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Average Price: $900
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Description
Step into a world of vintage flair and sonic versatility with the Harmony Rocket Guitar, a semi-hollowbody electric that marries classic aesthetics with modern playability. Revered by collectors and musicians alike, this iconic instrument was first introduced in the late '50s and has captured the hearts of many with its distinct tonal character and style. The Harmony Rocket stands out with its eye-catching single cutaway design, making it a favorite for those who seek both visual and auditory appeal.
The Rocket's semi-hollow body construction delivers warm, resonant tones, perfect for genres ranging from jazz to rock. Its dual pickups provide a wide range of sonic possibilities, whether you're looking for that crisp, clean sound or a more gritty, overdriven edge. Navigate your tonal palette effortlessly with the intuitive three-way pickup selector and four control knobs, giving you the freedom to shape your sound on the fly.
Crafted with a timeless sense of style, the Harmony Rocket’s trapeze tailpiece and dot inlays add a touch of elegance, reminiscent of its storied past. This guitar is not just an instrument; it's a piece of history, favored by notable musicians like Dan Auerbach and Wayne Coyne, ensuring its legendary status in the world of music.
Key Features:
- Semi-hollowbody construction with a single cutaway design
- Two pickups for versatile sound output
- Three-way pickup selector for easy tone switching
- Four control knobs for precise sound customization
- Trapeze tailpiece and dot inlays for classic aesthetics
Product specs
| Brand | Harmony |
| Model | Rocket H54 |
| Finish | Redburst |
| Year | 1966 |
| Made In | United States |
| Categories | Hollow Body Guitars |
| Body Shape | Single Cutaway |
| Body Type | Hollow Body |
| Bridge/Tailpiece Type | Stop-Bar |
| Color Family | Red |
| Finish Pattern | Sunburst |
| Neck Construction | Set-Neck |
| Number of Frets | 20 |
| Number of Strings | 6-String |
| Pickup Configuration | SS |
| Right / Left Handed | Right Handed |
FAQs
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What are the tonal characteristics of the Harmony Rocket Guitar?
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The Harmony Rocket Guitar is known for its warm, rich tones with a distinctive vintage vibe, making it ideal for blues, rock, and jazz. Its hollow body design enhances resonance and sustain, providing a unique sound profile.
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How does the Harmony Rocket Guitar's pickup configuration affect its sound?
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The Harmony Rocket Guitar features a dual single-coil pickup configuration, which delivers a bright and clear tone. This setup is versatile, allowing for crisp clean sounds as well as gritty overdriven tones, suitable for various music styles.
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Is the Harmony Rocket Guitar suitable for beginners?
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The Harmony Rocket Guitar is a good choice for beginners who are interested in exploring vintage-style guitars. Its comfortable neck and lightweight body make it easy to play, although its unique sound characteristics may appeal more to players with specific style preferences.
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What is the neck profile like on the Harmony Rocket Guitar?
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The Harmony Rocket Guitar features a set-neck construction with a comfortable and playable profile, designed for smooth transitions across the fretboard. This makes it suitable for both rhythm and lead playing.
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Does the Harmony Rocket Guitar work well with effects pedals?
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Yes, the Harmony Rocket Guitar pairs well with a variety of effects pedals. Its clear and articulate pickups ensure that effects like overdrive, reverb, and delay are pronounced and effective, enhancing its tonal versatility.
Videos
GuitarPoint
1959 Harmony Rocket H54 - Sunburst / GuitarPoint Maintal / Vintage Guitars
Reviews
Owner Insights
We analyzed real musician discussions from forums and Reddit to find what players love, question, and tweak about Harmony Rocket Guitar.
Build quality
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The headstock shape suggests a late '50s or early '60s model, often lacking an adjustable truss rod, which affects long-term playability.
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Setup and maintenance
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Harmony guitars were produced with non-adjustable truss rods, making them harder to adjust for low action compared to higher-end brands like Gibson.
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Original gold foil pickups were top-mounted, complicating restoration to original specs after routing for humbuckers.
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Owners often face challenges seeing internal codes through the f-holes, which complicates dating the guitar accurately.
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Restringing may reveal the necessity for a new bridge, common in older models after prolonged storage or use.
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Features and functionality
User experience
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Owners note that these guitars often require professional assessment to determine feasibility and cost of restoration, especially for optimal action settings.
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Comparisons
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Harmony guitars, built more economically than Gibson or Gretsch models, often age poorly in terms of playability, but can be exceptional if they have adjustable truss rods.
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Vintage American DeArmond pickups are noted for their quality but require careful selection to avoid worn-out models.
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Mods and upgrades
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GFS offers vintage foil pickups as potential replacements for standard-sized pickups, useful for restoring original style without high costs.
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Curtis Novak provides high-quality modern reproductions of original gold foils, though they may be considered pricey.
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Shining a flashlight inside the f-holes can reveal codes to help date the guitar, useful for identifying specific Harmony Rocket models like the H54.
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A custom pickguard and truss rod cover, reminiscent of Baldwin-era Gretsch, are popular modifications among owners seeking unique aesthetics.
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Based on 0 Reviews and 6 Ratings
Artist usage
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Jack White used the Harmony Rocket Guitar primarily during the White Stripes era.
This was Randy’s first electric guitar. It was an old guitar that belonged to his mother Delores, and it was used by students at her music school called “Musonia”. After Randy gained interest in electric guitar, she introduced him to Scott Shelly who worked at the school, and during this time Randy learned the basics of the electric guitar.
"I also played an old Harmony Rocket—Dave Davies used one with the Kinks—with the DeArmond screen pickups. It’s a great, coolsounding 335-style guitar, but totally hollow."
Jon Foreman is seen using a Harmony model H59 Rocket 3 pickup in sunburst. Close up shots of Jon with the guitar are seen at 0:03 and 0:13. It is easily identifiable by 3 its Dearmond gold foil pickups, 6 white knobs ; 3 volume and 3 tone knobs, and its rotary selector switch. Along with at 1:26 the headstock and its long writing.
Mentioned in this February 1992 Guitar Player interview, as archived on this Open Computing Facility fan page.
While old Fender Mustangs are his main paramour ("I'm used to them - that was the first guitar I had"), Steve cultivates a modest collection of rarer birds, naturally coveting mod '60s models. "I like Harmony guitars a lot," he says, "the Harmony Rocket, the Harmony Stratotone. Real low-level guitars. Mark and I seem to have a lot of Hagstroms between us. Also, I'd love to have a Mosrite Ventures-type solidbody and a Gretsch DuoJet solidbody." When grilled about his "dream guitar," Turner unearths a real prize: "I really like the Gretsch Astro-Jet, is pretty cool looking - like an SG pulled and stretched." Steve's amp aesthetic is way groovy too. "I've got a pretty old Fender Super Reverb. It doesn't even have a master volume or anything. And I've got smaller things like an Ampeg Portaflex. You can flip the top up and carry it like a suitcase." Turner is particularly proud of his most recent amp dig-up, called the Excelsior. "I bought it at a store that mainly sells accordions. Some accordion player had it in his basement for 20 years. I have no idea where it was made, but the store that sold it to me sold it to this guy 20 years ago!"
In this YouTube video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFR__Ic_JIs) he can be seen playing a single pickup 6 string Harmony guitar with a cutaway and vertical writing on the headstock at 1:16 which is almost identical to this guitar (https://guitars.azureedge.net/aza/user/gear/1960-harmony-rocket-hollow-body-e-yello-5h5reVk.jpg) - a 1960 Harmony Rocket Single Pickup. The only notable difference is the vertical letters on the headstock. If you pause the video at 1:16 using 0.25x playback speed you can ready the word "SONNY" on the headstock but there are no "Harmony Sonny Guitars" that can be found on Google so the guitar may have been modified at some point by a previous owner or himself.
In an interview with Cultura Livre, Tim Bernardes mentioned that the Harmony Rocket Guitar was previously used by Rodrigo Amarante with Little Joy. The guitar is featured on the "66" album cover and was played by Bernardes during the "Melhor do que Parece Tour."
"I also own a 94 Strat, a 68 Harmony Rocket which i write on a lot, a nylon/classical which i used to write on a lot, and Alvarez 6-string acoustic, an Alvarez 12-str acoustic, a Kay Old Kraftsman Thin-Twin (Jimmy Reed, Hubert Sumlin, & my dad) and an old Fernandes “elephant” battery-powered built-in speaker guitar."
Genre Usage
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Used With
Based on how musicians on Equipboard use Harmony Rocket Guitar, it is most commonly used with the following gear.
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