Hohner have decided to start selling harmonicas in blister packs.
Now I have nothing against this and in principle it's a good idea. Although I do believe it could raise shipping costs from online suppliers.
It does mean when you buy from a shop you know nobody has been playing it before you and you're not going to catch some disease from it. Unless of course the person(s) packaging them at the factory has a transmittable one.
What I can't see for the life of me figure out though is why Hohner didn't instead of doing this and inventing the Crossover and Marine Band Deluxe, simply update the Marine Band Classic.
The company has no doubt long been aware that increasingly larger numbers of players take the Marine Band apart and seal the comb and use screws to reassemble the harmonica. Bear in mind I'm not including reed work in the following. Merely comb sealing and screws.
I'd imagine that the people buying the Crossover and MB Deluxe are the same people who have bought Marine Band Classic. So I can't see how it would affect sales overall.
It would appear that an ever increasing number of players want an instrument that is easy to maintain and a lot seem to favour the Marine Band as that instrument (once it's been sealed and screwed). It's also the harmonica that most customisers seem to offer as well.
So why didn't Hohner simply update it's production to do that?
Surely the costs would have been significantly less than the total cost of R&D and tooling to make the Crossover and MB Deluxe?
Is it simply because they view the Marine Band Classic as iconic and think that tampering with it might affect sales of it and/or the company image adversely?
I'm merely wondering the reasons why and trying to understand them.
Maybe they wanted to keep the classic Marine Band, which has set the standard for decades, in the lineup. I bet if they would have introduced the Deluxe as an updated replacement to the current model (or even a more moderately altered design) a lot of players would have complained that they don't sound like the old ones did. So players have a choice. Still I don't understand the dramatic price increase on ALL harps over the last couple of years.
Hmmm! Does the blister pack mean they don't provide a box? Could be way of keeping costs down.
Also they may not have updated it because they know there are loads of dyed in the wool Marine Band buyers who'll buy nothing else, so they can rely on the repeat business no matter what they do.
Or, maybe they have thrown all their weight behind the Crossover and MB Deluxe and just want to get rid of their stock. By packaging it like the BluesBender it would occupy the same marketing outlets and become an item which is as a "compulsive buy item" in a rack next to the checkout tills.
By putting it in a blister pack, to my mind, degrades it somewhat. ----------
Actually now I look at the pictures it would indeed seem that the sentimental factor is being played upon by Hohner. Which could indeed explain why they didn't just update the Marine Band instead of creating the Crossover and MB Deluxe.
I must say I haven't played a Crossover, but I do have a few MB Deluxe. They are nice harps, but to my ear are not as nice in tonality as an MB Classic that has been sealed and screwed with no other work done to it.
It could of course be purely psychological but there does seem to be a difference to me (albeit a relatively small one)
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 4:56 AM
The blister packs make them easier to use as POS (point of sale) items. It will make them more visible and allow them them expand their market to places like Grocery Stores.
I've noticed you can buy them at the Best Buys in my area.
I don't see why everybody has their panties in bunch over the blister packs. I have been receiving my new harps like that for awhile, the packs just get bent in half and shipped to me. It's not going to affect any of you guys either. Just open the package and play the damn harp. Out of the box harps suck anyway so what are you guys complaining about? :-) ---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 5:30 AM
I can't really shed any light. However, you do seem to have read my mind, I've been thinking more or less the same thoughts for a while.
I've often thought that they should maintain the iconic 1896 for the sake of the obsessive purists' sanity, while offering the same model sealed and nailed, which is not what the 2005 and 2009 models are; they feel and sound a little different.
I suppose it's a marketing thing.
Anyway, I've had it with all that. I'll likely always keep a few 1896s around, partly 'cos I don't want to unlearn how to play on those pesky wooden combs. Apart from that - and this is not a pretext to a 'which harp debate' - I'll just stick with Sp20s and be done with it. I won't play Hohner's 'whiter than white' - you know, like the last 40+ years of washing powder ads - game anymore. ---------- YouTube SlimHarpMick
"I've noticed you can buy them at the Best Buys in my area"
Lol! I'll have a loaf of bread,pint of milk and a Bb Marine Band! That'll make shopping much more interesting. Love that idea!
I don't really have anything against the blister packs aside from a possible increase that may occur when buying from online sources. Even then though it'll be a minimal increase I suppose.
Just curious ... has the MB Classic ever been updated (or downgraded)? Was it always nailed. I read a comment sone time ago that the covers on the old ones used to be bent inwards like on the Deluxe today but I have never seen one like that ...
Also, is there a prefered method of sealing a MB classic? Which screws are you guys using for the mod?
The reason is that the last time Hohner tried to change the MB i.e making it part of the MS range, enough people complained to them to change them back that they did. As you say Kingley they have tried to update it with the Deluxe and as you say they are not bad harps but different sounding to Classics.
I have a couple of MS Marine bands at home and in fact my local music shop still have a couple of them for sale. They are nothing but a Big River harp with Marine band stamped on the cover plates.
As long as people still want the Classic they will sell them.
I believe it changed slightly in design sometime around the second world war and the lost the rolled back covers and a star of David on the cover plate Yes it has always been assembled with nails.
Dave Payne is probably the best person to answer Harmonica history questions on this forum. He is a veritable mine of information when it comes to harmonica manufacturing history. He'll be able to go into far more detail than I could ever hope to regarding this subject.
Regarding self customised Marine Bands. I use beeswax to seal my combs and M2x10mm screws to assemble them. Some people prefer mineral oil or varnish to seal the combs. I'm not sure what size screws other people use.
I think Buddha's right about the reason: it's to make the product more visible; to let the look speak for itself, rather than keeping all that beauty trapped in the box.
Amazing, isn't it, what guys like the Walters and Sonny Boys did with harps that suck? I pity them their sucky equipment, of course, but still: it makes one think.
Aesthetics aside, too bad Hohner is just adding more garbage to be thrown into the landfilll. But the thing that really bums me out about the blister packs is that you can't test the harps on that cool bellows thingy and check them for flaws.
I don't think Hohner is ever going to change the Marine Band, simply because of the marketplace perception that it is the untouched instrument of tradition (yes, WE know that's not strictly true, but there's nothing like dewy eyed sentimentality to sell a product). I believe the Marine Band will stay in it's current incarnation pretty much forever, regardless of new technology etc...
Instead the more innovative approaches will be applied to the Crossover and its future incarnations. True to its name, it seems to be about taking the best of the old and mixing it with the new.
It is interesting that Hohner went for a bamboo comb and Suzuki a composite on the Manji. Neither opted for a hardwood that has been the traditional choice. I suspect environmental concerns, sustainability and the economics of using slow growing timber have come into play. Some bamboos grows so fast you can hear them expanding and they are well suited to a warmer climate.
Hohner clearly does listen to players, those of us who followed the (frankly dull) Harp-L discussion about the above mentioned blister packs will note that a Hohner USA rep posted an official response relatively early in the discussion. I wouldn't be surprised if someone at Hohner watches this board too. They have addressed the common complaints, but in the form of a new product, not by changing the old one.
Buddha has it right. Blister packs mean there's no point in employing sales staff who know anything, they're harder to steal both because of pack size and they can incorporate a local tracker chip, and the shelf life is a lot longer. Any thought it might have something to do with instrument qualitycan go out the window:) Oh - and blister packs also mean it's easier for the dealer to (try to) refuse returns. As an aside, I believe it's because of the dealer discount they offerd that Lee Oskar have supplanted Hohner in most non-specialist music stores. Personally I hope this means Hohner can get back in there. YMMV.
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 7:23 AM
There's demand for the MB Classic. If they would discontinue the Classic in favor of the Deluxe or Crossover players would keep whining for years about the higher price, sucking tone (i think MBCl and MBDL sound exactly the same btw), lost tradition, how much they loved nails and that the old classic was the better harp anyway.
There are already people whining about Hohner at any time no matter how good or bad their products are. No need to give them just another reason
Budda, Adam: Yes, Hohner made extremly bad harmonicas for a while, but right now their instruments are top notch IMHO. Of course not worse than back in the 60's.
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 9:18 AM
Agree with Buddha 100% about the packaging. There is way too much being made about the so-called "Blister Packs." I've been buying them that way for months. I actually like it because I am something of a germ-o-phobe. The packaging allows me the illusion that the harp has not been played and is free of cooties.
As far as custom harps... Meh. For the money, Hohner standard harps are the way to go. The attraction of custom harps is that they give the player the badge of great achievement, and there is a price for that. The difference in playablility can be good, but the tone and longevity are no better. They both depend entirely on the player.
I haven't heard this till just reading it here. I was a hohner endorsee for about 15 years. They were in cardboard boxes. I remember when they went to those funky plastic boxes (any kind of change is hard :-) ). So now they are into that stuff that is like breaking into fort knox? I still have about 10-20 years worth of marine bands unopened, and about 100 years worth of bushman harps I got for winning their contest last year, so I may not get to experience this stage of the evolution of the harp. I love stock marine bands. I have tried most of the other out of the box harps and keep coming back to old faithful. Walter ---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year.
I typically side with many of your opinions, but would have to respectfully disagree about custom harps. The tone is different and the longevity is different as well. That can even be proved.
That's like saying the difference between a vintage Champ and Cyber Champ is that the playablility can be good, but the tone and longevity are no better. They both depend entirely on the player.
---------- Mike Fugazzi http://www.myspace.com/niterailband http://www.youtube.com/user/NiteRail http://www.twitter.com/NiteRail http://www.facebook.com/mike.fugazzi
It is like playing a $150 First Act guitar through a vintage Super Reverb!
1. Player 2. Harp 3. Mic 4. Amp ---------- Mike Fugazzi http://www.myspace.com/niterailband http://www.youtube.com/user/NiteRail http://www.twitter.com/NiteRail http://www.facebook.com/mike.fugazzi
Rick, have you had a custom-a good one? I don't like Marine Band stock harps at all-but a customized one which is opened up, sealed, and some decent reedwork is night and day compared to OOTB. Better tone and louder for sure. But again, if you're satisfied with astock one, no real need to change. After playing customs, I could never play a stock MB enjoyably. Can I still get the functionality of a custom? Somewhat, but I have to work much harder. I'm a firm believer in working smarter, not harder.
EDIT:I have yet to get ahold of a prewar MB, but I've heard they are a big step above modern ones. ---------- Todd L. Greene, V.P.
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 10:52 AM
Well, too say the MB hasn't gone thru changes would be far from the truth. The back of the cover plates prior to the 1980's were a lot more wide open, especially the ones made before WWII, for starters. The brass being used has changed over the years, and part of it is because there are far fewer choices and fewer smaller factories making them. Hohner has had periodic quality lapses but the single worst period was from 1981 to 1995, when they closed off the back covers more, went to a stiffer, harder brass, and those were cut to short slot reed setups often with ridiculously wide slot tolerances, tons of burrs, gaping sawmarks on the combs, reeds not centered in the slot properly, bad rivet jobs, and I'm still not naming everything that I saw in those years.
The thing about the attempt to make it part of the MS series is true and I was one of the players who got a chance to test the prototype and it was awful.
They came out with the MB Deluxe because of the success of the Hering 1923 Vintage Harp, using 7LJI (which Hohner abandoned), and the first 10 hole diatonic that had factory sealed combs (tho only partially sealed, as is the MBD) which they resisted doing for years, as that would add too much cost to the production line expenses.
In the mid 80's, they abandoned the paper boxes and went with plastic boxes, first with the type used on the pre-MS Meisterklasse (and now on the MBD), and 2 years into it, they went into what you see now and it was not for protective reasons, but because these plastic cases were much cheaper.
Their worst quality years were in part because, as being the single largest instrument maker in the world, their most profitable instrument in the mid 80's weren't harmonicas, but a keyboard instrument made famous by, ironically a great harp player named Stevie Wonder and the keyboard instrument was the Clavinet, which is featured prominently on Superstition and Higher Ground.
The consistency of the tuning is still a problem, tho better recently, it still is a far cry from prior to the 80's, when the most any single note wasn't where the spec happened to be was seldom more than 5 cents either way, but since the mid 80's, when they began paying factory workers piece work and the newer people doing the tuning were very poorly trained, and even more so since they went to a comprimise tuning, I've seen a few off by as much as 20 cents either way and they're all varying quite a lot.
The bamboo comb they went to on the MBXover was because the wood doesn't need to be properly aged before using and grows back faster wheras all other woods do need that. ---------- Sincerely, Barbeque Bob Maglinte Boston, MA http://www.barbequebob.com CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
every harp forum seems to have lots of discussion to the pros and cons of custom harps. I play stock marine bands and have no complaints, others hate them and spend hundreds on custom ones. I have seen Louisiana red pick up a 1950's tele through a 50's fender amp and then a cheap knock off tele through a solid state piece of garbage amp, and sound great on both setups. I have nothing against the custom harp thing, but personally would never spend that kind of money for a harp(unless I hit the lottery). I have also heard a lot of mediocre players playing custom ones and they still sounded just as mediocre as mediocre players on stock ones. The best way to make a harp sound good is to spend tons of time just playing it.. Walter
PS: It is also what you are use to. My friend use to manage Otis Rush. He had me in his shop one day (he was a great luthier that made sonny rhodes custom lap steel) and he said try this guitar. I did and it was nothing but dead frets, buzzes and basically almost impossible to play. He said it was Otis's guitar and he finally pried it off him to restore it. Otis was scared to play a properly set up guitar because he had become so use to his wore out rig.
---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year.
I think it's marketing. Some people will only pay X amount for a harp. They buy the regular Marine Band. But by having a couple higher end harps that are linked to it it gives people a chance to buy something higher end. I think the blister packs make sense for putting them out where people can look at them (like Buddha said) without slobbering all over them. It also keeps stores from letting people play the samples. That said, I worry that stores may be less likely to let people test a blister packed harp on the bellows. If you are buying a harp in a blister pack you should still ask a clerk to run it through the bellows before you buy it, or let you play it and approve it or not before you leave the store. As long as Hohner allows the stores to return opened harps I don't see a problem. If they don't, well, that's a very big problem.
I own and play some fine custom harps. In general, they CAN sound better than most standard Hohners.
But in the hands of most players, they don't. Expensive custom harps won't make you sound like Big Walter any more than expensive custom amps will (or mics, or pedals or whatever). The tolerances are tighter, and that is usually a good thing.
Tone is human. I would equally suck on a student violin or a Stradivarious. I doubt I could ever justify the extra expense of a custom violin.
The same is true of custom harps. If you treat it as a cost/benefit analysis there is little to be gained with custom harps unless you are a top-flight recording professional. Even some of those players prefer standard Hohner Marine Band harps.
Custom harps blow out, just like regular harps. They are no different, except that the player may take it easier on a more expensive harp. I know this for a fact, having discussed it with several working pro harp players and with harp customizers. It parallels my own experience.
Regardless of Buddha's odd comment (an ad hominem pejorative) I respect his work. I'm sure his harps are wonderful instruments.
However, I prefer the Hohner harps: Crossover, MB Deluxe, Marine Band, and Special 20. I am only an "Advanced Intermediate" harp player according to Adam's scale, and the extra money for the custom harps is hard to justify.
BBQbob, i mostly agree with you, however the bamboo comb was not just introduced for economical reasons. In fact they had knowledable player test different comb materials and this bamboo comb was clearly the winner. I know this first hand from one of the testers.
Custom harps: I don't know about longevity. I don't break harps anyway. Even my very favorite harps that i play daily last for years. There CAN be a difference in tone, Rupert Oysler clearly shows it in his videos. If and how the tone is altered actually depends on what in detail has been done with the harmonica. I own one Buddha harp and the tone is - if at all - just very slightly changed from what i know from my other Marine Bands, which i find very desirable. Of course it is very reponsive, extremly loud and, whats by far the most important improvement, it can be played very, very softly without sounding airy.
"Tone is human. I would equally suck on a student violin or a Stradivarious. I doubt I could ever justify the extra expense of a custom violin.
The same is true of custom harps. If you treat it as a cost/benefit analysis there is little to be gained with custom harps unless you are a top-flight recording professional."
We can hash this out in another thread but Rick, you are 100% wrong.
The basic tone of a Stradivarius vs another violin is going to be better when you simply pluck a string. That directly translates to better tone when the player plays it. Whether or not a person sounds like shit when they play it doesn't mean the tone is the same. ---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
Buddha: a mediocre player is going to sound just as mediocre on a custom harp as a stock one. If a person wants to spend his or her money on custom harps, that is fine, but it will not make you a better player. I have watched countless guys try to find the end of the rainbow with "tone" on guitars and harp. It all comes back to how good you sound to begin with. A holy grail harp or guitar rig, is going to make a great player sound great, and bad player sound bad. Simply putting in, or not putting in, the decades of hours is what makes one sound good or bad. There is no way around it. Walter ---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year.
"Buddha: a mediocre player is going to sound just as mediocre on a custom harp as a stock one"
That has nothing to do with tone. A custom harp WILL make you a better player because it opens up another door for tonality, control and technique.
"Simply putting in, or not putting in, the decades of hours is what makes one sound good or bad."
You're wrong on that too. I have made beginning players sounds great within a very short amount of time. And then there are other players like Nick Clark and Jay Gaunt who have only being playing for a couple of years and they sound awesome.
Decades of practicing the wrong thing only ensures that you will continue to sound poor. A minute up practicing the right thing ensures that you will sound better minutes later.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 11:38 AM
"As far as custom harps... Meh. For the money, Hohner standard harps are the way to go. The attraction of custom harps is that they give the player the badge of great achievement, and there is a price for that. The difference in playablility can be good, but the tone and longevity are no better. They both depend entirely on the player." -Rick Davis
I am not trying to really get into a discussion of which harp is "better", but while "best" can be subjective, the fact that custom harps play differently, sound different, and can last longer is totally objective.
Just like one brand of 6V6 can sound different in your amp, the same is true with a harp. I am not telling anyone what they should or shouldn't play (whether it be harp or note choice or whatever), but to say that tone and longevity depend entirely on the player is not accurate.
1. Some harps give up quicker than others. There have been many comments about getting a new harp and a reed going flat right away...regardless of playing style...most custom builders provide a much more extensive warranty than the large companies. Also, the stress on the reeds from the factory, typically as a result of mass tuning, cause a higher rate of fatigue. Most builders eliminate that weakness, make the harp last longer. Just because one reed goes out, that doesn't mean the harp is junk. It can be fixed whether custom or not.
2. Setting up a harp has an impact on tone beyond what a player brings to the table. Tune to 443 and you sound brighter than 440. Dampen the reeds and you have more compression. Gapping, tip scooping, chamfering, etc all also change how the harp plays. That has a huge impact on bends and what they sound like (overall tone).
With a new harp I might be able to hit the 4ob, but I bet I can't get it to not squeal, bend, or SOUND like a regular note like I can on a harp that is set up well.
I play more blues than anything else, but as soon as you get away from traditional 2nd position blues, a well set-up (whether custom or tweaked on your own) really shines....double true if you don't play hard.
I haven't bought a replacement harmonica in 4 years (although I buy a few for fun now and again). My harps last a long time and I can work on them myself. Therefore, investing in a quality instrument that is expensive isn't so scary.
That being said, everyone has the right to play whatever they want. Playing type a over b is only relational and not necessarily the cause of someone one's awesomeness or crappy-ness.
My tone is different on a GM I've set up than a Marine Band out of the Box. I can prove that. It isn't an opinion.
---------- Mike Fugazzi http://www.myspace.com/niterailband http://www.youtube.com/user/NiteRail http://www.twitter.com/NiteRail http://www.facebook.com/mike.fugazzi
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 11:40 AM
@Pimpenella: "the tone is - if at all - just very slightly changed from what i know from my other Marine Bands, which i find very desirable. Of course it is very reponsive, extremly loud and, whats by far the most important improvement, it can be played very, very softly without sounding airy"
That's pretty much my experience with the Joe Spiers harp I bought over the holidays. It's more responsive and you can thus play it more softly.
But I also think Rick D. is right about longevity. It depends how you play. I play hard and loud most of the time. This doesn't mean I'm a crude player who lacks control. Quite the reverse: I'm a NASCAR driver or a pro skiier. I'm driving very fast, edging very hard, working very precisely, and even good equipment, being worked that hard, can blow out. My own sound depends on that sort of attack, that sort of controlled ferocity.
(To anybody who tells me that such ferocity isn't needed to produce that kind of sound, I'd just say: yes it is, and it's too bad that so few contemporary players play with much ferocity. I hear everything else on YouTube, including a great deal of technical facility, lots of knowledge of the Chicago/WestCoast tradition, and some fairly loud amps. But I don't hear much ferocity.)
I have no doubt that I could flatten a couple of reeds on the Joe Spiers harp noticeably if I played particularly hard for one nonstop hour. I'd have to go slightly overboard, but I'm sure I could do it. Once I've done that, I've got two options: send it back to him and wait for it to be returned to me; or open it up myself with my relatively unskilled hands and see if I can work a fix. Neither is a particularly attractive option--at least to me. I'm delighted at the harp; it was worth the money. But for the kind of playing I do, OTS Marine Bands with a few of my own tweaks and occasional tune-ups from my own hands seems like something I'll continue.
Anybody who stands back from this discussion for a moment will realize that there's nothing to argue about.
Or perhaps there's one thing: I don't think that players who have been playing for less than one year need even to consider spending $125 or more for a custom harp. I think that sort of harp should, if anything, be their reward for putting in the time on a good, professional-grade off-the-shelf instrument.
Does anybody here really think that a raw beginner--somebody who wants to play blues harmonica--needs a custom harp as a first harp?
That would be something worth arguing about.
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 11:42 AM
Buddha, have you heard a violin played badly? It is horrendous, whether it be a Strad or a cheapo. The same is true of harmonicas.
There is no need for you to feel attacked here. Your custom harps are wonderful, I'm sure. But they can't make most players sound better. Sorry, there are just too many other physiological factors at play.
I believe it is true that the very best players can reach their potential with your custom harps. For the rest of use, the time and money would be better spent on practice and lessons.
"Does anybody here really think that a raw beginner--somebody who wants to play blues harmonica--needs a custom harp as a first harp?"
I absolutely do and my students are proof of that. All of my students are light years ahead of most other harmonica students. Grated that I am a good teacher but the good instrument definitely helps.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
Custom harps are easier to play. They are more responsive, they bend easier and more precisely and they produce more volume with less air pressure. And the tone is more even through the registers, hole to hole.
No they don't need to spend that sort of money! Although if they did, it might take them down a different path.
Adam,
If you work on your harp, it is becoming custom. You know that by gapping you are changing the sound of an overblow, and the tone. If you retune, you are customizing and extending the life of the reed.
Which harp is best is debatable, but there are other comments here that are not. Different harps have different tone. Different reed treatments impact the life of the reed. ---------- Mike Fugazzi http://www.myspace.com/niterailband http://www.youtube.com/user/NiteRail http://www.twitter.com/NiteRail http://www.facebook.com/mike.fugazzi
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 11:46 AM
@Buddha: You're joking. You've said yourself that you don't particularly like blues. Is that really what you're teaching them to play from Day 1 on custom harps? Obviously if you're teaching them to play jazz on a diatonic, a custom harp would make sense. I'm talking about blues.
As for your students being light years ahead of other students: I'm going to call you on that, Chris. I've got several video responses to my North Mississippi Blues harp lesson, including one from our own Kyzer Sosa. He's been playing for one year. His only study with me has been through whatever of mine he's found on YouTube. No private lessons.
Show me a video of a student of yours playing blues--not jazz, blues--after they've been playing for only one year. Blues.
Post it here. I'll post Kyzer's video and one other. Your private student better be noticeably stronger than my hardly-private student, because, after all, he's been studying personally with you, not merely absorbing your method from on-line stuff.
Throw down.
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 11:50 AM
Kudzu-No. I don't think anyone starting out on any instrument needs nor should buy the most expensive, precision-crafted instrument available, and not so much from a quality perspective, but because it's foolish to spend top dollar on something you're just getting into and may or may not stick with. Get a decent, playable OOTB harp first, and do like you say-reward yourself for your progress, IF you stick with it. ---------- Todd L. Greene, V.P.
Buddha, it wasn't custom harps that made Nic Clark and Jay Gaunt so gifted. I think you just hurt your own argument. Are you suggesting that anyone who buys your harps will sound like them? That is silly.
But Adam is right. This argument will go nowhere. There is no "wrong" on this, just opinions. You know what mine is.
