Hello

I'm a beginner, playing for a little less than a year on a Marine Band key C and a Special 20 key C.

From what i read everywhere the special 20 should be more airtight, easier to bend etc but I don't share that experience. It's difficult to describe (at least for a beginner like me), but it feels like every note on my special 20 requires 'more air', for the note to start. Especially on the bends I notice there's air without tone coming first, while my marine band just basically instantly hits the tone. Even though according to what I read, the bending should be easier on the special 20.

Is this just a matter of prefference. Or inexperienced technique? Or is this a bad luck harp which i should open up and try to fix.
Main reason i'm asking is because I want to buy 1 or 2 more keys, and i'm debating which type to get. If this is just how it is I'll definitly go Marine Band, but if its a faulty harp issue, I'd risk getting another special 20.

Thanks in advance!

Hi, sounds like your Sp20 reeds are gapped too wide.

This page has a basic description about reed gaps. Googling the subject will come up with many more.

Essentially, if the gaps are high, it will take more breath force to sound a note. Some say that the Sp20 is set deliberately high because many beginners like to play hard...

I don't know about particular models being any easier to bend than others; more likely the key will make more difference, then perhaps the setup (careful gapping can help).

If you do decide to adjust gaps, remember that the reeds are easily bent out of shape so just ease them gently and take your time.

Good luck!

thanks, I'll read up on how to adjust the gap and try that, the way my special 20 is now I basically end up leaving it and always grabbing the Marine Band, so it's worth the risk.

I own 3 harmonicas. I would guess they are right about the same age. I bought them roughly 15 years ago and fiddled and fooled with them all when I thought I could play along with a song. They have been through temperature extremes together and played without proper warming after sitting in frozen car in Michigan. They had about 60% of the care an instrument should have, compared to a nice toy. Driving for a living they would encounter the inevitable environment a smoker that ate drive-thru could dish out. They didnt always make it into their boxes when I was done with them and such. I have a Lee Oscar in G, Special 20 in E and in the key of C, a Hohner MS 532 with the dark brown comb. They all have sat idle for about 10 years until about 2 months ago.

I can not say for sure if this is a reflection on how easy some can get ripped up or how difficult they can be to respond and no clarity if some didnt respond well before the semi-abuse they endured.

What I can say is that I can bent the snot out of my MS Blues harp and to be perfectly honest I only just learned to honestly get all 4 tones on the 3 hole.

I could have easily trashed out inferior reeds that now seem not to bend easily.

I will give the other 2 a bit more of a try and get back within a day or so if there is anything much different.

If I were to go out and by anthing new I would most def look to get an MS or a Marine Band. It is my understanding the reed plates are the same for both. If the difference is in the plastic combs and the huge gaposis between the comb and the cover plate, then hands down... It is old school for me

So far I have my Special 20 in E out and in not much time during the day where I can make more noise. I would say I have holes 2 and 3 pretty ripped up but i can now get a nice proper stepped down draw on the 4. My preference between the 2 Hohners would hands down be the MS over the Special 20. I am gathering that the reeds are the same on both. I like what seems to be a crisper sound and easier bend out of the MS blues harp.

I understand that to get 'the same thing' today would be a different type wood for the comb. Bamboo I think. If the wood is making the difference to my ear than the plastic in the Special 20 then again I vote for the MS and would likely cast 2 votes on a marine band if I ever were able to try one now. To me if the reeds are the same and the combs are making the difference to my ear than i love the wood better than plastic and hope todays wood is extremely close in quality as what I have in the dark wood on my MS

I have to make a slight correction. I said earlier that the Special 20 and the Lee Oscar seemed to have massive gaposis between the comb and the top cover. This is only true on the lee Oscar which I still believe is the same age. I am going to fiddle with the ee oscar for the day. It seems the oddball for some reason. I am sure the age is similar and the semi-abuse they all endured.

The lee seems to have the leak though it is not all bashed up or anything like that. They were never used as prybars or wheel chocks. The lee seems too have real nice unbent notes still as if it were still new. No fighting any of the notes but not getting bends easy either where I would think I ought to get all of them quite nicely.

nyway I am going to putz with it and see.

I think I have decided that I do not really like the Lee Oscar as much as the Special 20 or the preferred 532 MS. Itry and try and what seems to be bends tend to make me believe I am only hearing the difference in the word kah kuh and such. I love the connectable case idea for the ee Oscar and it looks like the case did a better job of keeping its tenant in a clean environment. Opening them ll up I can see clearly the ee Oscar is much cleaner overall the reed plaes look near new. I was a heavy smoker and loved goofing off blowing smoke through them even. Of all 3 the M is giving me reliable bends.

As a side note, both Hohners show wear along where i rest my entire finger along the top and a blob on the bottom from the thunb where the Lee Oscar shows very litle signs like that. One could say it is a better finish on the cover plate and reedplates on Lee Oscar

OR

Could be the ee Oscar may have a much less exposure to me. If this is the case then the lee Oscar is being rather stingy with quality sounding bends if I am actually hearing what it can do and there is a chance that the leakage between the comb and the coverplate is enough to booger things up.

Between the Special 20 and the 532 MS I prefer the latter when it comes to the fasteners on the cover plate in addition to my preference to the defined edges of the holes as opposed to the rounded plastic Special 20. If I am actually hearing a difference between the wood and plastic combs then I again prefer the wood.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/13/2015 02:15AM by JerryVan.

I grew up only having wood combed harps, so my natural preference is for the Marine Band. I have a Special 20, a Lee Oskar, and many others, as I like to collect them, but the Marine Band is the one that "lives in my pocket" as it were. I can't say that one is necessarily easier to play than the other, but then, despite the length of time I've been playing, I'm far from an expert, so the nuances between harps are often lost on me. I do know that many of the plastic combed harps have a harsher/stronger tone, and the wood/bamboo harps tend to have a wamer/more mellow tone, which I tend to prefer. As far as bending is concerned, though, I personally can't tell a difference. I do have a few harps that seem to be easier to bend than others, but then those that are substantially easier or substantially harder to bend seem to be less expensive models, so I chalk the difference up to getting what you pay for. The quality in the more mid-range and high-end harps mean that the note you play is the note you get unless you intentionally bend it, whereas the cheaper harps are either too hard to bend because of poor construction and inconsistencies in materials, or are super easy to bend for the exact same reasons, and it's almost impossible to play the true note of the hole on them.

Adieu! (Or is that, "Adoughnt"?)

PCGuyIV