bending difference
Hi Kinya,
Loving the content, it's shed so much light on my harmonica!
A question: I have a big river harp and a marine band deluxe in front of me with the same key and close to similar treatment with gapping etc. If they have the same reeds, why is it easier to bend the more expensive deluxe? Is it the plate itself, how air tight it is etc. etc.? I'm just curious and interested in why there's such a noticeable difference!
Thanks!
Thanks for the feedback! That is some great lore, I must say! I was under the impression that the reeds were all the exact same, hence why there was such a significant difference in responsiveness (was it the plate, the wood comb, etc. etc.) had always puzzled me in specifically figuring out the reason. At least that makes more sense now!
Gobble Gobble Jimmy, here at bluesharmonica.com we are full of useful factoids ;o)
Your Harpsmith, Kinya
Hey Jimmy, good to hear from you.
Recently, AC asked me a similiar question regarding her Hohner Modular System, Blues Harp MS. I responded, "for me my primary gigging diatonic harmonicas are the Hohner Rocket, Special 20, Marine Band and Crossover. What all of these harmonicas have in common are the reeds. I have found the reeds have just the right amount of vividus (latin for lively, vigorous, spirited and lifelike). The voicing, playability and maintenance friendly attributes of those reeds are difficult to replicate"
The Hohner harmonicas that match the type of reeds you have on your Marine Band Deluxe are:
The Hohner harmonicas that match the type of reeds you have on your Big River are:
P.S. when I toured the Hohner Harmonica Factory in Trossingen Germany 2008--I watched in amazement the building of a Hohner Modular System "Big River MS"--made up of probably 50% robotics and 50% women assemblers. The way I heard it, the development of the MS series was prompted numerous years ago, by outside consultants advising Hohner management to reduce headcounts by transitioning to an automated assembly processes. The initial MS harmonicas were not very playable and eventually had to be "made right" by craftspeople before they could be shipped out ;o)
Your Harpsmith, Kinya