Yep, HB are Thomanns in-house guitar brandHarley Benton are owned by Thomann AFAIK, I'd imagine any electric at rock bottom prices would have to be useless, that brand and Squire do have guitars around the €400 and upwards which is what I'd be looking at.
My HB bass is €169 and is ok to learn on
You’re right, €400 is where the quality jumps up for them
Lower tier ones have crappy wood, electronics can be spotty etc


