Three hole does not soud correct
I bought a new Blues Harp MS in A when I first bought it everything sounded good but now my three hole does not sound correct it is only been two weeks since I had it. I 'm new to the harmonica and new member do I need to some how tune it?
If the note is sounding an incorrect pitch, there are two possible reasons:
The reed has gone out of tune.
You are bending the note down without realizing it.
The easiest test is whether you're pre-bending the note. Play a chord of Holes 1, 2, 3, and 4 DRAW all played together. If the chord sounds good then the reed is in tune and you need to work on your technique. If the chord sounds bad or wrong, then it's the reed.
If the reed has gone out of tune, first perform a stress test to make sure that it isn't about to break.
If the reed survives the stress test, then you can tune it up. This will take some patience. :)
You can tune a reed by adding or removing material from the surface of the reed. You can raise pitch by removing material from the surface at the tip (DON"T shorten the reed; this will introduce air leaks.) you can lower pitch either by removing material at the base (near the rivet) or by adding material, such as solder, near the tip.
To remove material, use either a small fine with a flat surface and fine pattern, or a sanding stylus such as a sanding detailer, available from hobby shops.
Support the reed by sliding something thin and flat under it. Paper isn't strong enough, but you can use metal such as a piece of feeler gauge, or stiff plastic if it's thin enough. you don't want to pry the reed up away from the reedplate and change its alignment relate to the sirface of the reedplate, as this will affect airtighness, reed response, and tuning.
The safest way for a beginner to remove material from a reed is to start about 1/16 inch from the tip, and file or sand toward the tip. Don't press very hard, and stroke only in one direction. Do three or four strokes, then do a test cycle to determine the effect.
First, remove the reed support. Then pluck the reed a couple of times to let the tuning effect settle and dislodge any particles or grit that might obstruct the reed. Blow away any remaining particles, then assemble the reedplates on the comb and the covers on the reedplate. no need to screw them together, just use finger pressure to hold everything tight and in alignment.
Now, play the note, both by itself, in chords, and in sequences of single notes. Does it sound right? If not, you need to tune some more.
It's easy to go too far with tuning and tune the note sharp instead of just the right amount. That's why you should stop and test frequently. At first this will go slowly - hence the need for patience.
Once the reed is playing freely and in tune, you need to reassemble the harp.
On each reedplate, look for the groove that runs along one long edge. That's the outside front edge - the groove is for the front edge of the covers.
You want to align the reedplates so that the long reeds are in the long comb slots and the grooves are on the outside of the comb and running along the fronts of the holes.
Now it's time to insert the reedplate screws. These go in the top reedplate, which has the reeds inside the holes. Thread the screw through the top reedlate and the comb. The take your screwdriver and get them screwed partway into the lower reedplate.
Once the screws are engaged, algin the comb and reedplates by standing the whole assembly with the front edge (where the holes are) on te table surface and making sure that they're all pressed togeter against the table surface. This puts them in alignment.
now it's time to tighten the screws. If the reedplates have more than two screws, start by tightening the screw closest to the middle, then working your way toward the ends.
Tighten only until the screwdriver resists your fingers. Over-tightening will warp the reedplates.
Once the reedplate are tightened, do the same for the covers. The top cover -with the model nae and ole numbers - soes on the reedplate that has the reeds inside. You need to get the front cover edges in the grooves. Then insert one half of a screw in the bottom cover and hold it in place with a finger while you insert and partially tighten the other half.
Get both left and right screws partially tightened, then do a final alignment of the covers in their grooves, then do final tightening.
The reed might have gone out of tune, but probably not at this early phase.
How does the reed note sound "correct"? Does the reed not make a clear note, or does it make a clear note that sounds like it's somehow wrong?
If it doesn't make a clear note, I'd check to see whether the reed is obstructed or misaligned (this is stuff I cover in the maintenance section of the book Harmonica For Dummies).
To check the reed, you need to remove the covers. The correct screwdriver type and size is a Pozidriv #1, but if you don't have one or have trouble finding one, use a small Phillips head screwdriver, but be careful not to strip out the screw head.
Hold one end of the screw while you unscrew the other, partly to keep it from rotating, and partly to keep it from falling and getting lost (do this over a table surface). Put both halves of the screw in a small container and remove the other screw, then place the covers somewhere nearby on the same table.
Now, look at the reedplate that has the reeds on the outside. This is the bottom reedplate, and the outside reeds are the draw reeds. Hole No. 1 has the longest reed, so start there and count over to the third draw reed.
TEST NO. 1 - FOREIGN MATTER
Examine the reed along its length. Do you see any sign of foreign matter lodged between the edge of the reed and its slot in the reedplate? if so, slide it along the reed to the free end (tip) of the reed and remove it. Then lift the reed gently with your fingernail and let it go. It should vibrate freely.
TEST No. 2 - MISALIGNMENT
If there is no foreign matter obstructing the reed, and it still does not vibrate freely, then the reed may be misaligned - rotated so that one edge of the reed is hitting the edge of the slot.
The easy test for this is to use a wooden or plastic stylus such as a toothpick (no metal - it could scratch the reed) to gently press the reed tip into the slot, allowing most of the length of the reed to flex down into the slot. If the reed does not seem to scrape against anything and returns to its normal resting position, then it's probably aligned OK. However, if it scrapes and/or fails to spring back, then it's misaligned and needs to be rotated back into position.
The easiest way to judge which direction a reed needs to go for realignment is to unscrew the reedplate and hold it up to the light so that you can see light coming through the crack between the reed and slot. Hold the reedplate with the reed tips pointing up and the reeds facing you. Carefully examine the reed in question, and rock the ends of the reedplates toward and away from you by tiny amounts to eliminate any parallax effect. You should be able so see if the reed is rotated more toward the left or right edge of the slot.
To correct the reed alignment, you can use a reed wrench if you ahve one, but if you don't then you can nudge the reed by inserting your fingernail or maybe a thin feeler gauge into the slot where the reed is touching, and nudging the reed away slightly. Pluck the reed to judge the effect, and do more adjustment if needed.
TEST No. 3 - STRESS TEST
if a reed drops in pitch a semitone or more, it may be ready to break. If taht's the case, there's no point in trying to tune it up. So how do you determine whether the reed is ready to break? You subject it to a stress test.
You can pluck a reed 100 times (I do this by counting to 8 twelve times, and then adding a few). If it's going to fail any time soon, it will do so suring the 100 plinks.
Again, you lift the reed slightly with you fingernail or a stylus that is thin and flat enough to insert under the tip of the reed and lift it. Lift it, let it go for one cycle. Repeat this 100 times for the stress test.
If a reed starts to fail, first the tone will get dull and the pitch will start to drop dramatically. Then it will stop springing back so readily. Finally it will descending into the slot and not emerge. if you lift it and pluck it a few more times it will break off. At that point it's time for a new reedplate or new harp, unless you know how to replace reeds.