Harley Benton Custom Line CLD-41S WN

Vorige maand heb ik deze gitaar gekocht met de verwachting dat dit DE gitaar zou zijn die me jaren zal verder helpen, dat zou het geval zijn geweest als de gitaar in orde was, dat was hij niet. Er zaten scheurtjes in het hout en de mooie rand. Toen ik de gitaar terug had gestuurd met bijgeleverde fotos via de mail kreeg ik keurig een bericht dat ik een nieuwe zou ontvangen en dat dit absoluut niet de bedoeling was. Paar dagen later kreeg ik de ''nieuwe'' gitaar binnen en tot mijn verbazing was dit exact hetzelfde model als wat ik eerder nog had teruggestuurd met precies dezelfde beschadigingen. 5 minuten daarna had ik gelijk boos een belletje gepleegd met de klantenservice van Thomann, die zouden me verder helpen via de mail als ik meer fotos zou maken van het product. Kort daarna kreeg ik bericht van Thomann waarin werd verteld dat ze de schuld van de schade gaven aan het transportbedrijf UPS, dus moest ik weken wachten voordat er een onderzoek vanuit ups was gedaan of het wel echt UPS zijn schuld was van de schade, ook zeiden ze dat dit een andere gitaar was dan de eerste die ik had ontvangen wat toch echt niet waar was. Stel dat de tweede gitaar wel een andere gitaar zou zijn als de eerste, geeft dat aan dat er meerdere beschadigde gitaren zijn van dit model. Omdat inspectie van UPS mij te lang zou duren heb ik de gitaar teruggestuurd via het herroepingsplicht van het bedrijf terug naar Thomann. Nu wacht ik nog totdat het binnen is en dat allemaal is goed gegaan, maar in elk geval dus een hoop gedoe en niks opgeschoten, alleen maar verspilde tijd en energie. Normaal was ik altijd zeer te spreken over Thomann en had ik hier wel eens eerder besteld maar door dit zal het voor mij helaas de laatste keer zijn door deze slordige fouten en de klantenservice die hun eigen fouten niet durft toe te geven.

Heel goede klank voor deze prijs! Heel tevreden mee.
Ziet er mooi uit, matte finish.
Er zit ietsje speling in the stemknoppen. Weet niet of dit gebruikelijk is. Kan ik goed mee leven.
Goed telefonisch advies. Ze denken echt mee en vertellen veel over de instrumenten.
Levering was prima, terugsturen van 2e gitaar die ik besteld had [om te vergelijken] ook.
En dat alles zonder dat ik m'n huis uit hoef.

I received the guitar yesterday and immediately tuned it and began to play it. This guitar has a great neck profile. I have an older v-neck D35 which is great for finger picking but is a little "fat" by today's standards. I just sold a Taylor because the neck was uncomfortable. I played this new Harley Benton for an hour and it is a great feeling neck. There were a few dust particles in the finish at first, but with an hour of playing, they disappeared. The neck is silky and fast.

Overall impression of the guitar is that the construction is flawless. It's a beautiful guitar. On the downside: The MOP inlays in the neck are fairly dark and not as pearlescent as I would have expected; and, I'm old school and guess I like shiny finishes over matte finishes. The guitar would benefit from a gloss finish. That's just me, YMMV.

Soundwise, I'm very happy with the guitar. It isn't a Martin, but it's got to be considered at the top of its class for Spruce top guitars that cost 2 or 3 times Thomann's price. Seriously, this is a very nice sounding guitar from the outset and it continues to open as time passes. Sustain on the guitar is very very good.

The action could be improved by lighter strings. The guitar came with a .012" high E string. I'm happier with 10's, so I'll change the strings in a few days after the guitar acclimatizes a bit more. Initially, the guitar appeared to have a rather high setup with too much bow in the truss rod. After 24 hours, the neck bow is .009", low E is 3/32" and high E is 5/64". Quite acceptable for factory setup. And I really appreciate the quality control card included with the guitar. They show that F8 andBI-BL inspected the guitar and tested setup. Thanks!

Overall, I doubt you can find another new guitar on the market that competes with HB/Thomann at this juncture. This D41 is astounding for this price.

EDIT: I decided to lower the action by sanding the bottom of the saddle. The frets are relatively small and I felt I was working to hard to get clear tones when barring. This definitely improved the action. I've had a chance to really play this guitar for extended sessions and the walnut is impressive for its ability to achieve bell-like tones on the upper frets. I've used the guitar in numerous recording sessions and note clarity has been superb. It's a nice complement to other guitars with rosewood or mohagany backs. Now, the downside: The bridge is a softer wood than it should be AND the string pin holes have been recessed too deep. When I changed out strings, the pins are now about .125" deeper than they were from factory setup. Not good. I don't think I'll need to do a changeout in the near future, but I'll probably install a brass backing plate inside the top, like Mitchell's PlateMate, to prevent problems.

Other than the bridge, this guitar is a gem.

Really impressed by this guitar. My old Martin D41 from 1974 is going to pension because I don’t dare to bring it out anymore, so it just have to stay home. Bought this to, just have a cheap guitar to bring to partys, crowded gigs aso. And I just have to say, even though it feels kind of cheap when you take it up, the sound and playabillity is top notch! I really dont know how they can build such a great guitar to that price!

And now to a whole different story. I bought a B-stock Harley Benton Custom Line CLD-28SCE!! In my ears, it just sounds even better than the CLD-41s!! More even! Just like a Martin D28. The CLD-28SCE is a very good guitar and I’m really happy I dared to try one more. I’ve been playing guitar for over 36 years now and I have to say, Im really impressed. If I could rate that guitar instead, I would give it really top grade over all. I think the built in pickup makes it sound really cheap though. If they can put something better in in the future, it will make this guitar a real bestseller. But it sounds really good in itself!