Review of the Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series Electric guitar. Where to buy it?

I’ll tell you how this post is built. First I list the features of the Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series guitar. Then you have a video or two, purchase links and useful comments from other users and then you have one of the most useful parts; comparison tables with similar items so you can compare.

  • Standard Series
  • Basswood body
  • Maple neck
  • Modern C neck profile
  • Roseacer fretboard (thermally treated maple wood)
  • Dots fretboard inlays
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Double action truss rod
  • 3 ST-Style single coil pickups
  • 1 Volume control
  • 2 Tone control
  • 5-Way toggle switch
  • Chrome hardware
  • Synchronised tremolo
  • Enclosed machine heads
  • String gauges: 009-042
  • Colour: White high-gloss
  • Suitable case available under Article Nr 122213 and Article Nr 136377 (both are not included, must be ordered separately)

review harley-benton-st-20-wh-standard-series

This guitar usually has a price around 66.00 €

Now that we’ve seen the features of this guitar Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series watch these related videos to learn more.

Harley Benton - ST-20 -

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Some comments from people who come to the forum about this model:

Comment:

I’m no luthier, but I am also no novice when it comes to assessing quality and setting up guitars. the first time I played this out of the box I thought I had wasted my money. I couldn’t get the thing to stay in tune, the action was horrible, it was cutting my hands up and I was comtemplating sending it back.

Then I got drunk.

Then the fret file and screwdrivers came out. Here’s how I turned this guitar from a potential error into my favourite guitar to play.

1: Take the strings off.
2: File the fret edges down to stop it from shredding your hands off.
3: Get some oil. I used fast fret. I went up and down the whole neck dabbing oil on. I also put plenty on the nut. This is important as it helps termendously with the tuning issues that came with using the trem. Then wipe off the excess.

3: I removed a spring from the trem. This made it float. If you dont want a floating trem then don’t follow this step. If you want to be like Jeff Beck then absolutely do.

4: Put new strings on.

5: drunkenly send whatsapp messages to your brother and your guitarist friend declaring yourself to be some kind of guitar fixing god.

Seriously though, after I had done the above I was scarcely able to put it out of tune again even with diving the trem right to the body. The fretboard drank a fair bit of oil but looks and feels lovely now. I did have to file some of the frets down above the 12th as I was getting buzz when bending up but this was probably just luck of the draw and you may have 0 issues. A good guitar tech could have this thing playing beautifully for you with minimal effort if you dont fancy trying it yourself.

Soundwise it is beautiful. I can’t hear much difference between this and a fender. The pickups are good, there’s a lot of buzzing like you would expect from this configuration but I know this can also be remedied to a point with good shielding and some proper earthing.

If you want a good starter guitar, a project guitar or something to pad out your collection (I use this for recording) then I can’t recommend this enough. Great guitar. Great price.

Comment:

I purchased this guitar to act as an upgrade platform for my American Stratocaster, to act as a sounding board for upgrades. I figured for this price that there would be some work to do, but was hoping that it wouldn’t be too bad. To make a long story short, I think the guitar met but did not greatly exceed my expectations.
Out of the box, the guitar was quite playable, but unexceptional.
The action wasn’t the worst, but was too high for any ones style of playing. A truss rod adjustment helped, but only slightly. A number of frets were too high. I could hammer some of them down, but had to file 5 frets, two of them heavily, to get the frets flat. The truss rod was set up a little weird, the bend created by relief was too high on the neck, so I couldn’t get the action as low as I wanted (I like very low action), but at least it was much better and definitely playable.
Tuning stability was kinda meh. I’ve seen worse, but it wouldn’t hold tune for extended periods. Replaced the tuners with Fender American standard tunes and it now has great tuning stability. I also replaced the nut with a graph tech nut, mostly because I it was on a guitar I was selling, so I figured what the heck. The tuning stability using the trem isn’t great, but I figure if I put on a heavier trem block and possibly new bridge saddles, then it might be able to hold tune with heavy trem use.
The stock pickups were okay. Not great, but not terrible either, and definitely a surprise in a guitar at this price point(in a good way). I put GFS single coils in it to see if that would help the sound, and it definitely did. I measured the resistance of the stock pickups (ceramics btw), they all measured in at around 4.5k ohms, so I am guessing they all came out of the same bushel basket. The pickups I originally installed were a Texas Special set I had lying around, and although I liked the neck and middle, I just couldn’t live with the bridge. Strong for a single coil, but too harsh and trebley. I opted to go HSS with over-wound GFS singles and a Dimarzio 36th Anniversary PAF in the Bridge. Really liking this configuration. The problem I had with it, was the screw holes didn’t line out with a standard strat HSS pick-guard. I managed to get 5 screws to line up. I haven’t decided if I want to drill new holes or not. The routing is actually set up for HSH, very neatly done too, another surprise. I have worked on numerous Squires, and the routing on this guitar was much better than most of those.
The paint looks good, but is on the thin side, not as heavily painted as Squires. But it is very evenly applied and overall looks like some attention was paid to it.
Roseacer. I havn’t decided if I like this or not yet. I did clean the fretboard when I replaced the factory strings (mandatory of course) and it was very dirty (common with new budget guitars). At first it felt kinda chalk-boardy and perhaps a little fake. But the more I play it, the more I kinda like it. Categorizing it is the hardest part. It is not like ebony, rosewood, or maple. It is really its own thing. The neck is kinda a medium width C shape, I would say somewhere in the middle between slim and chunky.
My overall impression of this guitar is that it is a good out of the box guitar, with some good but limited upgrade potential. I keep up on the Squires they are making nowadays, and would have to say that overall this is a bit better than a Bullet Squire, and would compete nicely with Affinity Squire in regards to sound and play-ability. However I would give the Affinity the nod in regards to overall finish work. those guitars have a thicker, higher quality finish to them. I always thought they were designed to look good first, and play/sound good second. This guitar seems to be designed the other way around.

Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series vs Fender Squier Bullet Strat BK

The guitar Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Seriesis usually 49 € cheaper than Fender Squier Bullet Strat BK, but the difference is so small that this can vary..

Below have a look to the video of this guitar

Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series

Fender Squier Bullet Strat BK
  • Standard Series
  • Basswood body
  • Maple neck
  • Modern C neck profile
  • Roseacer fretboard (thermally treated maple wood)
  • Dots fretboard inlays
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Double action truss rod
  • 3 ST-Style single coil pickups
  • 1 Volume control
  • 2 Tone control
  • 5-Way toggle switch
  • Chrome hardware
  • Synchronised tremolo
  • Enclosed machine heads
  • String gauges: 009-042
  • Colour: White high-gloss
  • Suitable case available under Article Nr 122213 and Article Nr 136377 (both are not included, must be ordered separately)
  • Body: Basswood
  • Neck: Maple
  • Neck profile: C
  • Fretboard: Indian Laurel (Laurel)
  • Fretboard radius: 241 mm/9.5″
  • 21 Medium frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Pickups: 3 single coils
  • Standard synchronized tremolo
  • Strings: Fender 250L Strings (009-042)
  • Colour: Black

Below have a look to the video of this guitar Fender Squier Bullet Strat BK

Squier Bullet Stratocaster Demo & Review - A Cheap Electric Guitar That Sounds Great

If you want to know more about this option, click on the following link to see the Fender Squier Bullet Strat BK review

Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series vs Harley Benton S-620 TB Rock Series

The guitar Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Seriesis usually 69 € cheaper than Harley Benton S-620 TB Rock Series.

Below have a look to the video of this guitar

Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series

Harley Benton S-620 TB Rock Series
  • Standard Series
  • Basswood body
  • Maple neck
  • Modern C neck profile
  • Roseacer fretboard (thermally treated maple wood)
  • Dots fretboard inlays
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Double action truss rod
  • 3 ST-Style single coil pickups
  • 1 Volume control
  • 2 Tone control
  • 5-Way toggle switch
  • Chrome hardware
  • Synchronised tremolo
  • Enclosed machine heads
  • String gauges: 009-042
  • Colour: White high-gloss
  • Suitable case available under Article Nr 122213 and Article Nr 136377 (both are not included, must be ordered separately)
  • Basswood body with domed top
  • Bolt-on maple neck
  • Modern C-shape
  • Rosewood fretboard
  • DOT inlays
  • White binding on fretboard
  • 24 Frets
  • 648mm (25.51″) scale
  • 42mm (1.65″) Nut width
  • Double-Action Trussrod
  • 2x Hi-Gain Humbucker Pickup
  • Electronic 1 x Volume and 1 x Tone Control
  • 3-Way Switches
  • By Floyd Rose Tremolo
  • Gold hardware
  • Die-cast machine heads
  • Strings: 0.09 – 0.042
  • Finish: Translucent Blue High Gloss, (Art.122213)

Below have a look to the video of this guitar Harley Benton S-620 TB Rock Series

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDsR9OTFXfU

If you want to know more about this option, click on the following link to see the Harley Benton S-620 TB Rock Series review

Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series vs Harley Benton ST-20HSS SBK Standard Series

The guitar Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Seriesis usually 19 € cheaper than Harley Benton ST-20HSS SBK Standard Series, but the difference is so small that this can vary..

Below have a look to the video of this guitar

Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series

Harley Benton ST-20HSS SBK Standard Series
  • Standard Series
  • Basswood body
  • Maple neck
  • Modern C neck profile
  • Roseacer fretboard (thermally treated maple wood)
  • Dots fretboard inlays
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Double action truss rod
  • 3 ST-Style single coil pickups
  • 1 Volume control
  • 2 Tone control
  • 5-Way toggle switch
  • Chrome hardware
  • Synchronised tremolo
  • Enclosed machine heads
  • String gauges: 009-042
  • Colour: White high-gloss
  • Suitable case available under Article Nr 122213 and Article Nr 136377 (both are not included, must be ordered separately)
  • Body: Basswood
  • Bolt-on neck: Maple
  • Fretboard: Amaranth
  • Fretboard inlays: Dots
  • Neck profile: Modern C
  • Fretboard radius: 350 mm
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Double action truss rod
  • 22 Frets
  • Pickup: 1 Humbucker (bridge) and 2 single coils (middle and neck)
  • 1 Volume control and 2 tone controls
  • 5-Way pickup switch
  • Synchronised tremolo
  • Die-cast machine heads
  • Black hardware
  • Ex-factory stringing: .009″ – .042″
  • Colour: Black, matte

Below have a look to the video of this guitar Harley Benton ST-20HSS SBK Standard Series

Harley Benton ST 20HSS SBK Standard Series

If you want to know more about this option, click on the following link to see the Harley Benton ST-20HSS SBK Standard Series review

Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series vs Harley Benton Electric Guitar Kit ST-Style

The guitar Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Seriesis usually 0 € cheaper than Harley Benton Electric Guitar Kit ST-Style, but the difference is so small that this can vary..

Below have a look to the video of this guitar

Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series

Harley Benton Electric Guitar Kit ST-Style
  • Standard Series
  • Basswood body
  • Maple neck
  • Modern C neck profile
  • Roseacer fretboard (thermally treated maple wood)
  • Dots fretboard inlays
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Double action truss rod
  • 3 ST-Style single coil pickups
  • 1 Volume control
  • 2 Tone control
  • 5-Way toggle switch
  • Chrome hardware
  • Synchronised tremolo
  • Enclosed machine heads
  • String gauges: 009-042
  • Colour: White high-gloss
  • Suitable case available under Article Nr 122213 and Article Nr 136377 (both are not included, must be ordered separately)
  • Complete DIY (do it yourself) kit
  • Bolt-on neck attachment
  • Rengas body (wood colour may vary)
  • Maple neck
  • Double action truss rod
  • Amaranth fretboard
  • Dots fretboard inlays
  • Radius: 350 mm
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Truss rod
  • 3 Ceramic single coil pickups
  • Electronics: 1 Volume, 2 Tone, 5-Way switch
  • Chrome hardware
  • Diecast machine heads
  • Tremolo
  • .009 – .042 Strings
  • Colour: Natural

Note: The body and neck have been primed with pore filler, making them suitable for the direct application of lacquer finishes. Before the application of stains or other surface treatments, the primer must be first removed via sanding.

Note: A certain degree of skill in handiwork is required for successful assembly of the guitar.

Below have a look to the video of this guitar Harley Benton Electric Guitar Kit ST-Style

Harley Benton Electric Guitar Kit ST-Style - Unboxing, Assembling, and Sound Demo (no talking)

If you want to know more about this option, click on the following link to see the Harley Benton Electric Guitar Kit ST-Style review

Where to buy the guitar Harley Benton ST-20 WH Standard Series

Thomann

  • Free Shipping.
  • Full warranty. If you have any problems, they take care of everything.
  • 100% reliable payment.
  • Leader in trouble-free shipping.
  • Usually Best price.
  • Best Reputation: They are the leading online store in Europe and have the best catalogue and information.

Amazon

  • Free Shipping and possibility of shipping in one day with Amazon Premium.
  • Full Guarantee but they are no experts in music equipment.
  • Sometimes better price.
  • He’s got worse stock than Thomann.

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Jaime Echagüe

Hi! I'm Jaime Echagüe, a musician and an authentic fan of musical instruments. With this blog I want to give general information about musical instruments in an easy, direct and honest way. I hope you enjoy my website and that you find it very useful.

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