Re: [Harp-L] Sorry, it's combs again

[MundHarp@xxxxxxx]

The comb material matters to the player...
But IN MY OPINION the audience can't tell the difference.
It's like a pen...
A GOOD pen won't write better than a disposable one..
But the writer sure can sure tell the difference!
John Walden
London
England
 
 
In a message dated 22/09/2008 09:58:54 Pacific Daylight Time,  
dave@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:

I've  blindfolded myself (closed my eyes) and blown chords  into a Seydel  
favorite with a wood comb, then metal. That is absolutely true about metal  
combs... On aluminum combs, I get this feeling on my tongue like you get when  you 
stick your tongue on a 9 volt  battery.

Dave
_______________________
Dave Payne Sr. 
Elk  RIver Harmonicas
www.elkriverharmonicas.com 



----- Original  Message ----
From: Steve Baker <steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: Harp-L  <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Monday, September 22, 2008 12:24:51  PM
Subject: [Harp-L] Sorry, it's combs again

Thanks Brendan for your  thoughtful contribution to this discussion.  
This still seems to me  to raise the question, what exactly is it that  
the player is  perceiving as different? Suave Blues Man's suggestion  
to test this  objectively seems to me the only way to go from here.

During my  comparison of around two dozen otherwise identical combs  
with  specific differences in material and finish, using identical  
covers  and the same two sets of reed plates, my notes showed  
consistent  differences in sound. I have no doubt that these  
differences  actually exist, and even though they are relatively small  
and may  not be noticeable to the listener, I notice them. I assume  
they are  the result of slightly different acoustic overtone profiles,  
which  will be measurable in the same way as for example the sound of   
stainless steel reeds is verifiably different from the sound of  brass  
reeds, even though most listeners won't notice the difference.  How or  
whether the difference is perceived and interpreted (or not)  by the  
listener doesn't necessarily have any bearing on whether or  not it  
actually exists.

In Vol 61/83 Ken (Mojo Red) mentioned  our comparison at SPAH between  
his MB Deluxe fitted with the brass  comb and my standard MBDL. Not  
surprisingly, his one was noticeably  louder than the harp with the  
wooden comb, which is after all one of  the reasons why people spend a  
load of money on metal combs. I  presume the difference is caused by  
the fact that the acoustic  conductivity of brass is higher than that  
of wood and the inner  surfaces reflect sound waves more strongly,  
both of which contribute  to making the instrument sound louder and  
brighter.

In order  to document the effect of comb material on sound it should  
only be  necessary to play the same sustained single notes with the  
same air  pressure and size of air column on all test combs (using the  
same  reed plates in each case) while recording the overtone profile  
and  the volume. The harmonica can easily be blown/drawn mechanically,   
which ought to satisfy even the most hardened sceptics. I have   
arranged to run tests later this year in the Hohner acoustics lab to   
objectively measure any differences and will post the results here,   
so maybe we can then finally lay this subject to  rest,

Steve

Steve  Baker
steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.stevebaker.de
www.bluesculture.com
www.youtube.com/stevebakerbluesharp

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