Re: [Harp-L] Re: cheap harmonica

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Rafael Veggi wrote:
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWFnimpXFuM
<starts at 4:48 and goes to 5:42
<
<looks like a less than $5 harp and sounds great to me

It sounded okay.  It sounded like a harmonica.  Not easy to tell from the video whether it's in tune.  Impossible to tell from the video how long it will stay in tune, or remain playable, both of which are big issues with any harp, let alone one designed to last a few days at most. Also impossible to tell from the video what percentage of any given production run of those $5 instruments are actually decently tuned and playable out of the box.  We take it for granted now with Special 20s, Lee Oskars, and other mid-priced harps that the thing will work properly out of the box.  In the bad old days of Hohner, I used to go through 3-4 Marine bands to get one that played decently.  Want to bet that these $5 guys are better than that?  What's their incentive to make an instrument that lasts?  

I don't plan to spend any of my time looking for $5 harmonicas that are playable enough to bet a gig on.  I suggest that it's more worthwhile to look for a $25 Cadillac or a $15 diamond ring, since if you find one of those you can sell it and make enough money to buy plenty of good harmonicas, and it shouldn't be any more difficult than finding a $5 harmonica that'll last more than a week.

Regards, Richard Hunter

author, "Jazz Harp" 
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