[Harp-L] John Coster, Hohner XB40's and SUB-30's

[Tom Halchak <info@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

ââThis is sort of a mixed response to John Costerâs post about the
unfortunate theft of his harps.

First of all John, Iâm sorry to hear about your loss.  It so happens that
do have a Hohner XB40 in C that is in like new condition.  Iâve had it for
a couple of years.  Never really played it much.  Iâve just been keeping it
around thinking that one of these days I would figure out how to play it.
But itâs not a huge priority to me and if someone else needs it more than I
do perhaps it would be better off in their hands.  I have been known to be
pretty generous in these situations.

Second, I want to step up and defend the Suzuki SUB-30.  It has been
mentioned as a possible replacement for some of Johnâs lost XB-40âs but it
has been matter-of-factly dismissed as more or less a waste of time.  That
is not necessarily true and given Johnâs somewhat limited options it would
be something of an injustice to at least not have all the facts.

Here are the facts.  If one endeavors to play chromatically on a 10-hole
diatonic harmonica he has four options:  1) Master Over-Blowing and
Over-Drawing; 2) Play a Valved Diatonic a la PT Gazelle; 3) The Hohner
XB-40, which are no longer in production and may not be findable; and 4)
The Suzuki SUB-30 â which is in production, easy to find AND there are
aftermarket components available which make the SUB-30 a much better harp.

My involvement with the SUB-30 began immediately after it was introduced at
SPAH in 2012. The inventor, Brendan Power, commissioned me to develop a
custom comb for the SUB-30 via my business, Blue Moon Harmonicas LLC.  So
with his concepts and my access to 3D Modeling and CNC Milling we produced
a comb which we dubbed the BMH30/Brendan Power.  This is one of the comb
designs that Brendan used to build his custom X-Reed SUB-30âs.  Fast
forward to January 2014.  After about a year of tinkering, I perfected a
component which I named the âExternal Valve Plateâ (or EVP for short) for
the SUB-30.  It is a single component, precision milled from German Silver,
which, when installed, valves all 10 Sympathetic Reeds on the SUB-30.

You can see pictures of the EVP on my website here:
http://bluemoonharmonicas.com/admin/external_valve_plates/1

Part of the problem with the SUB-30âs design is that with three reeds in
each chamber valves are necessary to prevent reeds from playing when they
are not supposed to.  As a stock instrument, the SUB-30 is a 30 Reed - 10
Valve harmonica.  Suzukiâs design depends upon the Sympathetic Reeds acting
as both a Valve and a Reed.  Sometimes the Sympathetic Reeds get confused
and donât behave and at best they make the SUB-30 leak like a sieve.  The
EVP required no special tools and no additional screws to install.  It can
be used in combination with the BMH-30 comb or with the stock ABS plastic
SUB-30 comb.  All you have to do is take the harp apart, put the EVP on top
of the top reed plate, and using the same screws, reassemble the harp.
Simple as that.  The result is that the SUB-30 has been converted to a 30
Reed - 20 Valve Harmonica.  Aside from being more airtight, the addition of
the EVP enables you to isolate two of the three reeds in each chamber
regardless of whether you draw or blow.  You can now play precise blow
bends and draw bends in all ten chambers.

When the SUB-30 was introduced people thought it would be a panacea.  It
would make playing chromatically on a Standard Richter Tuned Diatonic
Harmonica a snap.  But alas, that simply was not the case.  It is an
ingenious design poorly executed by Suzuki.  (Where have we heard that
before?)  The cheap construction and hefty price tag of $185.00 pretty much
doomed the SUB-30 from the start.  It is true that you would be hard
pressed to find much positive publicity about the SUB-30 even to this day.
But there are a few of us out there keeping the SUB-30 alive.  Thereâs
myself and Burke Treischmann in the San Francisco Bay Area.  I have built
and sold about 50 SUB-30âs in the past two years.   I have also sold a
couple dozen Customization Kits.  I have only had one customer who was not
thrilled with the result.  That one customer got his money back per my 100%
Satisfaction Guarantee.  74 out of 75 ainât too shabby.

http://www.bluemoonharmonicas.com/harmonicas_models/17

Hereâs what I have learned.   Even with the upgrades, a customized SUB-30
is not a panacea.  It takes some chops to play.  If you havenât mastered
draw bending and blow bending you are not going to be able to get the most
out of the SUB-30.  What is nice about the SUB-30 is that you donât have to
learn a new breath pattern.  It is ingeniously set up the same as a
standard Richter Tuned harp.  If you are familiar with Valved Diatonics
like the Valved ProMaster or PTâs Valved Seydels, the breath pattern for
the single reed bends is identical to the where you will find the extra
reeds on the SUB-30.

Winslow Yerxa â Weâre Pals and all that, but Iâm calling you out!  You
said, âThere isn't really anything like the XB-40, sad to say. For those
who know how to play it, the XB-40 has a big, robust sound that dwarfs any
other diatonic. The Suzuki SUB30 doesn't have the guts to compete, sad to
say.â  I respect your opinion (after all, you wrote The Book) and you are
probably right, but, you played my SUB-30 at The Harmonica Collective in
May.  The look on your face told me you were pleasantly surprised -
impressed even.  Am I wrong?  If XB-40âs are not to be had, what other
alternative does our friend John have?  Isnât the SUB-30 at least worth
considering?

And one last thing.  My friends at Suzuki will probably hate me for saying
so, but you can buy SUB-30âs on eBay for about $65 and with the addition of
my valve plate for $44.95 and with a little reed work on your part, you can
build a pretty sophisticated instrument for not a lot of money.  Just
sayinâââ..



-- 
*Tom Halchak*
*Blue Moon Harmonicas LLC*
*P.O. Box 14401 Clearwater, FL 33766*
*www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com <http://www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com>*
*(727) 366-2608*