Re: [Harp-L] harmonicas are not guitars

[Matthew Smart <matthewsmart@xxxxxxxxx>]

Good points of discussion. Ok, yes flat being most important agree. Like I said earlier most stock combs are not flat.

So let me revise consider the example using an acoustic guitar. Is not the hollow wood body the house of the guitar and a major factor in the sound? Now take those strings and put them on a metal national resonator guitar... Does that not make a difference in sound? If you made an acoustic guitar from that comb plastic would it really sound beautiful and vibrant?

Why isn't a comb which I think is even a more intimate part of the harmonica as its housing...why wouldn't a denser more quality difference in material make a difference in the performance and sound?  It seems very logical to me. Corian is similar in properties to plastic but it is of higher quality and more dense. There is a noticeable difference in volume and performance vs stock. I notice it, customizers notice it, customers notice it! 

Do I need to send you one? ; ) grin

Sent from my iPhone

On Oct 28, 2012, at 5:43 PM, Jonathan Ross <jross38@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

>> Of course not but I still think its a decent example as the reeds and strings are in close proximity to the body
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> It's a horrible example because the way the two work is entirely different.  In a guitar you pluck the strings which then translate their vibration through the bridge to the thin membrane which is the top of the guitar.  The vibrations of the top set the chamber of air inside the body into motion and this is what you hear: the amplified string.  In the harmonica you create a large column of air moving through the gate of the reed.  It is the chopping of this column of air which you hear, not the vibration of the reed per se.  Totally different means of production.  The similar proximity of the reed and the strings to the parts of the instrument is irrelevant.
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>> I'm not a guitar player but I do not know any good guitar player that plays a plastic body guitar correct me if I'm wrong.  If they do it's a much harder, denser acrylic blend vs that abs cheap light stuff that will melt with light heat. Example Seydel makes a more dense plastic comb on the silver that is much better and dishwasher safe
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> If you watched the second video from the start you would have read that it did indeed warp/melt in moderate heat (a car window).  ABS is inexpensive, but not cheap--it does the job quite well which is why so many harmonica companies use it.  Is your argument against it one of feel--ie, it feels cheap?  Or is it the lightness?  What makes ABS a bad material specifically?  What makes other plastics better?  Do you object to all injection molded combs?  Just trying to get a more clear answer than the amorphous "cheap".
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>> But if that doesn't satisfy you then pick a nice flute or other woodwind instrument. Do they use cheap plastic? No
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> Woodwinds are more similar to harmonicas than are guitars, but different enough that the materials don't directly equate.  That said, there is much debate about what if any effect material has on the performance of woodwinds.  In my not limited experience with flue pipes the main factors which influence tone and timbre are ones of construction, rigidity, and density.  The specific material is mostly important in terms of how it dictates those factors.  But, harmonicas don't have their pitch or timbre determined by the resonant body to which they are connected, and so their behavior is different.  (well, the reason everyone sounds a bit different is because our lungs, throat and mouth are the resonant chamber of the harmonica--but while each player sounds a bit different, we all sound like harmonica players, IMO)
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>> I would also submit that most harmonica customizers do not use stock combs unless fixing up the marine band stock or using the stock sp20 comb. I don't think they do this just because they look good. I can speak with decent authority here because I sell parts to many of them
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> And I reject this as being an argument by authority.  I'm sure there are many reasons why people would choose your combs.  The flatness one is pretty compelling, IMO.  A nice feel or look is quite important as well.  But this doesn't address any of the questions I raised or points I made.
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> Dave Payne writes:
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> "I was all agreeing with you about how the comb doesn't do tuning fork stuff, doesn't resonate like a tuning fork, etc. until you said this:
> "The harmonica comb is essentially inert.
> So take a wooden table. Find an even larger table to bang it on. You will notice no tuning-fork resonant action.
> However, have somebody gently rap one end of the table and put your ear on the other end."
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> Now take two large pieces of brass which weigh proportionally as much to the table as reed-plates to a harmonica comb.  Screw them securely together with the table in between.  Repeat the process rapping on the wood.  You will be unable to set the table into vibration and thus translate nothing.  Again, compare like to like, not like to unlike.  
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> JR Ross
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