Having tried some of the cheaper headless guitars out there from companies like Grote and NK and not really liking any of them enough to keep (mainly due to the glaring QC flaws and the stupidly designed bridges that need to be tuned with a magnetic tool), I decided to keep an eye out for a used Harley Benton Dullahan which has a heavy Kiesel Osiris vibe (some might say too heavy, I think Kiesel even sent them a C&D over this one
) and seems to be much better built if HB's reputation is to be believed. These are something like $450 shipped new, managed to score this one for just a hair over $200. Mahogany body with a flame maple veneer, maple neck with a super comfy "Modern C" profile, and an ebony fretboard with stainless frets. Really remarkable specs for so little cash!
I will say that in terms of quality this guitar gets about 85% of the way to a Kiesel, which is really impressive given that it's about 1/3rd the price. The Hipshot hardware on the Kiesels is definitely nicer than the hardware on the HB, but given that the Hipshot headless bridge costs practically what this entire guitar costs I find it hard to complain. I really don't have any gripes about the Dullahan whatsoever...the fretwork is perfect, there are absolutely no QC issues of any sort, fit and finish are fantastic, tuning stability is solid, and it plays great. Also really love that this tunes easily with the bridge pegs and doesn't involve any kind of wonky tool or additional headaches.
Some folks complained about the pickups, playing it through my rig I would say they're nothing to write home about but certainly serviceable and sound decent. I'll probably swap 'em for something nicer down the line because the guitar deserves it.
Here are some pics and I'll post some clips later!
