Harley Benton Custom Line King-CE VS

Come on for the money it's 5 stars all the way. Opened the box and right away I smiled at it's appearance, it just looks great. Put the strap on and noticed my first niggle, the strap button placement!!! As it's a cutaway I can't understand why they would put it where it is and have it get it in the way of my shredding man!!!! this is an easy fix though.

The finish is very, very good with very minor flaws and not noticeable by the casual observer. Fret work is also good and out of the box played well. I had to tweak the truss rod to get it to my liking but no big deal. The pick up (as I have researched) is a budget model but as mainly an electric guitarist served my purpose with no moaning my end at all....plus it's nice to have a tuner at hand.

My only concern is that I am finding it hard to intonate, at the moment. I have to make a decision...do I want an open E chord to be in tune or a D, because I ain't getting both!!!! Kind of used to this problem with my electrics but can sort it with a screwdriver, out of my depths here with an acoustic. If it costs me £100 to sort I still feel it's a bargain. Main dilemma at the moment is, do I get one in every colour? Research also tells me that this is a problem on branded, high end guitars as well.

As for service, can't fault Thomann. My only concern is that when it the package come to the UK we have some right idiots working here (it's Christmas at the moment) who are more concerned with meeting deadlines rather than customer care!!!

A truly stunning looking guitar, even better up close than in the photos.
At sessions this guitar certainly cut's through and never gets lost in the mix like some other acoustics I have played. The bass notes are clear, warm and yet still booming. The treble however is a little weak and I found myself staying away from anything after the 5th fret. Now for this guitar that is not really a major issue, for it's price and type all I was expecting was a guitar for playing at informal sessions where chording and a little fingerstyle was all that was required. For that it's sound is perfect.

HOWEVER, this guitar has one major problem. The neck is almost unplayable for more than 30 to 60 minutes in one go. I have been playing for almost 20 years and never before found a neck that caused me to cramp up so quickly. The dimension of the neck at the nut is for me totally crippling. While I can play it the guitar sounds nice. The machine heads work like a dream, the electrics are wonderful. Though an amp this guitar really sounds fantastic especially playing country but I just cannot play it for very long. I have to split my playing between this and my other acoustic just to get around this issue. It's such a shame that a little more time was not taken on the neck, as the root of a wonderful guitar, worth it's place in anyone's collection is there. If more time was taken fixing that neck.