Re:[Harp-L] Why Brendan Why?



Daniel Bernard wrote: "Why the heck are Suzuki marketing ultra high
priced harmonicas with wood combs. Every other manufacturer seems to be
able to come up with a wood comb harp that sells for about the same
price as their plastic combed harps."
 
The wood comb on the Suzuki Firebreath and Pure Harp is different. It's
made of rosewood, an expensive material that is also used for the
fretboards of guitars. It is very dense and stable, and you won't get
any moisture absorption and swelling with these combs. Certainly wood
combs can be made more cheaply using lighter woods that are then coated
with a sealant. However, sometimes this can rub off, and then the comb
is prone to swelling. These Suzuki harps also have phosphor bronze
reeds, another costly high-quality material that pays off in reed
longevity, for which Suzuki has a good reputation.
 
"OK I love Suzuki's HarpMaster's and BluesMaster's sound, and I like the
volume I can get out of a ProMaster. Why not alternate ... comb material
for these models?"
 
You can switch the reedplates, covers and combs of many Suzuki diatonics
to make your own hybrid if you wish, with little trouble. The Firebreath
and Pure Harp plates and covers will fit on ProMaster or Hammond alloy
combs, and vice versa. The Blues Master & Harp Master parts can be
swapped, and Overdrive reedplates will fit in the Blues Master and Harp
Master comb. Sometimes there is a difference in the number of reedplate
attachment screws, but these swaps can be made easily by anyone who can
use a screwdriver.
 
"Why don't Suzuki market some other tunings, like Natural Minor and/or
Melody Makers instead. Hohner, and Hering give you a choice of Equal
Temperament or Just Intonation."
 
It is a matter of sales volumes and marketing decisions, and every
company has a different policy. As Jonathon Ross pointed out, the
overwhelming proportion of customers want the standard Richter tuning,
and only a small number want alternate tunings. And as you said
yourself, many of us can now tweak our own harps to create variations in
temperament or tunings. However, it's a legitimate question and I will
pose your query to Suzuki.

Brendan
WEB: http://www.brendan-power.com <http://www.brendan-power.com/>  

 




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