NGD - 2024 Harley Benton Modern Plus (Flamey AF)
Posted: Thu Aug 29, 2024 5:50 pm
As many here know I am a big fan of Harley Benton and the insane guitars they've been putting out for the last few years. I have a bunch of Fusion Roasted Pro models and a Dullahan headless, so when I saw they were coming out with these new Modern Plus models I knew I'd be keeping an eye on GC Used to grab one. Didn't expect one to come up so soon since these just came out in June/July, but this one popped up for a little over $100 off new price and once I saw this neck/fretboard I knew it was coming home.
Spec wise I can say that it is really wild to offer this kind of stuff on a guitar that is something like $450 shipped brand new...they really are continuing to raise the bar here in terms of insane bang for your buck. These new Modern Plus models are quite a bit different from the Fusion models I'm used to - rounded stainless frets (versus regular on the Fusions), alder body (versus nyatoh), D shape neck (versus C), Babicz FCH trem (versus Wilkinson), Tesla pickups (versus Roswell), and luminlay side dots. Another not insignificant difference is that these are MIC like some of the lower end HBs, versus the Indonesian Fusions. I was thinking that might come with a slight quality dip, but nope...this guitar is flawless head to toe with absolutely zero blems or QC issues of any kind. The weight is ideal too (just a hair over 6.5 lbs), and the curved neck heel allows for super easy access to the highest frets. There's also a push-pull on the tone control to split the humbucker.
This will definitely be getting a pickup upgrade (I always have some Bareknuckles lying around for when a deserving guitar follows me home
), but aside from that it needs absolutely nothing as was the case with every other "higher end" HB I've picked up. Action is super low with no buzz and the neck feels terrific. The Babicz FCH trem is great also, very comfortable to rest on thanks to the rounded saddles and super stable. You have to REALLY dive bomb to get even the slightest bit out of tune, and I'm thinking even that might settle since I just put these strings on an hour or so ago. I've never used any Babicz products before but I am very impressed. These trems cost $130 on their own, so it is pretty nuts to have that stock on a $399 guitar.
Overall this is another home run for HB, I am absolutely blown away by this thing and will likely try to grab one more to replace one of my Fusions that I'll now likely let go.
Super cloudy today so this lighting ain't great, but here are some photos where I'll attempt to do this bonkers neck and fretboard a little justice. As always, click the pics for proper quality (and for some reason the closeup of the board got flipped but gets flipped right side up when you click...will never understand why that happens lol):
Spec wise I can say that it is really wild to offer this kind of stuff on a guitar that is something like $450 shipped brand new...they really are continuing to raise the bar here in terms of insane bang for your buck. These new Modern Plus models are quite a bit different from the Fusion models I'm used to - rounded stainless frets (versus regular on the Fusions), alder body (versus nyatoh), D shape neck (versus C), Babicz FCH trem (versus Wilkinson), Tesla pickups (versus Roswell), and luminlay side dots. Another not insignificant difference is that these are MIC like some of the lower end HBs, versus the Indonesian Fusions. I was thinking that might come with a slight quality dip, but nope...this guitar is flawless head to toe with absolutely zero blems or QC issues of any kind. The weight is ideal too (just a hair over 6.5 lbs), and the curved neck heel allows for super easy access to the highest frets. There's also a push-pull on the tone control to split the humbucker.
This will definitely be getting a pickup upgrade (I always have some Bareknuckles lying around for when a deserving guitar follows me home
), but aside from that it needs absolutely nothing as was the case with every other "higher end" HB I've picked up. Action is super low with no buzz and the neck feels terrific. The Babicz FCH trem is great also, very comfortable to rest on thanks to the rounded saddles and super stable. You have to REALLY dive bomb to get even the slightest bit out of tune, and I'm thinking even that might settle since I just put these strings on an hour or so ago. I've never used any Babicz products before but I am very impressed. These trems cost $130 on their own, so it is pretty nuts to have that stock on a $399 guitar.Overall this is another home run for HB, I am absolutely blown away by this thing and will likely try to grab one more to replace one of my Fusions that I'll now likely let go.
Super cloudy today so this lighting ain't great, but here are some photos where I'll attempt to do this bonkers neck and fretboard a little justice. As always, click the pics for proper quality (and for some reason the closeup of the board got flipped but gets flipped right side up when you click...will never understand why that happens lol):
