Harley Benton has revealed two updates to its Fusion-III HSH and HH models, which it has been steadily releasing in a number of waves since 2021.
The most recent iterations sees the addition of roasted maple necks and fingerboards added to the HSH and HH models, meaning that this is now a feature across the entire Fusion-III range.
A press release from Harley Benton says, “The addition of the Roasted Maple necks and fingerboards means players can expect to navigate smoothly up and down the frets, while also adding to the already luxurious aesthetics of the guitars.”
While they were at the drawing board, Harley Benton’s designers also took the opportunity to make a tweak to the guitar’s coil-split circuitry. Rather than the mini-toggle found on some previous models, the Fusion-III’s singlecoil mode is now engaged by a push/pull tone pot, meaning that there’s one less additional switch to consider.
As Harley Benton says, “Not only does this make that beautiful flame maple top stand out by making it look uncluttered, but it also gives players more control directly under their fingertips.”
The updates join the Fusion-III’s already-impressive spec sheet, with stainless steel frets, vibratos from either Wilkinson (HSH) or Floyd Rose (HH), flame-top finishes and more.
Harley Benton Fusion-III HSH
- Body: Ergonomically shaped Nyatoh body (Palaquium spp)
- Top: "Ultra Flame" flamed maple veneer top with natural wood binding
- Neck: Bolt-on roasted maple neck
- Fingerboard: Roasted maple with 24 Medium Jumbo Blacksmith stainless steel frets
- Neck profile: Modern C
- Scale: 648 mm (25.512")
- Fretboard radius: 305 mm (12.008")
- Nut width: 42 mm (1.654")
- Nut: Graphtech TUSQ XL nut
- Pickups: Roswell HAF-B AlNiCo-5 humbucker (bridge), Roswell S74-C BK AlNiCo-5 single coil (middle) and Roswell HAF-N AlNiCo humbucker (neck)
- Controls: Master volume and Master tone control (with push/pull function), and
- 5-way switch
- Bridge: Wilkinson 50IIK 2-point tremolo
- Tuners: WSC staggered locking die-cast tuners
- Factory strings: .010 - .046
- Colours: Trans Flamed Blue Burst, Gloss Trans Flamed Cherry, Gloss Trans Flamed
- Bengal Burst, Gloss Trans Flamed Charcoal Burst, and Gloss Flamed Natural (also available as lefthand version)
Harley Benton Fusion-III HH
- Body: Ergonomically shaped Nyatoh body (Palaquium spp)
- Top: "Ultra Flame" ultra flame curly maple veneer top with natural wood binding
- Neck: Bolt-on roasted maple neck
- Fingerboard: Roasted maple with 24 Medium Jumbo Blacksmith stainless steel frets
- Neck profile: Modern C
- Scale: 648 mm (25.512")
- Fretboard radius: 305 mm (12.008")
- Nut width: 42 mm (1.654")
- Nut: Floyd Rose nut with string bar
- Pickups: Roswell HAF-B AlNiCo-5 (bridge) and Roswell HAF-N AlNiCo-5 (neck) humbuckers
- Controls: Master volume and Master tone control (with push/pull function), and 3-way switch
- Bridge: Floyd Rose 1000 tremolo
- Tuners: Grover GH305 6L machine heads
- Factory strings: .010 - .046
- Colours: gloss natural, gloss trans flamed charcoal burst, gloss trans flamed bengal
- burst, Gloss Trans Flamed Cherry, gloss trans flamed blue burst, and Gloss Trans Flamed Purple
Check out the full Harley Benton Fusion-III range here.
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