Harley Benton D-120CE

I bought two of these Thomann guitars for clients, which I fully paid.
This opinion therefore addresses these two guitars there, new!

Harley Benton is a registered Thomann. No indication of the place of manufacture, given the price I bet on China.
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Technical
Dreadnought acoustic electric cutaway.
Key bridge and 22 frets rosewood .. Stained for the key, so much dirty, so steel wool, flaxseed oil and an hour of elbow grease!
Spruce using the form Thomann
Back & Sides: Catalpa.
They do not specify whether it is solid so for me it's against the plywood. Catalpa never heard of in passing ...
True for the plastic nut and ankles
Gold hardware (mechanical and button fastening belt)
The bridge has 2 round pearl that hides it a threaded rod that reinforces the bridge against the pull. The threaded rods in question far exceed the cash ...
Binding white, glossy black lacquer, rose just drawn.

Look very Gibson Les Paul Custom, who throws well out of the box ... Before a closer look!
The truss is mounted with a road set in the box so a dam is broken ... the hard it must be said!
Inside the box traces of glue are legion and no sanding obvious.
The binding does not cover the frets, it serves just to make nice (although it is not well adjusted at the nut) and to hide the feet of frets. No frets themselves beautifully sanded on the side and top: Traces in the direction of the strings, then grinding in the bends!
The "filetrerie" of the rose window, which is actually a drawing, on the back of the neck binding ... No comment.
The most annoying in fact it is mechanical. It would just loan agreement but then the tuning ... It turns nothing happens and suddenly bam note changes. It is not systematic but good running mechanics strange ... and I talk with new ropes and well mounted!

Note ... We have to do is the entry level at entry level! There are plenty of finish defects, cons-plated mechanical miserable ...
At the same time 88 euros!

UTILIZATION

Ergonomics is one of a dreadnought cutaway, neither more nor less
The handle is quite round but it's going.
Access to acute, it's still a sound so do not be afraid of the heel and sustain more than limited
The action is immediately set correctly on the two models tested, even it it could be better from the 12th fret

The rating is as good ergonomics is good!

SOUNDS

Honestly it sounds! Euhh for magic and personality you pass eh! But it sounds like what a guitar.
Mounted immediately in D'addario 10/47, I would not put a pull too hard because I did not know what to expect on the strength of the neck, these guitars are more for beginners c ' was not worth killing their fingers.
So obviously it's not a Martin or Gibson, but it sounds well, pretty balanced.
One of them has a big lack of finishing on the frets so that ca "squeegee" the bends.
I just checked the sensor on a Pignose not ideal for an electro. The preamp does work well is that the control of presence is rather inefficient ... Subtle tell us!

Note ... So obviously, given the price it deserves a high rating.
If we ignore this and can not judge the sound by ignoring the price it's going to be terrible!

OVERALL OPINION

Obviously the best thing about this guitar is its price: 88 euros for an honest acoustic electric! !
Then obviously the quality appears to be random, on two models tested, purchased the same day, one of them had more than the other default on the hoop and finish. The two have an identical design but a quality finish slightly different then.
The models tested were perfectly playable out of the box (apart from the tuning of course, not helped by the mechanics), no problem with the sleeve!
In short nothing to drip from the instrumental practice!

So it's a guitar that I recommend for beginners or more experienced guitarists looking for a cheap electro to travel, delirious, to girls around the campfire ... It can even be used to keep the fire of the grill though the plastic coating . Well ok there to keep the flame of your beautiful play by going to serenade the neighbors if you throw stuff it does not matter: only 88 euros.

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I'll add a few small additions to the opinion of the PM.
I am through the small order of the two HB he had in hand!
Two buddies from work who wanted a cheap little guitar for beginners, or at worst to decorate the wall of the toilet if they abandoned en route.

For 88 euros, a small electro-acoustic, siouplaît, it could match.
Of course, having absolutely no confidence in this type of product ultra cheap, I asked PM to do the job: control, checking of guitars upon arrival, and a big job to make them acceptable and playable:
- Thorough cleaning of the button, colored by a pig, and gleefully rubbing off on the fingers to the first slide.
- Polishing the frets, put a bit anyhow, and damn protruding edge of key.
- Fix the nut in plastoc, also asked the haphazard.
- Installation of a real set of strings (a set of new ropes and clean was not a luxury, although it strikes the budget, given the price of shovels).

For specs, see the opinion of the PM.

By far, they are especially crisp. Up close, it's still a different story:
- Finish the punch, the binding edge key with random streaks of varnish, and a task of unknown origin on the sidelines.
- Various breads on one of two guitars. For a new model, it is rather strange.
- Varnish that could benefit from a little more care, it is at once farted in swirls (see photos in the notice of PM.). we would say guitars already worn!
- Dam slaughtered for trussrod.
- Plastic true at every level.
- Traces of glue.
- Mechanical totally inaccurate and erratic. And who do not agree well (but the fart MECAS quality is above double the price of the guitar, and it would jam up the pigs, since the rest of the service plastoc).
- Etc.

At this price, do not ask for the moon. But it is curious that "quality" hyper random between two models, however Siamese.

Put a note does not seem to be easy. In absolute terms, it is still good early dung flashy. But for the price, closing his eyes a little, and spending time on it to finish the build ...

Thank you to PM for the job! It's good to have a luthier friend

UTILIZATION

<p class="bbcode-cite"> % 1 $ <span>Ergonomics</span> his writing <span>is that of a dreadnought cutaway, neither more nor less
The handle is quite round but it&#39;s going.
Access to acute, it&#39;s still a sound so do not be afraid of the heel and sustain more than limited
The action is immediately set correctly on the two models tested, although it could be better from the 12th fret

The rating is as good ergonomics is good!</span>
No more!
The handle is really acceptable, not a beam that would kill any motivation for a beginner.
Out of the box, it really is not bright, not really totally unplayable, but still particularly off-putting.
With a lot of work and finishing settings before playing, it changes everything.

SOUNDS

Acoustics, b&#39;en ... There&#39;s the sound. Clearly, not expect any magic with it.
Finally, if the magic is that it is not yet party to pieces!
The sound is quite balanced indeed.
Pluggée hyper quickly my little preamp Art GST (even the high end luxury! ) B&#39;en There&#39;s the sound. The original battery works!
It blows a little, the presence control is very ... subtle.

Nothing transcendent, nothing memorable. But it works.

Addition, 02/06/2007: B&#39;en comparing to small acoustic Cort and Yamaha low end, it is nothing in the bag, the Harley Benton! A small thin voice and shy, any size, a poor sound projection. Mebon, 88 euros (leitmotif).

Added 07/11/2010: It is aging badly. One of the two guitars is no longer used as decoration, it has become unplayable and totally false wood crate so moved, but one that sounded the least wrong to begin with. The handle is twisted ...
The other is still almost playable (it still does not agree, we must play MECAS every 5 minutes). The sound is just as bad, sound projection 0, 0 scale, 0 down, 0 sustain the preamp hiss.

OVERALL OPINION

As, out of the box for a beginner and not finished handyman, it should not be joy, in my opinion. Flashy but not pleasant.
With a little work on it, it becomes very acceptable, but the bill increases accordingly. The game vaut&#39;il the candle for a beginner not handy? I have a doubt.

However, knowing hacking, cracking in the 88 euros can be largely justified, when one wants to be a return to sound after years of power with a tiny budget. Passe-partout/baroudeuse guitar or campfires.
Do not expect the moon, it was worth the money: 88 euros. And for 88 euros, an electro-acoustic, it&#39;s still incredibly cheap.

But while it&#39;s still a hell of an even lottery, it can fall on a model drinking like a dung over ...

Added 07/11/2010: Since one of the two abandoned the horrible zik, the other continues, and bought a Lag Tramontane, far more enjoyable to play.
In short, it&#39;s really bad, ultimately, the only reason to buy this kind of instrument, for a beginner, not wanting to invest in the beginning, not knowing whether to continue or not, and n &#39;having no friends around them ready to give them a little guitar to be done by hand. I see no other motivation to buy that stuff 6-string.