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Harley Benton R-457BK

Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior

VS

Playability

72

Sound

65

Build

52

Value

78

Score

63

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Playability

73

Sound

69

Build

64

Value

64

Score

69

FIND IT ON:

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Harley Benton R-457BK vs Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior

Price History Comparison

Harley Benton R-457BK Prices

• New from €149 >>
• New from $249 >>

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Which One is Better Overall?

After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior is probably the better product overall with its final score of 69 compared to the Harley Benton R-457BK's 63 score, although not by a lot.

The Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior wins when it comes to sound, playability, build quality. On the other hand, the Harley Benton R-457BK has the upper hand when it comes to value for the money.

If you got small hands, you'll probably feel that the Harley Benton R-457BK is easier to play.

Which One is Better for Beginners?

If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Harley Benton R-457BK is the better choice.

The Harley Benton R-457BK meets 4 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior meets only 3. 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.

Nevertheless, when it comes to choosing an instrument, you should pick the one more compatible with your personal style. Still, below we'll try you to give you our results as objectively as it's possible to help you decide.

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 R-457BK

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.

It's similar to Mahogany and Koa but comes in a much darker color. Its tone is also comparable. As a dense wood, it gives a powerful punch with lots of resonance.

Basswood is a lightweight type of wood that isn't as expensive as other popular choices for guitar building. It gives more power to the mid-range frequencies. Its color can vary from pale white to light brown. Find out more about Basswood.

Woods Used in the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior

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.

Rosewood is an almost purple-looking wood that is used mainly for fretboards since it's heavy, rare, and expensive. It's sometimes used on acoustic guitar bodies to create stronger warm tones. Find out more about Rosewood.

Winner: Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior.

Pickup Configuration

The Harley Benton R-457BK has an HH configuration while the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior has P90 pickups.

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.

On the other hand, P90s are vintage pickups that are somewhere in the middle between a Humbucker and a single coil. They have decent output, and the tone is not too warm. It's a very particular type of sound that is used in many genres, but it was more popular decades ago.

Pickups Quality

The Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior pickups from a more specialized brand than the Harley Benton R-457BK. 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 Country 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: Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior.

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 Harley Benton R-457BK gives you 3 switch options while the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior gives you 0. This means that the Harley Benton R-457BK gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve

Neither of them come with some kind of coil split or pickup mod option. This makes both lacking in terms of versatility.

The Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior doesn't come with pickup switching options.

When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.

Winner: Harley Benton R-457BK.

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 R-457BK compares to the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior.

Country of Origin

The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Harley Benton R-457BK is built in China while the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior 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: Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior

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 R-457BK has a NuBone nut. It's made by the same company that makes TUSQ nuts. It's slightly softer but hard enough to give you a brighter sound when playing open strings. It's also self-lubricating, so it's good for tuning stability.

On the other hand, the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior comes with a Ivory Tusq nut. 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.

Winner: Tie.

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.

Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.

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

Both come with regular tuners. The Harley Benton R-457BK's are Deluxe diecast machine heads while the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior's are Vintage Deluxe strip with white buttons

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.

The Harley Benton R-457BK has a 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.

On the other hand, the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior comes with 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: Harley Benton R-457BK.

Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:

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 R-457BK has the wider nut with 48mm (1.89'') vs 43mm (1.693''). This is a 5mm (0.197'') difference

This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Harley Benton R-457BK, 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.

The Harley Benton R-457BK has the longest scale: 25.5". The Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior is only 24.75" long. This is a 0.75'' (19.1mm) 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.

In this case, both have different neck shapes:

The Harley Benton R-457BK has a D type of neck. This is a thin and flat neck that is made for playing fast. If you prefer a neck that doesn't get in your way when soloing, this is the shape you should use. Guitarists that prefer to have a bit more grip won't like this type of neck.

The Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior, on the other hand, has a V neck. This neck shape was more common during Fender's early years. Some people like it because they use their thumb over the edge of the fretboard to press the lower strings. It's rather thicker than most modern necks, so it's not usually used for playing fast solos.

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 Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Harley Benton R-457BK's. This extra arc will make playing chords easier in this model. You won't be as likely to mute the strings, especially if you have big hands. However, playing single notes and bending will be easier on the Harley Benton R-457BK.

Still, both tend to favor soloing over chords, so if you're looking for a guitar for playing rhythm, you might want something else with a radius closer to a Stratocaster's 9.5''.

Hand Size Comfortability

Everyone has a different hand size, and that's why it's recommended to try a guitar before buying, even if others tell you that it's comfortable to play. However, we can know whether a guitar favors small or large hands just by knowing its exact measurements.

And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior favors large hands more than the Harley Benton R-457BK.

Harley Benton R-457BK:

Gibson Lukas Nelson 56 Les Paul Junior:

Fret Size

Both have a Medium Jumbo fret size. These are slightly shorter than full Jumbo frets, so you'll still feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings. However, they interfere less with your fretting hand than medium-size frets. This is a good size if you like easy-to-press frets, but would still like to feel a bit of the fretboard when playing.

Final Playability Scores