Harley Benton SC-550LH II Gotoh PAF

This is my tenth Harley Benton in a year and all are very good but this SC-550LH II Gotoh PAF surpassed expectation. I hoped it would be exceptional being one of the high end guitars and was not disappointed. The craftsmanship and finish on this guitar is faultless.

I always look for attention to detail and my test for that is intonation. This was spot on out of the box even though the set up was not as I hoped. Whilst still very playable it did have a much higher action than others. I like a very low action on this style of guitar and I achieved an action of 1.25mm (3/64”) by simply lowering the bridge and no neck adjustment. Gibson standard so exceptional for this price point.

I am a home player and recorder as my gigging days are long over so playability is another measure of my satisfaction. This one feels comfortable to hold and a well tuned chord sends a pleasant resonance through the neck into your hand. Strummed acoustically the chambered body adds an unusual semi hollow sound to the body shape which is unexpected. And the chambered body makes it deceptively light which is an added bonus. In my opinion this version of the SC style is unbeatable for its price and beyond. And it is stunning just to look at as well!

Finally, thank you Thomann for packing it so well and it arrived in the UK in five days.

I bought a LH Fusion-T a couple of years ago, and was really impressed / happy with it. As it’s my birthday soon, my wife suggested she might buy me a guitar, and after much consideration I decided on the SC-550 II.

It arrived yesterday, only 6 days after the order was placed (2 of those days were a weekend), nicely boxed, and in perfect condition.
It looks stunning. Even better than the photos. It’s small, which is fine. and incredibly light. Much lighter than my F-T.

The neck feels perfect for me. I have large hands, but also have arthritis in my fingers, so it’s a bit of a lottery as to what works for me. This works for me.

I’ve given it a quick test run, and everything feels as it should, though I had a moment of worry when I couldn’t get a sound out of it. It’s been 30+ years since I last had a LP style guitar (with the LP’s twiddly control configuration), and it turns out what I thought was a volume pot was - in fact - a tone pot, and the PU output was still set at ‘zero’. Panic averted.

It plays well, the action is set as I like it. The set-up seems fine. Did I mention how light it is. So comfortable to play.

I’m looking forward to giving it a proper spin over the weekend.

I purchased the guitar with the Hb case. It’s the kind of case that’s halfway between a gig bag & a hard case. It too is excellent, and the guitar is a perfect fit.

I’m a very happy camper 🥳