tookatooka
39 posts
Dec 06, 2008
11:19 AM
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On a C harp, I can draw on 6 and then pull down a bend but find it hard to go straight into the bent draw 6 without initiating the normal draw first.
Is this a gapping issue? If so does the gap need increasing or decreasing?
I know it's not me cause I can do it fine on other C harps.
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Preston
Guest
Dec 07, 2008
9:21 AM
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My first guess would be the gap is set too close. The closer the gap, the faster reeds react to your breath. However if you get them too close, they choke out before a note sounds. This could be the case with yours. Although it is vibrating on the regular draw, the redirection of air caused by your bent note embouchure is chokeing the reed. When you hit it unbent first, the reed is already vibrating freely, and allows you to bend down to it without choking.
An educated guess, but a guess nonetheless. Could be something else entirely. Let me know what you find out!
P
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tookatooka
40 posts
Dec 07, 2008
9:35 AM
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Thanks for that Preston. Before I commit to adjusting the gap I'm going to try and experiment on an old one first I think. I get a bit nervous messing with the harp that I use most of the time.
I'm trying to learn the basics of gapping etc but I need to do much much more before I really get a grasp and become proficient. It's a bit of a black art at the moment and I don't have that many plates to play with. Thanks.
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RyanMortos
7 posts
Dec 07, 2008
4:40 PM
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I started looking at gaping curious if that was why certain notes took so long to make a dry, flattish sound. Think there was something funny with the 3 draw on my key of G. So, if reeds respond what seems like too late on a draw/blow that can mean that the gap is too large and should be decreased?
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~Ryan
PA
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Preston
Guest
Dec 07, 2008
5:30 PM
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Guys, I'm afraid there are alot of variables for me to answer these questions with 100% certainty. I am a relatively soft player, so I can set my gaps closer than somebody who tries to tear the guts out. Different playing styles take different harp set-ups.
If a reed isn't responding quickly, it is most likely that the gap is to wide. It takes more air flow to get the reed to respond. However, if you are a player who really attacks your notes with alot of force, it is very possible your gap is to close, and you are simply sucking/blowing so hard you knock it out of the choke that it is under.
Something more I wanted to add: I was thinking about the way I answered Tookatooka earlier, and there may be adjustment needed on your 6 blow reed. You see, the adjacent reed really affects the other when you are talking about bending, because it is really the one making the sound. That's right folks, it's not just in overblows that the opposite reed sounds, it's in all bends. I first discovered it when I screwed up a 3 blow reed on one of my harps. I figured I didn't really need it as it was the same note as the 2 draw, and I'm not a big octave player. I soon discovered I couldn't bend the 3 draw. After a little research on the net I found out why. Interesting stuff, huh?
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mr_so&so
9 posts
Dec 08, 2008
11:06 AM
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Preston, that is indeed interesting stuff, thanks.
I have a question too. I recently became overblow-curious and took the big jump into gapping the 4,5,6 blow reeds of an old harp as outlined in gussow.017. To my surprise, this was effective. I could sound the overblows for the first time! The surprise is that there are a lot of really complicated mods described on Youtube and www.overblow.com. So my question is, what are the minimum adjustments required? Perhaps Adam has answered this in his 016 and 017 videos, but what do you guys do, as routine to set up new harps for overblows, or other things?
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Preston
70 posts
Dec 08, 2008
7:05 PM
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I would say the minimum adjustment is gapping. I usually emboss the reed plates around the edges of the reed, but gapping is definetely my first priority if I want to get overblows and overdraws.
I spend quite a bit of time on setting up my harps. It usually is a 2 to 3 day process to get one just the way I like it. I do some mods, play it for awhile and see how it performs, then go back for more fine tuning. There are several YT videos that talk about "plinking" a reed to make sure it has settled into place after you gap it, but I've found on brand new harps that haven't had a lot of breaking in that reeds will need readjusting no matter how much I've plinked them. God we gotta get a new term for that.
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