Harley Benton BM-75 Trans Red Deluxe Series Reviews

Amazing guitar!

Such a fun guitar to play!

My BM-75

I was really drawn to this guitar. Have always loved Brian May’s sound, style and story. Iv’e had to do some extra work on the bridge to get it to intonate correctly. It’s in a pretty good place now. Fantastic guitar. Enjoy it a lot!

I will NEVER buy another Harley Benton guitar. Here's why...

I own 6 and don't have anymore room! 2 DC customs, BM, 335, RB Bass and a TE-90. All great instruments, if they were 4 times the cost. YOU CANNOT go wrong. For you US buyers, the shipping cost from Germany is $75, for one instrument or 2. If you buy 2 guitars instead of one, you are essentially getting it for half price. Order them now, You won't regret it!

Amazing quality and finish

Just wonderful overall.

It made it to FL,US packaged proper and in perfect condition.

Near-perfect

I have owned 4 or 5 real BMG Special LEs over the past several years. I have tried so hard to like them, but I’ve never been able to get past 3 issues: 24” scale length, serial pickup wiring (though I have performed the serial/parallel switch mod on a couple of them), and the closeness of the pickups to the strings (interferes with my picking style).

This BM-75 solves all of those issues for me, while also being a ridiculously well-built and great-sounding guitar for the money. The 25” scale length is perfect. The parallel wiring is far more pleasant than series, to my ears. And the pickup(s) height is more like a Strat, leaving plenty of room for digging in without hitting a pickup with the pick.

Regarding the pickup options, I lose neck+bridge, with corresponding two out-of-phase options for it. And I lose neck+middle+bridge option with all the out-of-phase options for it. I don’t mind, though. This still gives me plenty of whacky out-of-phase tones to play with and use.

Regarding the middle out-of-phase switch: some have implied that it is redundant. It is not redundant. Sonically, it matters which pickup is out-of-phase. This guitar, in particular, produces a distinctly different tone depending on which is used in (especially) neck+middle or (less noticeably) middle+bridge. This is true on a real BMG, too. It’s true on any guitar that provides a per-pickup phase-switching option. But it is slightly more pronounced on the BM-75 than on the BMG Special LEs I’ve owned.

Anyway, great guitar. After I tested it through the AFX3 for a half hour, I said to myself, “Perfect.” Just a great value. Built well, plays well, sounds great, feels great.

Sweet Guitar with many tonal/sound options

First, the BM-75 is a light and comfortable guitar to play. I really like the neck. Channeling BM look-wise is only part of the deal here (okay, without the hair)...this guitar has many tonal/sound options (5x switch and pickup phase switches) and just works well. Out of the box, I just tuned it and played it...sounded right on. A couple of nights ago, after having it nearly a month, I checked the intonation and found it very nearly on--really didn't need to adjust it ((this has been true of my other HB purchases)). Nice tuners. I'll go out on a limb and opine this particular model guitar would be a comfortable pick for female guitarists---as I mentioned before...light, a bit smaller body size, thinner nut and neck profile. Really well done and a pretty, but playable, addition to anyone's collection. Highly recommended. No cons that I've noticed after a month of ownership.

Outstanding Quality

Received this guitar on 29/03/2021. The built quality and finish are absolutely superb. Everything on this guitar is looks great. The build quality, finish and attention to detail, is usually only found on expensive guitars. The pickups sound amazing also. I could not be happier. Buy it.

A very nice guitar

Wonderful guitar, wonderful quality, and wonderful delivery. She is a beauty and sounds very nice straight out of the box. It will require a setup as the intonation is off, but what guitar isn't straight out of the box.

I do wish the guitar would come with a feature and how-to sheet. As a somewhat neophyte on the instrument, I have no idea what the three switches do or what their intended function is. Really other than that, I can't say enough good things about the fit and finish, which is superb and that goes for the tone, very lovely.

I month later on:

After playing the guitar for three or so weeks, I wish it was available in a hard tail version. Harley Benton Tremolos are not the best. The block is too light and it only goes down and not up. Frankly, I put the Trem handle in a drawer where it will remain in order to protect my strings from going out of tune. The guitar itself still plays nicely. There are three switches that do something for the pickups, but without a features sheet, I have to try and figure it out on my own.

I do wish the guitars came with a features highlight or a basic instruction sheet for customers who may not be familiar with each guitar's unique features.

Excellent value & well worth the investment

I’ve never owned a 24 fret guitar (I have LP’s Strat’s & Tele’s etc.) & really like the design/look of the guitar. However my main interest was in the sound combinations on offer & having read & watched many YouTube reviews, I decided to buy. I should mention my preferred style means I don’t require a whammy/tremolo function (all my Strat’s are locked/hard tailed) … Here goes…

Most or all will know a new guitar takes a while to truly settle in & will require adjustments, but straight out of the box, this was very playable with the standard factory set up. It feels well balanced on a strap when standing up & equally comfortable to play sitting down. I did actually try the whammy/tremolo for a while and it behaved exactly as expected for this Fender style of design … On to my preference for a locked/hardtail set up. Once I had altered the set-up, there were noticeable & beneficial changes in how the guitar played. The fretboard profile feels very flat & that is not a criticism, it is simply different from what I’m used to & not the guitar.

Summary: After a set-up up to suit my needs, I find this to be a really versatile & very impressive guitar. This review is written about two weeks after delivery, so obviously I cannot comment on longer term reliability & how robust hardware is etc. However, I can say it is a very welcome addition alongside my other instruments & gives me new tones both in a recording & live environment. I believe this guitar to be absolutely worth the price paid. Finally, from placing the order to actual receipt was, as always, hassle free & so once again I’m a very happy customer.

very good

Great axe for the price. a little bit of fret work and a new tone control and we've really got something.

I'm going to replace the 5-way with 3 on/off switches, possibly replace vol and tone controls.

Very happy with the product. no blemishes, looks and feels really good.

Well done tribute guitar

I have had my eye on this guitar for quite some time and when it became available again I had to snap it up, and I don't regret it at all. The price of this guitar is extremely competitive for the quality and sound.

The pickups are nice and bright, as is expected from a SSS layout, and the build quality if good.

Pros:

- switches are solid and positive feeling.

- No crackling when turning the pots, I will come back to this later after extensive use.

- tuning machines are nice and tight, not too loose or tight.

- smooth trem performance with it coming back to tune after use regularly.

- fret ends and bindings are nice and smooth.

- frets are seated properly

Cons:

- although the 5 way switch works well, it's a shame that the individual pickup on/off switches were removed. I like playing with bridge and neck so I will need to modify the tone to be a push/push style to get that functionality.

- guitar was very dirty when received, the but was very dusty so I had to properly clean the guitar before use, but this is more nit-picking.

- neck/body joint seemed to have leaked some adhesive and it was not cleaned properly and just painted over so there is a visible raised imperfection on the top of the guitar and I hope it does chip over time.

-frets are not polished so bending is quite gritty but that is easily fixed.

- wiring seems to be parallel, but would have liked it to be series. Maybe a future mod.

Overall this is a solidly built and sounding guitar. For those who want the red special feel without the BMG or custom made guitar prices then this is the way to go.

Cracking "Little" guitar

When i ordered this guitar it went on back order. I had read the reviews and seen the videos, all say what a great guitar it was, so i decided to wait the 3 months it took to come back in stock.

Glad i did as i can't believe what a smashing guitar it is for £270.00.

Looks and sounds awesome. Plays really well with only the tiniest of tweaks. It is small, which suits me well so thank you Harley Benton.

A good guitar in its own right

Although this is a Brian May tribute guitar it is also a good guitar in its own right. It is not an exact copy in that it has a 5 way switch rather than 3 separate pickup switches although it does have a phase reverse switch for each pickup. This means that you get the strat-type inbetween sounds but not the series sounds that the BM original offers. I partly solved this by implementing the widely described series strat wiring. This means that by using the middle phase switch as a parallel/series switch I can get bridge and middle and middle and neck in series as per the original and much like humbucking pickups work. It means that the inbetween sounds are much louder. All other functionality is as before as the phase switches for the bridge and neck can be used to provide out of phase tones. I don't have the Neck and Bridge in series but that could be implemented with a pull switch on the tone control.

I wanted to make these mods but they are not essential. As it stands its a fine guitar with a good range of sounds. The neck is full in the hand without being overly chunky and the finish is superb. I wanted one of these not as a BMtribute but as a Burns tribute! I remember seeing magnificent transparent red Burns Vista Sonic and Vista Artist guitars in a shop window when they first came out (yes I am that old!) and I have always wanted one. I finally got to play a Burns Vista Artist and I was disappointed with the neck. No such disappointment with this! The pickups look the same and sound great. Ok the vibrato is different but the guitar as a whole is excellent. Buy one, don't mod it unless you know what you are doing it is too good to mess up. Mine is now close to perfection.

Great Quality

On receiving this Guitar I found the Tremolo arm did not screw in. The matter was resolved by my Mechanic with the aid of a Tap and die set. this was a minor frustration and not worth returning the guitar. Every thing about this Guitar is Amazing and ranks alongside my other (more expensive ) guitars. Thonmann has great customer service and super delivery.

amazing for the price

Perfectly set up. Very fast shipping. Incredible value. Worth 5 or 6 times the purchase price.

Just mind-boggling

First off, I will say I bought a 'real one' a while back.

I returned it as the quality really wasn't that great.

Then I saw this, and bought it.

What a BARGAIN.

The finish is amazing. Sounds are really good too.

Ok, it's a 'cut-down' version of the guitar it's modelled on but it really does 'cut the mustard.'

The only thing I changed was the vol/tone knobs to nice turned ally thet the original has.

It can do a pretty good Strat twang, right through to a humbucker killer.

I've been playing for well over 50 years.

I have genuine Gibby LP, 30 year old Strat and a Burns Anniversary Marvin.

This one keeps up with them all.

It's inexpensive, but sounds and looks - expensive.

Almost there.

Woulda been outstanding had the pickups been wired in series, or at least switchable to such. As it is, it's merely pretty awesome.

Todays special

I bought this for it's unique design and to try this type of pickup. The quality of this guitar is excellent for the money. The finish, bound 24 fret neck and playability are excellent. Tuners are branded with no creep or dead spots. Controls work as required.

The only change i will make is to block the bridge as I don't use the trem.

If you want an unusual guitar thats built to a good standard try this one.

Awesome Guitar

I got it in Ohio today after a 10 day wait, the outer box was trashed but amazingly the box with the guitar wasnt,I went completely over the guitar, no scratches or blemishes. Hooked it up to my Boss Katana 50 and was floored. Frets, rounded perfect,It is a tone monster,almost no noise from the pups,Totally amazed with the guitar, Thank you

Wow!!! Great guitar...

This guitar is stunning!!! Perfect neck, nice tone (not like Brian May type but unique and usable), versatile sound and so much tone combinations! It stays in tune, but I didn't use tremolo yet :)

Setup is so great and it's easy to play! Don't problems with feedback or any noise!

Recommend it to every guitar player for his collection!!!