Product: Harmony H73 Electric Archtop
Price Paid: US $350 used
Submitted
11/20/2003
at
02:27pm
by
erikray
Email: erikray<at>rocketmail dot com
Features
:
8
1964 (dates on back of pickups) thin-bodied electric archtop. Antique Sunburst finish. Unique double cutaway (similar to a fender Telecaster). Two Dearmond Gold Tone Indox pickups, two volume, two tone controls. Bolt-on neck. Tortoise-shell pickguard. Bigsby vibrato
Sound
:
10
This guitar has an amazing tone. I have about 10 other Harmony electrics (Rockets, Meteors, H74, Stratotone and Bobcat) and this one is one of the best. There is a wide range of tone and quality on the old Dearmond Goldtone pickups... you have to try many of these instruments out to find a really exceptional one. These goldtones have the individual pole pieces. I also have a 1972 Rocket with individual pole pieces on it's pickups, but it has nowhere near the tone of this H73. I think the best years for the Harmony thin-bodied archtops were from the early 1960's until around 1966, when they went to the plastic pickup borders. I have played many of them, but they don't seem to have the tone that the nonbound Dearmond pickups have.
I also have several vintage Gibson (ES-175) Guild (X-50) and Fender (strat) guitars. This old Harmony stacks up to the best them. It is great for blues, jazz and old rock. The tone is deep, warm and expressive. The Bigsby whammy bar really adds to the overall tone and expressiveness of this instrument.
Action, Fit, & Finish
:
9
Very playable guitar, comfortable to hold and lightweight. The intonation is fine, even considering the straight, adjustable bridge. It has a shorter scale, and is very easy to get around the neck. There are some finish cracks, and a major repaired crack on the side of the lower bout, but for a 40 year old guitar, it is remarkably well preserved. It has obviously been played, as the frets and fretboard are worn. It is one of the most comfortable guitars I have ever played.
Reliability/Durability
:
9
These things are built to last. I take them out on lots of gigs every year, and have yet to come up against any major problems. They stay in tune reasonably well, and are very dependable. The rear strap buttons have a tendency to come out or fall off. There is also a tendency for the input jack to crack the wood at the input site. Be careful!
Customer Support
:
No Opinion
Overall Rating
:
9
I've been playing for 25 years. My first guitar was an old Harmony Airline single pickup solid body electric, and I have a fondness for old Harmony instruments. I've played Gibson, Fender, Guild and Ibanez electrics for many years, onstage and in the studio, and these old Harmony's just seem to sound better to my ears than the others. I might be off my nut, but that is my honest opinion. There is a wide range of quality and tone in them, and it is hard to find a really good sounding one.
If it were lost or stolen, I would begin searching for another. There are a few of them out there, but the prices keep going up.
