Harley Benton SC-Custom II SPAF Reviews

Great guitar

Everything about this guitar is perfect. I had some issues with my playing hand going numb with my last guitar. So far I've been able to play for a couple of hours with hardly any numbness

Mind blown

This is a LOT of guitar for so little money. Even for an intermediate player like myself, there's nothing to complain about. Just the tailpiece needs to be elevated a bit as the strings rub against the end of the bridgepiece, after the saddles. Nothing major. Came set up pretty well for standard E tuning, so being happy with the received product I immediately started on the next steps... I reworked the nut to accommodate 12-52 strings, moved the saddles a bit backward and set it up for standard B tuning and it came out an great baritone. I will keep an eye on neck relief in the coming days to make sure nothing warps but the higher gauge strings combined with the drastic low tuning seem to hold up perfectly balanced so far!

Brilliant

I’ve just received this. It’s a great guitar. Amazing design and great playability.

Beats guitars 3x the price

Having owned the infamous ec1000, I nabbed one of these as a budget replacement and was blown away by the quality

Great playability

Neck feels really good. Pickups are kind of average, didn't like the coil split. Looks and smooth neck make me pick up this guitar more often.

Wow! SC Custom Amber Flame

Wow! Incredibly! I didn't expect something like this. Wow! The guitar is beyond all my expectations. I can only say: WOW!!! The first meeting and the first gig caused incredible reactions. Well done Harley Benton, SC Custom is a hit!

Solid, beautiful guitar

Just as beautiful in person as in pictures. The guitar came in perfect condition and is very well made. As far as setup, I had to lower the action (it would probably be fine if you don't have any preference) and tune it up, but otherwise, it was ready to go.

The hardware all feels nice, obviously not as nice as on an expensive guitar, but I don't foresee needing to change any of it any time soon. I played it for about three hours after pulling it out of the box (couldn't put it down --it's very playable) and only tuned it back once because high E dropped a little but it wasn't really noticeable. I only knew because I was surprised at how well it was holding tune. The pickups are fine and for a beginner would be good long-term, but I'll probably upgrade them in the near future.

Overall, the guitar is really nice as is but would be an excellent mod platform since it's such a good-looking object. For other Americans, I'd say it's definitely worth the wait and shipping costs.

I'll try to update this in a year after I see how it holds up over time.

Great guitar!

Came in tune! After fiddling around to the way I like it over a week or so I noticed my g string going out of tune but it was solved with a pencil! Loosen up those strings & lube up the nut & it's been a dream eversince!

very good built guitar for the price, comfy fingerboard and fast in the playing despite roasted jatoba wood

Not bad at all

Been eyeballing this model for a good while. Based on the price it seemed like it could not be very impressive. But appearences can be decieving and in this case they definately were.

Mine came with an almost perfect finish to start with. Apart from a few tiny spots on the neck's binding I couldn't find anything wrong in this department, I was expecting more flaws and still would be happy, but almost nothing.

The neck feels comfy in my hand and the fret edges are nice as well. They stick out a 10th of a mm or so here and there but no sharp edges, absolutely fine, I'll play it in in time.

The action was a bit high but I still don't have to fight with it and I don't like my action too low anyway.

If you're getting one of these as a first guitar it is just fine as it is, I am planning to change the pickups to improve the sound, but everything else is fine.

The specs on this thing are mindblowing. The tuners, the finish, the coil split option... And the description doesn't even mention the strap locks that come with it.

Very happy to have gotten this guitar.

So much better than expected

Stunning looking guitar that plays and feels like guitars i own that cost 3-4 times as much. Conclusion...... just get one.

Wow, Blown away

This was my first HB. I was skeptical at first, mostly because of the price point as well as ordering from overseas (reside in US). The quality far surpassed my expectations! It’s comfortable, tone sounds great and sustain for days! Was set up and ready to go right from the box, just needed a bit of tuning. I have been playing it weekly for a few months now and this has grown to be one of my favorite guitars.

Amazing guitar for the money

Bought it based on reviews from youtube as 550 ii was not available at the time.

This one comes with push/pull instead of separate knobs for tone like the 550, and it also has different frets.

The guitar has best neck out of any HB I tried, good frets that came polished out of the factory and a nice setup.

Tuners are amazing for the price, pickups sound nice, but would change those first if I were upgrading anything.

All in all amazing guitar for the price, my favorite HB so far, and I have 7 of them.

Shockingly good

I wasn't expecting much, but I did have hope and I was surprised at the fit and finish of this instrument. I've been playing guitar off and on for many years and I've owned a good number of different guitars, some cheap and some not (LPs, PRS, etc.), and this thing compares very well with the expensive ones. I think it's significantly better than something like a PRS SE 24 (or maybe just the one I tried). If you are simply considering quality without looking at the price point, I'd say it's maybe 7 of 10.

I knock off points for the input connector (generic), the white color of the nut (odd choice), perhaps the sticker at the headstock, and maybe the fret wire could have been polished better. There are also some very small defects with the binding where it seems something blemished the finish slightly at the top of the body and on the neck (not the color so much as the polish) but you can't really see it except from close up inspection. The strings don't sink very far into the nut but so far, no issues. The tail might be a bit low as the high E string hits the back of the bridge, doesn't seem to matter much.

What it has going for it is that it's a very solid build in general. Had to adjust the intonation slightly but the relief was perfect. The saddle adjustment screws don't rattle on this. I'd say the action height was sort of middle of the road for an electric, good enough for me to just leave it. No dead spots on the neck...plays really nice. This thing has some heft to it and feels good. Neck thickness is perfect for me (my hands maybe on the small side). Looks great (aside from the white nut) and the pickups with the coil tap are good enough for me to keep (maybe an OK/decent rating).

The biggest plus is the holy crap price point. If you factor that in it's a solid 9.5 or perhaps 10 compared to some other cheaps I've had that were a similar price and weren't nearly as good. Of course, what kind of consistency are we getting in the manufacturing? Dunno but this one is great.

Recommend!

Unbeatable

The unbeatable price point aside, this Guitar is better quality than my Mexican Fenders.

Sounds incredible out of the box and looks great.

I had to drop the bridge a little for my own taste, but that's all I had to do and now it plays like a dream.

Now add the unbeatable price and you have ridiculously good value for money.

A real beauty

Well constructed and finished can’t be beat for the price. The only complaint would be the weight as it seems heavier than my other guitars. That being said most older solid body unit( L. P.s )were heavier. Sounds great fun to play.

SC Ciutom II SPAF

I finally bought one and I am super happy with it. It looks great. It was slightly out of tune when I received it which I expected. It tuned right up, intonation is perfect. Action is good slightly high for what I like but nothing to complain about, I’ve played worse. Pickups sound great clean or crunch and the sustain is amazing.

The only issue with the guitar is the finish on the body is rough in a couple spots. That’s why I gave it a 4. That’s actually being picky because the price point and everything else about the guitar is soo good, the finish doesn’t bother me. Ever so slight fret sprout/sharp ends but nothing that bothers me while playing. I only feel it when I run my fingers down the edges of the neck.

I have played Gibsons and Fenders that cost 3 to 5 times as much and were unplayable.

Once I dress the fret ends and do a setup it will be perfect. Great guitar !!!

Not a great budget guitar. It is a great guitar, period.

My wife purchased this guitar for me as a gift for Father’s Day, and I received it on my birthday, about 8 months later. It was totally worth to wait for it. I own several other guitars with different styles and I'm very picky for finish, tone, and playability. When I received it, I was expecting to do some good amount of neck setup on this guitar as I do for any affordable guitar. But no, I haven't done it so far, just plug and play. Of course, you can always improve the neck set up, but it came out of the box with nice fret ends, reasonably polished, and low action with no buzzing at all.

The guitar looks cool and contemporary, and I love the fact that it doesn't pretend to be a classic Les Paul. For me, it looks like a modern reading of a classic Les Paul. Almost if the big brand, starting with G, modernize or refresh the look of the Les Paul, it would be like this guitar.

It plays really well from clean to heavy, and the split coil function sounds really convincing for a single coil tone.

This is a guitar that you won’t regret to buy, and probably it will be the one you will grab from the wall every time you gig.

I was skeptical to buy a Harley Benton for many reasons, but I'm not anymore, so I'm purchasing another one. 😊

Great job on this one!

Feels good, sounds good

Guitars are a highly subjective item. So, when you get your hands on a new guitar, it's really all about how it feels to you, personally. And for me, this Harley Benton SC-Custom II SPAF feels great, sounds great, and looks great.

This is not a perfect guitar, nor would you expect it to be so within this price range. However, the value far exceeds the cost in every way. The very minor issues on this particular guitar are: 1) very small dings in the neck binding (cannot feel them when playing but when you look close you see them), 2) the coil split knob comes off a bit too easy when I pull it (easily adjusted), 3) very small spot of overspray of the dark brown onto the neck binding where it joins the body (you don't see it unless you flip the guitar over because it's on the lower side of the neck).

Weight: Mine came in at 4.1 kg (~9lbs). This is heavier than I expected so keep it in mind. I have also heard that other people have received lighter guitars so experiences vary with the weight. I play sitting down most of the time so this is not a huge issue.

Overall, a great guitar at an attractive price.

A lot of bang for not much buck

This guitar could easily cost twice the price. Well finished, versatile sounds, and a decent setup right out of the box. Looks-wise, this thing is lovely, and feels really nice. Only a couple of small issues are holding back a perfect five-star score... one wrong screw was used in one of the pickup surrounds - it's bigger than the others and has been screwed in at an angle. Easy fixed, but a little disappointing that this was missed before being sent out. The nut was pretty roughly finished, but a little light and careful sanding sorted that out. Pickups could be a little hotter, but that just personal taste. All in all, I can't recommend this enough, despite those small issues. A guitar of this quality at this price is quite incredible!