Harmony guitar reissues

[Caffeine Patrol]

Has anybody heard anything about the quality or prices of the forthcoming Harmony reissues? Last time I checked the website (harmonyguitars.com) it just showed an enticing photo of the guitars and a notice that they were debuting at NAMM in January '08.

[Pete Galati]

http://harmonyguitars.com/

Are those gold foil pickups? I wonder if they're similar to the old ones, or just a cosmetic thing.

I just hope the new Harmonies are better than the originals. I think there'd be a lot more of the originals if people hadn't just tossed them in the trash.

[popthree]

cool, sign me up for the H44 & H49 ... I'll take 1 of each !

[Reno Sepulveda]

Reno want that Red Rocket

[John Backlund]

I know that I'll find a way to snag two of them over the next year or two. I've never owned a Harmony elelctric archtop (learned to pick on a jumbo 'Sovereign' though) but I grew up wanting one...so I must be 'the market' they're aiming at.

I suspect they'll be in the $400-800 range....but that's just a wild guess.

[threadbare]

Now I'm confused! I was hoping to Snag a Airline H44 clone from Eastwood guitars in the New Year. I'd been wanting one for a while to play slide on. Now I'll have to compare it to the Original.

[RevMike]

I like the Broadway!

[popthree]

Originally Posted by John Backlund

I suspect they'll be in the $400-800 range....but that's just a wild guess.

i hope they're on the low side of your wild guess....otherwise it would be wiser to hunt for a clean original on eBay.... though prices have been steadily moving up...

[musicalmartin]

sign me up for a Rocket .I still have an old and battered Sovereign rotting away slowly along with my lost youth , like an old viking ship .Great guitar .

[Oster]

If I want another Harmony, I want something that exudes '60s Chicago department store, not generic offshore 'retro'.

Original Harmonys are still well affordable and their Rowe Dearmond pickups are a wonder to behold. If you care about such details, the original plastic knobs and binding were celluloid and the rosewood usually brazilian. Yes they were cheap for their time but not what 'cheap' means today. They had character. These new ones - like a lot of retro styled knock-offs - just look like they have character.

It actually really saddens me that yet another American guitar tradition has been watered down by still more generic imitations. I'm really getting tired of this.

Of course people will say - no matter what (like they did with Danelectro) that the reissues are huge improvements over the originals. If they only knew...

[6942]

I have a twin pickup (sunburst) Harmony from the late 60's.
However it doesn't have the nice Dearmond pickups.
But rather the very microphonic Teisco pickups.
It's a one trick-pony surf guitar IMO.

Steve

[popthree]

Originally Posted by Oster

If I want another Harmony, I want something that exudes '60s Chicago department store, not generic offshore 'retro'.

Original Harmonys are still well affordable and their Rowe Dearmond pickups are a wonder to behold. If you care about such details, the original plastic knobs and binding were celluloid and the rosewood usually brazilian. Yes they were cheap for their time but not what 'cheap' means today. They had character. These new ones - like a lot of retro styled knock-offs - just look like they have character.

It actually really saddens me that yet another American guitar tradition has been watered down by still more generic imitations. I'm really getting tired of this.

Of course people will say - no matter what (like they did with Danelectro) that the reissues are huge improvements over the originals. If they only knew...

are you equally saddened that Teles and Strats are now also being made in Mexico, Indonesia and Korea ?

while i do agree with you that the originals are both cooler to own and play, and will certainly be worth more $$ down the road, there is some value to owning the repros as long as you like the style, sound and playability of the instrument.

I have one of the Danelectro 56 pro U2's... i believe it was made in 03. it is a great guitar and I get alot of enjoyment out of playing it. I think it plays, sounds and looks terrific Plus if it gets damaged the loss is not so much a heart breaker as woudl be if it were the 50 year old classic.

[boris bubbanov]

I had one, I sure don't ever want another.


Bubbanov

[Oster]

Originally Posted by popthree

are you equally saddened that Teles and Strats are now also being made in Mexico, Indonesia and Korea ?

In the long run, yes. But I am a hypocrite and I love my old Japanese Squier Stratocaster.

I honestly think too many American brands have been offshore-revived. When the Squiers were first made that wasn't the case. Now every time I turn around some American brand is being re-made overseas.

I love those old cheapie vintage American guitars. I'm always so pleasantly surprised with their unique sound and surprising playability. I too owned a Dano reissue which I thought was good until I bought a '63 original (which worked out to around the same price - you just have to look). There's really no comparison at all.

I'm always dismayed to see people instantly assume the re-issues to be improvements over the originals - usually because they have an adjustable truss rod. Neither my Dano nor my Harmonys had adjustable rods (just set reinforcement bars, like old Martins). Their necks have perfect relief. All 'adjustable truss rods' mean to me is that they have a better chance of having a ruined neck from over-tightening.

If someone's interested in the new Harmony line, that's fine of course but I would strongly encourage them to seek out a nice old original Chicago Harmony before they decide that they've been improved upon in any way.

I'm not even talking about resale value - just overall vibe, tone and history. They are probably one of the last affordable vintage American brands on the market and a real pleasure to discover.

[RevMike]

I had an old Harmony tenor archtop. It was really clean and in great shape. Played really well too. But I'm really heavy handed and I was always afraid of breaking it into a million pieces. For this reason, I like reissues better. Just my own opion.

[Oster]

Originally Posted by RevMike

I had an old Harmony tenor archtop. It was really clean and in great shape. Played really well too. But I'm really heavy handed and I was always afraid of breaking it into a million pieces. For this reason, I like reissues better. Just my own opion.

Play it till it breaks, man! Don't be afraid to play something that sounds great just because it's old and delicate!

I've been down that road. I'd leave my old, rare guitars at home and take something cheap and new to the gig. I was always afraid of wear or theft.

Then I'd get home and play my old guitars - the ones I record with - in love with the sound and feel.

Nowadays my '71 Tele sits out on the stand and comes to the gig, the way it's supposed to!

Those old wooden floating bridges on Harmonys don't like bends; they're from a pre-bendy time. I found that adjusting my playing to accomodate them is a rewarding musical experience.

[John Backlund]

I went into the local Harley shop today to do one of my bi-annual 'snoops' and to just look at all the shiny things hanging on racks.

They have a line of beautiful 'retro' leather jackets with 'racer' collars, great two-tones of ivory and black leather with a large, colorfully embroiderd back that was all about 'American Harley tradition' and 'blah, blah, blah'. Tag inside said 'Made in China'. I checked another great-looking jacket and the same deal, China!

I then looked at the tags in a display holding about a hundred embroidered baseball caps...all made in China.

I guess we're 'over' our resistance to the out-sourcing of our national icons if even Harley-Davidson doesn't give a damn anymore and pumps it's stores full of foreign 'sucker-bait' for their blindly-loyal followers.

Heck! what's another off-shore guitar re-issue anyway?

[Tim Armstrong]

Heck, I just did some remodeling work for a little old lady who (in addition to paying for the job) gave me a tin of "Danish-style Cookies", made in, yep, China!

It strikes me as insane that cheap sugar cookies had to be shipped halfway around the world because they were a few cents cheaper than something made locally!

Cheers, Tim

[Caffeine Patrol]

I guess "affordable" is a relative term. I love the old Harmony Rockets and currently have a great H-74, but I personally think they're going for way too much money. Stratotones going for $1k and up? Yet another case of the "vintage craze" sucking the fun right out of things. I'm hoping the reissues are cool, constructed reasonably well, and cheap.
BTW, saw Kenny Vaughan on the Opry with Marty Stuart awhile back, and he was playing a Harmony.

[John Backlund]

Originally Posted by Tim Armstrong

It strikes me as insane that cheap sugar cookies had to be shipped halfway around the world because they were a few cents cheaper than something made locally!

Cheers, Tim

That's the thing! With something like baseball caps at least, can't Harley-Davidson find a GD domestic maker for these things? or are they SO strapped for cash that they absolutely MUST squeeze EVERY GD nickel that they can even out of the smallest of items? I mean, damn! so WHAT if an embroidered cap costs $5 bucks more from a domestic maker (if there are any that is), it's not like they're shy about asking 20+ G's for some of their motorcycles in the face of much less expensive import bikes. They might just as well have their bike production off-shore too.....oh! wait...that would be un-American wouldn't it?..might tarnish their highly-touted 'American heritage and tradition' image. Bogus.

I know the local 'Dollar Giant' store has ALL kinds of candy thats imported from China. Who in their right mind would put Chinese candy in their, or their kids mouths knowing how lax they've been with the safety of a lot of the other products that have come into this country from China?

I might buy a Jay turser guitar once in a while...but I won't lick the damn thing....(hey! I just coined my new sig!)

[John Backlund]

Originally Posted by Caffeine Patrol

I guess "affordable" is a relative term. I love the old Harmony Rockets and currently have a great H-74, but I personally think they're going for way too much money. Stratotones going for $1k and up? Yet another case of the "vintage craze" sucking the fun right out of things. I'm hoping the reissues are cool, constructed reasonably well, and cheap.
BTW, saw Kenny Vaughan on the Opry with Marty Stuart awhile back, and he was playing a Harmony.

I also hope the Harmony re-issues aren't priced as high as my 'blue-sky guestimation' made earlier in this thread.

A $700 'Rocket' is going to look pretty pale put up against a $350 Ibanez artcore AF75BS (a Chinese-built, bargain-priced, Gibson L5 're-issue'). If they can make, and sell the 'Rocket' for under $500 they may have a chance, but nostalgia is only worth so much if the hardware isn't 'there'.

If the Harmony re-issues are much over $500, they're going to be the guitar-world's version of the old saying: 'Making a silk purse out of a sow's ear'.

However, If they're as 'true' to the originals as can be made today, I'll almost certainly still buy one.

[JStella]

Originally Posted by Tim Armstrong

Heck, I just did some remodeling work for a little old lady who (in addition to paying for the job) gave me a tin of "Danish-style Cookies", made in, yep, China!

It strikes me as insane that cheap sugar cookies had to be shipped halfway around the world because they were a few cents cheaper than something made locally!

Cheers, Tim

This is the main reason most products now completely suck in terms of materials. When everything is shipped from China, weight becomes one of the major factors in cost. Plastic everything.

- Josh

[eryque]

The economies and politics of offshore production are much, much more complex than all this. In the example of Harley Davidson hats: is the company so strapped for cash? Well, yeah, actually, but that ain't it. They just figured out how much people are willing to pay for an item, and have to figure a way to maximize profit to meet that price point. Or make any profit. It's highly likely that if they were to make all of their clothes in America that there wouldn't be any profit it in it, so they wouldn't sell it.

But back to the Harmonies... I always dug them thought I've never owned one. Secretly, I want any and everything associated with Chicago to be of the utmost quality and I harbor a little resentment that the best that Chicago businesses could do was to make low-end instruments to sell at Marshall Field's.

I suspect that they're going to come in around the same price point as the Ibanez archtops, and I suspect that because of that they're not going to last very long on the market.

[johnnykf]

Here's a video I think is very relevant to the offshoring issue contained in this discussion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIXGXyQ6L1Q

Doesn't name any particular country of origination so I hope I'm politically correct in posting it.

[Big Mike Simpson]

Originally Posted by johnnykf