Harley Benton Delta Blues MJCE

I've had a Sigma travel steel string for the past few years, and every time I pick it up I wish I'd bought a full size guitar. I've been looking at Harley Benton guitars on the website and youtube yada yada yada for about 12 months. This guitar got great reviews on both, including a great one by Jonathon in Singapore as mentioned in another review here.

My first Harley Benton - online ordering easy; delivery to Scotland tracked all the way and at my door within a week of ordering. Double boxed, no damage to either box or guitar.

The colour of the guitar was a dark brown/blue/black - darker than on the photos on the website and nicer for it. All strings were tuned down. All tuners worked and held tune well; all felt smooth, no noticeable 'bad ones'.

The sound was amazing for such a well priced guitar - loud enough when strummed, very clear single notes, and good resonance.

The finish of the guitar was not so good - the joint between neck and body looked rough, and the fret ends felt sharp all the way up the neck. Unfortunately I don't have the knowledge or tools to file the frets.

I played the guitar for an evening, and loved the sound but didn't like the frets. The guitar is good value for money (I went for the bundle including gig bag, as it was only £5 more than the guitar on its own with shipping), especially as it comes with an preamp (and free battery). Unfortunately I decided the finish outweighed the sound so I sent it back under the 30 day return, spent twice the money and got a Harley Benton Custom Line CLA-15MCE B-Stock.

A note on the returns - this was a simple to do as the original ordering - go on the website, hit return item, (no need to give any explanation), print off return label, package up the guitar in the original packaging, take round to local post office (return slip had instructions for the post office staff too, just in case), they scan it, and you can track it all the way back to Thomann. Took same time for the return to reach Germany as the replacement guitar to reach Scotland - great service!

This guitar punches way above its price range!
Looks great in the flesh. Feels manly, like a barrel of whiskey. Mini Jumbo shape is underrated. Especially in full mahogany, the clear, punchy midrange cuts through the masses of dreadnoughts everyone seems to have. You won't be louder that your friends, but you will be heard.
Neck is semi feels like a D profile, but slightly chunky. I have tiny hands and still fits me well. Frets are too small, unfortunately. The guitar body feels dinky, slim and very comfortable.
Pickup is alright. No Fishman, but still way better than early noughties TCY. Built-in tuner is a lifechanger. I don't understand why electrics don't have it as standard.
Tuners don't please me, but they do the job well. Minor finish flaws can be found, but seriously, when guitar looks like this, it would look all the better when you bash it up a bit.
I filed the fret ends, oiled the fretboard, changed strings a few times and swapped the bridge saddle for a TUSQ and pins for brass. I recommend it.
I can't believe how much guitar Harley Benton provides for the money.

As a budget-conscious guitarist, I was intrigued by the Harley Benton Acoustic Guitar, and after spending some time with it, I'm ready to share my thoughts.
One notable aspect of this guitar is the smoothness of the fingerboard overlay. While it maintains an even surface overall, there are noticeable wear patterns in certain areas where the overlay has rubbed off. Despite these cosmetic imperfections, the fingerboard remains structurally sound and does not affect the guitar's playability.

Speaking of playability, the Harley Benton guitar excels in this department. The strings are set at an optimal height, allowing for effortless navigation across the fretboard. Whether strumming chords or picking out intricate melodies, I found the guitar to be comfortable and responsive, making it a joy to play for extended periods.

In terms of sound, the guitar delivers a balanced and resonant tone that exceeds expectations for its price range. From mellow fingerpicking to strident strumming, the Harley Benton guitar consistently produces a pleasing sound that is suitable for a variety of musical styles.

While the wear patterns on the fingerboard overlay may be a concern for some, they do not detract from the overall quality and performance of the Harley Benton Acoustic Guitar. In fact, they add a touch of character to the instrument, reflecting the hours of practice and passion poured into playing. Overall, this guitar offers smooth playability and impressive sound at an affordable price point, making it a solid choice for both beginners and experienced players alike.

The guitar is basically a plywood wannabe copy of mini jumbo Gibson CJ-165EC with a little longer neck scale than original short scaled Gibson model. It has all nice and desired features for a that price level, even a pickup with a tuner and is manufactured very well, tuning machines and neck are fine and the guitar very playable overall. Except one thing that made me returning it: it has the same design flaw that my 2 original Gibsons CJ-165EC had and I also returned both Gibsons previously because of that: because of forward shifted X-bracing (and it is quite heavy one on HB) the 2 tone braces sitting beyond bridge are too far away from the bridge and not supporting exact spot under the bridge. The bridge is starting to belly immediately after putting 12-53 strings, even 11-52 strings (later ones are the maximum gauge to be put on it). Although it has additional 6mm plate support under the complete area of bridge, the bridge is shifting up heavily 3mm on the place beyond the bridge pins, and sinking 1.5mm in front of bridge On the long run it will rise more and affect the intonation at least. If it is fixed with stronger braces I would gladly buy it again as it is well made guitar for that price point.

I just received my Delta Blues - being the proud owner of now 11 acoustics ranging from two top end Avalons priced circa £4,000 - £5,000, I have to say this wee budget Harley Benton definitely hits the spot for a practice & small gig guitar. I appreciate it is ultra light weight & not the best tonal woods & when i come to change the cheap bronze factory fitted strings to Elixir Coated Phosphor Bronze 11's (which i use on all my acoustics apart from 10's on my two 12 strings, i will shave the saddle a touch to bring the string height down from 2.2ml on the Base E at 12th Fret down to 1.9m or so. I checked all the fretting which is A1, so there should be no fret buzz on that height. I am really impressed on the volume & sustain particuarly on the base strings . The onboard tuner is really accurate & pick up not just Fishman but ok. When i think back to when i bought one of my first acoustic guitars 46 years ago an Antoria Folk Guitar with no tuner or pick up at £120 back then, the Harley Benton Delta Blues MJCE at £110 you cant go wrong
Quick update just put on the Elixer coated 11’s & because the fretting was so good I managed to get the action down to 1.8mm on bass E & 1.7mm on treble E on 12th fret. The bass notes with the new strings are unbelievable in volume & sustain. This is now my go to guitar every day when I play. Hope the other 10 aren’t feeling neglected

Below is my review of the guitar I bought in 2024. It plays well, sounds good, looks great.

I installed D'Addario EJ16 (12-53) strings. I play fingerstyle with a light touch and found the action slightly high. I set the neck relief almost straight and took maybe 2mm off the saddle. It now plays really nicely. I would expect to do this work on any guitar, and even with such a low action there are no issues with fret buzz.

With the saddle this low, however, the strings were strained over the back of the bridge on the way to their holes. I therefore used a nut file to cut small grooves in the back of the bridge - I don't mind fettling a £100 instrument. On the plus side, the bridge is built like a tank and will probably hold a tune long after the rest of the instrument has turned to dust.

The finish is good, and it looks better than in the pictures - darker with no strong banding, and the abalone rosette looks superb. The painted-on brand name seems a strange design choice (I would have gone for an 'HB' abalone graphic) but maybe this is how they costed-in the rosette. I found an imperfection in the stain coverage while changing strings with my reading glasses on, but in normal conditions it's invisible and it doesn't affect the overall impression of quality. The fretboard appeared dry on arrival and has needed oiling more regularly than my other guitars.

The machine heads work fine and hold the tuning. The built-in tuner works well. I enjoy playing this guitar. It is comfortable and well balanced. I play mainly for my own amusement and find the sound balanced with no weird resonances, buzzes or rattles. After a basic setup it plays almost as well as my main guitar which cost 3x twenty years ago. And, after two cold winters, the neck has needed no adjustment at all. Very happy with this instrument.