Review of the Harley Benton TE-20 BK 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 TE-20 BK 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.

  • Bolt-on neck
  • Body: Basswood
  • Neck: Maple
  • Neck profile: Modern C
  • Fretboard: Armaranth
  • Fretboard radius: 350 mm
  • Dot fretboard inlays
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Dual action truss rod
  • Pickups: 2 TE-style single coils
  • 1 Volume control, 1 tone control
  • 3-Way toggle switch
  • Hardware: Chrome
  • Diecast machine heads
  • String gauges: .009 – .042
  • Colour: High gloss black

review harley-benton-te-20-bk-standard-series

This guitar usually has a price around 75.00 €

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

Harley Benton te 20, review, (demo), telecaster

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

Comment:

Before you run away with any ideas that this is going to be better than a true Fender, it’s not. Is it going to be better than a Squier? That’s a tougher question. It can’t compete with a Classic Vibe for quality, that’s for sure, but if you had a choice of the TE-20 and the Standard Telecaster or an Affinity – and you were paying for it yourself – the HB starts to look very attractive.
The TE-20 is a classic T guitar, with two single-coils and simple controls. The black finish is thick but smooth and it looks really nice, especially when you realise that the grubby look of the pick guard is caused by the double layer of polythene film that just needs peeling off.
The neck is a ‘C’ shape and nice to use. It’s very slightly deeper than that of an Affinity, but it’s good for beginners and more experienced players alike. The rosewood fingerboard is a little bit coarse but mostly it just needs some lemon oil to rub in. It’s not as smooth as a Fender, but then if you are playing chords you won’t notice. The fretwork on mine was good, with only a tiny bit of roughness on the edge of a couple of frets. I thought about getting a file out but didn’t think it was worth the effort.
The tuners aren’t the best. They do work, so if you are on a budget you don’t have to replace them, but they are vague and don’t have much feel to them. I’ bought some OEM Wilkinson tuners (19 pounds and 20 minutes’ work) to replace them and they made a world of difference. It’s much easier to tune and you know that it’s going to stay there – bum notes won’t be the guitars fault!
I did replace the string trees with cheap roller guides (3 quid) but even that isn’t necessary on a term-free guitar and they look out of place on a tele. The originals did look cheap though.
The strings were fine but you will probably want to replace them with branded items. The other hardware is fine. The pick ups work well and the PUP selector and the vol/tone controls work OK, while never feeling that nice.
The action was pretty good out-of-the-box. I lowered the action a bit at at the bridge and gave it a bit more neck relief, but it was always completely playable.
As for sounds, yes, it plays well. It sounds enough like a tele for most people and can be used to play most genres of music pretty well as the pickups seem to have plenty of ‘go’ in them. Most people won’t gain an awful lot by upgrading them, and they are at least as good as the Squier Affinity at one third the price.
If you are a beginner, you can buy this safe in the knowledge that it will do everything you want a guitar to do, while risking very little cash.
If you are a bit more experienced and just have a bit of credit rattling around you PayPal account, this is a ridiculously good buy – good tone, nice feel and a good basis for modifications.
Seriously, I’ve had more expensive curries.

Comment:

I bought this guitar so I had something cheap to play that was in E standard (my other guitars are in C or B standard, as that’s what I usually play/write in.) I only wanted something cheap that I could pick up and mess around with when I wanted to play in E.
As such I opted for a cheap guitar in a shape I?d always wanted, hence me plumping for the HB TE-20. I knew that I wasn?t going to be getting the best guitar in the world but I have been blown away by the quality and playability of the instrument for the price paid.
The craftsmanship, build quality and finish are perfect on my model (I?m aware that this might not be the same for everyone and your mileage may vary!) I was fully prepared for there to be some imperfections but thus far I haven?t found any.
PROS:
? PRICE! Seriously, for this price simply getting a usable, working instrument is amazing!
? Build quality. Aside from the standard need to intonate, adjust string height to suit my taste and so on, this was perfectly playable and comfortable straight out of the box after it was tuned. No sharp fret ends either!
? Tuning stability. I?ve had no issues with tuning stability, which was one of the things I was mostly concerned with prior to purchase.
? This is the perfect platform to upgrade, play around and tinker to your heart?s content.

CONS: (I feel a bit harsh listing the below as cons as, at this price, the ?issues? are all to be expected)
? Pickups. Although there?s nothing wrong with them, they are definitely an area where money has been saved. They actually provide a rather satisfying single coil bark when a bit of gain is put on.
? Tuners. Although there hasn?t been any real tuning stability issues so far, the G string peg is a little temperamental. It has the habit (that all cheap tuners seem to have) where you?ll turn it and there?ll be no change in pitch until you hit a certain spot, the string will have a little ?twang? and it will drop / raise in pitch
? Bridge. The height adjustment ?screws? on the individual saddles are a bit rough, meaning when resting my palm across them when muting resulted in a bit of discomfort. This was easily remedied by simply lightly filing and then sanding the tops to smooth and round them off.
I now plan on using this guitar as a platform for upgrades and to tinker around with. At the price I paid I?m not concerned or worried about the possibility of slightly messing anything up or learning with it. I plan on upgrading things like the bridge for a 6 saddle once, the pickups for higher outputs (possibly a hotrail in the bridge), locking tuners, new black scratch plate and I think I?ll also sand the headstock and paint black to go for an all-black finish.
I?m immensely happy with the guitar I bought and using it as a modding platform going forward.

Harley Benton TE-20 BK Standard Series vs Harley Benton TE-52 NA Vintage Series

The guitar Harley Benton TE-20 BK Standard Seriesis usually 50 € cheaper than Harley Benton TE-52 NA Vintage Series.

Below have a look to the video of this guitar

Harley Benton TE-20 BK Standard Series

Harley Benton TE-52 NA Vintage Series
  • Bolt-on neck
  • Body: Basswood
  • Neck: Maple
  • Neck profile: Modern C
  • Fretboard: Armaranth
  • Fretboard radius: 350 mm
  • Dot fretboard inlays
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Dual action truss rod
  • Pickups: 2 TE-style single coils
  • 1 Volume control, 1 tone control
  • 3-Way toggle switch
  • Hardware: Chrome
  • Diecast machine heads
  • String gauges: .009 – .042
  • Colour: High gloss black
  • Body: American ash
  • Bolt-on neck: Canadian maple with roseacer skunk stripe
  • Neck profile: C
  • Fretboard: Maple
  • Fretboard radius: 350 mm
  • Fretboard inlays: Dot
  • 21 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Pickup: 2 Roswell TEA Alnico-5 TE-style single coils
  • 1 Volume control and 1 tone control
  • 3-Way switch
  • Deluxe chrome hardware
  • Kluson-Style machine heads
  • Strings: 10-46
  • Colour: Natural high gloss

Below have a look to the video of this guitar Harley Benton TE-52 NA Vintage Series

Harley Benton TE-52 Telecaster Review (The Pros & Cons)

If you want to know more about this option, click on the following link to see the Harley Benton TE-52 NA Vintage Series review

Harley Benton TE-20 BK Standard Series vs Harley Benton TE-30 BE Standard Series

The guitar Harley Benton TE-20 BK Standard Seriesis usually 24 € cheaper than Harley Benton TE-30 BE Standard Series, but the difference is so small that this can vary..

Below have a look to the video of this guitar

Harley Benton TE-20 BK Standard Series

Harley Benton TE-30 BE Standard Series
  • Bolt-on neck
  • Body: Basswood
  • Neck: Maple
  • Neck profile: Modern C
  • Fretboard: Armaranth
  • Fretboard radius: 350 mm
  • Dot fretboard inlays
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Dual action truss rod
  • Pickups: 2 TE-style single coils
  • 1 Volume control, 1 tone control
  • 3-Way toggle switch
  • Hardware: Chrome
  • Diecast machine heads
  • String gauges: .009 – .042
  • Colour: High gloss black
  • Body: Ash
  • Bolted maple neck
  • Neck profile: C
  • Fretboard: Maple
  • Fretboard radius: 350 mm
  • Dot inlays
  • 21 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Neck radius: 13,78″
  • Double-action truss-rod
  • Pickups: 2 TE-Style single coils
  • 1 Volume and 1 tone control
  • 3-Way switch
  • Hardware: Chrome
  • Die-cast machine heads
  • String strength from factory: .009 – .042
  • Colour: Blonde, high-gloss

Below have a look to the video of this guitar Harley Benton TE-30 BE Standard Series

Harley Benton TE-30 After 1 Year - Guitar Review & Demo

If you want to know more about this option, click on the following link to see the Harley Benton TE-30 BE Standard Series review

Harley Benton TE-20 BK Standard Series vs Harley Benton ST-20HSS SBK Standard Series

The guitar Harley Benton TE-20 BK Standard Seriesis usually 10 € 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 TE-20 BK Standard Series

Harley Benton ST-20HSS SBK Standard Series
  • Bolt-on neck
  • Body: Basswood
  • Neck: Maple
  • Neck profile: Modern C
  • Fretboard: Armaranth
  • Fretboard radius: 350 mm
  • Dot fretboard inlays
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Dual action truss rod
  • Pickups: 2 TE-style single coils
  • 1 Volume control, 1 tone control
  • 3-Way toggle switch
  • Hardware: Chrome
  • Diecast machine heads
  • String gauges: .009 – .042
  • Colour: High gloss black
  • 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 TE-20 BK Standard Series vs Harley Benton Electric Guitar Kit ST-Style

The guitar Harley Benton TE-20 BK Standard Series is usually 9 € more expensive 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 TE-20 BK Standard Series

Harley Benton Electric Guitar Kit ST-Style
  • Bolt-on neck
  • Body: Basswood
  • Neck: Maple
  • Neck profile: Modern C
  • Fretboard: Armaranth
  • Fretboard radius: 350 mm
  • Dot fretboard inlays
  • 22 Frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Dual action truss rod
  • Pickups: 2 TE-style single coils
  • 1 Volume control, 1 tone control
  • 3-Way toggle switch
  • Hardware: Chrome
  • Diecast machine heads
  • String gauges: .009 – .042
  • Colour: High gloss black
  • 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 TE-20 BK 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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