Most affordable if you live in Europe. Shipping costs offsets the low price. You can get less expensive 7 string guitars shipped in the US for a lot less. Harley Benton would be wise to have a distributor in the USA.
I've had the passive version for a few years now and ill be honest I.. still love it. The only thing I had to work at was the tuners. They can be a bit fussy at times, but over all I love it and out of all my guitars I keep it beside my bed
Based on just this sound test, I actually thought this sounded pretty horrible, I had check if my headphones was plugged in the right way. I hope your pickup change made a massive difference if you are going to gig this guitar =) Harley Benton has a 7 string/Baritone called Amarok which is more than double the price, but sounds more than double as nice with active EMG's so I think I will save up some more for that one instead.
Thanks for your feedback. I totally agree... The stock active pickups in this guitar are not good. Beginner guitarists might not notice too much, but experienced players will feel and hear the poor quality of the standard pickups. But it is a budget guitar, so can't complain too much. I have indeed upgraded the pickups now and I am super happy with it. The sound is killer, and the looks / playability is awesome. There isn't another 7 string that can match this now (for the price).
You could do, but it would take some for figuring out finger position wise. There are a couple of other tubings which suit 7 strings well, and are easier to play.
The action is okay as standard in this. It's a nice feeling neck with nice rolled edges. You can of course perfect the action yourself to suit your strings and preferred playing style. I don't like super low action, but these came set up pretty low
Hi Pete, I finally received the guitare. It is beautifully made, astounding for the price!! the finsish is perfect and the neck, as you said, is really great! concerning the sound I just can't say anything because I have a major issue: I use CPL transmitter to spread internet in my house and the guitare gets big interferences when the transmiters are pulged in the main.... Do you , or someone else, have the same issue? I contacted Thomann and they said that this problem is probably on every guitars not only the one I received... I actually bought this guitare for training when I'm not home so I think I'm gonna keep it, but I wonder if I can take off the electronics and wire the pickups directly like a passive guitar? do you have any take on this as I can't find the info on the internet?... Cheers, and keep up the good stuff!
@@dizzy-dreams great. Glad you like it. Firstly ONLY use fx pedals with batteries. Never use mains electric power. That will work. Having said that, I have just swapped all the electronics to passive and changed the pickups. It sounds great (not better or worse - just more dynamic, which suits my style more). But induction hum/noise can be sorted by using battery powered stomp boxes
@@PetesGuitarUniverse thanks a lot for the feedback. My issue is not a hum but clearly electronic buz, like a can of modem noise (not that strong though...). When you say that you just swapped the electronics to passive, did you change the pickups also or only rewired the guitare? Active pickups are beyond my curent knowldge I must admit!
Needs a battery. The pickups are basically low output preamps that need powering to amplify the output, which is why people often refer to active pups as high output.
If you haven't yet, slap a tubescreamer in front to tighten the tone. Set it 0-10% drive, 50-100% tone and set volume to unity. Many 7 string guitars benefit from it on the lower notes.
The neck on this 457 feels nicer, it has rolled edges and just feels better. The Jackson's pickups are better. But overall not by much. I have installed a passive humbucker in the 457 and I now prefer it to the Jackson, which I have actually just sold, so...
@@PetesGuitarUniverse ah okay thank you :) I used Thomann before brexit and I read their were some unfair import charges outside of the price advertised but this makes sense!
@@barriemalton4208 I'm just doing a follow up video on how to modify this guitar to make it a beast. The video should drop next weekend. You will be amazed.
It's a 7 string so obviously there would be some advanced techniques required to make the full use of this guitar. As a total beginner, maybe start on a 6 string. If you're already proficient on 6 string, then this would make an ideal first step into the 7 string world, for sure.
I have the opportunity to pick one up for $150 worth? I’ve been really looking to pick up a 7 string but I don’t want to regret picking this up and have it be a huge plank lol
You could have just bought the passive version of the same guitar and saved 50 bucks! 😀🙈 And based on my research it seems they have the best pickups out of the 3 different models of this guitar.
Not quite that straight forward. Sadly at the time of purchase, maybe even still now, they didn't / don't do that matte black model with passive pickups. I bought the guitar for its looks, based on knowing I would upgrade and customise its components to my own preferred spec.
@@PetesGuitarUniverse Ahaa, I see. You just wanted it for the matte black color...I thought u chose it for the active pickups, since that's the only version that has them. In that case, the other models are indeed in gloss black. I'm not a fan of black guitars, so the version of black would make no difference to me - I've been eyeing on the white version thou :D
@@MaximusAdonicus yes, the ideal version (for me) would be be the matte black with passive pups. I have now switched to passive bridge humbucker and the tone and gain is much better.
how come guitar sounds that bad? it sounds even worse than my very old and extremely cheap Flight-E5! dont get me wrong, im just complaining on quality of sound. overview is good tho
Just the compression that RUclips does to heavy distorted guitars. I don't post process raw guitar to try and preserve the tone. Maybe try studio quality headphones??
Most affordable if you live in Europe. Shipping costs offsets the low price. You can get less expensive 7 string guitars shipped in the US for a lot less. Harley Benton would be wise to have a distributor in the USA.
What other 7 strings would be less?
This was a very helpful review, amazing work.
Thanks. A great guitar for sure!
I've had the passive version for a few years now and ill be honest I.. still love it. The only thing I had to work at was the tuners. They can be a bit fussy at times, but over all I love it and out of all my guitars I keep it beside my bed
Sweet. Yeah the tuners do the job, but the ratio could be higher.
Based on just this sound test, I actually thought this sounded pretty horrible, I had check if my headphones was plugged in the right way. I hope your pickup change made a massive difference if you are going to gig this guitar =) Harley Benton has a 7 string/Baritone called Amarok which is more than double the price, but sounds more than double as nice with active EMG's so I think I will save up some more for that one instead.
Thanks for your feedback. I totally agree... The stock active pickups in this guitar are not good. Beginner guitarists might not notice too much, but experienced players will feel and hear the poor quality of the standard pickups. But it is a budget guitar, so can't complain too much. I have indeed upgraded the pickups now and I am super happy with it. The sound is killer, and the looks / playability is awesome. There isn't another 7 string that can match this now (for the price).
Is it possible to tune it to E standard, with a low B? I'm new to 7 strings, so i have no idea 😅
You could do, but it would take some for figuring out finger position wise. There are a couple of other tubings which suit 7 strings well, and are easier to play.
@@PetesGuitarUniverse Thanks!
How is the action, maybe compared to a sterling John Petrucci model, if you’ve played one of those how would you say it compares to that guitar?
The action is okay as standard in this. It's a nice feeling neck with nice rolled edges. You can of course perfect the action yourself to suit your strings and preferred playing style. I don't like super low action, but these came set up pretty low
Thanks a lot for the review, I'm waiting for mine that should arrive in 2 days, I'll let you know what I think if you want 😊. Cheers.
Let us know what you think when you've had time to play it
Hi Pete, I finally received the guitare. It is beautifully made, astounding for the price!! the finsish is perfect and the neck, as you said, is really great! concerning the sound I just can't say anything because I have a major issue: I use CPL transmitter to spread internet in my house and the guitare gets big interferences when the transmiters are pulged in the main.... Do you , or someone else, have the same issue? I contacted Thomann and they said that this problem is probably on every guitars not only the one I received... I actually bought this guitare for training when I'm not home so I think I'm gonna keep it, but I wonder if I can take off the electronics and wire the pickups directly like a passive guitar? do you have any take on this as I can't find the info on the internet?... Cheers, and keep up the good stuff!
@@dizzy-dreams great. Glad you like it. Firstly ONLY use fx pedals with batteries. Never use mains electric power. That will work. Having said that, I have just swapped all the electronics to passive and changed the pickups. It sounds great (not better or worse - just more dynamic, which suits my style more). But induction hum/noise can be sorted by using battery powered stomp boxes
@@PetesGuitarUniverse thanks a lot for the feedback. My issue is not a hum but clearly electronic buz, like a can of modem noise (not that strong though...). When you say that you just swapped the electronics to passive, did you change the pickups also or only rewired the guitare? Active pickups are beyond my curent knowldge I must admit!
@@dizzy-dreams you have to change the pickups too.
Question about the pickups if it has no batteries will it work as a passive pick up? Or the pickup will only work with batteries?
Needs a battery. The pickups are basically low output preamps that need powering to amplify the output, which is why people often refer to active pups as high output.
@@PetesGuitarUniverse isee i guess passive one are better
@@ragesalazar7956 active are usually for high gain styles. Passive are more expressive and defined, in my opinion
@@PetesGuitarUniverse thanks for the info this will help me a lot to buy a guitar good video!
@@ragesalazar7956 you're welcome
Guitar is cool but that second riff is REAL cool. I’m diggin’ that.
Funny, I did some maintenance on it today and simply can't believe the quality for the price.
If you haven't yet, slap a tubescreamer in front to tighten the tone. Set it 0-10% drive, 50-100% tone and set volume to unity. Many 7 string guitars benefit from it on the lower notes.
Great tip. A bit of EQ goes a long way!
If you were to choose between this guitar but the passive version and the Jackson js22 7 ah which would you choose?
The neck on this 457 feels nicer, it has rolled edges and just feels better. The Jackson's pickups are better. But overall not by much. I have installed a passive humbucker in the 457 and I now prefer it to the Jackson, which I have actually just sold, so...
@@PetesGuitarUniverse thanks
Are there any import fees on top of this now we are not part of the EU?
They have adjusted their website to show the total amount you pay. No import fees on top.
@@PetesGuitarUniverse ah okay thank you :) I used Thomann before brexit and I read their were some unfair import charges outside of the price advertised but this makes sense!
as a guitarist, and a male, i can indeed say, i enjoy some good neck
Nice vid, I wonder if you felt the extra string a bit saggy 'cause the 25,5 scale?
It's tuned to standard pitch with drop D, making the low string a std B. So feels fine. Don't mind loose strings personally, but doesn't feel sloppy
Thanks
sounds to muddy,i am looking to get more of a korn sound.also what if the battery happens to fail during a gig.
@@barriemalton4208 I'm just doing a follow up video on how to modify this guitar to make it a beast. The video should drop next weekend. You will be amazed.
Been wanting a guitar for months. would you recommend this as a beginner?
It's a 7 string so obviously there would be some advanced techniques required to make the full use of this guitar. As a total beginner, maybe start on a 6 string. If you're already proficient on 6 string, then this would make an ideal first step into the 7 string world, for sure.
I have the opportunity to pick one up for $150 worth? I’ve been really looking to pick up a 7 string but I don’t want to regret picking this up and have it be a huge plank lol
It's a great guitar. Not a plank by any means
i’m thinking about buying the fan fret version sometime, do you think it would play nicely in DADGCEA?(double drop d)
Should do. That's how I tune mine and it performs very well
@@PetesGuitarUniverse thx man
Great review mate. I'm thinking of buying this guitar myself. What pickup did you go with in the end?
I went with a passive high output HB. It cost £65 and sounds amazing. Only use the bridge so left the original neck HB in place and disconnected.
@@PetesGuitarUniverse class dude! Thanks for the reply
@@PetesGuitarUniverse could you link to where you got the pickup from please, thanks man!
@@Tubeinnit sure, here you go. Unbeatable Kent Armstrong pickups are. www.armstrongmusic.co.uk/collections/kent-armstrong-7-string-guitar-pickups
@@PetesGuitarUniverse Awesome, thanks so much! 👍🏼🎶
Wow, that sounded like ass. Are the pickups broken or out of phase?
@@VVVY777 thanks for your opinion. Yes, the pickups are broken and out of phase. The guitar is a plank and the sound is offensive.
I like it. 😎😎😎
It's a great value 7 string. If you switch out the pickups, it's a monster.
Well im definitely getting one 🎉😂😅
These pickups remind me the pickups of really cheap Ibanez guitars (low output)
@@ontologicaldiarrhea6582 about to drop a follow up video with a full pickup swap and comparison. You won't believe the results
You could have just bought the passive version of the same guitar and saved 50 bucks! 😀🙈 And based on my research it seems they have the best pickups out of the 3 different models of this guitar.
Not quite that straight forward. Sadly at the time of purchase, maybe even still now, they didn't / don't do that matte black model with passive pickups. I bought the guitar for its looks, based on knowing I would upgrade and customise its components to my own preferred spec.
@@PetesGuitarUniverse Ahaa, I see. You just wanted it for the matte black color...I thought u chose it for the active pickups, since that's the only version that has them. In that case, the other models are indeed in gloss black. I'm not a fan of black guitars, so the version of black would make no difference to me - I've been eyeing on the white version thou :D
@@MaximusAdonicus yes, the ideal version (for me) would be be the matte black with passive pups. I have now switched to passive bridge humbucker and the tone and gain is much better.
@@PetesGuitarUniverse witch humbucker did you get in?
Does a standard 7 string humbucker fit in this guitare?
@@hekjni I fitted a Kent Armstrong passive humbucker. It's SO much better. Really nice tone from the Armstrong high gain pup.
how come guitar sounds that bad? it sounds even worse than my very old and extremely cheap Flight-E5! dont get me wrong, im just complaining on quality of sound. overview is good tho
Just the compression that RUclips does to heavy distorted guitars. I don't post process raw guitar to try and preserve the tone. Maybe try studio quality headphones??
@@PetesGuitarUniverse do you really think i have an acces to studio quality headphones having flight e5 ? :D
Ex. Andrew Baena
the guitar sounds terrible
Thanks for your opinion