Harley Benton R-458FFB Roasted MultiScale

For all the Harley Bentons I've owned over the past couple of years, I've owned all the available seven string models, and they've been pretty great - but I had yet to own an eight string. I've been wanting the Multiscale-8 for a while, but every time the money was available it was out of stock. When HB announced this guitar, the timing was just right with my finances, and the roasted necks I've played in the past left a great impression, so I figured I'd give it a shot.

The shipping box had virtually zero padding in it - a single sheet of the butcher paper was stuck at the very bottom, protecting basically nothing - but the guitar box was unharmed, and the guitar arrived in pristine condition. The finish is *phenomenal*, and the pictures simply don't do it enough justice. It's one you may already be familiar with, as it's been on a bunch of guitars over the years - most notably the Music Man John Petrucci signatures under the name Mystic Dream . The color shift looks great in lighting, and it gives this guitar a really unique character.

The real secret of this guitar, though, is the incredible roasted neck. The neck on my guitar is immaculate - the fret ends are perfect, with not a sharp end to be found, and the feel is excellent. It's a very natural feeling neck, with a really gentle satin finish, and most importantly the fretboard ISN'T BONE DRY FOR ONCE! The profile is thin and pretty flat, but not an overexaggerated kind of flat, so it's comfortable for extended periods of playing. The fan of the frets isn't super wide, so it doesn't take long to get used to, but if you're not used to a multiscale neck you may want to try one first.

The electronics, unfortunately, are a weak point (as has been noted about the regular neck R-458 in the past). Despite being described as "hi-gain", the pickups are pretty moderate in output, and don't nail the modern 8-string metal crunch as much as they do an early djent kind of tone. They're not noisy or anything, but kind of underwhelming depending on your expectations. Fortunately, they're the same size as regular 8-string soapbar pickups, so they can be easily replaced. The 3-way switch is also kind of disappointing, considering the R-446 managed to pack in a 5-way switch, and those split-coil tones would be a nice addition on a guitar like this.

The rest of the hardware is quite good - even the tuners, which I usually have an issue with. The mono-rail bridge is comfortable, with no sharp edges and a pretty easy-to-adjust layout. Aside from the pickups, I don't really see anything that needs immediate replacement, but that always comes down to preference.

While it's not perfect, the R-458 Roasted is an impressive guitar with a gorgeous finish and an amazing neck. At this price, it's pretty hard to beat if you're in the market for an affordable eight string that stands out from the usual "blacked out" appearance.

If you are interested in this instruments its probably because of the paint job and the roasted maple neck so I'll start by detailing those. The finish looks just as great in person as in the pictures, if not better. I tend to avoid glossy finishes since they are a real fingerprint magnet. I dont mind wiping off the body every day if it looks this great tho. I have found a small scratch under the bridge and on the back of the guitar, faults that I decided I can live with. They are not visible during regular use. You might get less lucky tho in which case you might have to return it.

This is my first roasted maple neck and fretboard so I can't comment on how it compares to the same wood on a different guitar but compared to what im used to it feels smooth and fresh. The caramel-like colour is great and the fretboard is easy to maintain. My fingers tend to be oily so I have to clean the fretboard often. This one is super easy to wipe clean thanks to the treatment on the wood. I haven't found any sharp edges whatsoever. The neck profile is comfortable for me but thats up to preference. Not super thin but its not chunky either, probbaly in the safe zone for most people.

A new set of strings is a must as with any new guitar but its even more important in this case since I found the gauges to be a bit light with 65 on the lowest string. Went with 09-80 and it made a great difference.
The frets are definitely a bit scratchy. Havent gotten around to polishing them but it shouldnt be too hard to fix. I wouldn't say it's unplayable but the scratches are audible which is annoying.

The pickups are ok. If this is your first 8 string and you just want to get your feet wet the tone probably won't matter that much. They sound exactly what you would expect for this price. Not great but they get the job done. If you like modding and you bought the instrument for its looks and roasted maple neck you can just put some new pickups in it anyway.

The hardware nice. This is the least exciting part of any guitar for me so there's not much I can say. I like that it's black since I think chrome on budget guitars can look kinda cheap sometimes. Black always looks premium. Everything sits in its place robustly. The switches and knobs are not easy to turn. I prefer it this way. Harder to mess with them accidentally and they give better feedback.

Lastly, the build quality of my unit is great. To put it shortly, nothing in the materials or the way the instrument was put together makes me think it was cheap.

Overall, I'ts hard to beat these looks and features at this price point. If it came with stainless steel frets I wouldn't even think to spend my money on something else. Amazing for your first 8 string, especially if you want something that differs from the usual metal colour palette.

For months I have been asking myself, do I really need a few more multiscale guitars? Then one day this beauty showed up on the Harley Benton Instagram and made the decision for me. I ordered this along with the R-457FFB on the day they were released. That was on a Tuesday, and I had them in my hands in Canada the following Monday, excellent service as always from Thomann.

The chameleon finish on this guitar is my all-time favourite guitar finish, so I might be a little biased due to that. The look isn't for everyone, and if it's not for you, that's ok, but I happen to love it. The satin finish on the neck of this guitar feels great to play and looks great on the roasted maple.

Fretwork and setup were fantastic out of the box. Action was a little high for me but was easily lowered without running into any fret buzz.

I won't say much about the sound of this guitar. I'm of the mind that pickups don't really matter and the only difference expensive brand name pickups make is a bigger hole in your wallet. These pickups are not microphonic, and they aren't noisy, that works for me. It sounds like an 8 string.

Hardware is on point. Like every guitar I buy, I swapped in some locking tuners before putting on some fresh strings. I don't see any need to change anything else.

Now, all that said, is this a perfect guitar? No. There are some minor finish flaws around the edge of the body and on the back of the neck. Do they bother me that much? No. It's important to remember that you can buy 5 of this guitar for the price of a similarly spec'd guitar from one of the "big brands"

Overall, Harley Benton knocks it out of the park again with an instrument that punches well above it's price point. I have over a dozen HBs now and will not hesitate to buy a dozen more.

The short of it is:
I bought this instrument with the intent of using it in high A configuration a la Rusty Cooley / Daddo Oreskovich. And after following the steps laid out by Daddo (including using 7s for the high A, and tuning very very slowly), as well as some minor intonation adjustments, it worked flawlessly, and sounds fantastic.

The finish is incredibly beautiful. I had not really been that interested in the aesthetics (I initially was more interested in the designs of the lower budget offers) but I chose it because I read that this guitar had Harley Bentons best neck ever. I will say two things, it's absolutely gorgeous - I ended up loving the paint job, and am really glad to have a different looking guitar. And the second is that while I don't know other Harley Benton's (something I hope to correct in the future) its neck is just as comfortable as my Ibanez RG ... and that has been the single most comfortable electric guitar neck I've used ... Until now.

The instrument comes perfectly balanced for a wide range of styles. Which is to say some people might want heavier strings, others might want to attempt using alternate tunings (which is an open area of exploration), and still others may wish to use it as is. And it should accommodate most players, but because of this, it will not be optimized for any particular style. Pickup height (or if you really want to, replacement), string changes, intonation, perhaps tuner changes are all dependent on playing style - and you should do that after having spent some time with it in its factory configuration so you know where you want to go with it.

I personally have been a bedroom guitarist for over 20 years, took some classical and jazz guitar lessons. I had played 12 string, 4 string bass, classical guitar, steel string, electrics, ukes, but never a 7 string or 8 string. When this guitar arrived, I expected it to take me a bit of time before I adjusted. And it has, not so much due to the scale length (wider than a regular guitar but shorted than a bass) but rather because of the width of the neck which greater than my 12 string acoustic (12 strings come with 6 double sets of strings).

I never really warmed up to the low F# string, but then again I bought the guitar with the intention of using a high A setup, so I don't think this is really an issue - I had already made up my mind of getting rid of it rather than explore it further. After some weeks of using it, I find myself more and more comfortable. You don't need to go through a 7 string, rather just have a clear goal in mind for the instrument and be willing to go through a transition period where it will be uncomfortable. This is a different instrument of the same family as the 6 string electric guitar. Plan ahead, and be willing to take some time with it without expecting the same level of proficiency or stamina.

You'll not only require changing your left hand technique (mostly because of stretching), but also develop strategies for muting, wider string leaps (if you play using a pick) the complex process of tuning for a high A (buy plenty of strings, and remember to be as patient while performing the intonation - in fact leave this string to the end). And then the real challenge begins, develop new muscle memory for chord voicings, scale patterns, consider new possible open tunings, etc...

I also chose to use a drop A instead of B for bass. There's literature on drop A in Jazz (and C for Bosa, plus B for heavy metal). The issue I found was that with the string gage I chose, I was not able to fully correct intonation (it works perfectly if I tune to B, which is fine with me as I plan to alternate between both tunings).

This is a wonderful instrument, it can sound like a stringed earthquake if left unaltered or a harp if you switch to high A. I read some complaints about the low-end being somewhat lacking. I'd say, you might want to use different string gages, and adjust your pickup height to improve this plus a little EQ. But for my plans, this was perfect, the high A sounds just right (a hair lower on volume but that's not really an issue).

I can't recommend it enough, but I once again warn people to have realistic expectations when you use a different but similar instrument. That said, don't let people dissuade you, you can start out with this instrument if you want just know it will be harder than starting out with something else and there's less information but hey if you really want it and have problems, just take out the other strings and add them later. The point is this is a plucked string instrument, you don't need a guitar gods blessing or the approval of someone to choose it. Also it really helps to know why you chose this instrument because at least that way you can use that to guide your journey.

Oh the tracking process is super clear, my experience with service was much better than Amazon's (which is stellar, so just saying it's really good). You may run into issues with your local customs and couriers but at that point they do the little they can do. Also the packaging is superb, the instrument arrived without any blemishes (and on time despite me living in another continent)

Have fun, you're in great hands with Thomann and their Harley Benton brand!!