Thanks for all the positive comments! If you are interested check them out here: Buy it here at Thomann - bit.ly/2PcQ0CX Buy it in the US / Australia - bit.ly/2vmpJZP Affiliate links support the channel 🙏🧡
Influenced by your video, and some research as well, ordered it and got it yesterday. That thing is amazing! Heavy, 4,5 kg, nice wood, two pieces body, fine finish, amazing neck. Tuners all good, electronics as well. Minimal cosmetic and quality problems. Sounds great!! Pure joy, perfect classic tele sound. 166 Euros delivered to my door, Greece, from Germany!!! I’m happy. Thanks man!
Sounds good! I guess it’s true that 90% of the tone is in your fingers! I’ve reached the conclusion to stop buying guitars and practice the chops more. That’ll help your search for that tone, that you always think might be in your next guitar purchase. Great review Shane.
It's not true. What is true is that Shane uses good gear and knows how to set it up, and what people tend to find surprising is that a lot of cheap gear is actually good.
As I said in one of your previous videos, buy the Kluson locking tuners off Thomann if you're gonna buy this guitar, they're only $37 USD and slap right on, change the string trees to Graphtech self lubricating trees (12.68 on Prime), and the bridge with a Wilkinson ashtray style bridge with brass recessed saddles (20.99 shipped on Amazon), and I'd change the nut though you don't have to, setup/intonated with a fretboard leveling, and bam she plays as good or better than a Custom Shop. Never had the pleasure of playing an SX Tele, but I love my TE-52 and play it often, she just sings. Cheap thrills all day, thanks again for another kick ass video Shane, you've been killing it.
If you swap out the tuners, the bridge, the nut, and you level and dress the frets you're up for $300 at most tech shops....Not that I disagree with you (I do the same of all my guitars) but you're better off buying a better quality guitar which will get you better pickups and wood as well.
Habs247 Thank you for that info regrading tuners it is big help, so they are direct fit in no need to drill or anything? Probably the best would be to get staggering tuners there are Wilkinson one for like max 40 on net like that no need for string trees, only i don't know are they direct swap + that means less points for string friction, TUSQ graphtech nut is my fav and i have OK experience with it, goes on all guitars i have ☺
Just bought one of these...mint condition..second hand. Needed a full set up...truss rod adjusted..frets levelled and string heights set..once done...absolutely awesome!!...fantastuc value for money...much better than my HB Strat...Thank you Harley Benton..😁😘
Just bought it. I'm going to tell Thomann about your page and that you were actually the TH-camr that inspired me to get it. I already have a few Harley Benton's and was hesitating on this one until I heard your video. Damn this thing is a beast.
Mine just arrived yesterday. Man, I can't believe what an awesome guitar this is! Took a risk and sold my Ibanez of 10 years before this arrived. The sound and the feel (and the look) are completely fantastic. My Ibanez had Satriani's Dimarzio pickups in it, and I'm actually getting better Satch tones out of this Tele, if you can imagine! My tuners are fine, so you may have just got a bad apple. What a comfy neck! Only thing I would change is to have the neck's wonderful satin finish across the entire body. But for $175 CAD, this totally beats any sub-$2000 tele I've ever tried.
I've been looking at these for a while now and they seem to be, by quite a substantial margin, the best of the cheaper " Telecaster " guitar options out there. Each reviewer comes up with the same or very similar conclusions. They look great, they play great and they sound great. At the price point, it's a " no brainer " for anyone looking for a Tele to add to their guitar collection. The pick ups sound fantastic. A few minor upgrades ( compensated brass saddles, higher quality tuners and perhaps replacing the nut ) and I could see this Harley Benton TE-52 becoming one of my favourite guitars. Great review Shane - thanks brother x
An update : I went ahead with purchasing a Harley Benton TE52 and I could not be happier. I did the upgrades : Gotoh vintage style locking tuners / Graph Tech Tusq Nut / Compensated Brass Saddles / Roller String Trees / Levelled, crowned and polished the frets / Set Up to my liking - and this guitar is, indeed, a favourite in my collection ( and I have some much more expensive guitars ) I love the neck, it plays like butter and the pickups are unbelievable ( just a slight tweak with the height adjustment and they sound as good as any Telecaster pickups I have played ) I also bought the TE90 QM ( a semi hollow body Tele with P90 pickups ) and a Fusion T HH EB OCT ( with twin Humbuckers / Ebony board / stainless steel frets / Graph Tech Tusq nut / locking tuners / Wilkinson Trem ... amazing spec at a ridiculously affordable price ) Each of these 3 Tele style guitars has its own unique charm and place in my sound palate. I am 60 years old and remember when " cheap " guitars were absolutely terrible and hardly playable. Harley Benton deserve huge credit for changing the game in this regard. I love my 3 Tele's - they are excellent gigging and recording instruments without breaking the bank.
Cheap tuners don't bother me because I always tune up into the note. Tuning down towards the note can leave a little slack in the tuning gears, which will eventually be pulled back tight by the string tension but losing tune in the process. If in doubt about the slack, you can give the string you're tuning a bit of a pull upwards with your fingers, which will pull the tension down into the tuning zone. I hope to see you at Sky Music one day, Shane! Rob
I just wanted to share my thoughts on this guitar that I have owned for about 6 month now: It pays of to change the bridge saddles to compensated brass saddles. The tuners are ok, so there is not much need for changing those. My body was a one piece ash body, which you not even see often on high end guitars. The electrics are fine too. And here comes the most important lesson I learnt: If you want to change PU´s, do it properly the first time. I think the bridge PU sounds quite good, but not so much the neck PU, so people on a budget should maybe only change the neck PU. It is a medium high output PU, and too dark to my liking, it does not have much attack and does not have that Tele spank. It didn´t help to remove the shield, and be very carefull if you try to do that. I tried different low cost PU´s, for instance an Alnico Wilkinson. It almost sounded exactly the same as the stock PU. So stay away from overwound or slightly overwound PU´s on this guitar, when you want the real Tele sound. Then I bought a Fender TEX-MEX set, it also sounded quite the same, and now I have cut the experiments, I hope, and bought a set of Bare Knuckles Boot Camp Old Guards. I know those and should probably have done that the first time, to save a lot of time and some money. Bottomline is, it is a very nice guitar for the money, and I think when the had to change the shape on the headstock, they succeeded doing it. Hope this can help som people out there.
Nice post Kim. Just ordered one to Australia, and I'm not too fussed about the bridge pick up as I won't use if often except in humbucker mode. Should be here within 10 days
I would have tried just changing the pot from 250k to 330k, and maybe added a treble bleed cap if necessary. Pickups are pickups. Everything included in "their circuit" will affect their tone. Changing pickups to fit the circuit is $illy when you can change the circuit to better accommodate the pickups. Just sayin' 😶
I’ve said before I’ve got one of the older ones with Wilkinson pickups. Really impressed with those Roswells, and yes I’d agree the tuners are a major weak point. If Thomann upgraded those it would be astounding
It's a ripper Shane! Does WHAT a Tele should! Just came back from Kerstfeest @ the GT! You were talked about! I got tapped on the shoulder, so it looks like I am going to be a committee member, so I hope might make your way back there soon. You will HAVE a muso on the committee! Cheers dude!
Brilliant Shane great review - you will only garner more viewers and more respect from manufacturers being so unbiased. Erring on the side of your audience will always pay big. Great work
Got one of these early 2022. Tuners on mine are fine. Finish is good. Neck is awesome. Pickups - neck great, bridge maybe too bright for me. Suspect the pots are its biggest weakness but I've been hammering it for 9 months and still satisfied. Over 10lbs weight tho' and I think that's its biggest drawback, it is a heavy tele but an absolute bargain.
I've had my HB TE 52 since February,and it came perfectly setup,same tuners,but you probably had some off ones,mine have been working and turning flawlessly,have the same on my ST-62 vintage strat. I see they've change the logo a bit I tried a few other Teles in and around my hometown Malmö (guess you know that place right) I was going for a Affinity,but since it doesn't string through the body and the finish looks crap Vs this one I took a chance and bought this one. And it's a killer mate,play country/blues/punk rock on it and it really does the job. One of my better buys,for €120 it's a steal. Really agree on the pickups,sounds ace,same Roswell pups in my Strat. Plus,the neck on this one is so good. Good video sir
Some tasty licks there on that opening tune Shane my man! Proof that an awesome rig can be had for well under $500 and that tone is in the fingers after all! Bang up job man!
I really love your videos, Shane. Every time I'm looking for a new guitar (which is Teles og Gibson Juniors right now), your videos just nail the tone perfect and gives a great impression on which sound to expect from the guitar. Just keep up the good work 😄
Brilliant demo!! I recently got a Player Series Tele and I love it. Except for the pickups. I'll be doing a review on my channel soon, but the ones in the HB actually send better to me. Impressive! Excellent vid, brother!
Love those closed captions ("tally" instead of 'tele', "Italian" instead of 'a tele'. Looks like we need a closed caption translator for the closed captions on this one. Don't worry, Shane. Most of us are smarter than the developers of close captioning software. Great review on one of the real steals in today's guitar marketplace. A few carefully chosen upgrades and this tele more than doubles in comparative value. Thanks for the review, mate!
That peavey bandit, that tele, and a digitech rp multi effects plugged into the loop to use the delay is all youd need to gig anywhere. Were so lucky these days.
I've had this for a couple years. Of all my guitars, I pick this one up the most. The only change you may want is to change the tuners, not the greatest.
I have four Harley Bentons that I play regularly and they sit happily alongside more costly guitars. Two were great straight out of the box, The cheaper of the four as it happens. Two were OK OOTB but they needed a little fettling, nothing too drastic. There WAS a fifth, but that really had to go back, unsalvageably beyond adjustment. Returning it was no problem. Thomann RMA was easy to navigate. That's the deal with these guitars. They make great savings on Quality Control. If you want higher QC you have to pay for it.
Not my experience at all. I once ordered a limited 1200 euro guitar from Fender. The state of this guitar was way worse than the two TE-52's I received from Thomann. Maybe I got a bad one but I was really shocked by the guitar (sharp frets, nut was completely unusable and no setup at all). I experienced many nut problems with MIM Fenders in the past. The TE-52 was playable from the start. Good intonation, fretwork, truss rod needed no adjustment and action was really good (a bit high but no too high either). The Fender is almost ten times the price of a Harley Benton. It's honestly impressive what Harley Benton (Thomann) is doing in my opinion.
Great to hear you got a good one !! Again looks like they improved it a lil vs the 2017 I have. Like I said .... even if the tuners & neck where garbage what you get everything else on the body is STILL worth it to seriously look at for buying!! :)
Sounds awesome and I'm digging your guitar playing! I have the TE-30 Tele by Harley Benton and it runs super heavy as well.......it's like lifting a huge log......still I love the guitar and it's great value for the money.
Everyone is always talking about how they don't like how tuners feel. I got some news. They have screws on them just like all the other parts on a guitar...Lefty loosey Righty Tighty ! It is almost impossible for tuners to be bad. It's jst gears al long as they turn and don't slip back..most of them are good and will be for the life of the guitar. Just take care of them.. Replacing them is the biggest MYTH in Guitar repair. Most things on a tuning key can be fixed with a screwdriver or some oil or grease!
Not sure about that Randy. I have an original 1969 hardtail Strat with the F tuners and the G tuner is tight. I've taken it off, opened it up and greased it but I can't get it to turn as freely as all the rest and there are no screw adjustments that I can see.
Chiming in here a year later because I saw a listing for a TE-52 and ran across the review video: this isn't correct in the slightest. The precision of machining tolerances and finishing quality affects friction and usability to extremely self-evident degrees. Grease is only a temporary solution for quality issues that will cause wear and tear down the road -- and frustrations in the here and now (and every two weeks after each greasing). Unlike human beings, not all screws are equal.
Absolutely loved the one I reviewed, only didn't' buy it off them because I had just got a new Fender Tele for my 40th birthday lol. My only issues were the tuners and the pickup switch, which felt a bit flimsy. Did a side by side blind demo of this vs the fender and very few could tell the difference in sounds!
🤔 I’ve been a fan of Thomann from watching Nick in the States and this guitar did interest me. Don’t get me wrong this guitar is a great value and it sounds damn good, but if I was going for a budget Tele I would either get a Classic Vibe Squier or a SX. Everyone needs at least one Tele in their collection and Thomann has something in an affordable range. Living in the USA, I would feel better grabbing a CV. Great video Shane and your tone is on point!!! Cheers!!!🎸🎸🤙🏾🎸🎸
Great review and playing man! Sounded really to me too! If you don’t live near a store that sells HBs, they’re a safe bet to buy any of them without playing one if your acceptable quality range is wider than it would be for domestic “name brands,” or if it’s one of your first guitars. I also agree with the other comments...if your expectations are higher and you are going to buy upgraded tuners, etc. after purchasing an HB, you might be better off looking for a used MIM Tele or Squier Classic Vibe that you can play before you buy. 🤙🏻😎🎸
I am torn between this Harley Benton and the Artist TC59 you reviewed. The Artist is listed for $159 with free shipping on the USA website (when it is actually in stock). I really like the sound of the Humbucker pickups in the Artist better. Thanks for both reviews.
I've been trying to find a good review of this guitar as I bought one from my local guitar center with the intention of keeping a "cheap" guitar at work so I can practice when time permits. I'm honestly blown away by the physical construction.... the body is gorgeous and the neck is everything I want in a guitar. I was assuming the electronics and hardware must be pretty low quality as this thing was $180 brand new and to be honest, I haven't actually played it plugged in since my only goal was to have a guitar to practice around with. Now I'm wondering if this thing is worth upgrading the tuners and the pickups, I can't get past the feel of the neck, I give it an easy 10/10. BTW all the guitars in my home studio are high end ESP/LTD's and older Japan-built guitars.
Shane, I think the only mods I would do, are mounting the neck pickup INTO the body, and giving it a 5 screw pickguard. Other than that I MAY take the neck down to what is being called a modern C.
Shane i have owned a lefty te-52 for over two years all it has never let me down.all i have done is oiled the tuners and fitted a graphtech nut, if you want to try an amazing t-type you really need to try a schecter pt...awesone
Left-handed telecasters give me the hebejeebies. They're like the "uncanny valley" of guitars - you know that feeling when a computer animated character looks *almost* realistic, and it's freakier than if it was just a cartoon. That's left-handed telecasters for me.
In the blues is for me the smartest tester..thanks I would love to see that you make a proper test of the sc Junior from Harley Benton... which I play daily after string changing, which more expensive guitar needs too.-), I made proper set up(fretboard lemon oil. neck bend,resoldered the Potis and secured them ,which more expensive guitar needs too.), changed to locking tuners, which more expensive guitar needs too,since then I have a Rock ń'roll machine..222 inclusive. shipment..
I`d love Harley benton to copy a 62 re-issue telecaster tobacco sunburst with double Binding , I´d buy one straight off the bat ...or any other flying animal
This video took to long to get out, I couldn’t help myself and since someone had one for sale local for £75 with brass saddles, gigbag and strap I just bought one. As always great video
At the price point that these guitars come in at, the electronics and tuners are the least of my concern. As inexpensive as these are, you could easily replace the pickups and tuners and still come in at far less than what you'd spend on another famous Tele maker...who shall remain nameless. The fact that this Tele sounds pretty good stock is just icing on the cake.
Greetings fellow lefty! Really enjoy your videos. I started with a Squire Affinity and was not at all happy with the sound. Just didn't sound like a Tele to me. A new TE-52 became available locally (the unlucky guy ordered a left handed one when he intended to order a right handed version) at list price no shipping. I grabbed it up in a second, and I fell in love with it's twangy tele sound. I think it is very comprable to my buddies Classic Vibe 50's at less than half the cost.
I got one of these shortly after this video posted - the bridge pickup is more Broadcaster than tele (almost 7k). There's a little gap between the bridge end of the heel (5mm) that you can't see with the pick guard on. Mine is 7.5 pounds and you have to look at the sides to locate where the wood joins - it looks like it is all from the same piece of wood (3 piece body). Fret ends were good, but frets needed polishing - no big deal. I put a wide range humbucker in the neck and swapped to a compensated bridge from Wilkinson - both personal preference and inexpensive. The tuners are OK: a little wonky, BUT they stay in tune, so whatever. I'll swap the electronics and tuners. I may take the point out of the headstock, but haven't yet determined if that just decades of Fender brainwashing.
Hi Shane, hope you're keeping well. I need your help mate as I think I'm going quietly mad! Following my earlier post I've now received my HB TE-52 (on the strength of your excellent vid) & your video was right on the money. For a guitar at this price point (heck even three or 4 times times the price point) the build quality is terrific and those pickups are just pure vintage Telecaster. It's just a really good 'Tele' but as you rightly say, the tuners aren't great. So, in addition to adding Wilkinson compensated brass saddles I'm changing the tuners for Wilkinson 15:1 ratio deluxe vintage that should be a straight drop in (the headstock holes by the way are standard 8mm) - but here's my problem (as I'd like to keep the same look) - I'm really struggling to tell if the existing tuners are nickel or chrome. In some light they seem to be a little more 'yellow' (warmer) - other times they look to be more chrome - it's like these are a 'chameleon' !! I know you had a good look at these when you had the guitar - can you recall whether these were nickel or chrome?
They do a good job for the price and I have three of them. But with a bit of craftsmanship, this guitar becomes a big one. It starts to tighten all the screws, especially neck and bridge. The string position is usually not optimal, but can be set very well than the 1.4 mm on 14 frets are possible without a snarl. When I think back on what you had to spend 30 years ago to achieve that ... a small fortune
Great review Shane! Thanks a lot. I have a question: it this a full size body? I mean the thickness of the body, is it the same as on original Fender Tele? Thanks
Excellent video, and very smooth work on the fretboard. The only thing holding me back on this (TE-52) is the C-neck. I'm a D-neck fella, so it looks like the Harley Benton TE-62CC SFG is the ticket. Also, do you know if these will accept standard 10mm tuners? The TE-62CC SFG will be a perfect companion to my 10x more expensive $1,500 Fender American Performer Stratocaster HSS - Satin Surf Green with Maple Fingerboard.
Great guitar, great review, it just sucks that the delivery cost to Australia is almost the same cost as the guitar! (current Aud price $209, delivery cost Aud $ 182.48. Total price $ 391.48 ).
I've been looking into these guitars for quite some time now and nothing I've heard would discourage me from ordering one... The TE 40 Is the one I have my eye on
Thanks for all the positive comments! If you are interested check them out here:
Buy it here at Thomann - bit.ly/2PcQ0CX
Buy it in the US / Australia - bit.ly/2vmpJZP
Affiliate links support the channel 🙏🧡
Influenced by your video, and some research as well, ordered it and got it yesterday.
That thing is amazing! Heavy, 4,5 kg, nice wood, two pieces body, fine finish, amazing neck.
Tuners all good, electronics as well.
Minimal cosmetic and quality problems.
Sounds great!! Pure joy, perfect classic tele sound.
166 Euros delivered to my door, Greece, from Germany!!!
I’m happy.
Thanks man!
Sounds good! I guess it’s true that 90% of the tone is in your fingers! I’ve reached the conclusion to stop buying guitars and practice the chops more. That’ll help your search for that tone, that you always think might be in your next guitar purchase. Great review Shane.
It's not true. What is true is that Shane uses good gear and knows how to set it up, and what people tend to find surprising is that a lot of cheap gear is actually good.
As I said in one of your previous videos, buy the Kluson locking tuners off Thomann if you're gonna buy this guitar, they're only $37 USD and slap right on, change the string trees to Graphtech self lubricating trees (12.68 on Prime), and the bridge with a Wilkinson ashtray style bridge with brass recessed saddles (20.99 shipped on Amazon), and I'd change the nut though you don't have to, setup/intonated with a fretboard leveling, and bam she plays as good or better than a Custom Shop. Never had the pleasure of playing an SX Tele, but I love my TE-52 and play it often, she just sings. Cheap thrills all day, thanks again for another kick ass video Shane, you've been killing it.
SX guitars are very good for the money. I have 4 different models and they are all great budget guitars
If you swap out the tuners, the bridge, the nut, and you level and dress the frets you're up for $300 at most tech shops....Not that I disagree with you (I do the same of all my guitars) but you're better off buying a better quality guitar which will get you better pickups and wood as well.
For the full on triggers broom, change the body and the neck :p
Habs247 Thank you for that info regrading tuners it is big help, so they are direct fit in no need to drill or anything? Probably the best would be to get staggering tuners there are Wilkinson one for like max 40 on net like that no need for string trees, only i don't know are they direct swap + that means less points for string friction, TUSQ graphtech nut is my fav and i have OK experience with it, goes on all guitars i have ☺
A Junk u forgot pickups
Just bought one of these...mint condition..second hand. Needed a full set up...truss rod adjusted..frets levelled and string heights set..once done...absolutely awesome!!...fantastuc value for money...much better than my HB Strat...Thank you Harley Benton..😁😘
Seems like your playing has gone up a level man with the chicken pickin incorporated into your style,I like it very much
Thanks a lot Adam :-)
Just bought it. I'm going to tell Thomann about your page and that you were actually the TH-camr that inspired me to get it. I already have a few Harley Benton's and was hesitating on this one until I heard your video. Damn this thing is a beast.
Mine just arrived yesterday. Man, I can't believe what an awesome guitar this is! Took a risk and sold my Ibanez of 10 years before this arrived. The sound and the feel (and the look) are completely fantastic. My Ibanez had Satriani's Dimarzio pickups in it, and I'm actually getting better Satch tones out of this Tele, if you can imagine! My tuners are fine, so you may have just got a bad apple. What a comfy neck! Only thing I would change is to have the neck's wonderful satin finish across the entire body. But for $175 CAD, this totally beats any sub-$2000 tele I've ever tried.
Shane, awesome playing in the opening intro. You sounded completely different, and your phrasings were spectacular!! Kick ASS!!!
Love your playing. First one I’ve seen in a long time that doesn’t shred for no reason
I ended up getting the cheapest Tele model for like 90€ or something, and I was blown away. It holds up well with my Fender
I've been looking at these for a while now and they seem to be, by quite a substantial margin, the best of the cheaper " Telecaster " guitar options out there. Each reviewer comes up with the same or very similar conclusions. They look great, they play great and they sound great. At the price point, it's a " no brainer " for anyone looking for a Tele to add to their guitar collection. The pick ups sound fantastic. A few minor upgrades ( compensated brass saddles, higher quality tuners and perhaps replacing the nut ) and I could see this Harley Benton TE-52 becoming one of my favourite guitars. Great review Shane - thanks brother x
An update : I went ahead with purchasing a Harley Benton TE52 and I could not be happier. I did the upgrades : Gotoh vintage style locking tuners / Graph Tech Tusq Nut / Compensated Brass Saddles / Roller String Trees / Levelled, crowned and polished the frets / Set Up to my liking - and this guitar is, indeed, a favourite in my collection ( and I have some much more expensive guitars ) I love the neck, it plays like butter and the pickups are unbelievable ( just a slight tweak with the height adjustment and they sound as good as any Telecaster pickups I have played ) I also bought the TE90 QM ( a semi hollow body Tele with P90 pickups ) and a Fusion T HH EB OCT ( with twin Humbuckers / Ebony board / stainless steel frets / Graph Tech Tusq nut / locking tuners / Wilkinson Trem ... amazing spec at a ridiculously affordable price ) Each of these 3 Tele style guitars has its own unique charm and place in my sound palate. I am 60 years old and remember when " cheap " guitars were absolutely terrible and hardly playable. Harley Benton deserve huge credit for changing the game in this regard. I love my 3 Tele's - they are excellent gigging and recording instruments without breaking the bank.
Cheap tuners don't bother me because I always tune up into the note. Tuning down towards the note can leave a little slack in the tuning gears, which will eventually be pulled back tight by the string tension but losing tune in the process. If in doubt about the slack, you can give the string you're tuning a bit of a pull upwards with your fingers, which will pull the tension down into the tuning zone. I hope to see you at Sky Music one day, Shane! Rob
I just wanted to share my thoughts on this guitar that I have owned for about 6 month now: It pays of to change the bridge saddles to compensated brass saddles.
The tuners are ok, so there is not much need for changing those. My body was a one piece ash body, which you not even see often on high end guitars. The electrics
are fine too. And here comes the most important lesson I learnt: If you want to change PU´s, do it properly the first time. I think the bridge PU sounds quite good, but
not so much the neck PU, so people on a budget should maybe only change the neck PU. It is a medium high output PU, and too dark to my liking, it does not have
much attack and does not have that Tele spank. It didn´t help to remove the shield, and be very carefull if you try to do that.
I tried different low cost PU´s, for instance an Alnico Wilkinson. It almost sounded exactly the same as the stock PU. So stay away from overwound or slightly
overwound PU´s on this guitar, when you want the real Tele sound. Then I bought a Fender TEX-MEX set, it also sounded quite the same, and now I have cut the
experiments, I hope, and bought a set of Bare Knuckles Boot Camp Old Guards. I know those and should probably have done that the first time, to save a lot of time
and some money.
Bottomline is, it is a very nice guitar for the money, and I think when the had to change the shape on the headstock, they succeeded doing it. Hope this can help
som people out there.
Nice post Kim. Just ordered one to Australia, and I'm not too fussed about the bridge pick up as I won't use if often except in humbucker mode. Should be here within 10 days
I would have tried just changing the pot from 250k to 330k, and maybe added a treble bleed cap if necessary.
Pickups are pickups. Everything included in "their circuit" will affect their tone. Changing pickups to fit the circuit is $illy when you can change the circuit to better accommodate the pickups.
Just sayin' 😶
Oh wow, this looks way better than it does in the Thomann pics. Much deeper yellow, digging it!
I’ve said before I’ve got one of the older ones with Wilkinson pickups. Really impressed with those Roswells, and yes I’d agree the tuners are a major weak point. If Thomann upgraded those it would be astounding
And the saddles, if they got compensated saddles for better intonation it’d be nice.
It's a ripper Shane! Does WHAT a Tele should!
Just came back from Kerstfeest @ the GT! You were talked about!
I got tapped on the shoulder, so it looks like I am going to be a committee member, so I hope might make your way back there soon. You will HAVE a muso on the committee!
Cheers dude!
Brilliant Shane great review - you will only garner more viewers and more respect from manufacturers being so unbiased. Erring on the side of your audience will always pay big. Great work
Looks great on camera! I think at that price you probably can't beat the value. great video, sounded great for sure!
I like it when you do a sick bend and the camera goes zoom.
Got one of these early 2022. Tuners on mine are fine. Finish is good. Neck is awesome. Pickups - neck great, bridge maybe too bright for me. Suspect the pots are its biggest weakness but I've been hammering it for 9 months and still satisfied. Over 10lbs weight tho' and I think that's its biggest drawback, it is a heavy tele but an absolute bargain.
I've had my HB TE 52 since February,and it came perfectly setup,same tuners,but you probably had some off ones,mine have been working and turning flawlessly,have the same on my ST-62 vintage strat.
I see they've change the logo a bit
I tried a few other Teles in and around my hometown Malmö (guess you know that place right) I was going for a Affinity,but since it doesn't string through the body and the finish looks crap Vs this one I took a chance and bought this one.
And it's a killer mate,play country/blues/punk rock on it and it really does the job.
One of my better buys,for €120 it's a steal.
Really agree on the pickups,sounds ace,same Roswell pups in my Strat.
Plus,the neck on this one is so good.
Good video sir
Everybody knows Malmø, it´s Sweedens Hallalabad, you can buy hand granates on the flea market.
How does the tuning hold up on the HB ?
I’ve watched all of your videos multiple times, but this is one of my favorites. Also love the Danelectro ‘84 review. Keep up the great work!
April 26 2021.
Mine just arrived. I am stunned.
Some tasty licks there on that opening tune Shane my man! Proof that an awesome rig can be had for well under $500 and that tone is in the fingers after all! Bang up job man!
That's a beautiful guitar especially left handed
I really love your videos, Shane. Every time I'm looking for a new guitar (which is Teles og Gibson Juniors right now), your videos just nail the tone perfect and gives a great impression on which sound to expect from the guitar. Just keep up the good work 😄
Brilliant demo!! I recently got a Player Series Tele and I love it. Except for the pickups. I'll be doing a review on my channel soon, but the ones in the HB actually send better to me. Impressive! Excellent vid, brother!
Thanks for the video. I did a search for "best lawsuit Telecaster copy" and found yer video. Shopping a HB TE-52 now.
Just ordered mine! Thank you for this!
I’m waiting for mine… its on the way. Thank you for the Review 👍
Love those closed captions ("tally" instead of 'tele', "Italian" instead of 'a tele'. Looks like we need a closed caption translator for the closed captions on this one. Don't worry, Shane. Most of us are smarter than the developers of close captioning software. Great review on one of the real steals in today's guitar marketplace. A few carefully chosen upgrades and this tele more than doubles in comparative value. Thanks for the review, mate!
Ordered mine, can't wait.
no tuning problems there mate
sounds amazing great guitar
That peavey bandit, that tele, and a digitech rp multi effects plugged into the loop to use the delay is all youd need to gig anywhere. Were so lucky these days.
Fantastic review. It really gave me the information I was looking for on this HB Tele. Thanks for posting!
just got one!
not one single scratch/blemish on it, and it plays Really Well
LUV the neck!!
heavy - 10lbs
Wow 10 pounds
Frets polish, bullet brass saddles, neck shiming and it's play like a dream, stock roswell pups hight adjustment and fingers skills of course
I've had this for a couple years. Of all my guitars, I pick this one up the most. The only change you may want is to change the tuners, not the greatest.
Man those are some hot chops! This thing sounds great. I think I'm sold on this guitar
I have four Harley Bentons that I play regularly and they sit happily alongside more costly guitars.
Two were great straight out of the box, The cheaper of the four as it happens.
Two were OK OOTB but they needed a little fettling, nothing too drastic.
There WAS a fifth, but that really had to go back, unsalvageably beyond adjustment.
Returning it was no problem. Thomann RMA was easy to navigate.
That's the deal with these guitars. They make great savings on Quality Control.
If you want higher QC you have to pay for it.
Not my experience at all. I once ordered a limited 1200 euro guitar from Fender. The state of this guitar was way worse than the two TE-52's I received from Thomann. Maybe I got a bad one but I was really shocked by the guitar (sharp frets, nut was completely unusable and no setup at all). I experienced many nut problems with MIM Fenders in the past. The TE-52 was playable from the start. Good intonation, fretwork, truss rod needed no adjustment and action was really good (a bit high but no too high either). The Fender is almost ten times the price of a Harley Benton. It's honestly impressive what Harley Benton (Thomann) is doing in my opinion.
Great to hear you got a good one !! Again looks like they improved it a lil vs the 2017 I have. Like I said .... even if the tuners & neck where garbage what you get everything else on the body is STILL worth it to seriously look at for buying!! :)
Sounds great. I would just change the tuners and we're good. Thanks. Peace.
Damn, that was a fantastic, funky grove you started off with. Loved it! Guitar was great!
Absolutely love those profiles nice playing man! I’m wanting to get into a Tele style guitar I reckon that TE 52 is the 1 for me at this savage 😁
Just picked one of these up, used but 'as new' condition for GBP £68! Couldn't be happier.
Sounds awesome and I'm digging your guitar playing! I have the TE-30 Tele by Harley Benton and it runs super heavy as well.......it's like lifting a huge log......still I love the guitar and it's great value for the money.
Get the "Jazzmaster" JA60.
Ive got one and it is a fantastic guitar.
Arrived perfectly set up, stays in tune for ever, and plays and sounds superb.
Got it. And the SC550. TE-52 is next on my list!
Just ordered one from Thomann. On it's way to Texas.
Hell yea brother
Sounds great Shane. Awesome guitar playing.
Everyone is always talking about how they don't like how tuners feel. I got some news. They have screws on them just like all the other parts on a guitar...Lefty loosey Righty Tighty ! It is almost impossible for tuners to be bad. It's jst gears al long as they turn and don't slip back..most of them are good and will be for the life of the guitar. Just take care of them.. Replacing them is the biggest MYTH in Guitar repair. Most things on a tuning key can be fixed with a screwdriver or some oil or grease!
Not sure about that Randy. I have an original 1969 hardtail Strat with the F tuners and the G tuner is tight. I've taken it off, opened it up and greased it but I can't get it to turn as freely as all the rest and there are no screw adjustments that I can see.
Chiming in here a year later because I saw a listing for a TE-52 and ran across the review video: this isn't correct in the slightest. The precision of machining tolerances and finishing quality affects friction and usability to extremely self-evident degrees. Grease is only a temporary solution for quality issues that will cause wear and tear down the road -- and frustrations in the here and now (and every two weeks after each greasing).
Unlike human beings, not all screws are equal.
Great review, clear and thorough. Well done buddy.
Looks pretty nice Shane ,great demo too mate and looking forward to the shootout !
Absolutely loved the one I reviewed, only didn't' buy it off them because I had just got a new Fender Tele for my 40th birthday lol. My only issues were the tuners and the pickup switch, which felt a bit flimsy. Did a side by side blind demo of this vs the fender and very few could tell the difference in sounds!
🤔 I’ve been a fan of Thomann from watching Nick in the States and this guitar did interest me. Don’t get me wrong this guitar is a great value and it sounds damn good, but if I was going for a budget Tele I would either get a Classic Vibe Squier or a SX. Everyone needs at least one Tele in their collection and Thomann has something in an affordable range. Living in the USA, I would feel better grabbing a CV. Great video Shane and your tone is on point!!! Cheers!!!🎸🎸🤙🏾🎸🎸
After minor mods, I wouldn't touch a CV over the TE-52, but I still see your point Jamal.
@intheblues do you consider this better than a Squier affinity or Bullet?
kevin mask I’d like to know this too
@@padawan9127
I just got a TE-52 last week, it's absolutely amazing, I had a Affinity Tele before, this blows it away !!
@@kenhall6525 Okay, but why, exactly?
Cheers Ken
Great review and playing man! Sounded really to me too! If you don’t live near a store that sells HBs, they’re a safe bet to buy any of them without playing one if your acceptable quality range is wider than it would be for domestic “name brands,” or if it’s one of your first guitars. I also agree with the other comments...if your expectations are higher and you are going to buy upgraded tuners, etc. after purchasing an HB, you might be better off looking for a used MIM Tele or Squier Classic Vibe that you can play before you buy. 🤙🏻😎🎸
I am torn between this Harley Benton and the Artist TC59 you reviewed. The Artist is listed for $159 with free shipping on the USA website (when it is actually in stock). I really like the sound of the Humbucker pickups in the Artist better. Thanks for both reviews.
I've been trying to find a good review of this guitar as I bought one from my local guitar center with the intention of keeping a "cheap" guitar at work so I can practice when time permits. I'm honestly blown away by the physical construction.... the body is gorgeous and the neck is everything I want in a guitar. I was assuming the electronics and hardware must be pretty low quality as this thing was $180 brand new and to be honest, I haven't actually played it plugged in since my only goal was to have a guitar to practice around with. Now I'm wondering if this thing is worth upgrading the tuners and the pickups, I can't get past the feel of the neck, I give it an easy 10/10. BTW all the guitars in my home studio are high end ESP/LTD's and older Japan-built guitars.
That intro solo gave me a serious case of secondhand stank face oof 🤪😍
this is actually a pretty nice sounding guitar
for mine i got wilkinson tuners and a compensated bridge, rubbed the scratchy frets down and that's it! it's amazing.
Txs for the performance!
Hell, I'm not going to buy a Fender. I want this one! Sounds fantastic!!
Dam..I been wanting a tele style guitar for awhile...without spending a lot...this price is amazing
Thats a lovely tone and sound off that tele, especially on the lead.
That was some mega playing. Did this guitar inspire you?
Shane, I think the only mods I would do, are mounting the neck pickup INTO the body, and giving it a 5 screw pickguard. Other than that I MAY take the neck down to what is being called a modern C.
bought this guitar as good as any tele your right about the tuners but its not a big deal to replace them.
Shane i have owned a lefty te-52 for over two years all it has never let me down.all i have done is oiled the tuners and fitted a graphtech nut, if you want to try an amazing t-type you really need to try a schecter pt...awesone
Shane,
How would you rate this guitar against a Squire Classic Vibe 50's Tele having played both. I've tried the C.V. and loved it.
Left-handed telecasters give me the hebejeebies. They're like the "uncanny valley" of guitars - you know that feeling when a computer animated character looks *almost* realistic, and it's freakier than if it was just a cartoon. That's left-handed telecasters for me.
11:39 caught my ear when you threw in some T Bone Walker style.
In the blues is for me the smartest tester..thanks I would love to see that you make a proper test of the sc Junior from Harley Benton... which I play daily after string changing, which more expensive guitar needs too.-), I made proper set up(fretboard lemon oil. neck bend,resoldered the Potis and secured them ,which more expensive guitar needs too.), changed to locking tuners, which more expensive guitar needs too,since then I have a Rock ń'roll machine..222 inclusive. shipment..
Cool guitar work man. That was worth everything.
Man you really did that guitar some justice great job guy. See ya on the flip side mate!!!!
Great Video as always! Which one would you recommend to a broke guy who has never played a Tele: this or the Squier CV?
I`d love Harley benton to copy a 62 re-issue telecaster tobacco sunburst with double Binding , I´d buy one straight off the bat ...or any other flying animal
I think by now other flying animals are preferable
Maybe the squier classic vibe would be up your alley? I owned a strat cv and I have only good things to say!
This video took to long to get out, I couldn’t help myself and since someone had one for sale local for £75 with brass saddles, gigbag and strap I just bought one. As always great video
Very hot sound, all tele, like the finish. Interesting product.
Nice guitar! The amp is a masterpiece in the way it sound.
I paid $160 for my Harley Benton TE-52 na . I can’t find anything wrong with it right out of the box. Amazing.
At the price point that these guitars come in at, the electronics and tuners are the least of my concern.
As inexpensive as these are, you could easily replace the pickups and tuners and still come in at far less than what you'd spend on another famous Tele maker...who shall remain nameless.
The fact that this Tele sounds pretty good stock is just icing on the cake.
Looking at the guitar at 1:35, I thought your intonation was backwards, then I realized its a left handed guitar and I'm an idiot.
Greetings fellow lefty! Really enjoy your videos. I started with a Squire Affinity and was not at all happy with the sound. Just didn't sound like a Tele to me. A new TE-52 became available locally (the unlucky guy ordered a left handed one when he intended to order a right handed version) at list price no shipping. I grabbed it up in a second, and I fell in love with it's twangy tele sound. I think it is very comprable to my buddies Classic Vibe 50's at less than half the cost.
I got one of these shortly after this video posted - the bridge pickup is more Broadcaster than tele (almost 7k). There's a little gap between the bridge end of the heel (5mm) that you can't see with the pick guard on. Mine is 7.5 pounds and you have to look at the sides to locate where the wood joins - it looks like it is all from the same piece of wood (3 piece body). Fret ends were good, but frets needed polishing - no big deal. I put a wide range humbucker in the neck and swapped to a compensated bridge from Wilkinson - both personal preference and inexpensive. The tuners are OK: a little wonky, BUT they stay in tune, so whatever. I'll swap the electronics and tuners. I may take the point out of the headstock, but haven't yet determined if that just decades of Fender brainwashing.
I think it sounds pretty great!
Hi Shane, hope you're keeping well. I need your help mate as I think I'm going quietly mad! Following my earlier post I've now received my HB TE-52 (on the strength of your excellent vid) & your video was right on the money. For a guitar at this price point (heck even three or 4 times times the price point) the build quality is terrific and those pickups are just pure vintage Telecaster. It's just a really good 'Tele' but as you rightly say, the tuners aren't great. So, in addition to adding Wilkinson compensated brass saddles I'm changing the tuners for Wilkinson 15:1 ratio deluxe vintage that should be a straight drop in (the headstock holes by the way are standard 8mm) - but here's my problem (as I'd like to keep the same look) - I'm really struggling to tell if the existing tuners are nickel or chrome. In some light they seem to be a little more 'yellow' (warmer) - other times they look to be more chrome - it's like these are a 'chameleon' !! I know you had a good look at these when you had the guitar - can you recall whether these were nickel or chrome?
They do a good job for the price and I have three of them. But with a bit of craftsmanship, this guitar becomes a big one. It starts to tighten all the screws, especially neck and bridge. The string position is usually not optimal, but can be set very well than the 1.4 mm on 14 frets are possible without a snarl. When I think back on what you had to spend 30 years ago to achieve that ... a small fortune
Love AC/DC on a telly
Hi Im big fan of yours, what do you think is better this one or Squier Affinity Tele?
Sounds great! Good pickin, love the video!
Stays in tune, no matter what?
All that matters is the player. You kick ass Man !
Thanks mate!
Great review Shane! Thanks a lot.
I have a question: it this a full size body? I mean the thickness of the body, is it the same as on original Fender Tele?
Thanks
Excellent video, and very smooth work on the fretboard. The only thing holding me back on this (TE-52) is the C-neck. I'm a D-neck fella, so it looks like the Harley Benton TE-62CC SFG is the ticket. Also, do you know if these will accept standard 10mm tuners? The TE-62CC SFG will be a perfect companion to my 10x more expensive $1,500 Fender American Performer Stratocaster HSS - Satin Surf Green with Maple Fingerboard.
nice review man.
thanks for this.
Sounds just like a telecaster i used to own one i just love the twangy sound of them idk why i just love that bright poppy sound of a tele
Great guitar, great review, it just sucks that the delivery cost to Australia is almost the same cost as the guitar! (current Aud price $209, delivery cost Aud $ 182.48. Total price $ 391.48
).
I've been looking into these guitars for quite some time now and nothing I've heard would discourage me from ordering one... The TE 40 Is the one I have my eye on