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<strong>Höfner</strong> specialist dealer:<br />
Guitars & Basses<br />
– since 1887 –<br />
Karl <strong>Höfner</strong> GmbH & Co. KG<br />
Egerlandstr. 38<br />
91083 Baiersdorf-Hagenau<br />
Germany<br />
Tel. +49 (0) 9133-7758-0<br />
Fax +49 (0) 9133-7758-58<br />
hofner@hofner.com<br />
www.hofner.com<br />
<strong>Höfner</strong><br />
Classical<br />
Guitars<br />
HS<br />
HF<br />
HZ<br />
HGL<br />
HM<br />
Guitars & Basses<br />
– since 1887 –
Karl <strong>Höfner</strong>, founder<br />
of the company<br />
President (1956)<br />
Guitars & Basses<br />
– since 1887 –<br />
Golden <strong>Höfner</strong> (1960)<br />
500/1 (1956)<br />
HGL 50 SE<br />
Karl <strong>Höfner</strong> – One Century of Guitar Making<br />
Master violin maker Karl <strong>Höfner</strong> founded his own stringed and fretted instrument<br />
company in Schönbach, Germany in 1887. With a reputation for quality,<br />
craftsman-ship and innovation, <strong>Höfner</strong> soon became the largest manufacturer<br />
of stringed and fretted instruments in Germany. Thus, in 1907 Karl <strong>Höfner</strong> was<br />
entrusted with the repair of the King of Saxony’s violin, and the master performed<br />
his job to the full satisfaction of his client.<br />
When his two sons, Josef and Walter, joined their father’s company in 1919<br />
and 1921 respectively, acoustic <strong>guitars</strong> already represented a significant part<br />
of <strong>Höfner</strong>’s instrument production. In a market dominated by inexpensive<br />
student <strong>guitars</strong> during the 1920s and 1930s, <strong>Höfner</strong> <strong>classical</strong> <strong>guitars</strong> were<br />
already establishing new standards and the company capitalized on that<br />
leadership during the decades that followed.<br />
Josef and Walter expanded <strong>Höfner</strong>’s worldwide exports, especially to North<br />
America and the Far East. To date more than two million stringed and fretted<br />
instruments - from student to master models - have been produced, 75% of<br />
which have been exported worldwide, emphasizing the outstanding position<br />
enjoyed by Karl <strong>Höfner</strong> GmbH & Co. KG in the world market.<br />
The product range of <strong>Höfner</strong> is extensive and not only limited to string instruments<br />
and acoustic <strong>guitars</strong>. In 1955 Walter <strong>Höfner</strong>, a creative businessman as well<br />
as a violin and guitar maker, invented an electrically amplified semi-acoustic<br />
bass. The distinctive 500/1 bass was launched at the 1956 Frankfurt Music<br />
Fair and subsequently rose to fame under a different name. In 1961 Paul<br />
McCartney bought his first <strong>Höfner</strong> bass in a music shop in Hamburg. Paul’s<br />
‘Beatle Bass’ can be heard on many of the Beatles‘ most famous songs and<br />
still accompanies him on stage and in the studio to this day.<br />
A new chapter in <strong>Höfner</strong> history began in 1997 when the company moved to<br />
a new production facility near the village of Hagenau. Millions of Euros have<br />
since been invested in state-of-the-art, environmentally-friendly production<br />
technologies.<br />
With innovation and product development, <strong>Höfner</strong> continues to set trends in<br />
the world market, especially in the field of <strong>classical</strong> <strong>guitars</strong>. The ‘Green Line’<br />
series uses only renewable European tone woods, varnished in an environmentally<br />
neutral way. This results in a perfect synthesis between traditional guitar making<br />
and respect for the limited resources of our environment.<br />
Guitar production around 1965<br />
A major asset of <strong>Höfner</strong> is the large<br />
selection of naturally air-dried and<br />
seasoned tonewood.
Only the best hand-selected German<br />
spruce is used by our guitar makers for<br />
the top of an HS and HF <strong>classical</strong> guitar.<br />
If the instrument is played regularly, the<br />
sound of the solid spruce top will improve<br />
over the years, much like the way a good<br />
wine achieves its full maturity over time.<br />
See page 10/11 for specifications.<br />
HF 12 – HS 513<br />
HS 518<br />
Guitars & Basses<br />
– since 1887 –<br />
HZ 26 with H 60/4<br />
Deluxe bag<br />
Classic Series<br />
A prominent part of our instrument-making repertoire for more<br />
than a century, <strong>Höfner</strong> <strong>classical</strong> <strong>guitars</strong> are found everywhere<br />
from practice rooms to recital halls. Their outstanding value<br />
in terms of cost, craftsmanship and quality of sound has<br />
earned <strong>Höfner</strong> <strong>classical</strong> <strong>guitars</strong> a number of accolades including<br />
the State of Germany’s prestigious ‘Deutschen Musikinstrumentenpreis’<br />
as well as numerous recommendations from<br />
the ‘European Guitar Teachers Association’ (EGTA).<br />
As with violins and other stringed instruments, a guitar’s<br />
wood is what gives wing to the soul of its sound.<br />
Carefully selected for consistent grain and acoustic<br />
potential, the woods used in <strong>Höfner</strong> <strong>classical</strong> <strong>guitars</strong><br />
are patiently air-dried in our own climate-controlled<br />
facilities before going to the luthier’s workbench.<br />
HF 12 – HZ 23<br />
HF 17<br />
5
A new environmentally neutral varnishing<br />
process has been developed especially for<br />
the Green Line series. Several very thin<br />
layers of varnish are applied to the surface,<br />
maintaining the natural and pleasing ”feel<br />
of wood”. This is the optimum solution in<br />
terms of sound as the body of the<br />
instrument is allowed to resonate freely.<br />
H Ö F N E R G R E E N L I N E<br />
See page 11 for specifications.<br />
HGL 5 – HGL 7<br />
Guitars & Basses<br />
– since 1887 –<br />
<strong>Höfner</strong> CLASSIC STRINGS<br />
bring out the best sound that<br />
each <strong>classical</strong> guitar has to offer.<br />
The special alloy which wraps<br />
the bass strings helps prevent<br />
premature corrosion.<br />
Therefore, <strong>Höfner</strong> CLASSIC<br />
STRINGS are more durable than<br />
ordinary guitar strings and are<br />
packed without plastic to be<br />
easier on the environment.<br />
Each set of strings contains<br />
an additional D-string.<br />
Also available:<br />
<strong>Höfner</strong> SIENNA STRINGS and<br />
<strong>Höfner</strong> PREMIUM STRINGS.<br />
Scraping the<br />
lining of the ribs<br />
Green Line<br />
Classical <strong>guitars</strong> in <strong>Höfner</strong>’s Green Line Series are crafted<br />
exclusively from renewable European tone woods. Each model<br />
matches a selected solid German spruce top with a maple or<br />
walnut body, an alder neck and a walnut fingerboard. In addition,<br />
instruments in the Green Line Series are varnished using an<br />
environmentally neutral process. The HGL Series reflects<br />
<strong>Höfner</strong>’s traditional art of guitar making and our respect for<br />
the limited resources of our environment.<br />
For the soundboard of model HGL 50 SE, <strong>Höfner</strong><br />
selected spruce trees from the ‘Forstamt Schluchsee’<br />
region of the Black Forest in Germany. After the guitar<br />
tops were professionally stored and naturally seasoned<br />
for more than 6 years, they were acoustically analysed<br />
and catalogued by the IFM (Institute for building musical<br />
instruments in Zwota, Germany). <strong>Höfner</strong> master luthiers<br />
picked only the choicest tops of this series for the limited<br />
production model HGL 50 SE.<br />
HGL 50 SE<br />
7
Aside from spruce, cedar is often used for<br />
guitar tops. A high quality solid cedar top<br />
(such as those featured on our HM-models)<br />
has a fully-developed tone from the<br />
beginning and, depending on the design of<br />
the guitar, responds quickly and produces<br />
impressive volume.<br />
See page 11 for specifications.<br />
HM 86 – HM 80<br />
HM 83 – HM 85<br />
Guitars & Basses<br />
– since 1887 –<br />
Rosewood buttons<br />
Master Guitars<br />
An independent acoustic laboratory (IFM in Zwota, Germany) painstakingly<br />
analyzes Master Series <strong>guitars</strong> to ensure the treble, midrange and<br />
bass response of each instrument meets Hofner’s exacting<br />
specifications. The results are proudly documented on a<br />
certificate included with every HGL 50 SE, HM 85 and HM<br />
88 master <strong>classical</strong> guitar.<br />
Each <strong>Höfner</strong>’s master <strong>classical</strong> guitar is individually<br />
constructed by one of <strong>Höfner</strong>’s most senior and experienced<br />
luthiers. By combining only the choicest tone woods with<br />
an extraordinary attention to detail, <strong>Höfner</strong>’s master<br />
craftsmen create instruments capable of translating<br />
every nuance of technique into clear, sweet sound.<br />
The consistent grain of the spruce top and the allsolid<br />
rosewood body give balance and projection<br />
to the sound of the HM 88. Here, the master applies<br />
his experience and well-honed skills as he selects and<br />
matches the tonewoods himself.<br />
HM Certificate<br />
HM 88<br />
9
Scale (cm)<br />
Scale (inches)<br />
Width of nut (mm)<br />
Width of nut (inches)<br />
Recommended Age<br />
Top<br />
HS-Series<br />
Youth Guitars<br />
HF-Series HZ-Series Green Line - Series Master Instruments<br />
HS 513 HS 518 HF 12 HF 15 HF 17 HZ 23 HZ 25 HZ 26 HZ 27 HGL 5 HGL 7 HGL 50SE<br />
45 mm<br />
1.77"<br />
8 - 12<br />
years<br />
solid<br />
German<br />
spruce<br />
62 cm<br />
~ 24 1 /2"<br />
50 mm<br />
1.97"<br />
8 years<br />
and older<br />
solid<br />
cedar<br />
CLASSIC -Series HGL -Series HM -Series<br />
65 cm<br />
~ 25 1 /2"<br />
50 mm<br />
1.97"<br />
65 cm<br />
~ 25 1 /2"<br />
50 mm<br />
1.97"<br />
65 cm<br />
~ 25 1 /2"<br />
selected solid German spruce selected solid cedar selected solid<br />
German spruce<br />
‘Schwarzwald’<br />
(‘Black Forest’)<br />
Edition<br />
Back and Sides mahogany aningré mahogany rosewood mahogany bubinga rosewood walnut maple all solid<br />
walnut<br />
50 mm<br />
1.97"<br />
HM 80 HM 83 HM 85 HM 86<br />
selected<br />
solid<br />
cedar<br />
rosewood all solid<br />
aningré<br />
50 mm<br />
1.97"<br />
65 cm<br />
~ 25 1 /2"<br />
selected solid German<br />
spruce<br />
all solid<br />
mahogany<br />
Cutaway<br />
selected<br />
solid<br />
cedar<br />
HM 88<br />
52 mm<br />
2.05"<br />
selected<br />
solid<br />
German<br />
spruce<br />
rosewood all solid<br />
rosewood<br />
Neck mahogany mahogany mahogany alder mahogany<br />
alder<br />
Fretboard rosewood rosewood rosewood walnut rosewood ebony<br />
Finish of<br />
Machine Heads<br />
Buttons of<br />
Machine Heads<br />
Finish<br />
nickel gold gold gold gold gold<br />
creme<br />
pearloid<br />
natural<br />
satin<br />
white<br />
pearloid<br />
antique<br />
gold<br />
high gloss<br />
white pearloid rosewood white pearloid rosewood white pearloid walnut rosewood<br />
natural<br />
satin<br />
antique gold<br />
high gloss<br />
natural<br />
satin<br />
antique gold high gloss ‘Green Line’<br />
natural satin<br />
selected<br />
solid<br />
German<br />
‘Schwarzwald’<br />
spruce<br />
high gloss,<br />
satin top<br />
high gloss, satin top high gloss high gloss,<br />
satin top<br />
All specifications are subject to change without notice.<br />
11