Re: [Harp-L] Honer XB-40, Suzuki 350v, Valved Harps, OB/OD's...Gotta get those NOTES!!!

[Winslow Yerxa <winslowyerxa@xxxxxxxxx>]

Luke - 

The reason Hohner doesn't make the XB-40 in keys higher than Db is that even on the C, the reeds in Holes 9 and 10 do not respond favorably; they tend to sound flat even though the reed is in tune. This is because the chamber inside the harmonica for those reeds is not suitable for those high notes and causes the pitch be be dragged down. On keys below C this is not a problem.

Also, players demanded a low D. It's got a big, brawny sound (at least to my ears) and I play it a lot for fiddle tunes.

Now, comparing an XB-40 to a half-valved harp like the Suzuki 350 is an apples-to-oranges comparison.

A half-valved harp like the MR-350 allows the normal bends (Draw 1 thru 6, Blow 7 thru 10). However, it also unlocks the abaility of the rest of the reeds to bend down.

But it's a different kind of bend. In Hole 4, when you bend the draw reed down, the blow reed also sounds - it goes UP in pitch and the two reeds sound the same note together. This gives you a richer, more stable bent note but it also limits the bend to only 1 semitone (the distance between the pitch of the blow notes and the pitch of the draw note). This is known as a dual reed bend, where a blow reed and a draw reed both collaborate to sound the bent note.

However, if you bend Blow 4 down on a half-valved harp, It's that one reed alone, unsupported. The good news is that there is no hard limit on the range of the bend. Depending on the adjustment of the reed and your skill, you might be able to bend it down 3 or 4 semitones. HOWEVER, the bad news is that the bend will be harder to control, and the tone quality will not be as rich or lively sounding - it's a trade-off.

The XB-40 takes a different approach. While a standard diatonic has 20 reeds, the XB-40 has 40 reeds - part of the reason it costs much more than most diatonic harmonicas.

On an XB-40, when you bend Draw 4, you get two reeds collaborating. And when you bend Blow 4, you still get two reeds collaborating, for a richer sound and more stable bend that on a half-valved instrument. That's because each reed has its own dedicated "responder" reed that collaborates with the main reed to sound the bend.

That means that the XB-40 can deliver full, rich bending on all 20 notes. It also means that the normal bending llimits don't apply. On a standard Harp, the responder reed for Draw 4 is Blow 4. The only way you could expand the bending range of Draw 4 would be to re-tune Blow 4 to a lower note. Obviously, that has drawbacks. But on the XB-40, the responder reed is a dedicated reed that only sounds during bends, so you can tune it to any note you want within reason. On the XB-40, most of the responder reeds are tuned to a allow  2 semitones of bending range (Draw 3 is still 3 semitones, just like on a standard harp).

By the way, the XB-40 can deliver a lot of volume. I play acoustically with fiddle groups of up to 120 players and can make myself heard with groups of up about 50.

About your experience with Blow 4 choking when you adjust for overblows. This is a normal problem that you can learn to finesse in various ways. As you develop your overblow technique, you may find that you don't need to set the blow reed so low. You may also find ways of fine tuning the adjustment of the reed for optimal response - to where you still get the overblow but experience less chokiness in the reed. But adjusting your playing technique is also a part of it. If you try playing with less overall airflow, you may find that you actually need a lot less juice to deliver your sound. Learning to play more efficiently can give you greater control and make your harps last longer.

Winslow

Winslow Yerxa

Author, Harmonica For Dummies ISBN 978-0-470-33729-5

Resident expert at bluesharmonica.com

Harmonica instructor, jazzschool.com

Columnist, harmonicasessions.com

--- On Thu, 2/25/10, Lucas Clebsch <luke@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

From: Lucas Clebsch <luke@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [Harp-L] Honer XB-40, Suzuki 350v, Valved Harps, OB/OD's...Gotta get those NOTES!!!
To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
Date: Thursday, February 25, 2010, 4:08 AM

OK Y'all - I'm hoping somebody out there can give me some guidance...

I'm a professional harmonica player in Hawaii. I've been playing harp for 15 years, and have probably longed for those missing chromatic notes for the last 13 of them!

I recently joined the Howard Levy Harmonica School (which is very cool, by the way,) tinkered with a Hohner and acheived my first overblow. I was ecstatic. At my next gig, I realized I had compromised the response of regular blow on that hole, and became VERY frustrated with myself. Tinkering just ain't my thing, so...

I picked up a Hohner XB-40. My initial response, is YES! I absolutely LOVE it (except for the price!)

I have a few questions....

1.) Can anybody give me a comparative analysis between the XB-40 and the Suzuki 350V? If the Suzuki is as nice as the XB-40, that would be great, because it's about half the cost!

2.)Are there any other similar "valved" harps out there? I really want to make a decision on what "my" instrument is going to be, and just get into the shed on it, but I want to make a WISE decision, yunno?

3.) Interstingly, I've noticed that the XB-40 do not sell in keys above Db, and go instead to a low D!!!!! I have never played lower than a low F, and my Low F doesn't get played that much. To me, the beauty of the harmonica in most group settings is out it kind sings and sails and cuts through the high end frequency spectrums and I can't imagine a low D doing that all that well! lol. Has anybody purchased any of these lower XB-40 keys, and what are your thoughts? This Key issue is one of my thought for thinking I really ought to try out a Suzuki...

I play a lot of differnt genres: Funk, Reggae, Hawaiian, Flamenco, Jazz, Rock, Folk, and of course what I started with: Blues.

K. Hopeful for some illumination....

Aloha,

Luke Clebsch
(808) 936-3885