Get your DC-Custom II here: thmn.to/thoprod/570320?offid=1&affid=1250 Timestamps team: 00:00 Hello! 00:20 Introduction to the DC-Custom II 01:26 Specs and info 05:04 Today’s rig and plan Clean Sounds 05:37 Clean tone reference chords on all pickup settings 06:07 Country ballad arpeggios 06:19 Grungey droning open string riff 06:36 Blues progression 06:48 Country twang lead sound 07:02 Funky rhythms 07:15 Strummed country chords 07:34 Ringing open indie pop chords 07:47 Wolfmother inspired riff 07:57 Ascending droning indie chords 08:11 Tone control test 09:09 Atmospheric arpeggios Light and Medium Overdrive Sounds 09:27 Fat indie rock rhythm chords 09:58 Choppy barre chords 10:16 Kings Of Leon inspired riff 10:31 Droning open string indie riff 10:44 Garage rock riff 11:00 Indie octave chords 11:26 Upbeat indie barre chords 11:50 Volume control roll off test 12:10 Another KoL riff 12:17 Groovy classic rock riff 12:32 AC/DC inspired riff 12:50 Classic rock riff 13:05 Hendrix inspired riff 13:22 Airbourne inspired rock riff 13:33 Quacky rock riff Heavy Overdrive Sounds 13:42 Glam rock riff 13:53 Van Halen inspired riff 14:13 80s rock riff 14:33 Single note NWOBHM riff 14:54 Hard rock lead sound (w/ extra delay) 15:05 Chunky alt rock chords 15:28 Alternative rock riff 15:42 Pop punk riff 15:54 Punk rock power chords 16:09 Green Day inspired punk rock riff 16:22 Thrash riff 16:32 Progressive rock riff (Drop D tuning) 16:48 Modern rock palm-muted chords (Drop D) 17:13 Rage Against The Machine inspired groovy riff (Drop D) Heavy Distortion Sounds (all in Drop D) 17:29 Metal chugging riff 17:46 Pop metal riff 17:57 Heavy metal lead sound 18:12 Mastodon inspired metal riff with country twang 18:24 Rammstein inspired industrial metal riff 18:37 Hardcore punk riff 18:49 Thrash metal riffs 19:08 Hardcore punk breakdown 19:23 Classic heavy metal/sludge riff 20:02 My thoughts 20:47 First impressions and looks 21:27 Weight 21:51 Build quality and hardware 22:37 Playability and neck 23:53 Sounds and pickups 27:26 What other similar SG-type guitars are out there? 29:03 My conclusions on the DC-Custom II and why you should buy it
Oh wow, thanks! Really happy you enjoyed this one so much. I always try and get in a riff for everybody if I can ;) Keeps me on my toes with the playing too. Cheers and rock on!
I've watched many, many... MANY, guitar reviews, as I am afflicted with GAS, and that was by far one of the most informative and useful. Just the facts without a lot of fluff, and excellent demo. I'm subbed.
Very happy to hear that, thank you! I really appreciate the sub too. As a fellow GAS sufferer, I watch a lot of guitar gear TH-cam as well, and I'm happy you think mine measures up to the others! Cheers and rock on :) (And P.S. this is a great guitar! Highly recommended if you ever get the chance to try one...)
The production quality of your videos is stunning, they're all full blown projects on their own. Oh, and I liked the HB as well. Sounds good, nice specs, very useable PU modes.
Thanks my friend! I do put a lot into these vids - glad people like you notice and can appreciate it 👍 But I enjoy the process too, so hopefully it can continue. This is a really good guitar, I agree. Even though it's too heavy I am tempted to keep it for the quality and playability. I still can't believe you get stainless steel frets for €299... what a great time to be a guitar player!
I was kind of shocked too... I think the DC-Custom often flies under the radar a bit (like SGs to Les Pauls I suppose), but people shouldn't sleep on this one! It's truly excellent and such great value for money. Hope you get to try one soon!
Thanks a lot! Yep, they're amazing value for money. I've got way too many HBs now and I find myself picking lots of them up over more expensive guitars myself! It's a good time to be a guitar player, I suppose :)
Great review and playing demo ! I really like your honest reviews and valuable information. I never buy a new guitar without seeing what you have to say about it first. Thank you ! Harley Benton guitars are really great. I own a few.
Oh wow, thanks a lot! I'm glad you find my videos so useful 👍 Makes me happy to get such great feedback like this. By this point I own quite a few HBs as well... they're so good these days! And every year they seem to get better, which is great for us, the people who buy and play them 😉 Cheers and rock on!
I've had the TE-69 as well (did a video on it too actually: th-cam.com/video/yZlxV9c0sB4/w-d-xo.html), and loved it! A great sounding and playing guitar. Sadly, like this one, the TE-69 I got was just a bit heavy for my tastes. Would love to actually go to Thomann and get them to pick out a lightweight one of each for me! Maybe one day I will :) Hope you manage to try one of these soon! With a DC-Custom II and a TE-69 you could cover anything.
“Heavy is good, heavy is reliable. If it doesn't work you can always hit them with it.” - Boris the Blade The weight should prevent the infamous SG neck-dive, in theory (or make it worse, lol). To nitpick a bit, pickguard edges look kinda rough. Both here and on Thomann photos. Mb that's protective film, mb filming angles, or mb i'm just expecting too much from 300$ guitar. But that would probably be the first thing i'd try to fix if i got one.
Reminds me in specs in some ways to the HB CST models. They also have the Meranti/Jatoba woods, 24 stainless steel frets and graphite nut. They also have the coil split. However they use Roswell instead of Tesla, hardware is DLX not Grover and you get Wilkinson bridge on the tremelo bridges. This is 20 Euros more than the CST so the difference will probably be the tuners and pickups. But it will definitely be lighter. So if you're looking for similar specs and features that's one to look at too.
Now that's a good tip, thanks! I've never tried a CST, so that's an itch I'll have to scratch someday. I also noticed these specs are similar to the newer SC-Custom III. Lighter is definitely better for me, but the safest bet is probably going to be trying a few out on a trip to Thomann.
@@johnie19644 Roswells are absolutely fine. I think Tesla are higher end and maybe slightly higher output. For a beginner it doesn't really matter much. As you get into your own sound you might want different voicings, but you can go a long way with an EQ pedal if you just want more control over bass or treble. Have fun!
He he, it's a tempter for sure! I would be really tempted to see the Cherry Red one in the flesh, actually... a lightweight Cherry Red one, to be precise ;)
Yeah, these ones are really, really good! Even the coil splits sound great, which is not always a given. And the clarity and definition is spot on, as you say.
I have a Vintage SV6 (Sg style) And I wouldn't change it for a Gibson. Not that it's "Better", but because it's better for me. The tone is more to my ear, the fret board is comfortable. The weight is spot on. It's the differences from an SG that suit me better. Kinda feels like an SG and an LP had an affair, and this was their bastard child.
I know what you mean - I worked at JHS (the owners of the Vintage brand) for a number of years and played plenty of VS6s in that time. They're great guitars if you can find a well-balanced one, which is not hard! The more I play SGs, the more I find they offer advantages over Les Pauls. Or V100s, take your pick ;) Cheers for watching and happy music making! P.S. Would actually be interesting to see how a 2024 Vintage VS6 compares to the DC-Custom II. Hmm...
@@RichWordsMusic It was my first electric. So I'm probably biased. Maybe because I started learning with it, I've gotten used to it. But I grab an SG neck, and it just doesn't feel right under my fingers. Whatever the reason, I won't swap it out for anything
Now that's an interesting take... I hadn't considered that it was maybe out of any type of necessity at all. I'll have to ask the HB guys about exactly why it is.
Sounds good. Pick ups a bit dark but still good. Coil splits sound P90ish but there is a BIG volume drop between full & half sounds! I've heard worse! NICE little homage to Wolfmother's White Unicorn! \m/
These are the best Tesla pickups I've tried so far for sure. The dark you can dial out if you want - interesting how not bright it sounds through my standard rig/amp settings though. The coil splits you'd want a nice clean boost for if playing live! I love a bit of Wolfmother :) This guitar just called out for it!
@@RichWordsMusic Hehe cool. The easiest fix for dark/muddy pick ups is to take OFF the shells! Those 'budget' pick ups are usually covered in cheap, non transparent metals, & they cause filtration/capacitance!
Hard to say anything negative because generally HB are good to us lefties, but still bummed that they didn't come out with a left handed option for this particular model. I've been patiently waiting on them to update the vintage series DC-580 for ages now
I hope they'll do that soon... kind of feels like they've kept this one pretty limited so far (only two finishes, only righties) and may be waiting to see how well it does before expanding. That is 100% uneducated speculation on my part though ;) HB are generally good to lefties, I agree!
Hello Richie, nice review! I have a HB SC 450 plus and 8 other guitars. If I had to buy all the HBs I like, I'd run out of money and space. But thanks anyway!
Hey, thanks a lot! Yep, I don't think it's possible for anyone to own all the HBs :) There's simply too many great options, and they seem to release new guitars every few weeks! It's a great time to be a thrifty guitarist, that's for sure :) Cheers and rock on!
Hi, I am considering this guitar instead of Epi that I returned. I am interested in: - neck dive, Epi didnt have any sitting in classical position or standing with strap - neck angle. One of reasons I returned Epi was because of big neck angle, the strings were miles from the body and it was unconfortable. I tried Ibanez GAX 30 with TOM bridge and shallow neck angle. Much more confortable, but really low action was not possible as the bridge was high - How long does the neck feel. That was second reason why I returned Epi. I had to extend the left hand too far sitting in classical position - sharpnes of the bridge, third and final major reason I returned Epi was that the bridge was sharp, hurting my hand when palm muting
Hi there, well, I can answer these from my perspective: - There's no neck dive in any playing position for me with the DC-Custom II. (I show it standing with a strap in the video too, at 3:40). - This specific DC-Custom I has a really good neck angle. The action came out of the box nice and low and could be lowered further with no problems, I think. - I find this neck really comfy. It's got a nice medium profile and a comfy, rounded shapoe. The only thing I would change about it (if I could) would be to make it a satin neck, rather than a poly one (that's just my personal preference). SG-type guitars always feel like the lower frets are a lot further away than Les Pauls and Fender types for some reason! But I hope you'd be fine with this. That's something you'll only know when you try it. - I do a lot of palm-muting, and I rest my right hand on the bridge when playing usually too... the bridge on this specific DC-Custom II is really well done. No sharp edges, everything smooth and comfy! Hope this helps! But let me know if you have any more questions :) Rich
Ha ha, I have been looking at it that as well... more for the novelty factor than anything though. Our boy @650thunderbird5 got the doubleneck and it sounds sweet! Doesn't have 24 frets though, eh ;) This one's really good. If only it was a tiny bit lighter... (not a problem where you are, I know!)
Yeah, it's a mix of the two for sure... but HB see it as more of an SG Custom-esque guitar, I believe. (Going on my conversations with them and the marketing they do for it, product pages, etc.) I find the pickups really suited to higher gain stuff too, which is also more Viper than SG. Certainly can't harm to be a ix of the two though!
Im a beginner and I wanted to know what are the differences of this model compared to the Harley Benton SC-550 II ? I want to buy one of these 2 models but don't know which one to choose. Do they sound the same? Which one is more diverse?
That would actually be a cool, thing to try. I'm actually not sure if an Epi/Gibson one would be a direct fit, but I'd guess maybe not because of the subtle body shape/size differences of the guitars. That said, the Cherry Red version of this very guitar comes with a black guard as standard... maybe if you bought the white one you could ask HB very nicely for a replacement!
Very interesting and professional video, congratulations, beautiful guitar. I'm looking for a guitar to play ZZtop, and reproduce the sound of Billy Gibbons, this guitar can do it. Could you recommend me other Harley Benton guitars?, Thank you very much
Thanks a lot, glad you enjoyed it! Well, I certainly agree that this guitar can do the ZZ Top thing no problem. I personally associate Billy Gibbons with Les Pauls, and Harley Benton has loads of SC models. There's a couple I think would be ideal - the SC-450 Plus: thmn.to/thoprod/362628?offid=1&affid=1250 And the SC-550 II: thmn.to/thoprod/521048?offid=1&affid=1250 These are both great guitars and have that more vintage singlecut/Les Paul tone and feel! Hope you manage to find something that works for you, but let me know if you have any more questions :)
This is much more of an ESP Viper clone than an SG. Nothing wrong with it but two very different guitars. HB does make lighter SG clones, but they are of much lower spec than this guitar unfortunately (DC580, DC60 Junior)
Yep, it reminds me of the Viper a lot, as stated in the vid. Would actually be interesting to see if more people see this as more of an SG in the traditional sense, or a Viper! I beleive HB have tried to satisfy everybody in that sense, and I think the DC-Custom II works in that way for sure. That said, it's so great for the higher gain stuff - and it has 24 frets - that maybe you're right!
good review, but they send you a guitar which probably means its checked properly. My experience with HB is that the neck can be awful or good. So really you should buy one to check quality in real life
I know what you mean. I've asked my HB contact about this and he says they don't give mine any different/special treatment before sending them out (this is reserved for bigger TH-cam channels I presume!) but you're right - it would be ideal to buy my own. I do sometimes buy the HBs I use in my vids, but I can't always afford to do that! I wish I could. With this one I think they'd have picked a lighter one if they were cherry picking for me. Either way it's a fantastic guitar... maybe I'll buy myself a Cherry Red one one day 😉
@@RichWordsMusic I have a harley Benton from a while back, same guitar with tesla humbuckers. Plays good and sounds great. But needed to do some fretwork because of buzzing.
@@yoyoyuyu234476 I actually bought the DC-60 Junior (single P90 model) back in the day. It's decent, but not a patch on the DC-Custom II. Maybe some comparison videos are needed :)
Yep, the weight's a problem for me... the 24 frets not, as I just never go up there ;) They don't bother me. If this guitar was a bit lighter though, it'd be even better!
People need to 'man up' re the weight of guitars! It seems to be a modern trend to criticise heavy guitars. It's the opinion of many including me that it is a tonal and sustain enhancer.
@@Pete_Harrisagree , there’s a reason why the likes of Jimmy Page , randy Rhodes etc had that awesome sound they didn’t have the option of weight relief
![เปิดคำทำนาย นอสตราดามุส - บาบา วานก้า ปี 2025 คนทั่วโลกต้องเจออะไรบ้าง? | แฉ 11 ธ.ค. 67 [2/3] |GMM25](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/xmTIKWJUMPM/mqdefault.jpg)
Get your DC-Custom II here: thmn.to/thoprod/570320?offid=1&affid=1250
Timestamps team:
00:00 Hello!
00:20 Introduction to the DC-Custom II
01:26 Specs and info
05:04 Today’s rig and plan
Clean Sounds
05:37 Clean tone reference chords on all pickup settings
06:07 Country ballad arpeggios
06:19 Grungey droning open string riff
06:36 Blues progression
06:48 Country twang lead sound
07:02 Funky rhythms
07:15 Strummed country chords
07:34 Ringing open indie pop chords
07:47 Wolfmother inspired riff
07:57 Ascending droning indie chords
08:11 Tone control test
09:09 Atmospheric arpeggios
Light and Medium Overdrive Sounds
09:27 Fat indie rock rhythm chords
09:58 Choppy barre chords
10:16 Kings Of Leon inspired riff
10:31 Droning open string indie riff
10:44 Garage rock riff
11:00 Indie octave chords
11:26 Upbeat indie barre chords
11:50 Volume control roll off test
12:10 Another KoL riff
12:17 Groovy classic rock riff
12:32 AC/DC inspired riff
12:50 Classic rock riff
13:05 Hendrix inspired riff
13:22 Airbourne inspired rock riff
13:33 Quacky rock riff
Heavy Overdrive Sounds
13:42 Glam rock riff
13:53 Van Halen inspired riff
14:13 80s rock riff
14:33 Single note NWOBHM riff
14:54 Hard rock lead sound (w/ extra delay)
15:05 Chunky alt rock chords
15:28 Alternative rock riff
15:42 Pop punk riff
15:54 Punk rock power chords
16:09 Green Day inspired punk rock riff
16:22 Thrash riff
16:32 Progressive rock riff (Drop D tuning)
16:48 Modern rock palm-muted chords (Drop D)
17:13 Rage Against The Machine inspired groovy riff (Drop D)
Heavy Distortion Sounds (all in Drop D)
17:29 Metal chugging riff
17:46 Pop metal riff
17:57 Heavy metal lead sound
18:12 Mastodon inspired metal riff with country twang
18:24 Rammstein inspired industrial metal riff
18:37 Hardcore punk riff
18:49 Thrash metal riffs
19:08 Hardcore punk breakdown
19:23 Classic heavy metal/sludge riff
20:02 My thoughts
20:47 First impressions and looks
21:27 Weight
21:51 Build quality and hardware
22:37 Playability and neck
23:53 Sounds and pickups
27:26 What other similar SG-type guitars are out there?
29:03 My conclusions on the DC-Custom II and why you should buy it
Hey you know what, this was one of the best guitar demo's I've ever seen, after 15+ years. Good job! I like the variety of music.
Oh wow, thanks! Really happy you enjoyed this one so much. I always try and get in a riff for everybody if I can ;) Keeps me on my toes with the playing too. Cheers and rock on!
Great review. I really enjoyed this one.
Thanks a lot, really happy you enjoyed it!
well laid out and presented. ty for your effort
Thanks a lot, glad you enjoyed it!
I've watched many, many... MANY, guitar reviews, as I am afflicted with GAS, and that was by far one of the most informative and useful. Just the facts without a lot of fluff, and excellent demo. I'm subbed.
Very happy to hear that, thank you! I really appreciate the sub too. As a fellow GAS sufferer, I watch a lot of guitar gear TH-cam as well, and I'm happy you think mine measures up to the others! Cheers and rock on :) (And P.S. this is a great guitar! Highly recommended if you ever get the chance to try one...)
You're reviews are the best. So clear and with such a wide variety of tone samples and styles. Well done sir 👍👍
He really is the clearest reviewer on TH-cam, so consistent
Thanks a lot, really glad you enjoy the vids! More to come 👍
Cheers, thank you for the kind words as well 😊
The production quality of your videos is stunning, they're all full blown projects on their own. Oh, and I liked the HB as well. Sounds good, nice specs, very useable PU modes.
Thanks my friend! I do put a lot into these vids - glad people like you notice and can appreciate it 👍 But I enjoy the process too, so hopefully it can continue.
This is a really good guitar, I agree. Even though it's too heavy I am tempted to keep it for the quality and playability. I still can't believe you get stainless steel frets for €299... what a great time to be a guitar player!
This is a really good guitar! It sounds very good. I wasn't expecting that. I have to try it. Great video as always!
I was kind of shocked too... I think the DC-Custom often flies under the radar a bit (like SGs to Les Pauls I suppose), but people shouldn't sleep on this one! It's truly excellent and such great value for money. Hope you get to try one soon!
Excellent and thorough review! Well done!
Thanks a lot, glad you enjoyed it!
Nice review i have three HB guitars all play very well for the money and play them more than my more expensive guitars
Thanks a lot! Yep, they're amazing value for money. I've got way too many HBs now and I find myself picking lots of them up over more expensive guitars myself! It's a good time to be a guitar player, I suppose :)
Great review and playing demo ! I really like your honest reviews and valuable information. I never buy a new guitar without seeing
what you have to say about it first. Thank you !
Harley Benton guitars are really great. I own a few.
Oh wow, thanks a lot! I'm glad you find my videos so useful 👍 Makes me happy to get such great feedback like this. By this point I own quite a few HBs as well... they're so good these days! And every year they seem to get better, which is great for us, the people who buy and play them 😉 Cheers and rock on!
Recently got a HB TE69TH and sits an astonishingly good tele. Gonna get the white dc soon. Nice one.
I've had the TE-69 as well (did a video on it too actually: th-cam.com/video/yZlxV9c0sB4/w-d-xo.html), and loved it! A great sounding and playing guitar. Sadly, like this one, the TE-69 I got was just a bit heavy for my tastes. Would love to actually go to Thomann and get them to pick out a lightweight one of each for me! Maybe one day I will :) Hope you manage to try one of these soon! With a DC-Custom II and a TE-69 you could cover anything.
“Heavy is good, heavy is reliable. If it doesn't work you can always hit them with it.” - Boris the Blade
The weight should prevent the infamous SG neck-dive, in theory (or make it worse, lol).
To nitpick a bit, pickguard edges look kinda rough. Both here and on Thomann photos. Mb that's protective film, mb filming angles, or mb i'm just expecting too much from 300$ guitar. But that would probably be the first thing i'd try to fix if i got one.
Great review, thanks
Thanks a lot, glad you enjoyed it!
Reminds me in specs in some ways to the HB CST models. They also have the Meranti/Jatoba woods, 24 stainless steel frets and graphite nut. They also have the coil split. However they use Roswell instead of Tesla, hardware is DLX not Grover and you get Wilkinson bridge on the tremelo bridges. This is 20 Euros more than the CST so the difference will probably be the tuners and pickups. But it will definitely be lighter. So if you're looking for similar specs and features that's one to look at too.
Now that's a good tip, thanks! I've never tried a CST, so that's an itch I'll have to scratch someday. I also noticed these specs are similar to the newer SC-Custom III. Lighter is definitely better for me, but the safest bet is probably going to be trying a few out on a trip to Thomann.
I’m getting this guitar and it says Roswell pickups what’s better Roswell or Tesla I’m a beginner
@@johnie19644 Roswells are absolutely fine. I think Tesla are higher end and maybe slightly higher output. For a beginner it doesn't really matter much. As you get into your own sound you might want different voicings, but you can go a long way with an EQ pedal if you just want more control over bass or treble. Have fun!
@ thank you
Nice lookibg guitar that is...
Slightly tempted.... again
He he, it's a tempter for sure! I would be really tempted to see the Cherry Red one in the flesh, actually... a lightweight Cherry Red one, to be precise ;)
@RichWordsMusic both good colours to be fair. I always think of RED for an SG but that white is beautiful with the gold..
@@MJG817 It is! They're very different finishes, but both work for me.
I’m getting this guitar in cherry delivered on Wednesday everything I see is the pickups are rosewell and I see your say Tesla on them
Awesome, hope you enjoy it and happy new guitar day! Intersting, on the Thomann website it says Tesla too: thmn.to/thoprod/570325?offid=1&affid=1250
Tesla pickups are a quality bit of kit , had a set before , great clarity and definition imo 👍
Yeah, these ones are really, really good! Even the coil splits sound great, which is not always a given. And the clarity and definition is spot on, as you say.
I have a Vintage SV6 (Sg style)
And I wouldn't change it for a Gibson. Not that it's "Better", but because it's better for me.
The tone is more to my ear, the fret board is comfortable. The weight is spot on.
It's the differences from an SG that suit me better. Kinda feels like an SG and an LP had an affair, and this was their bastard child.
I know what you mean - I worked at JHS (the owners of the Vintage brand) for a number of years and played plenty of VS6s in that time. They're great guitars if you can find a well-balanced one, which is not hard! The more I play SGs, the more I find they offer advantages over Les Pauls. Or V100s, take your pick ;) Cheers for watching and happy music making!
P.S. Would actually be interesting to see how a 2024 Vintage VS6 compares to the DC-Custom II. Hmm...
@@RichWordsMusic
It was my first electric. So I'm probably biased. Maybe because I started learning with it, I've gotten used to it. But I grab an SG neck, and it just doesn't feel right under my fingers.
Whatever the reason, I won't swap it out for anything
I think it may be thicker (and heavier) to allow for the depth required for the push/pull pot.
Now that's an interesting take... I hadn't considered that it was maybe out of any type of necessity at all. I'll have to ask the HB guys about exactly why it is.
Sounds good. Pick ups a bit dark but still good. Coil splits sound P90ish but there is a BIG volume drop between full & half sounds!
I've heard worse!
NICE little homage to Wolfmother's White Unicorn! \m/
These are the best Tesla pickups I've tried so far for sure. The dark you can dial out if you want - interesting how not bright it sounds through my standard rig/amp settings though. The coil splits you'd want a nice clean boost for if playing live! I love a bit of Wolfmother :) This guitar just called out for it!
@@RichWordsMusic Hehe cool.
The easiest fix for dark/muddy pick ups is to take OFF the shells!
Those 'budget' pick ups are usually covered in cheap, non transparent metals, & they cause filtration/capacitance!
@@DMSProduktions If I owned this guitar I'd be whipping those shells off right now!
@@RichWordsMusic Woo hoo!
A good job Thanks man
Btw Jatoba is going to be much darker after using those oil clean stuff
Thanks a lot! Yep, I reckon a bit of lemon oil would darken it up nicely.
Hard to say anything negative because generally HB are good to us lefties, but still bummed that they didn't come out with a left handed option for this particular model. I've been patiently waiting on them to update the vintage series DC-580 for ages now
I hope they'll do that soon... kind of feels like they've kept this one pretty limited so far (only two finishes, only righties) and may be waiting to see how well it does before expanding. That is 100% uneducated speculation on my part though ;) HB are generally good to lefties, I agree!
Hello Richie, nice review! I have a HB SC 450 plus and 8 other guitars. If I had to buy all the HBs I like, I'd run out of money and space.
But thanks anyway!
Hey, thanks a lot! Yep, I don't think it's possible for anyone to own all the HBs :) There's simply too many great options, and they seem to release new guitars every few weeks! It's a great time to be a thrifty guitarist, that's for sure :) Cheers and rock on!
Hi, I am considering this guitar instead of Epi that I returned. I am interested in:
- neck dive, Epi didnt have any sitting in classical position or standing with strap
- neck angle. One of reasons I returned Epi was because of big neck angle, the strings were miles from the body and it was unconfortable. I tried Ibanez GAX 30 with TOM bridge and shallow neck angle. Much more confortable, but really low action was not possible as the bridge was high
- How long does the neck feel. That was second reason why I returned Epi. I had to extend the left hand too far sitting in classical position
- sharpnes of the bridge, third and final major reason I returned Epi was that the bridge was sharp, hurting my hand when palm muting
Hi there, well, I can answer these from my perspective:
- There's no neck dive in any playing position for me with the DC-Custom II. (I show it standing with a strap in the video too, at 3:40).
- This specific DC-Custom I has a really good neck angle. The action came out of the box nice and low and could be lowered further with no problems, I think.
- I find this neck really comfy. It's got a nice medium profile and a comfy, rounded shapoe. The only thing I would change about it (if I could) would be to make it a satin neck, rather than a poly one (that's just my personal preference). SG-type guitars always feel like the lower frets are a lot further away than Les Pauls and Fender types for some reason! But I hope you'd be fine with this. That's something you'll only know when you try it.
- I do a lot of palm-muting, and I rest my right hand on the bridge when playing usually too... the bridge on this specific DC-Custom II is really well done. No sharp edges, everything smooth and comfy!
Hope this helps! But let me know if you have any more questions :)
Rich
I keep looking at the HB double neck double cut but as cool as it may be would i use it??? IDK but it is pretty freaking cool as is this one.
Ha ha, I have been looking at it that as well... more for the novelty factor than anything though. Our boy @650thunderbird5 got the doubleneck and it sounds sweet! Doesn't have 24 frets though, eh ;) This one's really good. If only it was a tiny bit lighter... (not a problem where you are, I know!)
@@RichWordsMusic weight is only an issue when it comes to getting stuff here 🤣
@@PooNinja 🤣
I really think that this guitar is based more on the ESP LTD Viper than an SG. I mean the 24 fretboard, coil splits.
Yeah, it's a mix of the two for sure... but HB see it as more of an SG Custom-esque guitar, I believe. (Going on my conversations with them and the marketing they do for it, product pages, etc.) I find the pickups really suited to higher gain stuff too, which is also more Viper than SG. Certainly can't harm to be a ix of the two though!
Im a beginner and I wanted to know what are the differences of this model compared to the Harley Benton SC-550 II ? I want to buy one of these 2 models but don't know which one to choose.
Do they sound the same?
Which one is more diverse?
Looks great. But it needs a black scratch plate/pick guard. Would the Gibson/Epiphone one fit or is there another available?
That would actually be a cool, thing to try. I'm actually not sure if an Epi/Gibson one would be a direct fit, but I'd guess maybe not because of the subtle body shape/size differences of the guitars. That said, the Cherry Red version of this very guitar comes with a black guard as standard... maybe if you bought the white one you could ask HB very nicely for a replacement!
@@RichWordsMusic I’ve asked them already if it’s possible to buy the pickup aftermarket and they said no 👎
Perhaps try some vinyl sticker on the original? @@thelolguy007
Very interesting and professional video, congratulations, beautiful guitar. I'm looking for a guitar to play ZZtop, and reproduce the sound of Billy Gibbons, this guitar can do it. Could you recommend me other Harley Benton guitars?, Thank you very much
Thanks a lot, glad you enjoyed it! Well, I certainly agree that this guitar can do the ZZ Top thing no problem. I personally associate Billy Gibbons with Les Pauls, and Harley Benton has loads of SC models. There's a couple I think would be ideal - the SC-450 Plus: thmn.to/thoprod/362628?offid=1&affid=1250
And the SC-550 II: thmn.to/thoprod/521048?offid=1&affid=1250
These are both great guitars and have that more vintage singlecut/Les Paul tone and feel! Hope you manage to find something that works for you, but let me know if you have any more questions :)
@@RichWordsMusic Thanks
@@cristianospecchiarello910 No worries!
Hey, will you be making a review on SC Custom III? Really curious of your opinion.
I would love to! I've asked HB if they'll send me one, so hopefully soon I can check one of them out 👍 They're back in stock fairly soon, apparently.
This is much more of an ESP Viper clone than an SG. Nothing wrong with it but two very different guitars.
HB does make lighter SG clones, but they are of much lower spec than this guitar unfortunately (DC580, DC60 Junior)
Yep, it reminds me of the Viper a lot, as stated in the vid. Would actually be interesting to see if more people see this as more of an SG in the traditional sense, or a Viper! I beleive HB have tried to satisfy everybody in that sense, and I think the DC-Custom II works in that way for sure. That said, it's so great for the higher gain stuff - and it has 24 frets - that maybe you're right!
👍🏻👍🏻
Thanks my friend! Your videos are tempting me to try the double neck version 🤘
@@RichWordsMusic The tones might make you weep, Rich, the weight too! :)
@@650thunderbird I know the weight will for sure! The tones on your vids sound very decent.
Be good to see you reverie the 3 humbucker DC600 👍
Would love to try that one day, yes!
good review, but they send you a guitar which probably means its checked properly. My experience with HB is that the neck can be awful or good. So really you should buy one to check quality in real life
I know what you mean. I've asked my HB contact about this and he says they don't give mine any different/special treatment before sending them out (this is reserved for bigger TH-cam channels I presume!) but you're right - it would be ideal to buy my own. I do sometimes buy the HBs I use in my vids, but I can't always afford to do that! I wish I could. With this one I think they'd have picked a lighter one if they were cherry picking for me. Either way it's a fantastic guitar... maybe I'll buy myself a Cherry Red one one day 😉
@@RichWordsMusic I have a harley Benton from a while back, same guitar with tesla humbuckers. Plays good and sounds great. But needed to do some fretwork because of buzzing.
@@yoyoyuyu234476 I actually bought the DC-60 Junior (single P90 model) back in the day. It's decent, but not a patch on the DC-Custom II. Maybe some comparison videos are needed :)
SG killer, and you play better than Steve Vai.
Well I think Steve would have something to play about that ;)
8lbs 4oz & 24 frets is just too much modernity pour moi, thank you most kindly....
Yep, the weight's a problem for me... the 24 frets not, as I just never go up there ;) They don't bother me. If this guitar was a bit lighter though, it'd be even better!
People need to 'man up' re the weight of guitars! It seems to be a modern trend to criticise heavy guitars. It's the opinion of many including me that it is a tonal and sustain enhancer.
@@Pete_Harrisagree , there’s a reason why the likes of Jimmy Page , randy Rhodes etc had that awesome sound they didn’t have the option of weight relief