# NcGD and review (warning: lots of huge pictures and... this 'c' isn't for 'custom')



## Robrecht (Jan 8, 2013)

*NcGD? New cool Guitar Day? New crappy Guitar Day?*
I haven&#8217;t decided yet, but definitely...

...nooooo no no no, pictures first.

What&#8217;s this then?






Oooo, it&#8217;s an 8-string!





With EMG 808s, no less!





Let&#8217;s get a better look at it...





But... wait a minute... is that...





Holy crap, it&#8217;s one of those Harley Benton things! Abort! Abort!





So yeah, definitely *New cheap Guitar Day!* 
(next post: first impressions)


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## Robrecht (Jan 8, 2013)

Yep, I ordered me one of those Harley Benton r-458 bk's from Thomann. Call me crazy, but having never played an 8-string before (and not knowing any shops in the vicinity where I could try one), I was curious to see if I could get along with that extra string, and if it really turned out to be crap, I could simply return it. I&#8217;d heard the pickup routes (weirdly) were 7-string EMG sized, and I happened to have an unused 707/81-7 set lying around, so my plan was to end up with an EMGs-loaded 8-string for just under 200&#8364;.

I received the guitar in good order. My first inspection did, however, reveal a number of notable differences between this guitar and the instrument pictured on the Thomann webstore, which I&#8217;ll discuss in a little more detail because they might be relevant to anyone interested in buying this model.



*Headstock joint*
This is a picture from the Thomann webstore:




Ugh, right? Now this is mine, with a proper scarf joint:








*Truss rod cover*
This is a picture from the Thomann webstore:




The truss rod cover on mine seems larger (maybe the older model had only one truss rod; I checked and mine has two):




I hate hate HATE that stupid &#8216;Rock&#8217; print on there by the way. 
... and that stupid &#8216;Harley Benton&#8217; print too.




*Neck joint*
This is a picture from the Thomann webstore -- blocky:




This is the back of my guitar:








*Pick ups*
This is a picture from the Thomann webstore:




If you compare it to some of my pictures above, you&#8217;ll notice that the pickups and pickup routes have become a lot wider than the 7-string EMG sized ones on the earlier model. They now are, in fact, EMG 808-sized. This meant that I had to spend extra money on an 808 set, but I&#8217;m not going to complain about the fact that this 8-string guitar has (gasp) actual 8-string pickups, right? 

Overall, I feel the changes are for the better, so I got a nicer guitar for the same (ridiculously low) price.
(next post: quick review and changing the pickups)


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## Robrecht (Jan 8, 2013)

So is it any good?

Well, it&#8217;s no surprise that a lot about the guitar feels cheap. The neck is quite chunky; like I said, I&#8217;d never played an 8-string before, but I think even an 8-string neck could easily be a bit more elegant. It&#8217;s not exactly huge though and I could easily adjust to it.

The tuning pegs feel flimsy, although they hold their tuning surprisingly well. The bridge looks like it needs to be handled carefully to avoid stripping any adjustment screws and the like. Underneath, the string through body holes are small and in a straight line, leaving little room for intonation adjustment; when changing the thickest string, I had to move its saddle forward before I could insert it. Luckily, once the string is in, the saddle can be moved back again far enough to achieve correct intonation. The lower horn feels like it should arc a little farther from the body to make more room for your hand on the high frets.

Overall though, there&#8217;s nothing really wrong with it physically. It looks cheap and it&#8217;s not an instrument you&#8217;ll fall in love with, but it&#8217;s a well-built guitar that does its job. No fret buzz, no dead spots on the fretboard, good intonation. The only area where you can really tell how little you paid for it is... the electronics.

Like others have reported before, the grounding is so bad and the noise so overwhelming that the guitar is effectively unplayable out of the box. I had to put my finger on a metal part of my guitar cable while playing to reduce the humming and buzzing just enough to hear some notes coming through. So yeah, not optimal.

But I was going to change the pickups anyway, and the fact that they&#8217;re precisely EMG-sized and SO BAD makes me feel like Thomann almost expects you to do so. Since the 707/81-7 set I have lying around wasn&#8217;t going to be a perfect fit anymore (probably a good thing too), I ordered a set of EMG 808s and set about installing them.

Notice my bright orange Ikea toolbox (to say I&#8217;m not a craftsman is like saying the pope&#8217;s no casanova).





Not the cleanest routes ever. That&#8217;s a rock hard agglomeration of saw dust and glue in the corner. Luckily, it didn&#8217;t get in the way.





The original electronics.There was a tiny ground wire coming from a hole that seemed to go to the bridge, but that clearly didn&#8217;t help against the noise.





I don&#8217;t have any woodworking tools or skills at all, so I was really hoping I wouldn&#8217;t have to do any extra routing for the EMGs. The neck pickup was a tight fit because the neck seemed to extend just a little too far into the cavity, probably because the cavity was routed a little too high, but in the end I managed to pop it in. It also took some struggle to get the stereo jack down the jack &#8216;tunnel&#8217;, which was a little narrower than I would have liked. But in the end, I managed to get it all in and even leave just enough room for the 9v battery. Huzzah!

And now... I have a pretty nice 8-string guitar for a little more money than I had planned (198&#8364; + 2x77&#8364; for the EMGs), but still very cheap (considering a lot of people who buy an entry level 8 from another builder for at least twice the money end up swapping the pickups as well). I have it set up in drop E (E-B-E-A-D-G-B-E) and I love having a full guitar range combined with a full regular bass range. It plays well, intonates well, and even though it&#8217;s ugly and heavy as fuck and a boring strat shape (my first strat since that Squier I owned for a couple of weeks when I started playing guitar and ended up trading for an Epiphone Explorer)... I&#8217;m actually starting to like it.

I hope I haven&#8217;t disappointed anyone who clicked on this thread expecting pictures of a really nice guitar, but it is what it is.  There, I'm calling it: it's a New Cool Guitar Day.

Finally, some more pics (you can view the rest of the album here):






I actually like those knobs, they feel really heavy and angular.


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## rythmic_pulses (Jan 8, 2013)

They don't look too bad IRL, plus that new neck joint is a plus and so are the rest of the improvements, If I ever bought one of these, I'd definitely use the new Seymour Duncan Passives in Active cases.


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## Robrecht (Jan 8, 2013)

rythmic_pulses said:


> They don't look too bad IRL, plus that new neck joint is a plus and so are the rest of the improvements, If I ever bought one of these, I'd definitely use the new Seymour Duncan Passives in Active cases.



Thanks. Actually I'm not a _huge_ fan of the EMG 707/808 series, so perhaps I should have considered that. But I figured active pickups would be my best bet to hide or compensate some of the shortcomings in the sound of such a cheap guitar. They're noiseless and powerful and clean, which is what I needed.


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## 77zark77 (Jan 8, 2013)

Very nice review and pics ! HNGD !


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## rythmic_pulses (Jan 8, 2013)

Robrecht said:


> Thanks. Actually I'm not a _huge_ fan of the EMG 707/808 series, so perhaps I should have considered that. But I figured active pickups would be my best bet to hide or compensate some of the shortcomings in the sound of such a cheap guitar. They're noiseless and powerful and clean, which is what I needed.



No problem with that man, the 808's aren't necessarily bad pickups, I just don't like Actives all that much but at the cost of having to get those Duncans from their custom shop, I would have gone with 808's too, some EMG pups are very nice indeed hehe.


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## veeenu8 (Jan 8, 2013)

Robrecht that's very nice! There are some differences though in the model I received. I can't access the guitar right now, but as far as I remember the truss rod cover was smaller than yours. The neck-to-body curve, though, was rounded in my guitar too and, if I recall correctly, formed a smoother angle with the neck than yours.



Robrecht said:


> Thanks. Actually I'm not a _huge_ fan of the EMG 707/808 series, so perhaps I should have considered that. But I figured active pickups would be my best bet to hide or compensate some of the shortcomings in the sound of such a cheap guitar. They're noiseless and powerful and clean, which is what I needed.


I wasn't too eager to put more money on this guitar but your point is very valid. If I can't come up with anything about the noise with the present PUs, I'll consider swapping them for 808s too.


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## 27duuude (Jan 8, 2013)

Although at first I was expecting some extravagant custom, I'm glad to see some lower end 8's that aren't built like complete shit. It looks like a really good quality mod guitar (almost better than my agile). Nice review by the way.


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## Brohoodofsteel75 (Jan 8, 2013)

Hngd! But WHOLLLLY FUCK THE ACTION IS HIGH!


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## kevdes93 (Jan 8, 2013)

"ROCK"


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## Robrecht (Jan 8, 2013)

veeenu8 said:


> Robrecht that's very nice! There are some differences though in the model I received. I can't access the guitar right now, but as far as I remember the truss rod cover was smaller than yours. The neck-to-body curve, though, was rounded in my guitar too and, if I recall correctly, formed a smoother angle with the neck than yours.
> 
> 
> I wasn't too eager to put more money on this guitar but your point is very valid. If I can't come up with anything about the noise with the present PUs, I'll consider swapping them for 808s too.



It's weird, there seem to be several different versions of the model. I remember someone in another thread speculating that Harley Benton outsources it to different factories to be made to their specs. Well, _more or less_ to their specs. Anyway, I hope yours has the wider pick-up cavities too.



27duuude said:


> Although at first I was expecting some extravagant custom, I'm glad to see some lower end 8's that aren't built like complete shit. It looks like a really good quality mod guitar (almost better than my agile). Nice review by the way.



Yeah, if this gets more people into 8's that wouldn't dare to take the financial jump otherwise (like me), that's a good thing, right? I wonder what kind of wood is under that black finish... Probably not pretty. But yeah, some good tuners, nut and bridge could go a long way mod-wise.



Brohoodofsteel75 said:


> Hngd! But WHOLLLLY FUCK THE ACTION IS HIGH!



Yeah, haven't really messed with that yet. It's not as high as it seems in some of the pictures though. I'm planning to do a bit of neck/strings setup soon, but I want to take my time because that bridge really looks kind of delicate. 



kevdes93 said:


> "ROCK"



Yeah, who the hell thought it was a good idea to bring out a niche instrument obviously targeted at the dark, heavy end of the metal spectrum and put _that_ on it?  I wonder if it's like those orange tips they put on toy guns so no one can mistake them for the real thing if someone tries to rob a bank with them. Or maybe Harley Benton had to make a deal to appease their competitors: fine, you can sell an extremely cheap and pretty well made guitar, but only if you make it lame somehow.


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## JEngelking (Jan 8, 2013)

HNGD! Agreed that the action is high, but it looks like a solid 8. Didn't know Harley Benton made eight strings. 

But oh geez, that truss rod cover is painful.


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## Watty (Jan 8, 2013)

The "C" in NCGD is reserved for "custom." I was disappointed upon opening the thread and waiting for the big pictures to load...

That aside, HNGD.


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## Robrecht (Jan 8, 2013)

Watty said:


> The "C" in NCGD is reserved for "custom." I was disappointed upon opening the thread and waiting for the big pictures to load...
> 
> That aside, HNGD.



Yeah, I just realized that. Sorry.  But you gotta admit, they're nice pictures, right?


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## Syriel (Jan 8, 2013)

They don't look as bad as some people say it is. That's like 3(?) reviews of that 8 string, and with just a little work everyone say's they're fine. I guess they could be very useful for those wanting to try 8 strings without blowing huge bucks on it.

HNGD man. Looks like a good solid workhorse guitar.


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## UV7BK4LIFE (Jan 9, 2013)

About that truss rod cover, just flip it face down since it's symmetrical. Problem solved.

I actually considered buying this guitar but I was put off by the neck profile and the pic of the original scarf joint. This is much better, HNGD man!


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## Robrecht (Jan 10, 2013)

UV7BK4LIFE said:


> About that truss rod cover, just flip it face down since it's symmetrical. Problem solved.



I might do that. The edge of the cover has a kind of 45-degree edge bevel, which would then be inverted, but I guess that's better than having the equivalent of Stewart Stevenson's Winger t-shirt on my guitar (anyone remember Beavis and Butthead?).






First I'm gonna try if I can gently sand or rub it off without ruining the entire thing.


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## facepalm66 (Jan 10, 2013)

Is the scale as short as it looks like?
But overall (except the Headstock obviously) the guitar does not look that bad nor cheap. Seen far more ugly guitars for the cost (like Corts  )


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## DeKay (Jan 10, 2013)

The dude in the "which wood to djent" thread could have a use for this guitar


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## Robrecht (Jan 10, 2013)

facepalm66 said:


> Is the scale as short as it looks like?
> But overall (except the Headstock obviously) the guitar does not look that bad nor cheap. Seen far more ugly guitars for the cost (like Corts  )



It's 26.5 in, so yep, pretty short for an 8-string. On the other hand, maybe that's a good thing for a _first_ 8-string. I definitely notice that it's a little longer than my other guitars and I'm not sure I'd be able to switch to an even longer scale in one go.


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## skalla (Jan 10, 2013)

Sooo.. are you going to make a video?


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## Robrecht (Jan 10, 2013)

No video yet, but... I've just had a fun couple of hours with the guitar and would like to share the result.

https://soundcloud.com/robrechtv/sultans-of-8-string-swing

I bought this axe for death metal, of course, but I thought it would be cool to take it for a different kind of spin. And so -- since it is, after all, a 'ROCK' guitar  -- I've recorded _Sultans of Swing_ by Dire Straits.

Yes, you've read that correctly: I've recorded _Sultans of Swing_ by Dire Straits, using this same Harley Benton for _all_ guitar parts, including rhythm, lead and bass. The only other instrument you hear are the (programmed) drums, which I've taken from a midi version I found online. Oh yeah, and my voice. 

Don't expect too much -- it's really a quick and dirty job, done in very few takes and with some copy/paste trickery for the rhythm and bass parts. It's full of little glitches, vocal pops and s'es etc., because I suck at recording and mixing, but I don't care because boy was it fun to do. All in all, it took me about four hours, and that includes having to relearn most of the song, as I hadn't played it for many years, and having to rerecord the entire bass part because I decided to used the bridge pickup instead of the neck pickup.

I've done as little as possible to the guitar's signal, as the idea was to demonstrate its clean sound. Both rhythm and lead guitars are fed through the "Bluesmaker" amp in ReValver, with a tiny bit of compression and chorus. I've used the "Basic 100" amp and some compression for the bass part.

Enjoy!


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## jeleopard (Jan 10, 2013)

I think it looks neat. HNcGD?


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## veeenu8 (Jan 11, 2013)

Robrecht said:


> No video yet, but... I've just had a fun couple of hours with the guitar and would like to share the result.
> 
> https://soundcloud.com/robrechtv/sultans-of-8-string-swing



Very beautiful! With 808s it sounds very clear. Not the best sound in the world but quite cool indeed 

I managed to quiet down a bit my noise problem without touching the guitar at all since I don't really have much time at hand right now... I created a couple of POD HD500 patches with just some compression and a noise gate, there's still a tiny bit of noise but it's an improvement anyway. Will share if someone wants them. PUs are a little bit muddy but they work good enough. Will post a clip as soon as I can


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## Robrecht (Jan 11, 2013)

veeenu8 said:


> Very beautiful! With 808s it sounds very clear. Not the best sound in the world but quite cool indeed
> 
> I managed to quiet down a bit my noise problem without touching the guitar at all since I don't really have much time at hand right now... I created a couple of POD HD500 patches with just some compression and a noise gate, there's still a tiny bit of noise but it's an improvement anyway. Will share if someone wants them. PUs are a little bit muddy but they work good enough. Will post a clip as soon as I can



Thanks! Yeah, it's not the most lovely sound, but considering this was with digital ampsims and minimal work, I think with a good amp and some tweaking they could sound pretty nice.

I'd love to hear a clip with the original pickups. Since I was already planning to replace them anyway, and the hum/buzz was really quite extreme, I never bothered to try and do anything about it. In fact, I doubt if a noise gate would have worked in my case: there was so much noise, even while playing, that it was barely possible to hear the actual signal underneath. So I'm glad you managed to get an acceptable result.


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## veeenu8 (Jan 14, 2013)

Upload Audio | Listen to Audio | Harley Benton R-458 | YourListen

Here's a quick-and-dirty recording of R-458's stock PUs!
I apologize for the very sloppy playing but I haven't really had much time to record this. These sounds all go through a clean POD HD500 patch with just a little compression and a noise gate. Unfortunately, the signal doesn't really come out much, but the tone in and of itself is not that bad. There is a noticeable change between the three switch positions; neck pickup is maybe a little bit too muddy and bridge is too much piercing (in my opinion; all my other guitars have mahogany bodies, so maybe it's also because of that) but I find the middle switch position on this model really clear and crispy, while on my other guitars (Harley Benton HBT-1500 and Epiphone LP Custom) tends to be quite a bit muddy.

Going back to the "background noise" issue. I noticed that if I plugged in my MacBook and POD HD at the same time, noise was very harsh, while if I unplugged the MacBook the noise quieted down quite a bit. At this point I'm not so sure about what's causing this issue, I won't put my hands on my other guitars before february so I won't be able to do comparisons and understand where the real issue lies.


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## Robrecht (Jan 14, 2013)

Wow, nice job getting the noise down! It sounds way better than mine did before I swapped the pickups.

Come to think of it -- when I tried the original pickups, it was through my audio interface (Akai EIE Pro) connected to my laptop as well. None of my other guitars make anything like that kind of noise though...

Thanks for uploading that clip, it's very useful for anyone thinking about buying this guitar.


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## veeenu8 (Jan 14, 2013)

ASAP I'll post something more complete, it doesn't even comprise the low end, I noticed a bit late 
Aside the obnoxious noise problem this guitar really deserves a shot, I'm totally vouching for Harley Benton


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