[Harp-L] Re: Chinese & Japanese Harmonica Companies

[MilwHarmonica@xxxxxxx]

Hello, Zombor.
 
Here are the websites for a few Chinese and Japanese harmonica companies.  In 
general, the Japanese harmonicas are better, but there are a few  exeptions.
 
One example of a Chinese-made harmonica is the Huang brand. Huang,  Inc. is a 
USA company that has it's harmonicas manufactured in a large  harmonica 
factory in Shanghai. I wish I clould remember the name of that  company.
 
_www.wuxi-suzuki.com_ (http://www.wuxi-suzuki.com) 
Wuxi-Suzuki is a joint venture company with it's factories in China. Wuxi  
(Chinese) and Suzuki (Japanese) have combined in this to make harmonicas. Most  
of the Wuxi-Suzuki products are not the highest quality, but are definitely  
playable. I own the Wuxi-Suzuki "Golden Butterfly WH-12" chromatic. It's a  
copy of the Hohner CX-12 chromatic harp, at about 1/3rd the price of a  Hohner. 
The WH-12 Wuxi-Suzuki is identical to the Hohner CX-12 black,  except for the 
slider mechanism.
 
_www.harmonicas.com.cn/english/index.asp_ 
(http://www.harmonicas.com.cn/english/index.asp) 
The Swan brand is also a Chinese company. They make respectable harmonicas,  
playable and they sound as good as any other brand, but at a much lower price  
than Hohner or Suzuki products of comparable models. As in the other Chinese  
brands, the sound is as good as the German and Japanese brands (in my  
opinion). The difference between German- or Japanese- made harmonicas and the  
Chinese harmonicas is usually in the lower labor costs in China, plus the lower  
quality of materials used. I have a Swan 16-hole chromatic that plays as well as 
 it's German competitor, the Hohner Super 64. The Hohner is made to last. The 
 Swan doesn't have the same craftsmanship or materials behind it, but the 
sound  is, to my ears, as good as Hohners or Suzukis).
 
_www.golden-cup.com/ebar34-1.htm_ (http://www.golden-cup.com/ebar34-1.htm) 
The Chinese brand Golden Cup is, to be kind, inconsistent in quality, but  
low in price. They also have a few products that no other known manufacturer  
sells, such as a 3-deck chord harp. I have never dealt with the Golden Cup  
company.
 
_www.tombo-m.co.jp/eng/_ (http://www.tombo-m.co.jp/eng/) 
Tombo, a Japanese company, makes superior products, but they  aren't 
distributed in the USA, except the Lee Oskar brand diatonics, made  by Tombo.  I have 
3 Tombo harps, one a valveless chromatic (in my  opinion it's the world's best 
valveless Unica Formal slide chromatic), a  3-octave solo-system diatonic, 
and a mini-harp. If you are interested in the  Tombo brand, you must deal 
directly with the Japanese factory personnel. They  have a salesman that reads and 
writes in English, and the company is  consumer-friendly. You'll pay by US 
Postal money order. Follow the directions of  the salesman. It is a slow process, 
but you'll be very satisfied with the Tombo  products.
 
_www.suzukimusic.com/harmonicas_ (http://www.suzukimusic.com/harmonicas)  or  
 _www.suzukiharmonicas.com_ (http://www.suzukiharmonicas.com) 
Suzuki, another Japanese company, makes superb harmonicas. A Suzuki  model in 
general costs a little more than the comparable Hohner model. They  have an 
office and repair facility in Santee, California:
phone: (800)854-1594.  
 
In general, the Japanese companies are consistenly of the highest quality.  
In general, the Chinese brands are of inconsistent quality, but are lower in  
price.
 
Good Luck. 
 
John Broecker



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