Harp reviews / comments
As someone who's newish to harmonica (about a year), it'd be helpful to hear what more experienced players think of the different harps available. I've got a couple of Marine Bands, a Special 20, a Honer Blues Harp MS, a Big River, a Lee Oskar and a Suzuki Pro-Master. The Marine Bands sounded great but are dying - the combs on both are swelling up. The Blues Harp plays unbelievably well, despite the generally poor reviews I've seen. Hard to compare the Suzuki since it's a low F - any difficulty I have bending notes could be down to the key. Not a great fan of the Lee Oskar tone, but it plays okay - I'd like to hear how a lower key Lee Oskar sounds (mine's in D). The Big River's so-so, but not as good as the Marine Bands. Overall, balancing price and reliability, the Special 20 comes out on top. It plays very well and hasn't deteriorated like the Marine Bands.
What do you think of the harps you've tried?
Anyone have any thoughts on the "Golden Melody?" I've heard they are pretty good. I'm a beginner and I'm using the Blues Harp and it is tearing my mouth to pieces when I TB. I do like the way it sits in my even though i haven't played one yet.
Thanks!
I'd like to try one - apparently they're good for overblows. I think Chris Michalek's playing one in his interview on this site. Also, I gather they're tuned for melody playing rather than chord playing, so may sound off for chugging and that sort of thing. However, I'm starting to reach this conclusion about harps, after trying different brands and after messing around at gapping and embossing and that stuff: the only thing that's going to make you sound better is more practice. You can't go wrong with a Special 20 and lots of practice.
Two harmonicas that you might consider as a step up are the Seydel 1847 with a wood comb and the new Marine Band Crossover. Both play well out of the box and the combs are smoothed and water resistent. They cost more but I feel they're worth the extra money.
I'm thinking about trying the Sedel's, mostly because the Crossovers are impossible to get right now. I don't understand why they're so scarce. They've been out for a while now. At $80 bucks a pop, I can't imagine that they are flying off the shelves at the same rate as Hohner's less expensive models.
I have the usual special 20, Lee Oskar and Marine band.
I also have a Tombo, a Hering vintage 1923 and a Seydel 1847 classic.
I really like the Seydel, especially now that i tongue block. It looks amazing. The finish is perfect, no sharp corners, wood is sealed and feel almost like plastic, you don't feel the reedplate cutting your lips like on the marine band. The holes are slightly oval shape, i didn't like that when i started and was lip pursing, now its my favourite harp to play.
I cannot say much on the sound and overblows since i'm a beginner but it does sound loud and i get bends easy on it. I think its more responsive too because i can play really soft when i'm practicing late at night, something i have trouble doing on the other harp.
I mainly play with Golden Melodies and i really do like the sound of them.
Been playing for a good 7months now and out of all the harps i have tried so far , the GM are the ones i go back too.
Many think the GM are not good for good rock harp, but they are dead wrong.
Heres a audio piece i recorded a couple of days ago. its on a Golden Melody in the of G with an Audix Fireball V mic.
http://sd-2.archive-host.com/membres/playlist/7166932265594460/harpsolo1...
-Sath
I really like the full length covers. I'll buy one to try it.
On the websites it says " the only Hohner diatonic harp featuring equal tempered tuning" does it means its not sounding good on the chords?
The GM Melody sounds good when playing chords.
Heres another audio clip i recorded with a chord section.
http://sd-2.archive-host.com/membres/playlist/7166932265594460/mic-FBV-S...
And If you wanna learn about Equal temperament, just read this, technical stuff.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_temperament
-Sath
the overblow connection with Golden Melody is sort of a myth. Years ago Howard Levy found that model was the only thing that came to close to allowing him to get the tone he wanted and play overblows, but it was still a struggle. Then he found customizer Joe Filisko, who ever since has been building him custom Marine Bands (but with Special 20 covers, because Howard prefers the sound those covers give him).
Chris Michalek sometimes plays Golden melody harps, but they're always heavily customized (Chris is also a very good customizer). he also plays customized Marine Bands.
Chords do not sound as smooth on Equal Temperament as on some of the other tuning schemes used for harmonicas.
Chords that sound best are based on simple mathematical ratios between the frequencies involved, like 1:3 and 1:5 (1:2 and 1:4 produce octaves). But when you go to play in other keys, with their own ratios, nothing matches up. Equal temperament puts chords and scale notes equally out of tune for all keys.
Players who use chords very little and play one harmonica in many keys unrelated to the main key of the harp (like Howard Levy) prefer equal temperament. Players who prefer smooth, big, resonant chords and the traditional harmonica sound (like Joe Filisko) tend to prefer some form of Just intonation (based on those simple ratios) or else some sort of compromise.
Some players (like the late Norton Buffalo) would carry two full sets of harps, one in equal temperament for mostly melodic playing, and another optimized for chords.
Each model of harmonica uses some sort of temperament scheme. If you like the harp but not the way it's tempered, you can change the fine tuning more to your liking (or pay a harp tech to do it).
You can make a Big River play much better simply by taking it apart and putting it back together - carefully re-seating the parts and re-tightening the screws (not too much - just finger-tight) can make a big difference.
The other thing that can make a big difference is, while the harp is taken apart, is to gently - GENTLY - tug each reed through its slot and let it spring back. This lowers the reed slightly in relation to the reedplate, which helps it play with less air.
you can also get into more fancy stuff like embossing and doing detailed profiling of the reeds, but the two basic mods mentioned above can be done with just a screwdriver, your fingers, and a little care and patience.
Hi everyone! I'm new to the forum but it's my second month on the site. Some of you may know me as Joebluesharp.
What I do is purchase brand new Special 20's from Joe Spiers, have him tune the harps to JI, open up the covers in the back, gap them properly, and emboss the reedplates for a lot less then the cost of an 1847, or a crossover, and the turnover is a lot quicker then waiting for a stage l or ll harp.
In the end, I have a better harp then the Seydel, or Crossover.
I have two of Joe Spiers stage two marine bands with LaVoie maple combs, which IMO are the greatest harps on the planet. As much as I would love to have a full set, I can't justify it.
My favorite stock harp is the Suzuki Harpmaster. IMO Suzuki, and Seydel have the most consistant quality, with each of their harps made to suit different players/styles.
If I had to pick, I would put Seydel on top for diatonics, and chromatics with overall quality, innovation, and tuning.
The new Saxony is in a league all by itself!
We live in a fortunate time, when competing manufacturers are working hard to bring out better instruments and giving us lots of great and varied choices, and excellent customizers are able to make those instruments even better.
Has anyone tried the Bushman? I don't like the tone of my Bushmans as much as I like the MB (best tone hardest to play) or the Special 20 (tone not as good as the MB but easier to play), but it is as easy to play as buttah'
Only one way to discover YOUR kind of harmonica, and that is start trying them all out. Then different harmonicas are good for different songs, styles, applications. That's part of the process of learning to play. Yes, Golden Melodies are good.
i agree, you just have to try them to find out what you like...as far as playability goes there is no answer because everything is a little different and can be modified a little or a bit more until you are happy with it. there is probably more inherent variation between keys than brands/models. but in matters like size and shape and cover style etc...comfort issues...try them and see. for me, nothing feels better than a Hohner Blues Harp, but i keep trying different harps, and there are not many i really don't like..even my MB with the swelling comb is ok since i trimmed it back...feels a little strange though. i don't really understand comments about injuring lips with wooden combs...i've played wooden combs a long time and never had that problem. i have had issues with cover plates plucking moustache hairs at times...Seydel Solist Pro covers are pretty good at that. i put Blues Harp covers on them which solved that problem, but then the comb and plates protruded from the front of the covers a little, (like on a Special 20) which i found slightly less comfortable, so i put things back how they were and shaved.
I've been playing some Marine Band 1896 for about 7 months now and from time to time I get a bruise or cut on my bottom lip. This usually happens when i play a lot of TB holes one or two. The covers have sharp corners. Long story short, picked up a Crossover and really liked the cover plates. Smooth and no sharp edges to snag a lip. The hole openings are not as forgiving as the 1896 but it should make me a better player. I told a friend I suffered a harmonica injury and she almost died laughing.
Cheers
I started with special 20's, which worked perfect for my skill level at the time. I have a few crossover's which I really liked at the time. I only had 1 hohner blues harp (I think that's what it was called) and wasn't happy with the comb, it was a little rough on the tongue when tongue blocking.
A friend turned me on to the Seydel 1847. I was blown away with how much easier it was to hit all of my bends. the blow bends were easier, and I am able to do 4,5, and 6 overblows. Due to the cost, I am buying a few solist pro's to try out for the lesser used keys. Any thoughts on how they compare to the 1847 classic? I get my order in a few days, just curious.
Here's a link to Mark Hummel talking with Dave about the 1847 Models. I have a set of Crossovers but just recently picked up some Silver 1847s,
I would agree with Mark's review. They are extremely responsive, durable and are now my go to harps for for normal day to day use.
If the 1847 can stand up to Hummel's gigging schedule and still be play in tune then they are truly a beautiful beast!
See the link to Equipment in the interview
http://www.bluesharmonica.com/mark_hummel#TB_inline?inlineId=12245&heigh...
I've tried all your commonly available ones over the years, along with a few chromatics. I tried the Special 20 when it came out, and have played it exclusively since. I love them. I like the feel, the sound, the plastic comb. There isn't anything I don't like.