Harley Benton EX-76 Classic GHW AN 4-stars Reviews

A Solid Guitar

I was very curious about Harley Benton - they've developed a reputation for delivering decent products at low prices. After trying this one for myself, the reputation is well deserved. However, it definitely still feels like a 'budget' guitar to me. This would be a phenomenal starter/beginner guitar. Out of the box it is mostly playable (action is bit too high). Personally, I didn't like the finish, it's very shiny. The components feel quite cheap, but everything is well put together. Overall, pretty decent.

Nice guitar

The guitar is beautiful if you like explorer style guitars (I do!). The locking tuners are a nice surprise at this price point. Pickups sound decent, I still haven’t decided whether or not I will keep them. I am not crazy about the angled cable jack but it’s not a deal breaker by any means. The neck is not super chunky which is also very nice, at least for me. Frets seem nicely polished with no sharp ends. The 17th fret was a little high and needed to be tapped into place a little better. If I had any negative comment it’s that the action was set terribly high when I received it. I’ve been slowly adjusting the truss rod and action to get it more to my liking but it’s not there yet. The bridge seems kind of cheap and I will likely replace it. Intonation has been difficult to dial in with the B and G string saddles at full deflection. Overall I am pleased and will continue to dial it in to my liking.

Very good, not perfect

I like: how it looks, how it sounds, locking tuners, price.

I don't like: heavy neck, all switches are feels cheap.

Anyway, I can't believe this guitar costs so low. It can't be better for this price. Just be sure that explorer-type guitar is what you need.

Great sounding guitar!

Was blown away by this guitar. It looks fantastic, the only blemishes on the finish are small and hidden on the sides and back. The fingerboard dye seems to leech to my fingers quickly, but I haven't noticed any change in the color, which is almost a pure black, unlike the pictures.

The quality of the tone is fantastic as well. The stock pickups aren't wildly amazing, but they do handle gain quite well, and the cleans sound nice, if not totally full. The instrument is very harmonically active, and gives feedback to the player. You won't impress other guitarists like if you bought a Gibson, but the sound is far, far closer than I would've expected.

The worst part was easily the nut. The tuning heads are very high quality, which makes the dirty, sloppy and poorly cut nut a little disappointing. The strings currently bind, and tuning stability is almost unusable. Fortunately, that is a cheap and easy fix, if a little annoying.

I'll happily buy another HB in the future. Being realistic, buying one of these nets you a guitar with no resell value, that likely will need work, but what you do get is absolutely fantastic.