Harley Benton has opened up an official store on Reverb and will now offer its full-range of budget friendly instruments to the US, with orders made via online gear shop to ship direct from the Thomann’s American warehouse.
This is big news for beginner guitar player, or for anyone looking for a cheap electric guitar – or acoustic, bass, guitar amp, stompbox or even pedalboard power supply – just consider the PowerPlant ISO-12AC Pro Modular for a second. Heck, that beast offers 12 isolated outputs for under $150. You name it and Harley Benton will most likely make it, and at a fraction of the price of the model that inspired it.
This is, after all, the brand that brought us credible LP-inspired singlecuts for just over 300 bucks, the Blackguard-inspired E-52 NA Vintage Series T-style for under $200, and a compact 1x8 tube amp combo loaded with a Celestion speaker for the scandalously affordable $165.
We could go on. Some of the prices on Harley Benton guitars read like typos, especially when you look at some of the more higher-end models in the SC series of single-cuts.
Take a model such as the SC-550 for example. This arrives fitted with a set of EMG Retro Active FAT 55 humbuckers, stainless steel frets and locking tuners and yet offers you plenty of change from $500 – $78 to be exact, which which you could buy four of the Thomann-owned brand’s mini pedals.
In the near future, relic’d guitars might be on the list, too. The other big Harley Benton news to break this week came from Mannheim, Germany, where the Guitar Summit was in full swing. Harley Benton took the opportunity to showcase its forthcoming range of relic’d guitars and basses featuring nitrocellulose finishes.
Harley Benton’s Bene Schlereth could not reveal too much but holding a prototype of a TE T-style electric guitar he said the nitro lacquer, typically found on US-made models from Gibson, Fender et al, give these prototypes an upscale feel. “I think it makes a massive difference because of the neck,” said Schlereth It just feels very organic and I really, really like it.”
And given the ageing properties of nitro, these guitars should only look better in the years to come.
Other new prototypes shared at Guitar Summit included the ST-80 shred guitar, a hotrodded S-style with a single Tesla humbucker at the bridge, a Floyd Rose vibrato, a compound radius fingerboard and a bright red finish that no one is going to miss, and the CLG-70 acoustic electric guitar.
We’ll bring you all the news when these new models are officially launched. For more information on the range, head over to Harley Benton, and to order in the US head to the Harley Benton Reverb Store.
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