[Harp-L] Re: Seydel 1847 v MB Deluxe

[David Garcia <davidgm@xxxxxxxxxx>]

My two cents on the subject: I don't usually buy new harps anymore since I 
started replacing blown reeds, but I did get a couple 1847s and a couple MB 
Deluxes to give them a try. C and G 1847s and Bb and Flow MBs, so I can't 
really provide A/B comparison. I use those four keys quite often, though, 
and I'm not a pro, but I play an average of 5 or 6 gigs per month, with 
hotter months like this when I'm doing 8 and weaker ones when I do 3 or 4. 
I play classic blues and I'm a pretty hard blower (too bad for me), so I 
blow reeds quite fast. Now, none of the 1847s lasted more than 3 months, if 
I remember well. 9 blow in G and 4 draw in C died. The Bb MB Deluxe is 
still working well after several months, and I use that particular one a 
lot, whereas the 1 blow (!!) in the Flow MB Deluxe went off in less than a 
month. Both models sound great to me, the Deluxe is definetely an 
improvement over the standard MB, and the 1847 is really comfortable and 
sweet sounding. True that my experience with them (1847s) has been limited 
to just two harps, but the fact is that they both lasted basically the same 
as any standard MB. Opinions collected from other fellow Spanish harp 
players, some pro and some not, go in the same direction. If only Seydel 
allowed the purchase of spare steel reeds for the 1847, that would be just 
great, and I'd probably increase my stock, but as long as I have to either 
buy a whole replacement reedplate or send the harp back to Germany 
everytime I blow a reed, I'll have to stick to MBs when I need to buy new 
stuff. 1847s are too pricey for that -which is too bad because they're 
great harps otherwise.

Greetings from Spain,

David

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