Hofner HM88

Solid German spruce top, 650mm, 19 fret. Finish body gloss, top satin. Modern rosette. Overall the details speeks volume of quality.

The sound is crisp and precise both in discant and bass. The g-string has real tone to it, on other guitars its useually the problem whith g-string sounding like someone is tapping carbord. But not on this guitar. Its the best sound I ever poroduced on a classical guitar.

The action come in a bit high, but instead of adjusting the string height I will change my playing style.

I can easily see my self perform at a consert with this guitar.

Its a keeper,and if stolen I would replace it with anoth HM88. I played for 30 years and have never owen a instrument like this one. I have more expensive handmade guitars but this one beats them all,.

This is an update to what I wrote in 2003. In fours years the guitar has been played quite a bit and has improved in overall sound. The top has a more aged look, which is very attractive. I did have intonation problems, as did some other players listed on the site. I took it to a shop in San Diego, the Blue Guitar, which does all of the repair work for Guitar Salon International and the Romeros. I had the neck heat bent and refretted, which solved the intonation problems and improved the action. The few hundred dollars invested was well worth it. It is still among my favorite guitars.

solid spruce top with satin finish and gloss solid rosewood back and side the guitar has a wood rosette and it doesn't look like the finish was done adequately but overall the guitar is very nice. The satin finish is something I think more guitar makers should use I believe it allows the top to sound better.

The sound of the guitar out of the box was terrible but after putting new strings on the guitar the guitar sounds very nice and will surely open up more over time. The trebles are bell like and the basses are sweet, but not spanish sounding. The sustain is very good and intonation is fine.

the factory setup was not to my likes but was remedied within a few minutes now the guitar is perfect. the finish is great and the wood is a nice grain

This is a quality guitar signed by Mr Fischer it will last for many years with proper care

not pleased with the shop I bought it from but alas it not hofner that I am unpleased with

I have many high end guitars and this is a very nice guitar to add to my collection the guitar. I particularly like the headstock it is a very attractive guitar

I have a millenium edition. It looks beautiful with the satin finish and wooden tuning heads. I know they're only cosmetic but fortunately the sound is as good as the finish.

This is where the guitar scores both highest and lowest marks. The tone is rich, with fantastic depth and superb sustain. When playing low down the neck the guitar has as good a sound as any concert guitar I have played (a few).

There is one significant drawback however, the intonation is definately wrong. With particular problems on the 3rd string higher up the fretboard. This is of course somewhat inevitable on any guitar due to the physics of harmony and resonance, but I have played much cheaper guitars with much better intonation.

I guess you do indeed get what you pay for, fabulous tone, crappy intonation. That's why it's not the price of a top concert guitar.

Satin finish is nice, but I cannot see the dust and dirt so I don't know when it needs a good clean.

rock solid build quality

The HM-88 is Hofner's high-end classical guitar. It boasts solid woods, hand-craftsmanship and even comes with impressive-looking sound graphic showing the audio-properties of the guitar. The top finish is a bit synthetic and flat--a satin like finish--but it otherwise looks like a good classical guitar. The resemblance soon ends, however.

This is where the guitar fell down. When I bought it it was brand new and like most classical guitars with new strings--the strings were in that "streching out" phase which usually takes an hour or two of playing to get over. It was impossible to accurately tune, which I attibuted to the new strings. It also sounded a bit muddy--not bad--but which I also attributed to the strings. Big mistake on both counts. Usually I am careful in assessing a new guitar, but last year I bought a Hofner Jazzica which was/is an excellent guitar all around. I thought that because the Jazzica was excellent, the HM88 would be similar. Again, big mistake. Never could play all the way through a tune on the HM88without going out of tune. It appeared that the intonation was wrong-some problem with the frets perhaps. I changed strings. This improved tone somewhat but not intonation. I play traditonal/old jazz tunes and some classical --all for my own amusement. But there was nothing amusing about this guitar at all.

Intonation was bad. Tuners were a bit chinzty as well. They looked good, but I don't think the gears would stand up to long term use. The factory should have caught the problem with intonation. I just wanted a simple quality guitar that sounded good. They didn't deliver.

Got rid of it immediately once it became apparent that it was an attractive piece of junk. I play for pleasure and don't have time for this kind of nonsense. It was unplayable.

Didn't bother. They got my money. I was stupid. To Hofner's credit, though, the Hofner Jazzica I bought a year or so back was and remains a first rate guitar. It sounds great, plays well acoustically or electrically--and stands up with the biggees. I also have a Gibson Super 400 and an L5, been playing 30+ years off and on, and know whereof I speak.

Had this guitar been stolen, I would have felt sorry for the thief--unless he/she were tone-deaf.

The HM88 was completed in March of 2003. It is a Millennium Edition built by Hofner's most senior and experienced luthier, Dieter Fischer, and comes with his personal certificate of authenticity. The top is solid German spruce with a very stunning rosette and a satin finish. The sides and back are solid rosewood with a high gloss finish. The contrast in the different finishes is quite stunning and beautiful. The neck is made of ash; the finger board is made of ebony; the tuning pegs are rosewood, and the machine heads are gold plated.

I have been searching for a new classical guitar for over a year and have tried several of the traditional makes such as Jose Ramirez, Hermanos Conde, Cordoba, etc. None of the instruments I played, however, could match the quality of sound I found in the Hofner HM 88 Millennium Edition. The balance between the bass, midrange, and trebles is as close to perfection as I have heard. The overall sound is full and clear.

The action and was very much to my liking. The fit was the best I have felt. I was fortunate in that the dealer had three HM88's for me to try. Each guitar had a slightly different feel and the one I chose was perfect for me. The finish is very was beautiful with a very slight flaw in the underside pin striping, which you have to look very close to find.

I can't see how a guitar could be better built.

The customer service I received was outstanding. My local music store gave me the number of the North American distributor of Hofner in Los Angeles, and he invited me to his office so I could play the entire selection of classical guitars Hofner makes. In addition, I received a bunch of goodies.

I have been playing Classical Guitar for 32 years. I wish I had had this guitar for all of that time. This is a guitar that will only get better with age. One that can be passed from generation to generation. A truly world class instrument. The only drawback is that at the time I purchased the guitar, Hofner did not make a hard shell case for its classical line of guitars. However I have recently learned that Hofner is currently or will soon make a hard shell case.

This guitar was made in Germany as a HM 88 Millennium Edition by Luthier Dieter Fischer. The top is solid select German Spruce,with a matt finish with solid Rosewood back and sides with a high gloss hand rubbed finish. The neck is Ash with Ebony fretboard. The Rosset is quite different from any Spanish guitars. The Bride is Rosewood.

This instrument is the best I have ever played. The basses are bold and bright the trebles and clear and brillant with great sustain. The only way the describe the sound is concert level.

The Action is light and quick to the touch. It is of meduim weight for a classical because of the Rosewood gives it more weight, and the finish on the guitar is superb.

This istrument is concert quality and would do well in a large concert hall. It is German made of the best wood available made by a single luthier. What more can be said

Boosey & Hawkes is Hoefners international distrubutor worldwide and are a great company to work with. They help me locate an HM 88 and shipped it to the music store of my choosing where I played the instrument and bought it immedially. It a great way to play the instrument before I decided to buy it. There is no other way to discribe this instrument but Awesome. Especially for the price!! This guitar is worth $3000 to $5000. And compare with any in that price range I have played including Rameriz, Contreras, Rodriguez etc. in my opinion

I'm 51 and I've been playing to long to rememerber. Since I was 9.

It was hand-made in 1972 in Germany. It has 22 frets, and is solid Brazilian Rosewood with a chery fertboard. It has 24kt platted machine heads and is a high quality guitar. It doesn't have too many features, but is has all an acustic can have.

Best sound I have ever heard

Perfect

It is 30 years old and it's still perfect

Hofner has passed away but I love him

Perfect