Show Full Spec Comparison
| Harley Benton Nashville-Steel | Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash | |
|---|---|---|
| General | ||
| Brand: | Harley Benton | Charvel |
| Year: | 2022 | 2017 |
| Configuration: | S | HSH |
| Strings: | 6 | 6 |
| Made in: | China | United States |
| Series: | Custom Line | Artist Signature |
| Colors: | Blue | Natural |
| Left-Handed Version: | No | No |
| Body | ||
| Type: | Semi-Hollow | Solid Body |
| Body Material: | Solid Mahogany | Caramelized Ash |
| Bridge: | Walnut | Recessed Charvel Locking Tremolo Bridge |
| Neck | ||
| Neck Joint: | Set | Bolt-On |
| Tuners: | Dlx Machine Heads | Sperzel Locking |
| Fretboard: | Jatoba | Caramelized Flame Maple |
| Neck Material: | Mahogany | Caramelized Flame Maple |
| Decoration: | Dot fretboard | Ebony Ring with Maple Dot Center |
| Scale Size: | 25.5" | 25.5" |
| Shape: | C Shape | Charvel Speed |
| Frets: | 21 Medium Nickel Silver | 24 Jumbo Stainless Steel |
| Fretboard Radius: | 15.748" | 12" to 16" |
| Nut: | Plastic | Bone |
| Nut Width: | 43mm (1.693'') | 42.9mm (1.688'') |
| Electronics | ||
| Bridge Pickups: | Piezo system (bridge) (Preamp / Active) | Charvel Custom MF Humbucking (Humbucker / Passive) |
| Middle Pickup: | Charvel Custom MF Single-Coil (Single Coil / Passive) | |
| Neck Pickup: | Lipstick single coil (neck) (Single Coil / Passive) | Charvel Custom MF Humbucking (Humbucker / Passive) |
| Switch: | 0 Way | 5 Way |
| Knobs: | Dome | |
| Pickup Mods: | None | Coil Tap |
| Volume Controls: | 0 | 1 |
| Tone Controls: | 0 | 1 |
| Hardware | ||
| Strap Lock: | No | No |
| Hardware Color: | Chrome | Chrome |
Show Diagrams Comparison
Reasons to Get
Harley Benton Nashville-Steel over Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash
Reasons to Get
Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash over Harley Benton Nashville-Steel
Other Key Differences
Harley Benton Nashville-Steel vs Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash
Shared Features
Harley Benton Nashville-Steel vs Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash
Common Strengths
- High-Quality Frets
- Expensive Wood
Common Weaknesses
- Stays in Tune (Evertune)
- Strap Lock
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Price History Comparison
These are affiliate links. We may earn a fee if you purchase after clicking. These prices are prone to error. Make sure you're buying the right product after clicking on a link from our site. We are not liable if you buy the wrong product after following these links. As an Amazon Associate site we earn from qualifying purchases.
Hand Size Comfortability
After taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that both favor small hands .
Harley Benton Nashville-Steel:
Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash:
Beginner Friendliness
The Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash meets 6 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Harley Benton Nashville-Steel meets only 4. 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.
New Player Friendliness
Harley Benton Nashville-Steel- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
New Player Friendliness
Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Locking tuners
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- 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 the Harley Benton Nashville-Steel
Mahogany is a fairly rare wood nowadays. It's used mostly for bodies due to its relatively lightweight. Gibson popularized it with their Les Paul guitars during their golden years, so this wood has a lot of good reputation behind it. The most expensive type comes from South America and it's still used by Gibson even today. Find out more about Mahogany.
Jatoba is a hard and dense wood that emphasizes the mid-lows, giving a fuller, more round sound than, for example, Mahogany. However, it also has a lot of clarity in the top end. Find out more about Jatoba.
Woods Used in the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash
This wood has beautiful patterns only found in specific types of maple.
Ash is a type of wood that Fender used almost exclusively in the 50s, and it's still used by many brands. It's a dense wood with a light color that works well for a transparent, natural finish because of its beautiful patterns. In terms of sound, it's known for emphasizing the mid and high frequencies, but with strong low end. Find out more about Ash.
Winner: Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash.
Pickup Configuration
The Harley Benton Nashville-Steel has an S configuration while the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash has HSH pickups.
A single single-coil pickup is not a configuration commonly found in modern electric guitars because it lacks versatility. But if you only want a guitar that sounds very thin and twangy, this might be good enough.
On the other hand, HSH is a versatile pickup configuration that will give you the high output, full tone, and quiet sound of humbucker pickups, but with the possibility of using a single coil for cleaner tones. The disadvantage is that the middle single-coil pickup will have a noticeable lower volume, so you might want to adjust the height of the pickups. Another problem is that if you set the middle pickup too high, it might interfere with your picking hand.
Pickups Quality
The Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash pickups from a more specialized brand than the Harley Benton Nashville-Steel. Its pickups should give you a fuller, richer sound, although it all depends on what type of music you're going to play. We recommend these pickups for Hard Rock and similar genres.
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: Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash.
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
The Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash gives you 5 switch options while the Harley Benton Nashville-Steel gives you 0. This means that the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve
Only the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash comes with some kind of pickup modification: Coil Tap.
Coil Tap is similar to Coil Split but it works a bit differently. Instead of completely cancelling one of the coils of the humbucker, it only cuts part of the output once activated. Some people believe this gives the split pickups a more real single-coil sound.
When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.
Winner: Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash.
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 Nashville-Steel compares to the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Harley Benton Nashville-Steel is built in China while the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash is made in United States.
China has a bad reputation when it comes to building quality. However, times have changed and now respectable brands use China's cheap labor to build good instruments for a lower price. Don't discount a guitar only because it was built in China, but also expect more quality from countries like Korea.
The United States is considered one of the best electric guitar manufacturers in the world. A guitar made in this country is supposed to have world-class quality control. Nowadays, guitars made in other countries can beat some of the ones made in the US, but most of the time, this country offers the best you can get. Of course, that comes at a price.
Winner: Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash
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.
The Harley Benton Nashville-Steel has a Plastic nut. This is a low-quality nut that you might want to consider upgrading soon. Bone and TUSQ nuts are the best for guitars with a fixed or simple tremolo bridge.
On the other hand, the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash comes with a Bone nut. It's a type of nut found in high-quality instruments. They sound similar to Ivory since they give a lot of sustain and a bright sound (at least when striking open strings). The only problem they can run into is that you may get a bone piece that simply doesn't sound as well as others because that's just how natural materials are.
Winner: Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash.
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.
In this comparison, the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash is the only one that has 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: Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash.
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.
The Harley Benton Nashville-Steel's brige is a 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.
On the other hand, the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash's is a Tremolo. Tremolo bridges give you more versatility than fixed bridges. They let you perform the intense vibrato effects that would be impossible with a fixed bridge. However, since the bridge floats and there's less contact with the body, the strings lose sustain slightly faster. They can also be a bit harder to restring and set up correctly than fixed bridges.
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
The Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash has the best tuners of the two because they are 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: Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash.
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.
The Harley Benton Nashville-Steel has 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.
On the other hand, the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash comes with Bolt-On neck joint. This neck is joined to the body by 4 bolts that you can simply unscrew. This allows you to replace the neck or take it off for travel. It's the most common and cheapest way to build a guitar.
Winner: Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Harley Benton Nashville-Steel
- Expensive Wood
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash
- Stainless Steel Frets
- Locking Tuners
- Made in United States
- Expensive Wood
- Bone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Coil Tap Pickups
- Luminescent Inlay
- Tremolo
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Weight Relief
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
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, the Harley Benton Nashville-Steel has the wider nut with 43mm (1.693'') vs 42.9mm (1.688''). This is a 0.1mm (0.0050000000000001'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Harley Benton Nashville-Steel, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.
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.
In this case, both have a scale length of 25.5".
This is the scale used in most Stratocasters. It's slightly longer than the typical 24.75'' size found in Les Pauls, and it's one of the main reasons why Stratocasters have such a bright sound in general. A longer scale also means that the strings will have higher tension. This will help you get lower action without suffering fret buzz, which will also be helpful when playing in lower tunings without having to increase your string gauge.
However, this also means that there will be more separation between frets, which can make it more difficult to play. Also, bending the strings will require more strengths due to the increased tension, but remember that a tremolo guitar will offset this difficulty.
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 Nashville-Steel and the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash have a C-shaped neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.
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.
In this case, the Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash is the only one with a compound radius. This is a huge win because it will give you the best of both worlds: a more curved radius in the first few frets for chords, and flatter as you come closer to the body for soloing.
Fret Size
The Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature HSH Caramelized Ash has Jumbo frets, which should be taller than the Harley Benton Nashville-Steel's Medium frets.
Some people prefer taller frets because they result in more sustain since the strings get pressed cleanly without interference from the fretboard. However, if they're too tall—like Jumbo frets—, you might change the pitch of the strings accidentally if you press too hard because you won't be touching the fretboard with your fingers. This is also why some guitarists with a heavy grip prefer smaller frets. They like to feel the fingerboard to avoid pressing down too hard and getting out of pitch.
