Re: [Harp-L] xb-40 tune-up

["Winslow Yerxa" <winslowyerxa@xxxxxxxxx>]

--- In harp-l-archives@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, Paul Bowering 
<paul_bowering@xxxx> wrote:
> Sorry if I'm repeating myself but I purchased an XB-40
> a couple of weeks ago and I'm wondering if more
> experienced XB users have any setup suggestions
> specific to this new type of harp or do I just follow
> the process for regular harps.
> 
> One problem I definitely want to address is the squeal
> I get on some higher draw bends. Is this to be
> rectified with the beeswax/nail polish fix. Which reed
> should it be applied to; the 'normal' reed or the
> auxilliary? Anyone ever micropore one of these?
> 
> Paul - 

I play an XB-40 in A regularaly (I think that's the key you mentioned 
in your original post) and have had no problem with the high notes 
squealing.

The wax (or nail polish) fix might work if the squeal has the same 
cause as the Lee Oskar squeal. I can make an Oskar squeal without 
even trying to bend the note, but I have not had that experience with 
the XB-40. YMMV, but this suggests to me that they do not share the 
same problem.

Does the squeal occur when you are not bending a note? If so, then 
the wax fix would be most likely be applied to the regular reed that 
sounds and not the auxiliary reed. You could take the harp apart, 
tape off the auxiliary reed so that no air can pass through it, then 
try the note. If the squeal condition changes, then you know that the 
auxiliary reed is involved somehow, but that still doesn't mean that 
it's the one squealing, only that its presence in the airstream has 
some part in creating the condition for the squeal to happen.

One thing that I have observed in teaching and in seeing how people 
adapted to my Discrete Comb harp was that everyone adapts differently 
to new setups. Two people may get similar results on a familiar harp 
like the standard 10-hole 20-reed diatonic. But as soon as they try 
out something that is built differently and reacts differently, the 
differences (and, dare I say, quirks and even weaknesses) in their 
individual technique will give them different results.

Have you tried varying your attack and breath pressure on these high 
reeds? THis might effect a change in how the reeds respond. Try using 
a light breath, with no feeling of pressure or suction - your mouth 
should just be a passive conduit for a breeze that wafts through. If 
this makes the squeal go away, I'd start from that basis for working 
out a way of adapting your technique.

You may ask why you should bother to adapt your technique to a 
finicky instrument. The interseting thing is that if you do that - 
and if it's an adaptation that reduces the stress you place on the 
instrument - you may find that it yields the benefit of giving you 
greater control over your usual axe (10-hole 20-reed or whatever) as 
well.

I wouldn't mess with micropore. The XB-40 is plenty airtight, and 
micropore would just gum it up.

Winslow