Improving Playability of Harmonicas
Posted by: JohnHoward asks:
“I am a novice. I can alter the tunings of my harps with good results.
Are there simple adjustments I can do to make my diatonics and chroms
play better i.e. (practice.. lol.) in terms of mechanics to make it
more user friendly?… Thanks for your time.”
I’m no expert on harmonica repair, so I’m going to throw this one out to the crowd. Anybody have any tips for Howard?
- Tags: improvements, playbility, repair, tuning
May 3rd, 2011 at 4:41 pm
That’s a loaded question Howard. No 2 Mfg.’s harps respond the same nor do harps within the same company. The weight of the reed (lower tuned being heavier at the tip), key and air tightness are all factors to be considered before you can decide how to make adjustments.
The first thing you want to do is make sure the harmonica is air tight. From there you can adjust the reed gap for optimum playing.
The gapping setup for diatonics is different then chromatics because your goal with diatonic setup is to bend notes easily and dead on without the reeds choking or sounding breathy. With chromatics you have 4 reeds per hole so your main goal is to have all reeds respond equally with good tone. Mike
May 7th, 2011 at 10:06 am
I am seeking the best chromatic harmonica for playing soft with low airflow. My current Cx 12 Hohner is difficult to play softly and requires high airflow especially in the lower and upper octives. Any suggestion?
May 10th, 2011 at 10:50 am
@D Square: I’m not a chromatic expert, by any means, although I do mess around with the couple that I own and do my best to sound like I know what I’m doing! That said, my understanding from talking to people who do play a lot of chromatic is that the CX-12 is notorious for being difficult to play with any real finesse. They tend to favor the Hohner 260 and 280 or Meisterklasse, or any of a number of other higher-end chromatics available. I have a 280 and I like it. I find it pretty easy to play softly or loudly, the only limitation on the latter being my breath capacity.
Mine is stock and has never been messed with. If I were to have someone like @Mike go over it and set it up exactly right, it would play a lot better. That’s really what you want to do, ultimately. Get a decent quality chromatic to start with and then have an expert set it up. That’s as true for harmonicas as for any other instrument.
So, bottom line, I would recommend replacing the CX12 with a better harp, at least.
John
May 17th, 2011 at 12:56 am
Great! Thanks for the come-back. Another quick question. I’ve purchased a Suzuki Chromatix. The box that it came in had a small label on it stating “New Mouthpiece.” I’m curious, do new Suzuki’s have this label on the box or did I purchase a reconditioned harmonica?
May 18th, 2011 at 4:53 pm
@D Square,
Again, I’m not an expert on such things, but I believe that label is there to indicate that the harp is new and not previously used. Given that it’s placed in one’s mouth, I’m sure there are rules about that from the gummint agencies involved with that sort of thing.
Anybody know for sure?