Re: [Harp-L] Quality & price discussion

["Rick Dempster" <rick.dempster@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

I have gathered from Chris Michalek that he tests his custom jobs by playing the modified plates on a diifferent comb, before transferring them to the comb/cover set to go to the customer. If the manufacturers did this they would still, no doubt, be obliged to sterilise the plates by some process or other; not heat, as a dentist does (autoclaving comprises heat, I think) but maybe some kind of irradiation, maybe. Sorry, my science is weak!
Maybe a manufacturer could produce a 'top of the line' model, tested by a player, or players in this way.
Hey...at last...employment for harmonica players!
As for this:"a picture of a German teenaged girl  
in the harps package. She should be blonde, have pigtails, blue eyes,  
and the note should say: 'Tested by..........Hildegarde (or Gretchen,  
Ilse, Bergitta). :) And. to be honest, I wouldn't care if it was a  
teenaged boy either........as long as he was cute.".............

......Joe, you are awful!
RD


>>> Joe and Cass Leone <leone@xxxxxxxx> 27/05/2009 9:43 >>>

On May 26, 2009, at 6:40 PM, Steve Baker wrote:

> I can well understand how the variable quality of stock harmonicas  
> annoys purchasers, it annoys me too. I'd like to provide some  
> background on Hohner harmonicas, which may help people understand  
> how these things happen and may also also be relevant for other  
> brands:

      You don't have to explain Steverino. The harmonicas are fine.
>
> Hohner harmonicas are not manufactured mechanically, they are made  
> by hand. This exacting work involves extremely close tolerances  
> which have to be judged very rapidly by eye during the  
> manufacturing process. There is a clear possibility of human error  
> here and this is reflected in a degree of variation in quality.  
> Diatonic harps are produced in very large numbers at Hohner and  
> quality control consists of blowing them mechanically. Anything  
> else is technically illegal due to hygiene laws

      Ok, here's where we part ways. I understand that the harps are  
made by women & girls, Mainly because they have smaller hands and are  
dextrous and prone to be able to do tedious repititios work. (see  
counted cross stitch, needle point, petit-point, crochet, lace  
hooking, blah blah..all of which my wife does).

Now I would have NO problem with these females doing the harps with  
their breath. AND, even though they may look like a grandma haus  
frau, all you have to do is place a picture of a German teenaged girl  
in the harps package. She should be blonde, have pigtails, blue eyes,  
and the note should say: 'Tested by..........Hildegarde (or Gretchen,  
Ilse, Bergitta). :) And. to be honest, I wouldn't care if it was a  
teenaged boy either........as long as he was cute.

> -  do you even want to buy a harp some unknown person has played  
> previously? With the extremely tight tolerances used in the current  
> Hohner production it's not always possible to assess whether an  
> instrument is defective or not by simply looking at it or blowing  
> it on a mechanical bellows. Really you need to play it to find out.  
> If the tolerances were not so tight, tiny variations would have a  
> less noticeable effect on quality, but the overall level of  
> playability would suffer. Sorting instruments into various  
> different categories of quality is impossible in a production  
> context, as it would require a highly qualified player to play  
> every single one from top to bottom and compare it with a bunch of  
> other harps. Sorry, but you can't do this in a factory making tens  
> of thousands of instruments every month.
>
> I completely agree with all those who've stressed the importance of  
> learning to set up your own harps. This is definitely not  
> comparable with tuning a guitar, however, it's comparable with  
> setting up a guitar (adjusting the action, bridge position, neck,  
> pick-ups etc.), which is a much more exacting task and requires a  
> certain degree of knowledge and practise. It's something which  
> manufacturers in both cases don't do in the factory, but in my view  
> it's essential if you want to have harps (or guitars) that play  
> something like how you want them to. I set up and tune all my own  
> harps before playing them for the first time and repeat the process  
> regularly. I sympathise with anyone who for whatever reason is  
> unable to do this themselves, but I honestly don't believe that  
> it's work which a manufacturer can realistically carry out in a  
> mass production situation. Even if qualified staff could be found  
> to do the job, the additional labour costs would add considerably  
> to the price of the instruments and selling different set-ups to  
> suit the different playing styles would create a retailer's  
> nightmare. Then they'd really hate us. This is a major reason for  
> the emergence of harp techs and customizers, bless them all.
>
> Regarding price, Hohner USA has always been the single biggest  
> customer of the Hohner company in Germany, where the instruments  
> are manufactured, buying over half the annual production. This gave  
> them a lot of leverage regarding price, so though you probably  
> never knew it, you lucky people in the USA were accustomed to  
> paying considerably less for your harps then players elsewhere. I  
> recall only a year or two ago seeing a US online retailer offering  
> Marine Bands for $17.65, which at the time (and exchange rate) was  
> less than the German wholesale price. Fortunately for the survival  
> of the company this is no longer the case and the change in the  
> value of the dollar relative to the euro has also led to higher US  
> prices (though by no means just for Hohner harmonicas). Now you pay  
> almost as much as we do for your harps.
>
> It's sad that players appear only too ready to believe that  
> manufacturers don't care about their interests and are only  
> interested in gouging them.

We don't all feel that way. I don't have any problems with the  
current state of affairs. It won't change MY life.

> I would have thought that the fact that harmonica manufacturers  
> routinely employ dedicated players such as myself or Brendan Power  
> is a clear indication that across the board they place a very high  
> value on the wishes and needs of their customers and are prepared  
> to spend considerable sums on improving both their products and  
> their communication with players.

On the other hand, I have heard (from others, you understand) that  
some people think you guys are on the lists to 'keep tabs'.

      smo-joe (plays Hohner 270s, Hering 5148s, and spl-20s exclusively)

> Many recent comments in this forum have testified to the improved  
> quality of production instruments in the last few years, which  
> would seem to me to indicate we're moving in the right direction  
> even if it takes time,
>
> Steve Baker
> www.stevebaker.de 
> www.bluesculture.com 
>
>
>
>
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