines Eiflers!
@@Bandforge Aww, cool! (:
Ja, alsoooo ich müsste mich momentan zwischen der CST-24T Black Cherry Flame
und oder der HB-35Plus Cherry entscheiden. Ist aber so schweeer, haha. Mal sehen. Die 35Plus in Cherry ist natürlich schon mega mega gut. Aber die Andere eben auch. Hmmm xD :)
So excited !!!
xD So am I!!
I have the same one and yes it's brilliant and I love it as it is.
dont forget to sign up for the Thomann partner program!
I will try! Thanks for the advise! ;)
Yes indeed, incredible for 89 Euros. I got the Candy Apple Red, and I must say/write, what a great guitar. If you change the pick upps. you've got a fenderish axe!
Received a candy apple red model today and the neck appeared unfinished (?). I assumed it was satin but it just unfinished maple
just got one and it's amazing! the only downside is that the neck pickup wobbles. How can I fix that?
Thanks for letting me know! What do you exactly mean by 'wobble'? Does it move back and forth on axis? My guess would be that there is a bit too much space in the pick guard. Once you're happy with your pickup height setup, you could try to stick a tiny bit of electrical tape between the gap and see if that helps. If it does, you could carefully cut any overlapping tape with an exacto knife.
In case the wobbling is not on axis, check the screws and see if the springs are correctly in place. I hope this helps a bit! :)
Harley benton is one of my favorites
It surely is a great guitar! :) Is the TE20 your favorite or another model?
Nice video! I have a Harley Benton TE-70 RW that is a really great guitar with "Vintage" tele specs and sound. I just love it.
Thank you! :) Did you change anything or did you keep it as it came? I'd love to compare the different PUs…
@@Bandforge Hi! It's all stock, as it came. If you like you can hear me playing it in a recent video: th-cam.com/video/qHpUpBG9ezg/w-d-xo.html Please forgive my amateur playing; still I think it gives a good idea of the sounds it has. The neck is also very very nice IMO. If you get one I will love to see you play it on your channel!
Oh, it sounds really nice! :D
Thanks for sharing your exact setup, too! It's always helpful to get an inside of which components were part of the overall sound. I'm far from being a pro, myself and everyone started as an amateur! ;) If you need some advise from someone who's still struggling, let me know!
@@Bandforge Thanks, that's very nice of you! Great to share guitar thoughts/knowledge with you! 🙂
You're very welcome and always feel free to ask, if you feel stuck! :)
Yes its christmas !! Haha, jumping on your video right away, cant wait to get your honest review on this one ! Dors it beat both Affinities ??
Haha, thank you! :D
Hmmm… that's a difficult question. There are some subtle differences that could decide in one way or the other. It depends a bit on your hands, too. The HB has a bulkier and wider neck which makes it more difficult to play with my hands. Also, the Affinity sounds better on a decent amp. On the other hand, the build quality of the HB is very good for the price and changing pickups is no big deal, even if you are not familiar with electronics. :) What do you think? Which criteria would be most important for you?
@@Bandforge I think the most important criterias are the sound of the pickup/electronics & the feel of the neck. But the finish is also quite impressing too on this one :) !
Would to dare changing pickups with a proper video tutorial? ;)
@@Bandforge i would love to see such tutorial based especially on such cheap guitar : would be great to show A vs B tone in the editing ;) !
I'll do my very best! :)
In that case, I'd advise you to get the HB, not the Affinity. Hm… I'm just thinking. If someone had the funds for the Affinity but go for the HB, that would leave a lot of room for interesting modifications and make the HB maybe even better than a CV for half the price!
how much it cost? looks nice!
It's only 89 € or 85 $ US. There's also a link in the description! :)
Gibt's auch Harley Bentons ins weiss?? Und darf ich fragen: was ist ihre Meinung von Musicstore Köln? Wir fahren nächste Woche dahin.
Liebe Grüße aus die Niederlande
Ja, es gibt die Harley Benton TE-30 BE für ca. 120€ in weiß. Die Gitarre hat sogar einen Body aus Esche.
Das letzte Mal als ich beim Musicstore Köln war, befand sich das Geschäft noch neben dem Kölner Dom, aber mir hat der Laden damals gut gefallen. Die Gitarren von Fame sind sehr interessant! :)
Only ever had and played Fender Telecasters. I’m seriously thinking of trying out a HB !!!!???? The colour is beautiful too 🥰
I think you can dare to try it! ;) I was blown away by the quality for this price tag! Of course, don't expect the best pickups but I think this is something that's easily changed. Which Telecasters do you own? I'd love to buy a Player Tele one day…
@@Bandforge I Have a player series in ice white and a player plus in lake placid blue 😈 plays another white road worn Squire that I mod changed the pickups and set it up.
Oh, that's niiice! :D Do you have a favorite? And which pickups did you choose as a replacement?
@@Bandforge i put Seymour Duncan Quarter pounders in. Sounds big and heavy I love it. We have so much in common to talk about !!!!
Hahahaha!! xD So true!
I've put a Seymour Duncan SH-4 in a Hagstrom Super Swede and love it for playing crunch and distortion. Thb, I only recently started with single coil guitars and I'm still looking for good replacement pickups for the Teles. The Quarter pounders are noted! ;) Do you have a prefered style of music when playing?
Hi, wo hast du die Jacke gekauft? :)
Die habe ich vor ca. fünf Jahren zum Geburtstag bekommen. Leider gibt's die nirgendwo mehr, deshalb sieht sie auch so ramponiert und ausgewaschen aus, aber ich liebe sie immer noch! ;)
@@Bandforge Hey, vielen Dank für die schnelle Antwort :) Ja sehr schade, ich hab auch schon gesucht. Ach was, die sieht noch super aus, steht dir gut ;) LG
Fantastic color. I wish Fender offered it on Strats, Teles, and basses.
I like it, too! It reminds me of a deep ocean color! :D
So true ! Even lake placid blue is very limited on the Fender range. This year is an exception on the Squier Affinity range but otherwise they keep all the cool colours for the overpriced Vintera series. The MIM players are stuck with the most dull ones in my opinion ...
I would agree but with Tidepool being an exception. ;) I love my Tidepool Strat!
@@Bandforge Tidepool Strat should be cool for sure :)! Honestly if i cant find satisfaction for now on my Telecaster quest i might consider a beautiful Classic Vibe 60 Stratocaster in LPB ... not the same budget but i guess at least i don't have to change the pickups or any other parts.
Hahaha! I can relate to that very well! :) I'm sorry, that it takes me to long to make the videos while you're waiting for answers.
Even on my Strat to do list, there's changing the pickups, but maybe that's just me. Not that the stock PUs sound bad or anything. I just fell in love with the sound of the Performer which is good since the pickups are not as expensive as other options. ;) In the end I got the Player (because of the price and) because of it classic looks with yet a modern design (two point tremolo, classic headstock).
It's basewood (usually)
Yes, it is.
Ich habe die TE-20 in Candy Apple Red und sie ist fantastisch bezogen auf den Preis. Absoluter Nobrainer. Und ja, der Hals fühlt sich an wie Samt, absolut erste Sahne. Nur die Tuner sind etwas naja.
Freut mich sehr, dass dir die Gitarre so gut gefällt! :D Die Candy Apple Red ist auch eine sehr schöne Farbe. Bei meiner sind die Tuner ganz gut, da hatte ich auf teureren Gitarren schon schlechtere. Die müsste man aber ganz gut durch Kluson MS6LC bit.ly/3d0ce7W ersetzen können. Das wollte ich mal testen, habe aber die Bohrlöcher noch nicht nachgemessen. :)
That's the superior budget guitar
So true!
Hope you can finally exclaim FINI!
Totally! xD
I have the TE-52 and i can tell you that the squiers can hide in shame
The TE-52 seems to be really nice! I'd love to get one of these, too. :) Did you mod anything?
@@Bandforge i removed the steel saddles and put compensated brass saddles on it, and changed the strings.
I also tuned it to open G and removed the low E string. I play slide blues and rock ala Keith Richards on it.
I can imagine how nice that must sound! I've changed everything to brass on my Epiphone SG and it made a huge difference. :) Did you keep the pickups?
@@Bandforge it has a much warmer sound and intonation is perfect.
I kept the Roswell pickups, they are perfect for me and have a great twang.
@el el z have you tried a TE-20 for comparison? I find the bridge pickup of the TE-20 to sound a bit thin and I'm currently investigating possbile reasons. It could be because of the cheaper pickups.
I will also use them next time and not Fazly as I did before. Their quality was terrible.
I think, it's save to buy a Harley Benton. Which other brand in the same price range I've had similar experiences like you…
is it more heavy then the squier? and is the neck thicker?
The neck is bulkier, yes. I think, it's heavier but I didn't weigh it so far. Which is your favorite neck profile?
There was a time I wouldn't have been caught playing a Harley Benton...I used to run my own guitar repair business in Paris between 2006 and 2011 and back then Harley Bentons were so bad it used to be a joke between me and my customers and friends 😄😄😄
Well...I stopped laughing after that :
One day after I had moved to the US someone brought me a HB PRS-style and I was BLOWN AWAY...
I bought their SG Junior then their SG custom with 3 humbuckers then the TE-20-HH and I'm getting this one too 😁😁I may end up with 20 Harley Bentons but at this price who cares ??
I posted a comment and some more tips on this video as I've used inexpensive instruments before regarding writing and recording commercially licensed music. I looks like you deleted that comment... They can be great and I stand behind what I said that "some" Chinese manufacturer instruments can have small to very large issues.. Not "all"... But some. I again do use "some" inexpensive guitars. Maybe it was because I referenced that Harley Benton is made in those same Chinese factories, just the quality assurance and control is better? I apologize if that was offensive to you. I deleted the other comment also on your Squier guitar video. I hope you have a great upcoming holiday season, and I wish you all the best going forward.
I honestly don't know what happened to your comments!! I absolutely did NOT delete any of them, this must be a YT thing and I really don't see why! To me they are very valuable information and tbh, I was not writing back for two days here, because I'm still trying out your guitar recording tips!! :D
But thank you a lot for pointing that out. If it happens again, I'll try to get in touch with YT. Maybe it's their AI that's deleting posts? Would you be so kind and share your full latest tips again, please? I'm really sorry for the inconvenience! And I really enjoy the exchange!
@@Bandforge That is very strange. Well, I'll offer some more tips to get us back on track then. :-) With "any" telecaster type of guitars you may or may not want to do this things.. but some "upgrade" ideas. Take the control plate off, and solder / replace the 0.22uF capacitor with a .047uF capacitor to give you more lower and mid frequencies (darker tone) on the roll off of the tone pot. Look around for reviews on Dual Rail humbucker pickups for the bridge, I bought one for one of my telecasters and it give you a bit more sustain of notes when using distortion, they are also less noisy as well to note there are A LOT of Chinese pickups out there and again SOME are good and inexpensive. It does help, to take off the pick guard and use copper tape (Amazon is a good place buy it) in the body cavity to block electro magnetic interference (emi / hum). Some people think that replacing the three traditional chrome bridge saddles with real brass ones with improve sustain of the notes and over all tone, I may try that at some point. Don't forget to check the nuts around the tuning posts on the headstock, they can become loose in shipment.
That's interesting tips again, thank you! :)
I'm still in the 'never touch the tone pot'-phase of my playing. ;) When and how would you use a sound that's even darker than the standard rolled off tone pot?
Do you have a recommendation for a pickup supplier? Also, I'd love to build a pickup winder in the future for more experiments. I've never tried a dual rail PU before and am very curious about the sound! I did the shielding with copper tape on my 2020 Affinity and the copper foil is already waiting. ;)
Do you know, if there's a good option for the five saddle bridge in brass? I tried to find one because I really like how easy it is on the hand when playing palm mutes and also for the setup of the intonation. I've upgraded my Epiphone SG with a new brass bridge and tail piece and I love the sustain!
Will check the nuts on the tuning posts once I'm restringing. Thanks for pointing this out! :)
@Mr Tom It's a shame, really! I don't know why it happens, but it seems like YT has deleted our comments again! There's not even a notification mail and I just noticed that my comment is gone, too… I'm currently mixing the "three (not so) evil triples" for this week's video and wanted to have a look, if you've replied to my comment and saw that in YT itself, there's a notification but it only shows me the first sentence of your post. This is frustrating and I don't seem to be able to do anything about it. The settings on my side of the channel are normal. Would you mind sending me your feedback again as an e-mail? You can find it under my channel info. I'm really sorry for the inconvenience! :(
You should try the TE-52, it's mberi naaais:-7
I'd love to!! :D Let's see, what I'll find under the Christmas tree… Have you tried it?
@@Bandforge Yes I have one, it sounds great (specially for the price), also I like the (only 2 colors) looks, but be prepared for 4.5 kilos of rock and roll, come on it can't be perfect. Anyway, the pickups, the neck, the fret/board, the nut and the (vintage) tuners do the part, so it completely justifies and more its price
Wow, 4.5 kilos… I've read they're heavy but I wasn't expecting a full Les Paul! ;)
I can imagine how good it is after trying the TE20! I bet they spend the rest of the budget on some really nice hardware and electronic parts. Which amp do you use with it? I find the TE20 a bit too much on the brighter side than I'd like. But after all, these are only ceramic pickups.
@@Bandforge I have and transistored MG50FX, I once had an DSL40 but you can't play a mammoth tube amp in a small room, I learned my lesson:-) It serves my purposes. And don't be afraid of the brightness, you always have multiple options: Tone knob, volume, even the 2nd, and finally the amp eq
That's interesting! :) I think we had a similar amp back at school and we would always fight about who gets the Marshall and not the other (uncool) amp which was a Peavey, haha! ;) You could also change the speaker. This can really improve the sound, if you're not happy!
Also, have you tried taming the tube beast with an attenuator? This has helped me with my JCA50. Also, I don't know what happened, but some years ago, there was a period where you could get tiny but nice tube amps for a small budget. From this era, I also have a VHT combo with… hmm… 5 Watts? 10 Watts? Somewhere in this range. It's perfect for the living room when you have neighbors! :D
I like this one better than my mexican Fender strat 😂
wowwww.. but i have te 52 series and 011 ernie ball strings wow wow wow... :).
How do you like it? :) Is it very heavy?
011 strings would be too much for me… ;) I'm not strong enough, haha!
@@Bandforge ahahah . 011 is only for vintage and strong guitar for me . But good sound and for blues. İnteresting 😊🌹
I totally didn't just buy this guitar after watching this video at 11 p.m....
Kommst du aus deutschland
Ага вариант с наклейками.
eh, Du,
die Telecaster is eine delikates Gitarre, kein plöte riff instrument (mit neck pickup),
spiel zuerst in clean tonen wie am akustik, lass die reverb klingen,
atme die Vibration !
In the sound demo, which will be in the review of this guitar, I'll be demonstrating different playing styles. Maybe, that's more to your taste!
Erotic unboxing.
I have the sunburst version which I
bought 2 yrs back for only €77 . Havnt changed anything on it just new strings when needed.
Unbelievable for the price and I've used it for recording.
Looking to pick up the new 62 double bound. Which is also getting great reviews. Cheers K