What it is
The Harmony Comet is a modern hollow body guitar built in the United States as part of the revived Harmony lineup.
It features a double cutaway body, set neck construction, solid mahogany center block, and nitrocellulose finish. While it draws on the general language of classic double cutaway thinline guitars, and pulls tastefully from Harmony’s vintage catalogue, it’s not a direct recreation of any specific vintage model.
Like other modern Harmony instruments, it combines traditional materials with a more contemporary approach to consistency and playability.
Why it’s a sleeper
The Comet occupies a space that tends to get crowded quickly.
Fully hollow electrics are often either:
- entry-level and inconsistent
- or high-end and expensive
The Comet sits between those extremes.
It’s U.S.-made, consistently well built, and uses components that are typically associated with more expensive instruments. At the same time, it doesn’t carry the same brand recognition as more established hollow body names, which keeps used pricing relatively accessible.
That combination—build quality without strong brand inflation—is where the value shows up.
What it’s like to live with
The Comet feels controlled and balanced.
It doesn’t have the wide, airy response of a larger archtop, and it doesn’t behave like a semi-hollow either. It sits somewhere in between—resonant enough to feel alive, but contained enough to remain predictable.
Compared to a full hollow body like the Godin 5th Avenue Kingpin II, the Comet feels slightly more focused and less acoustically forward. It behaves more like an electric that happens to be hollow, rather than an acoustic instrument adapted for amplification.
The neck and overall build are consistent, with less variation from guitar to guitar than you might expect from older hollow body designs. Like other guitars in the modern Harmony lineup, the Comet is a wonderful player with a great neck and a refined tone. It’s also very comfortable, with a body size smaller than ES-335 sized guitars like the Guild Starfire. With louder projection than a solid body, and its comfortable size, it makes a wonderful couch guitar.
Variants and pricing
The Comet has appeared in a few different pickup configurations, most commonly:
- dual gold-foil style pickups
- variations in finishes and minor spec details
Typical pricing:
- New: $1,400–$1,800
- Used: $800–$1,200
As with other modern Harmony guitars, used pricing is where the value becomes more apparent.
What to look out for
- General setup and fretwork
- Electronics and pickup balance
- Condition of the finish
These guitars are generally consistent, so issues tend to be minor and setup-related rather than structural.
Buying notes
The Comet is best approached as a modern hollow body rather than a vintage-style instrument.
It shares some visual cues with classic designs, but feels more refined and predictable in practice. Players expecting the looser, more resonant behavior of older hollow bodies may find it more controlled than expected.
For those looking for a U.S.-made hollow body that sits comfortably between traditional archtops and semi-hollows, the used market is where these tend to make the most sense.