Re: [Harp-L] still need to decide on a mic

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Rick Davis wrote:
<If your goal is "Chicago blues sound" I'm not sure the Vox DA5 (or any small
<solid state amp) is your best choice.  Since you aspire toward the old
<school Chicago tone you will no doubt be attracted to tube amps as your harp
<journey progresses and your skill and ear improve.  The tone you admire was
<produced with tube amps.  My suggestion would be to start out with a small
<tube amplifier.

Rick, the DA5 is an amp modeling amplifier, not just a "solid state amp."  Among other amps, I own a Crate VC508 modded by Ron Holmes and a Sonny Junior Super Sonny, two excellent tube amps set up by two of the best harp techs in the world.  I know good tube tone, and the DA5 produces very good harp tones. Its build quality, excellent sound, and features make it more than competitive with any 5 watt tube amp I've played through. I am certain that no harp player--from novice to pro--who owns a DA5 will ever be sorry they bought it, especially considering its very reasonable price.

Regarding the mic for the amp: a lot of good suggestions have been made on this list.  Assuming the buyer in this case is going for a DA5, almost any of the mics suggested so far will sound just fine.  I prefer my Fireball V (about $125) through the DA5, but I've made some very nice sounds with this amp using my Shure 545 and SM58, and my Shaker Madcat sounds nice through it too.  

What I recommend is that the buyer go to the nearest Guitar Center or other full-service musical instrument store, amp in one hand and money in the other, and try several mics in the buyer's price range. Amp and mic work together, and what's most important is that the combination produces a sound that inspires the player. If you can't do that, then buy from musiciansfriend.com or americanmusical.com, and if you decide that you hate the mic you'll only be out shipping costs. 

By the way, when you try the mic with the amp, set the DA5 to the BLUES 2 or BLUES 3 amp model, set the tone knob to cut the treble frequencies, set the GAIN to a level that gives you a nice crunch--probably a little less than halfway up will do it for you--and the volume to a comfortable level. That's a good basic starting point for blues harp with the DA5.

Regards, Richard Hunter

author, "Jazz Harp" 
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