Show Full Spec Comparison
Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature | Agufish Custom Signature BT | |
---|---|---|
General | ||
Brand: | Harley Benton | Harley Benton |
Year: | 2024 | 2024 |
Configuration: | HH | HH |
Strings: | 6 | 6 |
Made in: | Indonesia | Indonesia |
Series: | Pro | Signature |
Colors: | Black, Green | Purple |
Left-Handed Version: | No | No |
Body | ||
Type: | Solid Body | Solid Body |
Body Material: | Nyatoh | Okoume |
Bridge: | Wsc Tune-O-Matic | Wsc Tune-O-Matic |
Neck | ||
Neck Joint: | Set | Set |
Tuners: | Jinho HB JN-03L locking machine heads | Jinho HB JN-03L locking machine heads |
Fretboard: | Macassar | Macassar |
Neck Material: | Maple | Roasted Maple |
Decoration: | None | |
Scale Size: | 25" | 28.031" |
Shape: | Smooth U | Smooth U |
Frets: | 22 XL Jumbo Stainless Steel | 22 XL Jumbo Stainless Steel |
Fretboard Radius: | 12" | 12" |
Nut: | Ivory Tusq | Ivory Tusq |
Nut Width: | 43mm (1.693'') | 43mm (1.693'') |
Electronics | ||
Bridge Pickups: | Roswell "Seraphim" Custom Wound Alnico V (Humbucker / Passive) | Roswell "Seraphim" (Humbucker / Passive) |
Middle Pickup: | ||
Neck Pickup: | Alnico Ceramic Flanker (Humbucker / Passive) | Alnico Ceramic Flanker (Humbucker / Passive) |
Switch: | 3 Way | 3 Way |
Knobs: | Speed | Speed |
Pickup Mods: | Coil Split | Coil Split |
Volume Controls: | 2 | 2 |
Tone Controls: | 2 | 2 |
Hardware | ||
Strap Lock: | No | Yes |
Hardware Color: | Black | Chrome |
Show Diagrams Comparison
Reasons to Get
Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature over Agufish Custom Signature BT
Reasons to Get
Harley Benton Agufish Custom Signature BT over Agufish STD Signature
Other Key Differences
Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature vs Agufish Custom Signature BT
Shared Features
Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature vs Agufish Custom Signature BT
Common Strengths
- Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
- Weight Relief
- Locking Tuners
- High-Quality Nut
- High-Quality Frets
- Luminescent Sidedots
- Top Pickup Brand
Common Weaknesses
- Neck-Through Build
- Stays in Tune (Evertune)
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- From a High-Quality-Standards Country
- Expensive Wood
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Price History Comparison
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Hand Size Comfortability
After taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that both are balanced for most hand sizes.
Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature:
Harley Benton Agufish Custom Signature BT:
Beginner Friendliness
Both meet 5 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players. If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, you can't go wrong with either of them.
New Player Friendliness
Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Locking tuners
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
New Player Friendliness
Harley Benton Agufish Custom Signature BT- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Locking tuners
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
Sound Quality Comparison
The wood used in an electric guitar or bass is not as important to determine the final tone. However, some people prefer specific wood types, so we'll take a look at those first. Then, we'll take a look at the electronics to determine the versatility and sound quality of each instrument.
Woods Used in Both
It's prized in guitar building for its striking visual appeal and tonal properties. This exotic hardwood, native to Southeast Asia, displays a distinctive striped pattern with deep, contrasting bands of dark brown to black against lighter brown or golden hues. Known for its density and durability, Macassar Ebony is commonly used for fretboards, back and sides of acoustic guitars, and high-end electric guitar tops. Its density contributes to a brighter, more articulate tone with a quick response and clear note separation. The wood’s natural oils also give it a smooth, glass-like feel, making it a preferred choice for fretboards where a sleek, effortless playing experience is desired. Over time, Macassar Ebony ages gracefully, becoming smoother and richer in appearance, adding both aesthetic and tonal depth to the instrument.
Woods Used in the Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature
Maple is one of the most popular necks for good reasons. It is a strong wood that is relatively cheap to make and looks beautiful. The highest quality maple is the hardest that comes from North America. Find out more about Maple.
Nyatoh has been replacing Mahogany for guitar building. It's fairly hard, durable, more sustentable and common than Mahogany. Find out more about Nyatoh.
Woods Used in the Harley Benton Agufish Custom Signature BT
Roasted Maple is just maple without a finish. It's technically cheaper than regular maple, but it doesn't have any extra disadvantages because of this. The color is darker, and it's lighter weight and very stable even when there's a lot of humidity.
Okoume is an affordable wood and one of the first to replace Mahogany when the prohibitions started. It's generally softer than Mahogany and the tone has warmer lows.
Winner: Tie.
Pickup Configuration
Both pickup configurations are HH. Double Humbucker (HH) is the choice for people who want a fuller, more round sound with tons of mids and lows. Humbuckers also get rid of the hum noise that plague single-coil pickups. They can work out for almost any genre going from Djent to even Jazz.
Pickups Quality
Both come with very good pickups from at least one of the specialized brands in the market. With pickups like these, you probably won't need an upgrade anytime soon.
Both use Passive pickups. This is what's used for most music genres. They have a regular output and will serve you for both high-gain and clean tones. The alternative (Active pickups) offer a higher output that is mostly used for heavy music.
Winner: Tie.
Versatility Comparison
Some instruments offer you more ways to explore your creativity than others. Below you'll find how both compare when it comes to versatility.
Switch Options
Both are equal when it comes to the pickup switching option.
Both offer you the same type of pickup mod: Coil Split.
Coil Split lets you disconnect one of the pickup coils. When used with humbuckers, it turns them into single-coil with lower output and cleaner tone.
When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.
Winner: Tie.
Final Sound Quality Scores
Build Quality Comparison
When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature compares to the Harley Benton Agufish Custom Signature BT.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. Both in this comparison where made in Indonesia.
Indonesia is becoming the most popular country for guitar building because they can make good instruments for a low price. Some people think that they're 'the new China' when it comes to build quality. But the truth is that Indonesian guitars are more consistent, although Chinese quality has improved a lot in the last few years.
Winner: Tie
Nut Material
If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.
In this case, both have Ivory Tusq nuts. Ivory used to be considered the best material for guitar nuts due to its beauty, durability, and the rich harmonics and sustain you could get from a guitar with it. However, the way to obtain it is simply unethical. Enter TUSQ ivory nuts, which are made synthetically to imitate ivory. Technically, it's better than ivory because it is consistent piece-to-piece, while natural materials can vary a lot, even if they're made from the same.
Fret Material
Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.
Both in this comparison come with stainless steel frets. These frets will basically last for the entire life of the guitar. They will never need polishing nor replacement. And not only that, but some people also notice that bending and vibratos are much easier to perform when they upgrade to stainless steel.
Winner: Tie.
Bridge
The perfect bridge for you will depend on your playstyle because they all have advantages and disadvantages. However, some bridges are more expensive—like Floyd Roses and Evertunes—and thus add more value to a guitar.
Both come with a similar bridge: Fixed. It's a simple bridge that is very beginner-friendly since it doesn't require any set-up. You can swap strings easily. It might also give more sustain since it doesn't have complex moving parts that make the strings lose vibration. However, it doesn't have the same versatility as a tremolo bridge.
Since we need to be objective, the most expensive type of bridge will be the winner of this section. In the end, this doesn't matter if you're not going to use the bridge for its original purpose, so choose the bridge that fits your playing style better.
Winner: Tie.
Tuners
They both have locking tuners. They'll help to keep your guitar in tune because they allow you to tune it without wrapping the strings around the posts. This avoids variations in the tuning due to the strings changing position at the post after a bend. They come at the disadvantage of being slightly heavier than regular tuners. Also, it makes it a lot easier to restring.
Winner: Tie.
Neck Joint
Contrary to popular belief, the difference in sustain and tone that some neck joints give to a guitar is simply unperceivable—if they're all well built. However, some of them do have advantages over the others.
Both have a Set neck joint. This neck is tightly glued to the body. They give you the least versatility because you can't swap them for a neck that fits your hand better if you want to, unlike bolt-on necks. Some people think this gives more resonance and sustain, but there's no real difference if the bolt-on joint is well built.
Winner: Tie.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature
- Stainless Steel Frets
- Locking Tuners
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Coil Split Pickups
- Weight Relief
- Luminescent Inlay
- Made in Indonesia
- No Expensive Woods
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Harley Benton Agufish Custom Signature BT
- Stainless Steel Frets
- Locking Tuners
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Coil Split Pickups
- Weight Relief
- Luminescent Inlay
- Strap Lock
- Made in Indonesia
- No Expensive Woods
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
Final Build Quality Scores
Playability Comparison
Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.
Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.
Nut Width
The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, both have a nut width of 43mm (1.693'').
This is within the most common range of nut widths for a 6-string guitar. It offers a good balance of string separation at the nut. It's the size that most guitarists prefer as it gives them just enough space to play open chords without muting the strings, but without spreading the strings too wide and making bar chords difficult to perform.
Scale Length
The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.
The Harley Benton Agufish Custom Signature BT has the longest scale: 28.031". The Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature is only 25" long. This is a 3.031'' (77mm) scale length difference.
This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.
This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.
Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).
Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.
Neck Profile
No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.
Both the Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature and the Harley Benton Agufish Custom Signature BT have a U-shaped neck. This is also referred to as ''baseball neck'' because of its shape. It's usually thick, which is why some people with big hands like it. However, they can also be thin, similar to a C shape, but with more shoulders for a better grip.
Fretboard Radius
Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.
Both the Harley Benton Agufish STD Signature and the Harley Benton Agufish Custom Signature BT have the same fretboard radius of 12". This is the radius used in most Gibson guitars. It gives you a good balance for playing chords without muting, but also good comfortability for playing single notes and bending.
Fret Size
Both have a XL Jumbo fret size. These are really tall frets made like this so you don't meet any resistance when playing techniques like vibrato, bending, tapping, etc. They should make the guitar easier to play, but you have to be careful not to get the notes out of pitch by pressing down too hard, which might happen since the fretboard will be too low to stop your hand.