"Most effects I've tried are more overkill then useful for the harp,
IMHO. I've heard players that use way too much reverb, octave or
delay on stage or self produced cd's and it's hard to get past the
effect to enjoy their playing. Overuse of effects can also date the
music."
I reject that notion entirely. First, anything can date the music--
the rhythms used, the way it's recorded, etc... Music sounds of it's
time period, and when I hear people talk about something sounding
"dated" that usually means that it sounds like when they were a
certain age--rarely do people talk about Little Walter sounding
dated, but his recordings are very much stamped by the time in which
they were made.
As for getting past the effect, I again disagree, though it depends
on how the artist uses effects. Indeed, I think the use of the term
"effects" hurts here. Delay, octaves, chorus can all become
essential parts of what you are playing.
Madcat, for example, often
uses a ton of different units to radically alter his basic tone and
playing, but they aren't really effects so much as an integral part
of what he is trying to say musically. Take them away and the
musical statement is entirely different. You may prefer the later,
but it is no better than the former--and the player is neither better
nor worse talent-wise for the use of effects in such a way (you
didn't imply such, but it often is put that way on this and other
lists).