H945 - Master
Acoustic archtop - Sunburst
Production year(s) : 1954-1971 (other years possible, not verified)

Other brands : H945 Master was also sold as Alden 9916 | Holiday 9314 | Regal R240

Real bindings - all birch body

Show text from the catalogs (3)

| Show original prices (9)

66 images in database
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Top wood	Birch
Body wood	Birch
All solid woods

Scale

25"1/4

642 mm

18 comments | Add your comment !

• Bruce N - 2007-08-31
  I found an old H945 Master version, this one was converted into Trichord (3pairs) style, using a custom bridge, strange, interesting! attempting to learn to play it. I wonder if anyone has something like it...
• Christian Pickup - 2007-10-26
  I have a Master H945 from '57. She's in rough shape (some cracks in top, and a couple nicks on the back of neck, and the original tailpiece is long gone) but still sounds wonderful. Over the years, the neck had warped, making the action very high. I took it to a tech and had the bridge filed down and the frets adjusted. That cost me over $100. Now whe plays like a dream, with a gorgeous sound. The scratches, cracks and dents only ad to her appeal.
• smkess - 2007-12-08
  I have a beautiful H945 made in the summer of 1970 in pristine condition. Almost perfect. Original everything including case & business card from the store is was originally purchased from. It plays great, I don't even think the strings were ever changed and they still sound good. Mostly hangs with my collection, and gets played from time to time. Bought it in 2005 for $180 from a friend who's Dad bought it new and never played it, sat in case until I got it. Worth every penny! It's a gem!
• bobby boogie - 2008-05-04
  I have a 1964 master, I love it ! Open D slide awesome.
• retro daddy - 2008-05-30
  My H945 has a stencil and is not scrolled, looks a lot older than all of the pics posted here.
  Any ideas when they stopped doing this kind of paint? Appears to be more 1940's made.
  Harmony and Master are clearly Stencil.
• geochemistry - 2008-08-17
  After not touching a musical instrument for 25 years, I bought a Master because I fondly remembered a friends guitar. The tones are great, the tuning keys are precise, and with a little elbow grease and automotive "Nu Finish Scratch Doctor", the laquer finish is as bright or brighter than when new. What a great re-intro into music.
• Andy - 2008-10-02
  this is a nice little blues/jazz box. its well intonated up to about the 13th or 14th fret depending on what string your playing, all in all id say if your a beginner or early intermediate this is a great buy, but if your more serious save your cash and get a guitar thats as serious about music as you.
• DMAN - 2009-01-14
  Yeah, I have an OLD Harmony master, but i have no idea what model, it looks very similar to the pics, but the name is in stencil, it says made in usa, but nothing below that regarding the reinforced neck. it's beat to hell, my grandfather gave it to me, it was beat up then too, but it has been hanging up on my wall just because i like the archtop design. has no pic guard, but the holes are there from when it did and the tail piece has been replaced years ago.
• Lauren - 2009-02-10
  My mom just gave me her Harmony Master Guitar that her dad gave her when sge was 10. The guitar is probably from the late 60s/ early 70s, but I am not sure. It has all of the original pieces, except for the case. It sounds really good, and looks good too.
• kyle davis - 2009-03-27
  i have a 61 silvertone that i cant seem to find an exact match but the harmony master is the closest i have found so far. love the tone and has great action. lucked out getting it for 80$ (especially in the great condish its in).
• Ranger Rick - 2009-07-24
  Just got a "Master" in near excellent condition for $200. Never had an archtop but alwasy liked the way they looked. This guitar plays very well with a nice mellow tone and great action. Not a very loud instrument but I can't seem to put it down. I also own a Martin dreadnought, a Fender Telecaster and a 1960 Gretch Clipper. My Master is by far the cheapest guitar I have but it sure is fun to play.
• Ruth - 2009-12-26
  I owned a H945 Harmony Master identical to the one in pictures .21jpg,.20jpg,.05jpg,.04jpg,and.01jpg which are toward the end of the photos listed. My parents gave it to me when I was 15 back in 1958. It had a gorgeous tone, but when I got arthritis in my hands the arched neck that the Harmony had became hard for me to play. It was in excellent condition a local music shop had evaluated it at around $1,000. Unfortunately for me I no longer have it, because in Nov. 2004 while on day 4 of a 21 day trip my apt. was broken into by people looking for things to sell for drugs. The police did nothing to find it or the other items taken and advised me when I arrived home to go looking for it. I knew full well it had long since left my part of the Nova Scotia as most drug realted stolen items are usually sent out of province.
• june bugg - 2010-04-20
  I just finished doing surgery to my harmony master... it had been sat upon, and really badly broken... with a little glue, strings, and a set of new tuners, it plays like a dream... not too big on the stenciled fret dots, so i strippet the neck and made some round inlays... sad to say that the tone was better when it was broken... go figure... but still, i love it and i will keep it forever....
• Frankly Speaking - 2011-01-12
  I just 'recouped' an H945 from it's original giutar case, that I've had since about 1959. I quit playing in 1961, when after a party. I got home to my dark room and sat on top of it, which was on my bed----embarrased, thinking that it could not be repaired, I never looked at it until this past (2010) summer, when someone said that it could be repaired. Sure enough, a luthier, took the top off, repaired it, adjusted the unwarped neck, tuned it, and now it rings like a bell, with the best flat wound strings I could find. The cracks are visible, but tight, and glued. I've seen some really famous players sounding really good with some really beat up 'road' guitars. So, I've again taken up playing, and intend to teach my Grandsons to keep the light on before they get home. This is the best thing I've done for myself in 49 years. Thanks to all Muscians who can make it happen. Semper Fi
• Ted Hogan - 2011-10-09
  My first guitar at age 10 was a 1963 Harmony Master 945. I still have it, though it sat in the case unappreciated and unplayed for years after I graduated high school. I recently replaced the strings and adjusted the bridge to correct intonation. It surprised me how well it plays and sounds after nearly 50 years. Can't beat the retro look and sound. I plan to upgrade to a bone nut and ebony bridge to brighten the sound a bit, but by golly, I think I'll keep her.
• kaleb - 2011-11-03
  i traded for one of these. It had been refinished and had new grovers and a bone nut added. Its great!
• Joe - 2011-11-09
  I just purchased one in perfect condition. My father's best friend used to set one on my lap when I was five or six years old and let me strum it. I've never been the same.
• ARumRunner - 2011-11-22
  I've been looking for an old Harmony arch top for years to set up as a slide guitar for some foot stomp'n Delta Blues and Bluesy Folk. At long last I found this H945 in close to mint condition. I bought it off a young gall who said it sat in her closet for a few years and was given to her by an older gentleman she was looking after in an retirement residence. The only way I could date it is by the music scores that came with the guitar in the case, all from 1957. Three years before I was born. I have a musical family so this Harmony will sing again!