Harley Benton Custom Line N-150CE BK

I looked, I read the reviews online, thought about it, thought about it some more, and finally bought it. For so little money I could hardly be disappointed. I just had no idea I could be that impressed! This is a great sounding resonator guitar. Unplugged it gives that superb metallic twang reminiscent of those old Dire Straits albums. Out of the box it was superbly set up with a great action. I may tweak the action down the line for some of the slightly more interesting tunings. Dropping the low E to a D did make it buzz a little but that's easily sorted out. Plugged in the sound is a little murky, but tweak the EQ of the desk and it's not half bad. Playing this live a few weeks back everyone was so bowled over with the look and the way the chrome-wear reflected the light that I don't think anyone noticed the sound. But that's me being nitpicking when really it exceeds all expectations. Honestly I couldn't have been more pleased if I'd been given this for free. It's inspired new songwriting, and made older songs that needed that little somethin' somethin' shine. Seriously at this price, and with this good build quality, what's to think about? I would highly recommend this model. Yes, you could spend more and get a high end model but what if your resonator phase is just a passing fad and it ends up sitting in a corner unused? Stop reading this review and buy it now.

I purchased this so that I could have a reso/dobro for taking to any jam sessions, and outdoor social gatherings, festivals etc, so that I don't have to take my much more expensive resonator and risk damaging it.

I bought this plywood constructed HB expecting a mediocre sounding guitar at best. What I received, however, has impressed myself and players of a much higher calibre than myself alike with clear, rich tones emanating from the spider cone.

PROS: Solid and sturdy construction. The binding works well to both offer a pleasing aesthetic, and hide where the plywood joint are.
The spider cone projects well with a nice rich tone & resonance.
A pickup and dual-tone/vol controls are a nice plus on a guitar at this price.

CONS: The tuners aren't the greatest. Tightening the gears a little helps, but if I was to mod this guitar I would begin with the tuners as they are they weakest feature of this guitar.

This is a dobro guitar, so as such the neck is slightly thicker than some may be used to for a more normal playing style. However, this guitar plays very well whether slung or lapped. It responds extremely well to a slide, and when in OPEN tunings such as D or G this guitar really sings from the slide.

I've had this guitar for a couple of weeks and just love it. At the £138 I paid for it it's an absolute steal. The quality of the hardware is amazing for a £138 instrument and the guitar is very well built with a good durable matt black finish. The frets are well finished and the action is just under 3mm at the 12th fret which is just about perfect for slide playing yet is still low enough to play chords and notes with your fingers. Tonally the sound is loud and ringing with no buzzing or rattles of the kind often heard on cheap resonators. Delivery to the UK took 5 days which included a weekend in the run up to Xmas which is fantastic. If you're looking for a quality inexpensive resonator give this one a try.