Re: Which harps stay in tune longest?

[Steve Price <sprice@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Sun, 19 Feb 1995, Thomas Hinkle wrote:

> I'm inquiring as to which brands of harps(diatonic)  are preferred out there.
> I've been buying a lot of different harps in the 20-30$ range and have
> been trying to determine which are the best.  I like my special 20 pretty
> much.  I bought a Marine Band because I liked it's sound (although often
> it seems like I credit the harmonica with a change in the tone when it's
> just something different that I'm doing) but anyways, after three weeks or
> so of hard playing the four draw is so out of tune that it hurts my ears. 
> So anyways, that pissed me off because don't have much money and I hate to
> lose my harp so quickly.  So, I ask you, which harps stay in tune well?  
>

I doubt that the Marine Band goes out of tune any faster than a Special 
20 because, if my understanding is correct, they are the same reeds, 
which is why the Special 20s say "Marine Band" on them.  Reeds can go out 
of tune for a variety of reasons, and the advantage of the Special 20 
over the Marine Band is the ease with which you can dismantel the Special 
20 to repair or clean it.  The tacks in wood on the Marine Band (and Blues 
Harps) makes it hard to reassemble them as tightly as you can Special 
20s.  

I think it's the rare harp that outlasts Special 20s, and I don't think 
Lee Oskars are that rare harp.  My favorite harps until recently were the 
Cross Harps also by Hohner.  I got one almost by accident, thought it was 
goofy looking, and just thought I'd try it to disqualify it from my list 
of usable harps.  That harp was in the key of A, and at that time I was 
going through A harps (my favorite key, my guitar playing buddy's favorite 
key) about one every 3 weeks (rarely did they go flat, they just wore out 
and didn't respond anymore--but some of them did have a reed that went 
flat).  That A harp lasted over a year, and was really fun to play.  
Really my favorite harp for longer than any harp I've had.  That was a 
rare harp; other Cross Harps didn't last as long, though they lasted for 
me longer than other kinds, and they were really lovely to play.  

But then our friends at Hohner came up with MS, (Mostly Stupid, 
Moronically Shaped, Manufactured Shoddily).  They've redesigned and 
changed how they manufacture Cross Harps and they are terrible, worse 
than Special 20s, or much else in the usable range.  I've been in touch 
with Hohner several times complaining, and I've complained here, so I'll 
hold my tongue for now.  

My first and only Meisterklasse was a very good harp, but the 4 blow went 
flat quickly.  Hohner can and will repair harps that go flat like that.  
These are good harps, not quite to my style, 

I think any harp is susceptible to going flat.  Some are easy to repair, 
some aren't, and if you can't afford to constantly be replacing them, 
it's worth learning how to repair simple problems like a note going 
flat.  

	Steve