Harley Benton Amarok-BT BKNT Flame Burst

It's almost annoying that there's no real competition for the specs of this guitar. Depending on what kind of model you're used to, the body might take a bit to get used to, and if you haven't played baritones before (like me), you might be a tiny bit alienated for the first 5 minutes, but that disappears almost immediately.

I can't say I can notice a huge difference in the sound from the baritone scale length, but I can barely feel the longer neck in the first place. It's only a 27 neck, which is barely in the baritone ball park anyways.Whether this is worth it for you is entirely up to your priorities. Would you sacrifice a tiny tiny amount of comfort for a tiny tiny amount of tone or vice versa? Then again, it's probably much more noticeable on higher end amplification e.g. not my 200 euro practice amp.

Honestly, the biggest change in sound might reasonably be the wound g string. Do keep in mind I'm playing a 12-68 set in C standard, which is higher than most people use baritones. Perhaps the neck shines through in tunings lower than B. Still a unique and satisfying feel though.

The quality control can be a bit nefarious, but with Thomann's return policy it should really never be a major concern unless your packages take a month to arrive and you have no patience. If you don't need it right NOW you might as well gamble with a b stock to save some cash.

The tuners seem fine (I have no experience with locking tuners so I can't really comment well), the input jack is decently responsive (although it doesn't seem like it will survive for more than like, 2 years), the volume knob is cut weirdly and scrapes against the body when turned (really easy fix that everyone can probably do though).

As for the EMG's, I have a really bad ear for comparing stuff when it's not like, a direct playback comparison, so I can't really comment much on their sound quality. If you haven't used actives in the past, it takes a bit to get used to having to unplug when you're not playing to conserve battery life. Not exactly a concern or anything, just something I wish I didn't need to do, but that's extremely picky. According to other, more experienced players, they sound less compressed than EMG 81s, basically kinda like more aggressive passive pups. No complaints here. They don't limit your sound much, and it's not like you can't get a satisfying clean or crunch sound with em.

All of these things barely matter. The only real issue I can see with this guitar is that it might just not inspire you. An instrument with 3/4ths of these specs with a finish that makes you want to play it more is probably more worth it imo.

so i got this guitar on the reputation that they make guitars with great workman ship for a Steal of a price. this is largely true but i was sold a flawed guitar. with a twist in the nick. i took it to my local guitar shop to have it set up and they called me and told me that the guitar had a twist. it was slight and they did the best they could to get the neck as straight as possible. The twist means there is some fret buzz on some of the higher strings around the second and third frets. me and the tech got it to wear it wasn't terribly noticeable but still you pay full price you hope to get a full price guitar. the pickups are great it plays quite well. for the price i still think its decent. a sturdy baritone for sure. just not anything to write home about.

So, let’s go through things one by one, and cover a few different topics!
Shipping was fast—it arrived in just 2 days, considering I live in the U.S.!
The package contents are pretty basic: the box, the guitar, tuners, and a battery are included, but no case or anything else—it is, after all, a budget guitar. The only weird thing was that the guitar arrived super hot, but that’s most likely due to the intense heat—it was nearly 40 degrees Celsius...
The factory tuning is good. The steel frets were fine, but I tweaked them a bit just for myself, since I prefer a lower action.
The tuners work great; the nut is a TUSQ XL 6642-00 at 42 mm—it would’ve been perfect at 43 mm, but that’s a matter of taste, and I’m used to 42 anyway.
The neck feels great—it’s just comfortable to hold and a real pleasure to play.
The bridge is fantastic—it just does its job, isn’t sharp, and tunes up well.
The pickups are great for the price, but personally, I’d try to find some EMG 57/66s on sale somewhere—I think that would make the sound even more magical. The electronics are soldered well.
The wood finish is generally good; there are some minor imperfections in the staining here and there, but these are just minor details.
Also, forgive my boldness, but I swapped out the nut,same nut TUSQ XL 6642-00 - for an E-standard tuning, since I believe that standard tuning on a baritone scale sounds infinitely more magical—if anyone’s interested...
So I’m giving this guitar a 4.5/5. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a better baritone for this price....