well a sp20 is a far superior instrument than a cheaper one. The reeds on the sp20 are extreamly well tuned and are easy to play, on the other hand cheap harps are ok.... but i would really save up for a special 20 as they are very good, its all about personal prefference :)
In my opinion, cheap harps are NOT OK. They're not well made and are hard to play. It's hard for a beginner to play an instrument that's hard to play.
As far as a better harp: Like HarpBoy said--Personal preference.
Here's one guy's (from another forum) opinions:
"Well the other day i noticed that i have alot of old broken harp form all the companies, so i thought id rate each on the harps i have played, for each brand ill give a 5 star rating and easch review will be on at least 3 harmonicas.
HERING
harps ive had- Vintage 1923, hering blues, and the golden blow
now hering harps for me are hit and miss, the vintage in high keys is rubbish with it being the most leaky harps ive played but in low keys is outstanding, the hering blues is much like the speciel 20, an good average harp, but the golden blow, which ive not owned but had the privalige to play is unbeliveable. Its a custom harp of sorts that plays so well but it has the same reeds as the hering blues, and this showed me how much a little alteration can go a long way.
there durable, feel good in the hands and if you have the right key there great, but there inconsistant , with some not being gapped well and squeaking.
i will buy more but inconsistancy and the high key problem makes me take marks off these otherwise good harmonicas.
DURABILITY *** last awhile but the low reed have a tendency to go quicker.
PLAYABILITY *** really good for the golden blow,hering blues average, vintage mixed good-bad.
TONE *** with the vintage its punchy and full, average with the others.
PRICE ***** very cheap with both the vintage and blues coming in under £20.
Overall 3.5 out of 5
HOHNER
harps ive had- marine band, golden melody, pro harp, blues harp, puck, xb-40.
these are the most famous and most popular and harmonicas like the marine band and golden melody, which are great, help to inbed this view. But dispite hohners reputaion there harp do little to inspire me, with there ms harps the pro harp and the blues harp being weak and poor players.
but thier golden melody and marine band save them, both being very good, the marine band for its tone and ease of play and the golden melody for it bending and overblowing capabilities. also the ambisous xb-40 is good although it takes getting used to.
all of these harps have acommon fault though, there all easier to break than other brands, i will buy more but there durability is there achilles heel.
DURABILITY **
the marine band and ms harp are bad, the golden melody and xb-40 are a little tuffer.
PLAYABILITY ***1/2
the marine band, golden melody and xb-40 are good, the ms harps poor.
TONE ****
almost all have a decent tone with the marine band topping the charts.
PRICE ****
mostly resonable with the averge about £25 or so, the xb-40 is an exception.
OVERALL 3.6 out of 5
HUANG
harps ive had- bacpac, star performer and silvertone
first off, let me say that the bacpac is bad, and painful to play so that the last on that. i still have the scars.
the other two are fine, both have ok tone play well and if tweaked sound fantastic, but inconsitanty is rife and ive never had two the same, one will play like a custom harp the next wont even sound, but for what the are there not bad.
there cheap, there useable, bar the bacpac, and for the money paid play fine, but dont expect miracles.
DURABILITY ** not the strongest but hay there cheap.
PLAYABILITY ** not bad but far from great.
TONE ** a little thin but i find the silvertone punchier than the others.
PRICE ***** cant knock it, they were all under £10, very cheap indeed.
OVERALL 2.75 out of 5
SEYDEL
harps ive had- big six, favourite, soloist pro, 1847
the favourite is great slick and easy it play with big sound and comfort, same with soloist pro, the wood comb resonating it good strong tone. There 1847 with it steel reed is surprisingly simarlar in sound but big on the volume and long lasting because of the materials strengh. The big six preforms the same dispite it small size.
Seydels harps are all very good, strong, easy to play with a great sound, and those with the steel reeds (1847,bigsix) have great durability. The range of tunings also is amazing, over 200 for the favourite, which frankly is mind boggleing.
Seydels harps are great in every aspect, and i buy with confidence, knowing there constistant product will perform brillantly even in my hands. And thats not ever talking about there quality and sound!
DURABILITY **** good alround but the steel one are longer lasting then the others.
PLAYABILITY ***** easy, all are fantastic to play and so simple because of the airtightness.
TONE **** very rich and warm throughout.
PRICE ***1/2 there more expensive but your paying for better quality, so not to bad.
suzuki harmonicas are great, the promaster blusemaster and hammondharp all playing like a dream, easy, rich, and full. the firebreath and purharp are also mavellous both have a warm tone and great overblowing and bend capabilities, and the cheapest the harp master is also fantastic, with the same properties as the bluemaster.
they are all great, easy to play harps with those with the bronze reeds lasting a long time. i will never stop buying suzukis for they are amazing in ever aspect.
DURABILITY **** very good indeed but i find that the firebreath and pureharp to be weaker.
PLAYABILITY ***** the easiest, and most enjoyable of all the brands.
TONE ***** rich and full of character.
PRICE *** most good but the firebreath and pureharp overpriced.
OVERALL 4.25 out of 5
TOMBO
Harps ive had- aero reed, ultimo and lee oskar.
the aero reeds very good, so is the ultimo and so is the lee oskar, thats the problem ive got, good but thats my problem and love for these insturments, there so good, so average and consitant that there hard to critise and to prise other that there good, but there more than that.
there strong, there loud, there cheap to get new reeds for and there easy to play, the only flaw is there difficulty in get overblows. Thats how good they are.
i love tombo, the aero reeds bright rocky sound exspecalily and i will buy them again because there strong and the sort of harp you cant go wrong with.
DURABILITY **** consistanly strong and in my view the most difficult to break but by no means indesrucable.
PLAYABILITY **** a little harder than the seydels and suzuki but easy non the less.
now each company has good and bad points but i must say that there all very good, and you should really try out each of them, because (apart for huang really) there all quality harp makerS with great and different harps."
Here's somebody else's opinions.
Last Edited by on Jan 08, 2011 7:31 AM
That's a nice list from 'a boy from another forum' , but to me it says nothing about the quality and playability of harmonica's. If everyone would make a list like that, it would give as much differend results..
But about your question: the Hotmetal is the same harmonica as the special 20, only difference is the color of the plastic comb and the color and letters on the covers. The reedplates are exact the same...
The other question: a special 20, lee oskar, bluesmaster, etc. the're all fine harps for beginners and also for advanced players... But 'cheap'...don't buy a harp for &2,50, that means trouble..
(If you break a lot of reeds, you should blow/draw less hard) ---------- www.sweetportblues.com http://www.myspace.com/arnoudbluesharp
Last Edited by on Jan 08, 2011 12:55 PM
I've owned a ton of Hot Metals, and I've heard that the reed profiles are different than those in the Special 20, as they are made in China and not in Germany as the Special 20 is.
This may be true, as the Hot Metals will squeal to high heaven on overblows and overdraws, whereas the Special 20 does not. Huangs, also made in China, are awful for overblows too - the reeds are longer than Hohner reeds. The Chinse reeds do have a certain tone quality that I like however.
The only visible difference between the comb and coverplates is that both appear to made out of cheaper materials. The Hot Metal covers look very cheaply made in comparison to the Special 20's.
I disagree with the ratings and the comments from the other forum.
Suzukis are NOT ideal for overblows because of their reed profiles, except for the Fabulous, Firebreath, and Manji.
Seydels are also not ideal for overblows in my opinion, though they can be customized, yet I know many customizers who refuse to build overblow harps out of them because they just require too much work. This is what the customizers say, not me - I am no customizer, but I know that Seydels just don't work for me. The 1847 is the same size and has the same coverplate as the Hohner MS Big River, and the Blues Session covers look identical to the MS Meisterklasse, yet Seydel likes to remind us that they are the oldest manufacturer.
Herings are the worst harps I've ever played. And the Golden Blow was a joke. I tried it SPAH and it was NOT anywhere close to a custom. And who would ever name a harp Golden Blow? I wouldn't play any harmonica with the word "blow" in the name, no matter how good it played. :)
Last Edited by on Jan 08, 2011 10:13 PM
Everyone is entitled to their opinion....I have played all of the harps mentioned above, except the Hering and Suzukis so I will offer no insight. I have played the rest and my experience is this.....
I used to have a whole set of L.O.'s. They did not hold up well.....and eventually I replaced them all.
I began to experiment with the rest....I have a couple of seydel solist pros, and while I believe they played the best out of the box, The did not hold up for long either.
I tried a few Huang "Star Performers" ...they were not that bad.
What I used now are Hohner MB's or SP20's and on Crossover (tweaked by chromaticblues)
The MB's are Customs by Deak Harp and Dude. The SP'20s Ive tinkered with myself. ----------
Procrastinator Emeritus
Last Edited by on Jan 08, 2011 1:53 PM
I have in my hand a S20 and a Hotmetal both in A, both embossed and gapped by me. They are both equally airtight now and the playability is very similar. I seem to notice a very slightly more full tone on the s20 but can't quantify. The reed plates and reeds are not the same. The plates would be interchangeable except for a few screw holes but the metal is different in both plates and reeds. I also retuned both of them so I got to know the reeds well. The s20 reeds seem to be heavier. The hotmetal was easier to work with, but the centering of the reeds to the slots was more precise on the s20. I am going to try to give them equal playing time and see which seems to hold up better in the long run. I would say for a beginner or for anyone who wants to take the time to disassemble and do a little modification, the Hotmetal may be a much better value than s20.
Sorry about my wrong opinion about the hotmetal/sp20, I only have one hotmetal and I haven't seen them a long time in the shops....I really tought they were the same harps. I remember my Hotmetal was also the same price as the sp20.
Earwax: "If everyone did make a list like that, wouldn't the majority's opinion give credibility?"
Well I think (but I'm not shure...) that every one has its one favorietes, and that except for maybe the Huangs en the Herings, there will be as much harpplayers favorietes the Hohner, Seydels ore Suzuki's, because these are the best brands... So it's really a matter of taste and personal experience.. (my favorietes are Seydel 1874, hohner Crossover and Suzuki promaster...)
"Anyone who takes the time to do a write up like that, deserves to be respected" To discuss the things he write doesnot mean I don't respect him... I respect everyone, and enjoy these conversations !
I don't know about the Hot Metals, since I haven't seen one in person, but the Piedmonts, the Blues Bands, and the Pocket Pal all seem to be the same harp except for the covers. They seem to share the comb as the SP20, but the reeds on the SP20 are heavier and sound better.
The Piedmont covers taste bad at first, and tend to mute the harp, but they are pretty comfortable. The Blues Band and the Pocket Pal covers aren't very smoothed. They have rough edges that are tough on the hands and lips. The SP20 comb is way better quality.
That said, I have one set of Blues Band covers on a set of Piedmont reeds that sounds pretty sweet. It's not really responsive though, and another Frankenharp with a cover set that isn't even stamped that seems about half as thick as a Blues Band that plays okay. You can hear the difference though, against a good harp.
I have a set of Piedmonts that I worked on, gapping and attempt to emboss, and they played much better but still leaked. I could not get near the responsiveness that I could from the modified Hotmetal. Bluesband seems to have the same plates and reeds as the Hotmetal, but Piedmont does not. Piedmont plates seem to be aluminum with some gold colored plating or maybe paint. The slots are too big and the aluminum does not emboss like brass. Also the plastic covers are textured and not conducive to sliding lips. I would not recommend Piedmonts, even to someone who does their own modifications. Bluesband and Hotmetal can be worked into decent playing harps.
I started teaching myself to play at Chritmas with a cheap Harp.
Today I took delivery of a Suzuki Bluesmaster (thanks Dad ;) ). The difference is amazing, it is so easy to play and sounds very sweet, feels really good in my mouth. Solid feel, very well made.
I can now practice tunes far far easier than on the cheapo harp, its definately worthwhile getting something decent otherwise you could be in danger of becoming frustrated and giving up.
I dont have much experience with any others but I can tell you the Suzuki feels like a Ferari next to an old Morris Minor in comparison.
I'm an absolute raw beginner. I have a Bluesmaster, a Blues Session Standard, a Delta Frost and a Bluesband---all in "C". The Delta Frost and the Bluesmaster seem very much alike. The Blues Session is, to me, the easiest to play single notes on and is what I use most, since that's what I'm trying to learn. The Bluesband is probably not worth what you pay for it.
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Just when I got a paddle, they added more water to the creek.
