Seven.Oh.Three.
299 posts
Feb 24, 2016
8:53 PM
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Is this true? Does anyone know if they've discontinued the MBD for ever??
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SuperBee
3441 posts
Feb 24, 2016
9:51 PM
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It's news to me.
Do you have a source for your rumour?
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Mirco
388 posts
Feb 24, 2016
11:59 PM
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Finally! I thought they would never get rid of those things.
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Marc Graci
YouTube Channel
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SuperBee
3442 posts
Feb 25, 2016
3:10 AM
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When I search I see something coming up on the rockin Ron précis but when I follow the link I get no mention of discontinued just no Bb availability which could be read as discontinued and Bb is the first key they have run out of..,the whole tone of the hohner part of rockin rons site seems to be uncertainty and irritation. Whatever hohner USA are doing, it looks as though they're annoying a lot of people right now.
I can see hohner might like to rationalise the deluxe out...they'd probably prefer to drop the classic but that would go down like a cup of cold sick no doubt..
Deluxe has rrp of $98 in Australia now.
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Rontana
299 posts
Feb 25, 2016
4:13 AM
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Hohner doesn't seem to have their act together at all. I'm sure it's not easy moving to a new facility . . . but c'mon. At present their prices are often exorbitant (all over the board, really) and supply seems low.
For instance, check any of the Marine Band or Special 20 sets on places like Amazon or the Guitar Center/Musicians Friends/Music 123/ conglomerate. They have been moving the backorder date further back for several months now. Originally it was january. Now it's March.
I've no idea what's going on with that outfit, But I will seriously look at Suzuk or Seydel next time I need a new harp.
Last Edited by Rontana on Feb 25, 2016 4:15 AM
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Tiggertoo1962
22 posts
Feb 25, 2016
5:04 AM
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Not sure if the problem lies with Hohner USA Bee. I've had one in F on order for about 3 weeks here in Germany, and have just checked to find an expected delivery date of March 8th.
Mirco - not a fan, I guess? ;)
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harpwrench
1071 posts
Feb 25, 2016
5:23 AM
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If you've saved your old deluxes, I can fix them and make them play much nicer for a lot less than a new one anyway. At almost 70 bucks a pop you're rapidly approaching the cost of a repair combined with very high quality reed work.
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www.spiersharmonicas.com
Harp repair and upgrade menu
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WinslowYerxa
1083 posts
Feb 25, 2016
12:40 PM
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The Marine Band Deluxe is still featured on the Hohner website: http://us.playhohner.com/instruments/harmonicas/diatonic-harmonicas/marine-band-series/marine-band-deluxe/
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Winslow
Check out my blog and other goodies at winslowyerxa.com
Harmonica For Dummies, Second Edition with tons of new stuff
Join us in 2016 for SPAH on the San Antonio River Walk!
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Rhartt1234
197 posts
Feb 25, 2016
4:55 PM
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"The Marine Band Deluxe is still featured on the Hohner website"
So am I and they discontinued me a year ago, so I don't think their website is an accurate barometer.
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SuperBee
3444 posts
Feb 25, 2016
5:25 PM
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how to start a rumour 101:
Start a thread with a provocative title and offer absolutely no background to substantiate there is even a cause to discuss the topic.
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Mirco
391 posts
Feb 25, 2016
6:07 PM
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The Marine Bands are fine instruments. They are better ones out there, but I own several of them and they play perfectly fine.
I saw the opportunity to make a joke and I was in the mood for it.
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Marc Graci
YouTube Channel
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Tiggertoo1962
25 posts
Feb 25, 2016
10:27 PM
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Guess I just haven't been round here long enough to catch it, Mirco ;)
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florida-trader
882 posts
Feb 26, 2016
6:59 AM
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Hohner USA, or more precisely KHS America is seriously disorganized at the moment. I ordered about 75 harmonicas in November. I got about a dozen of them in December but the bulk of my order was not delivered until just last week and that was the result of numerous phone calls on my part to see what was going on. The move from Richmond to Nashville was a fiasco. And sadly, at a time when they should be bending over backwards to provide customer service a lot - not all, but a lot - of the people I have spoken with over there don't seem to care or are inept or both. I have managed to find a couple of guys who are pretty much with it and helped make things happen for me. Had I not found them, I am quite confident that I would still be waiting for my order to be shipped. I have no doubt about that. It is insane how poorly run that company is at the present moment.
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Tom Halchak
www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
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mlefree
601 posts
Feb 26, 2016
11:26 AM
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This kind of corporate bugaboo scenario repeats itself often through history. I've seen it many times.
A financial-based outfit, often venture capitalists, who know nothing about a company other than its financial records gets all excited wanting in on the brand and the profits it generates.
So they buy it knowing nothing about the company's products or customer base. Then they start to manage it the only way they know how, by the income statement and balance sheet. First, they reckon that they don't need so many highly paid workers to sell simple little harmonicas. (Most of them won't relocate anyway.) They replace time-tested experienced employees with ones who will work for a fraction of the former rates.
And then they calculate that a new headquarters makes fiscal sense for whatever reason (cheaper rent, logistics, proximity to whatever). So they uproot the inventory lock stock and barrel and move it to a new location where they've hired their brand new employees.
Usually, one of two things happens. In both cases, they've very effectively destroyed the company's brand, totally disgusted their customer base and driven themselves into financial ruin. In case A, they don't have ~very~ deep pockets. so they have no choice but to sell off in a fire sale or just abandon the idea completely. In case B, they do have lots of disposable cash and can afford to start all over rebuilding their brand and customer base. Not easy, expensive and time-consuming but doable if they recognize the error of their former ways.
Since KHS America seems to be big enough to fit into case B, we can hope that there will be a future for Hohner harmonicas. My fervent hope, especially given their track record thus far, is that they don't decide that they could more efficiently and affordably manufacture their harmonicas in Shenzen, China.
We can hope, but prepare yourself for rocky roads to continue for some time at Hohner USA.
Michelle
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SilverWing Leather - Custom leather creations for musicians and other eccentrics.
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WinslowYerxa
1087 posts
Feb 26, 2016
11:55 AM
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KHS has owned Hohner for about 20 years, so they're not neophytes. Prior to that, Hohner did go through a whole series of bean-counting know-nothing owners who ruined the company's reputation in the manner Michelle describes – think of all the crap they put out in the 1980s and '90s. When KHS bought the company, that's when things started to get much, much better.
KHS also owns several other music brands, and probably saw some value in consolidation of facilities. Hohner USA is now directly part of KHS instead of being part of Hohner Germany, and this probably is what prompted the move to "music city" Nashville.
Hohner also went through some changes in top management - Hohner's first American world CEO departed in the process; he was great to work with - and now this move that has not gone well at all. I hope they can recover from it and get back to business.
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Winslow
Check out my blog and other goodies at winslowyerxa.com
Harmonica For Dummies, Second Edition with tons of new stuff
Join us in 2016 for SPAH on the San Antonio River Walk!
Last Edited by WinslowYerxa on Feb 26, 2016 11:56 AM
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Thievin' Heathen
693 posts
Feb 26, 2016
12:31 PM
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One thing I really liked about the move to Nashville was all the inventory Hohner put up on Ebay instead of loading on a truck. The key selection was limited, but for a short time I bought several, old stock, pre-MS Meisterklasse reedplates. I put these is some of Andrew's combs and they made very nice harps. That fishing hole has dried up now.
Last Edited by Thievin' Heathen on Feb 26, 2016 12:32 PM
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Seven.Oh.Three.
300 posts
Feb 26, 2016
8:55 PM
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Wasn't trying to start any rumors. I had read somewhere that they had discontinued them (which thankfully appears to be false) and wanted to get some feedback from folks who could offer a little more insight. Glad to hear they're keeping them around a little longer.
I have almost a complete set of them and should probably just finish it out.
Harp wrench- thank you for the offer and I one day I want to send them out for some work.
7.o.3.
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hvyj
2980 posts
Feb 26, 2016
10:42 PM
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I'm not much of a Hohner fan, but for various reasons I put together a mixed set of XOs and MBDs and I put Hetrick Blonde bamboo combs on all of them. With the same comb on each model it is very hard to tell the difference between them. I actually have both an MBD and an XO in the key of C with Hetrick blonde bamboo combs on each. I was just playing them and I had to look in order to tell which was which.
Last Edited by hvyj on Feb 26, 2016 10:45 PM
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SuperBee
3452 posts
Feb 27, 2016
3:46 AM
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so you don't think the tuning is different, John? I've always wondered about the spare reed plates because they supply the same for both deluxe and crossover.
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hvyj
2981 posts
Feb 27, 2016
11:36 AM
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Well, they may be tuned differently, but in my experience, if you use the same comb on both, they don't SOUND very different. I guess what I'm saying is that the differences in the tunings don't result in much practical difference in the SOUND produced if the harps are each configured the same. BUT I haven't played them out with other musicians, only around the house, and ensemble playing would be the acid test.
Now, some of the XO's do sound BRIGHTER because they are tuned to A443+ and I think the MBDs are tuned A442. But the reference tuning in the XOs is inconsistent-- it varies from instrument to instrument. I got an XO in F that was way higher than A444 and was unplayably shrill. So I bought an MBD in F and that was fine. My C XO and my C MBD are indistinguishable. The reference tuning on the MBDs is very consistent from harp to harp. But on the XOs some harps are brighter to varying extents and some are not.
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SuperBee
3455 posts
Feb 27, 2016
4:21 PM
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Yep I've had some very bright crossovers here. I can't think why they'd be less consistent than deluxe though. And I still wonder about those replacement plates. I expect it may not be an issue as they are priced at a point which will ensure they don't actually sell any.
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A440
536 posts
Feb 28, 2016
1:19 PM
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The MBD is alive and well, as far as I can ascertain.
But it seems that Suzuki did indeed stop making the Fire Breath - get 'em while they last...
Last Edited by A440 on Feb 28, 2016 1:20 PM
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The Black Pit
47 posts
Feb 28, 2016
8:09 PM
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I guess I can now read 15 posts on why Suzuki sucks and hear more BS rumours than a supermarket tabloid.
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"The blues are the roots of all American music. As long as American music survives, so will the blues."...Willie Dixon
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