Should You Buy A Harley Benton 8 String Guitar?

It's a new year and I decided it was time to try out a new guitar! I bought the Harley Benton R-458FFB Roasted MultiScale in the Flip Flop Blue Chameleon color. As someone who loves the look and low sounds from 8 string guitars, I decided to get one for myself to see what it is like to play.

This video is mainly focused on my first impressions of this guitar. I will share more thoughts as I spend more time playing this guitar, but for now I simply wanted to document the process of ordering my first 8 string guitar! I hope you enjoy the video!

Link to purchase this guitar (NOT AN AFFILIATE LINK):

#harleybenton #8stringguitar #guitarreview #newguitarday

[HighZ]

Great review! I hear you on the 8 string not being necessary because of digital pitch shifting but the really is nothing like playing an 8 string! Something about it being a slightly different instrument from 6 and 7 strings helps my creativity and rethink my writing and playing in ways playing the same 6 or 7 string but lower pitched simply doesn't. Definitely fun!

[JayBlzs]

I bet a little les gain would make that thing sound better

[GunPhotog]

I have one. Bought it last year and it’s awesome. Has a couple high frets but it’s very very slight. I swapped the pickups with Fishmans and the tuners with graph tech. I bought it after I saw Andrew Baena’s video on it.

[jamesslatter]

I bought this guitar in December in the lefty version. Absolutely love it! I’ve had a lot of fun playing it over the last 2 months! Really enjoying the tones I get out of the Fortin nameless plug in! Bought it for the exact same reasons to play Sleep Token songs but have enjoyed some Deftones and Meshuggah as well!

[JasonsSongStop]

I just got this same guitar a few days ago and it is my first 8 string guitar. I like it alot so far! I was also looking to organically play in Drop E tuning. I'll mostly use it for studio recording, and the tones and EQing are sounding good so far 👍

[TheNorthernJake]

*I would say it's 100% worth giving a try if you want to dabble in multiscale 7 or 8 string guitars!*

I have the 7 string white version of this guitar and I love it!
I've primarily played 6 string my whole life but I wanted to get into 7 string. I didn't have the budget for a $1500+ guitar so I opted for a budget friendly guitar, and I don't regret it one bit. I'd love to change some things, like the locking tuners, maybe the bridge, and even pickups, but for how good it sounds, and how well it actually holds tuning, I might just leave it altogether, after all it's a $144 guitar (plus shipping)

[manikay]

As a lefty looking for extended range guitars, my choices in the budget range are *REALLY* limited, but Harley Benton has a comparatively recent selection for our southpaws. I actually got the 7 string MS variant, despite feeling wary of the QC on their guitars because of the price; the guitar is brilliant, though, and I might have even lucked out on the cosmetics side (comparatively speaking) because the fretboard is a super clean piece, and the scarf joint is less obvious than on your 8string. The tuners didn't feel great, though, so I did swap them out for locking tuners first chance I got, and definitely agree on the original string gauge being WAY too light (think it's a 9-48 set or something super slinky like that.) Swapped it to a 10-62 Ernie Ball STHB bottom set for my Drop A tuning, and it feels great now! Cool to see I wasn't just a lucky exception, and yes, that finish is to die for. Happy riffing!

[cndrevv]

As a lefty, my 8 string options were either this or a shady looking guitar on amazon. I chose the harley benton and i love it! The pickups are mediocre, but it palys well and its really cheap!

[ffxtiduskevin]

I have the 7 string version. Dropped a set of fishman fluences and a set of locking tuners in. Its now played more than all of my other 1k+ guitars. Absolutely love everything harley benton does and they have made me a firm believer that the name on the headstock means absolutely nothing.

[itsmatt]

I had the white version for some time and i sold it not because it was bad, it was very cool and actually sounded good, i just came to the conclusion that I'm not an 8 string guy, even if i like the aesthetic

[SpitfireZero]

I have the exact same one. Love the chameleon paint! Only thing is I would swap out the electronics and put a set of Fishman modern pickups in it. It's a decent guitar and I like the neck a lot also.

[mtbz]

Got an 8 recently and its like "yes, this is exactly what I was meant to play". They are so good. Im too picky with fret buzz so I spent like 3 days setting it up and then a lot of hours making a tone and trying to reduce harsh frequencies that produce buzz or just nasty noise, I think I got it. Those guitars are beasts and you really need to put in the time and technique to get them sounding nice. But they are so fun.

[MichaelSheaAudio]

8 strings are cool. The coolest part is that they're an all-in-one guitar - 6 string, 7 string, baritone, and 8 string. It all depends how many strings you use or even put on it in the first place. I'm left handed and I bought my Schecter C-8 Deluxe in 2018, so options were even more limited back then, but I wish we got better looking stuff like the righties do. Harley Benton has been pretty good with their lefty options. I prefer the look of maple fretboards and a body colour other than black is a dream come true. It would have been nice if they did a 26.5-28" scale though. Just better tension on the lowest string depending on your tuning. I play down in double dropped D, but I also have skinny little fingers, so I'm comfortable on lighter strings. Right now I have the Ernie Ball 9-80 set on. It'll probably work no problem on this guitar if you stick around standard tuning, but maybe a heavier set will be more comfortable if you play 10-46 or heavier on a standard guitar.

[leeDs]

I didn't know they made an 8 string version of this! I have this exact guitar, but it's the 7 string version. In fact, it's my daily driver. Not necessarily my favorite, but it's so comfortable to play. It's my first multiscale and it honestly feels like 6 string. There is almost no learning curve, the fingers rest naturally to align with fanned frets. The only issue I had was the nut-- where the high e string sits, that edge is real sharp. All I did was take a file to it.
I adjusted the intonation, and lowered the string height. (normal tuning, and .009 strings)
Harley Benton does a great job with these fairly priced guitars. The finish in my opinion, is mostly green, even under different lighting.
Thanks for your video... getting on HB site right now >:(

[AlexusDelphi]

Pickups don't contribute to the tone, so swapping won't make it cleaner or more crisp. The speaker/impulse response you're using is the main tone shaper since it's a fixed EQ curve, but you can shape it a little more with the amp's EQ. Also helps to run an overdrive like a Tube Screamer before the amp to tighten up the midrange.

[dtremblay]

I have the white one and I love it. I put Tone Ninja locking tuners and a set of Stephen Carpenter Fishman Fluence pickups and this thing is an absolute workhorse!!

[chrisrlltdasr]

I have the 7 String Active Version of this Guitar not a Fanfret. I installed some Fishman Moderns on it and its a Great 7 String now, its Great with Locking Tuners and Strap Locks and with some Setup its Great. 😊

[Swindrim.]

Hi just a tip for 8 strings, the strings gauge and pitch give it enough bass so you can turn the bass down on your amp or DAW

[needlesandpins]

7 strings feel like home to me, my first guitar ever was a 7 string, I love how they play for my hands. But I have yet to try an 8 string, I’ll definitely own one in the future, there’s something inspiring about it and the way if seems like almost an entire different thing compared to 6s and 7s. Although people say you don’t need 7s and 8s anymore, playing a 6 tuned down to an extended range tuning or even a baritone just doesn’t feel the same

[NoJobRob]

I had an HB Fusion-III and it was awesome! Neck was thicker than I prefer so I let it go. Would definitely say their 8-strings need a pickup upgrade for any type of serious recording or gigging as that fizz has been pretty overwhelming on any demos I've seen. Thanks for the review!