Harley Benton ST-80FR MN HH GSB

Harley Benton ST-80FR MN HH GSB review

The Harley Benton ST-80FR MN HH GSB combines a double-cutaway body, two humbuckers, and a Floyd Rose 1000 tremolo with a roasted maple neck and fingerboard. Its Gold Sparkle Burst finish gives the guitar a bold look, while the specification sheet focuses on hardware and fret details suited to players who want a locking tremolo setup. The listed price is 311, and the model has been available since March 2026.

There is an important qualification to this review: the supplied field report describes a major string-alignment problem on the instrument received. The low E string sat close to the edge of the fingerboard and slipped off with only light pressure. Viewed from the front, the strings appeared visibly shifted. The player described the guitar as unplayable. That is a serious quality-control concern, and it matters more than the attractive specification list. The report covers one received guitar, so it does not establish how common the problem is across all units.

Construction and neck design

The body is listed as linden, also identified in the detailed specifications as American basswood. There is no separate top. The body shape is described as ergonomic, and the finish is a high-gloss Gold Sparkle Burst. Black nickel-plated hardware contrasts with the bright finish.

The bolt-on neck and fingerboard are made from roasted Canadian flamed maple. The fingerboard has rounded, right-angled edges, dot inlays, and glow-in-the-dark side markers. Its compound radius changes from 12 inches to 16 inches, or 305 to 406 mm. A flatter upper section can suit bends and faster lead playing, while the rounder lower section offers a more curved playing surface for chords. These are design implications, not a substitute for checking the individual guitar's setup.

The asymmetric C neck measures 20.5 mm thick at the first fret and 23.5 mm at the 22nd. Scale length is 648 mm, or 25.5 inches, and nut width is 43 mm. The double-action truss rod adjusts at a wheel, avoiding the need for a separate adjustment tool at the neck end. Harley Benton specifies 22 medium-jumbo stainless-steel frets, each 2.9 mm wide, with rounded edges.

Pickups and tremolo hardware

The pickup set consists of a Tesla Plasma-X1b Alnico V humbucker at the bridge and a Tesla Plasma-X1n Alnico V humbucker at the neck. A three-way switch selects the pickup configurations, with one volume and one tone control. The provided specifications do not describe coil splitting or additional switching options, so buyers should not assume those features are included.

The Floyd Rose 1000 tremolo is the centerpiece of the hardware package. It is intended for players who want to use the bar for pitch changes while keeping the strings secured at the bridge and nut. A floating tremolo can require careful setup, and string alignment across the fingerboard is fundamental to comfortable playing. The reported guitar's low E string position makes that inspection especially important here. A tremolo system cannot compensate for strings that sit improperly over the neck.

Jinho J-02 tuning machines have a 15:1 gear ratio and carry the HB logo. The guitar ships with Elixir coated strings in.010 to.046 gauges. No gig bag or case is included.

What to check before keeping one

On arrival, inspect the strings from the nut to the bridge and confirm that each string has a consistent margin from the fingerboard edges. Pay particular attention to the low E and high E strings at the first and last frets. Check that fretting notes does not push either outside string off the edge, then test the three pickup positions, controls, tuning machines, and tremolo operation. If the alignment resembles the issue in the supplied report, contact the seller before attempting a major setup adjustment.

The product information lists item number 594819 and identifies the sales unit as one guitar. Its main appeal on paper is clear: roasted flamed maple, stainless-steel frets, Tesla humbuckers, and a Floyd Rose 1000 in a distinctive finish. The field report, however, raises a direct concern about basic playability and inspection. For this model, a careful arrival check is essential, and a visibly displaced string layout should be treated as a reason to seek a remedy rather than accepted as normal variation.