Anyone have a Harley Benton guitar?

[WhiskeyJack]

I had an Epi Thundebird Bass and while it sounded and looked badass. I really didn't like the feel of it and how it played. It was also kind of a lemon as no one could get it intonated properly.

A guy I used to work with, and drink with, who is now dead due to a bullet in his head, had a Gibson flying V that sounded great but playing thst thing sucked. I play sitting down 99% of the time. That is my story of pointy guitars.

Sorry to hear about your work drinking buddy.

[liv_rong]

A guy I used to work with, and drink with, who is now dead due to a bullet in his head, had a Gibson flying V that sounded great but playing thst thing sucked. I play sitting down 99% of the time. That is my story of pointy guitars.

Sorry to hear about your work drinking buddy.

Thanks for saying condolences. I wasn’t super close to him but you know when you work with people you sort of are by default sometimes. He sucked at guitar though lol, like way worse than me. He bought one after first hearing Pantera at age 45. It was more a brief distraction for him than anything else.

[WhiskeyJack]

Sorry to hear about your work drinking buddy.

Thanks for saying condolences. I wasn’t super close to him but you know when you work with people you sort of are by default sometimes. He sucked at guitar though lol, like way worse than me. He bought one after first hearing Pantera at age 45. It was more a brief distraction for him than anything else.

We all have our midlife crisises.

You know what's weird. I just had the thought pop in my head. Like i am pretty sure, i could sit and listen to a child interested in guitar pick it up for the first time and just make noise for hours. But if i were sit with a grown man at 45 and watch him pick up a guitar for the first time with the intent to start play pantera or metal songs i'd probably have to excuse myself from the room to go hang myself.

Also you don't suck liv. you and @Greg_L need to can that shit about being sucky or basic or whatever it is i see you fartfaces say all the time. Knock it off. y'all and your humble pies. I bite my thumb at it. You guys are both great guitarists.

[Lt. Bob]

greg and liv always woof about their suckage and they don't at all .... both are very good.
And I'd play in a band with greg in a heartbeat without even bothering to know anything about the band ...... I'd know it was good just 'cause.

And to play sitting, you take a flying V and put the inside of the V across your right leg ...... sits there great

[liv_rong]

Well I appreciate your words of kindness @WhiskeyJack and @Lt. Bob

[Greg_L]

I say I suck because I look at actual guitarists that care about being good guitarists and I'm not that. They're all better than me. I don't practice or know scales and modes or give a shit about any of it. I just do what I do, and that consists of the most basic rudimentary guitar playing, and in the grand scheme of things that sucks.

And I wouldn't have it any other way.

[Lt. Bob]

lol ..... at this point I think I've established my credentials to know if someone's good or not ...... you're far better than you give yourself credit for

[Greg_L]

lol ..... at this point I think I've established my credentials to know if someone's good or not ...... you're far better than you give yourself credit for

Well thanks, you've told me that before and I genuinely appreciate it. I'm truly truly truly not saying all this stuff so people will disagree with me and give me compliments. I really feel this way. I totally think I'm a hack. It actually makes me uncomfortable out here in the meat world when people tell me "cool guitar playing" or whatever because I don't see myself that way at all in the slightest not even a little bit. I'd much much rather get compliments on my tones and gear. I'll talk to someone all day about my guitars or amps. I do not want to talk my playing those guitars and amps.

[Lt. Bob]

lol ..... at this point I think I've established my credentials to know if someone's good or not ...... you're far better than you give yourself credit for

Well thanks, you've told me that before and I genuinely appreciate it. I'm truly truly truly not saying all this stuff so people will disagree with me and give me compliments. I really feel this way. I totally think I'm a hack. It actually makes me uncomfortable out here in the meat world when people tell me "cool guitar playing" or whatever because I don't see myself that way at all in the slightest not even a little bit. I'd much much rather get compliments on my tones and gear. I'll talk to someone all day about my guitars or amps. I do not want to talk my playing those guitars and amps.

I get it ./..... I sorta have a part of me that feels the same way about my own playing.

[rayc]

Have you ordered it yet @CrowsofFritz ?

[CrowsofFritz]

Have you ordered it yet @CrowsofFritz ?

I have. It said on the website that it would come in a few weeks. Then a few days after I ordered it said July 11th. If it gets pushed back I’m canceling. I’ll sell a good chunk of my magic cards and buy the real thing.

[rayc]

I have. It said on the website that it would come in a few weeks. Then a few days after I ordered it said July 11th. If it gets pushed back I’m canceling. I’ll sell a good chunk of my magic cards and buy the real thing.

Wow, that's extreme. They're really expensive and are, really, big amp machines. I'm sure it can be recorded through a DI or smaller amp but it, sort of, goes against the grain a bit to have such an expensive machine - oh & there's usually a wait to get one - without the matching gear. Then again Geddy Lee used a rack Sansamp for the last few years or Rush.
Nevertheless, do what works for you. Removing your investments from the card world is probably a good move though.
This isn't exactly Peyawl's sound but is one of the few definitive OTHER tones.

[vomitHatSteve]

Have you ordered it yet @CrowsofFritz ?

I have. It said on the website that it would come in a few weeks. Then a few days after I ordered it said July 11th. If it gets pushed back I’m canceling. I’ll sell a good chunk of my magic cards and buy the real thing.

The email they sent me says it's due in stock on 7/06

I keep forgetting what month it is... dang that is a full month away! Weaksauce.

I don't really mind waiting, but I've set a reminder to cancel if they don't get it here by mid-august. I could technically afford a real Rick, but since I'd be using it as a gig bass, I kinda don't wanna ruin a $2000 piece of gear.

[rayc]

The email they sent me says it's due in stock on 7/06
I keep forgetting what month it is... dang that is a full month away! Weaksauce.
I don't really mind waiting, but I've set a reminder to cancel if they don't get it here by mid-august. I could technically afford a real Rick, but since I'd be using it as a gig bass, I kinda don't wanna ruin a $2000 piece of gear.

ON SALE a Rick bass is AUS$5,500 in Australia. I guess I cold technically afford one but justifying it would be an altogether different thing.

[vomitHatSteve]

The email they sent me says it's due in stock on 7/06
I keep forgetting what month it is... dang that is a full month away! Weaksauce.
I don't really mind waiting, but I've set a reminder to cancel if they don't get it here by mid-august. I could technically afford a real Rick, but since I'd be using it as a gig bass, I kinda don't wanna ruin a $2000 piece of gear.

ON SALE a Rick bass is AUS$5,500 in Australia. I guess I cold technically afford one but justifying it would be an altogether different thing.

Dang! Sweetwater quoted me about $2000 for a new one, and one of the local music stores as them new for $2500. I wonder what makes up the difference?

[rayc]

ON SALE a Rick bass is AUS$5,500 in Australia. I guess I cold technically afford one but justifying it would be an altogether different thing.

Dang! Sweetwater quoted me about $2000 for a new one, and one of the local music stores as them new for $2500. I wonder what makes up the difference?

25% currency difference, shipping and GOUGING.

[CrowsofFritz]

Got some bids on my Magic deck. We’ll see how high it goes!

[CrowsofFritz]

Deck sold for $1,205. Not bad.

[Armistice]

The email they sent me says it's due in stock on 7/06
I keep forgetting what month it is... dang that is a full month away! Weaksauce.
I don't really mind waiting, but I've set a reminder to cancel if they don't get it here by mid-august. I could technically afford a real Rick, but since I'd be using it as a gig bass, I kinda don't wanna ruin a $2000 piece of gear.

ON SALE a Rick bass is AUS$5,500 in Australia. I guess I cold technically afford one but justifying it would be an altogether different thing.

And that's if anyone actually has them, which they probably don't.

Crazy when a high end Fender bass is half that price.


On other pricing matters, I saw a guy advertising a different model Duesenberg Starplayer to mine on FB, used but excellent condition, for $4k flat, and I thought, gee, that's a bit expensive, surely he's overstating it, so out of interest I googled the exact model and ended up at the shop where I bought mine. There they had (and this is on order, not in stock) the guitar this guy was selling, for $4600 new - and they do actual street pricing, you won't get much of a discount out of them - RRP was $5k. So seems he was about on the mark.

And there on the same page was my guitar - also available by order only - for $4400, street price, marked down from $4900.

Now when I bought it in September last year, there was a bit of variation in the market - the pink one I was looking at, actually in stock in Brisbane, was about that price, but I gave Mooloolaba Music "only" $3550 (and it was GF's money, not mine) - and there were other places without stock with similar pricing who didn't actually have stock that I could see. No more. It's always been very expensive to get name brand gear here, looks like it's ticking up a notch further. 25% increase in a few months.

[rayc]

It's always been very expensive to get name brand gear here, looks like it's ticking up a notch further. 25% increase in a few months.

Yep,
Imagine lusting after a real strat or LP in the late 60s/early 70s in Sydney or, far worse, Hobart.
My elcheapo Coronet SG copy bass cost AUS$73 in 74 and would, based only on inflation, cost AUS$665 now. I reckon with shipping, duties, gouging etc. it'd be closer to $800. Luckily Harley Benton et al have started producing decent quality stuff for half that. BUT the shipping cost is a joke...they ought to have a distribution system that operated from the factory - it'd be far cheaper from China to Oz than China to Germany, to the UK to Oz.