Welcome to the first website devoted exclusively to harmonicas with extra reeds for extended note bending. These extra reeds have been called auxiliary reeds, enabler reeds, sympathetic reeds... But we simply call them X-Reeds.
"We" are Brendan Power and Zombor Kovacs. Our first models are custom versions of the Suzuki SUB30 UltraBend:
____________________ At the time of his birth, it was widely accepted that no one man could play that much music so well or raise that much hell. He proved them all wrong. R.I.P. H. Cecil Payne
Nod goes to BP, Blue Moon, and Blue-X Lab for great work. The combs look super cool.. Technology is a great thing ---------- Greg Jones 16:23 Custom Harmonicas greg@1623customharmonicas.com 1623customharmonicas.com
@ nacoran: The harp used on the video is in standard Richter tuning, key of C.
If you didn't recognise that it was good old Richter tuning, it just goes to show how the new triple-reed format (as used in the SUB30) can transform the Richter harp into a whole new beast, with 18 easy bends on all 10 holes.
For my personal use I'm making a whole set of custom SUB30s in PowerBender tuning, as well as other tunings I currently use (PowerChromatic, Paddy Solo).
However, as I noted in this forum a couple of months ago, the full-range bendability of the new triple-reed format means that alternate tunings are not so compelling any more. Now ANY player who is comfortable in Richter tuning can get the same expression that was previously only available in PowerBender and other alternate tunings, without having to switch. I think the soundtrack on the video proves that pretty convincingly.
They just need a good-sounding custom SUB30 with an X-Reed OverValve Plate from www.x-reed.com ;-)
Last Edited by on Dec 10, 2012 7:25 AM
The XB 40 was great, but it had this weird, tinny tone. That sounds great! ---------- David
____________________ At the time of his birth, it was widely accepted that no one man could play that much music so well or raise that much hell. He proved them all wrong. R.I.P. H. Cecil Payne
@ Brendan The appeal of tunings for me has to do with chords. So a SUB30 Major Cross would be a really cool instrument. Santa will probably not be bringing me one this year . . .
I just ordered an X-Reed Custom SUB30 UltraBend - Standard Keys BMH30 Traditional Comb Corian Black Richter Moderate (Key: C). I hope I don't have to wait too long to receive it.
Doesn't Suzuki get pissed off that you recently did some YouTube videos introducing their product, and then only a few months later you start a company to fix all the things you said were wrong about the instrument?
@cliffy: If you read the words on the video and the website, you'll see I'm not dissing the SUB30 per se - in fact, I big-up the UltraBend reedplates as a high-tech masterpiece by Suzuki. I make the point that the issues mentioned are endemic to the basic triple-reed design, NOT specific to the SUB30.
A few weeks ago I came up with the idea of the OverValve Plate as a way to fix those issues. I made a couple of hand-made prototypes and they worked. Then my X-Reed partner Zombor Kovacs put the design into CAD and transferred it to his CNC milling machine. After some intense R&D trying different designs and materials we've come up with a nifty add-on that really works.
Now we're doing what any custom harmonica business does: offer the X-Reed OverValve Plate and other go-faster stripes (solid combs, embossing, alternate keys & tunings etc) as enhancements to a product that is already valued but can benefit from customisation and a wider range of options. In time some of our innovations will become mainstream and appear on factory versions, I think.
This is what has been happening with the Marine Band for the past 20 years. Customisers pioneered various things that are now incorporated in the MB DeLux and Crossover. It has been a positive for Hohner to have all those creative brains work on their great basic product, the 1896 Marine Band.
Similarly Suzuki have created a new harp in a totally new format that has exciting potential and for which there is pent-up demand, but right now only comes in 3 keys and one configuration. It's natural that a custom market will grow to offer players other options.
I suggested the idea of my custom site to Suzuki many months before the release of the SUB30, and they have supported it by supplying parts. Sites like X-Reed.com and others that will follow it are a positive for both the company and the players, I think.
Last Edited by on Dec 11, 2012 1:59 AM
I would like to publicly congratulate Brendan on the launch of his new endeavor. I have had the pleasure of working with Brendan on a small part of this project. Anyone who listens to his music cannot help but come away impressed with what simply stated is genius in action. Musically speaking, his mind operates on a different level than most of us. That talent is also evident in his design concepts. His attention to detail is extraordinary. I have no doubt that Brendan and his partner Zombor have attended to every detail - from comb design to alternate tunings to website design and more - leaving nothing to chance. One has to be impressed with the degree of professionalism on display in every facet of this new adventure. The long and the short of it is that anyone who invests in one (or several) of his Custom SUB-30’s will not be disappointed.
---------- Tom Halchak www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
Last Edited by on Dec 12, 2012 6:55 AM
I'm on the cusp of ordering one of these with all the trimmings, but whilst I'm puckering up the courage to put it to the wife, a few questions have sprung to mind. I though I'd post them here as I thought they may be valid for other people who are undecided about making a purchasing decision.
Brendan: With the greatest respect, you could probably use an adapted slice of bread as a comb and kitchen knives as reeds and still sound amazing. How are the customised Sub 30's? For example, how does an A feel in comparison to a PowerBender in the same key? Most people don't have a clue about a stock Sub 30. I thought it was the answer to my prayers, but it seems not from certain sources.
Next question: How does the Sub 30 custom stack up against valves? Effectively we're talking about the bending abilities of a half valved harp, but without the change of technique? I tried a PT method harp, but didn't get on with it.
Last question: Is the Sub 30 that good you'd say traditional Richter is redundant? You suggested that alternate tunings are now moot, but would you go this far? I'm hoping so.
I have to say, if this thing ticks all the boxes, I@m going to miss overblows....... Ha!
@ Stevelegh: You ask some good questions. To answer:
1. How are the customised Sub 30's? For example, how does an A feel in comparison to a PowerBender in the same key?
As you can hear from the soundtrack on the video at the top of this thread, The Richter tuned custom SUB30 gives you much the same expression as a PowerBender. It's fully-chromatic through bending alone and has 18 easy bends. As Mike says, it does need tricking out, and that's what we're offering at x-reed.com
2. How does the Sub 30 custom stack up against valves?
I invented half-valving but I echo Mike: it's WAAAAAAAAAY better. The bending on a triple-reed harp like the SUB30 is the same as your normal bends, which means you can easily hold them at pitch, add vibrato etc. Valved bends are far harder to control, and don't sound as good as juicy double-reed bends - which is what the new tripe-reed format offers all over the harp, in every hole blow and draw (aside from 5 draw and 7 blow).
3. Is the Sub 30 that good you'd say traditional Richter is redundant?
I assume you mean a traditional unvalved harp in Richter tuning, not the Richter tuning itself? NO, traditional harps are not redundant. They have a beautiful breathy sound and in stock form are perfect for rootsy music. When customised for overblows they give the player chromatic ability too.
However, when the SUB30 is well customised, it gives the player that chromatic ability and a lot of soulful expression through bending alone, which is much easier to master than overblowing/overdrawing. I think it sounds better too. So it is an attractive alternative to the well-trodden overblow route for players wanting to sound jazzier.
4. You suggested that alternate tunings are now moot, but would you go this far?
For those (like me) who love to experiment with alternate tunings, they remain fascinating and alluring. The triple-reed format can work in ANY tuning, and I'm already using it in PowerBender, PowerChromatic and Paddy Solo myself.
What I was saying is that, with the advent of the triple-reed format pioneered by the SUB30, you don't HAVE to switch to an alternate tuning any more to get lots more bends and soul - it's all there available in the familiar old Richter tuning. You can hear that on the soundtrack of the video, which is played on a Richter-tuned harp in C.
So I imagine that there will be less of an incentive for players to explore alternate tunings in future. It won't stop ME exploring, but I'm terminally afflicted in that direction! Most players find alternate tunings too confusing, so the SUB30 is a gift from heaven for them, as it gives them vast amounts more expressive and chromatic potential without getting their heads around a new scale.
But, as Mike says, it benefits from customising to get the most out of it. Mike is offering custom versions, so are we at x-reed.com, and there will be others soon.
@floridatrader: Thanks to Tom Halchak for his kind remarks - but I must point the spotlight on my partner at X-Reed.com: Zombor Kovacs.
I'm constantly tinkering with harps, but only have hand tool skills to test my ideas. Zombor is not only very inventive when it comes to harmonica design in his own right, but he has the CAD and CNC knowledge to refine our ideas down to minute precision parts that can be replicated.
Our X-Reed OverValve Plate is a case in point. I came up with the idea and made a couple of prototypes by hand. They worked, but were laboriously slow to make and had the natural irregularities that come from hand work.
Zombor took the idea, put it into his CAD software and ironed out the kinks to create a precision designed part that could be machined. Then it got transferred to his milling machine and these amazingly accurate finely detailed parts arise from blank material before our eyes. It still seems magical to me!
It's really stimulating working with someone who has a similarly restless brain but who can transform ideas from crufty hand-made prototypes to slick products that could have come out of any high-tech factory - all in the comfort of your own home workshop.
Because harmonicas are so small, they really suit this new world of mixing small workshops with high-tech machinery. It's now affordable and user-friendly for anyone with a mechanical bent - not just CNC but 3D Printing as well.
Just as home studios revolutionised the music industry, I think the small high-tech harmonica operation is destined to make quite an impact in the harmonica scene in the years to come. Making reeds is about the only area that the big manufacturers still have the edge. It's not insignificant (!), but the tech exists now for the small guy to have a go at even this formidable barrier.
Whatever your opinion about his business model, you have to hand it to Brad Harrison for having a good crack at that final frontier. He made his own reeds, and in a new way. I really hope his pioneering work is not wasted and someone else takes his technology forward.
Any news on what's happening with that, by the way?
If you visit Indonesia bring some and PowerBenders, and consider making me your distributor agent for Asia. I have two companies here which can handle formally, or just as an informal business in limited quantities.
After Brendan's message - thanks for that Brendan - I feel I would not like to remain some kind of ghost people have heard about but have never met even if only in virtual reality. Some people already know my name from Harp-L. So as Brendan mentioned I am an engineer, I am available, I am behind the X-Reed.com CNC technology and most happy to work together with Brendan!
Best regards to everybody on modernbluesharmonica.com! Zombor
I have decided to try this thing out. There are two questions however:
1. It is hard to know what kind of playability the chromatisism will bring in different positions. Should one consider the key the same way as in regular Richter harp - if you play mostly blues in keys of E you'll order A. What are the positions that are easy to play with SUB30?
2. I have customized a few harps so I'll be able to do embossing myself. If I'd want to save time, I could pay for somebody else to do it. Is the provided work just normal embossing or does it include some other customization tricks such as chamfering, reed curving etc. Does the structure of sub30 bring any new challenges for customization?
@ apskarp: We've updated our embossing options. X-Reed now offer three levels of slot embossing: Light, Moderate and X-treme.
Light Embossing involves embossing 2/3 of the reedslot, the main part where the reed swings. It gives the harp a very noticeable lift in volume and response, at an affordable price. Moderate Embossing adds burnishing at the root of the reed, plus Tip Scooping, for extra performance. X-treme embossing is done by a specialist who spends hours on one harp, and includes reed curvature. This costs more and takes extra time as the harp has to be sent away, but the feeling you get when you put one of these harps in your mouth is worth every cent.
Last Edited by on Dec 15, 2012 5:29 AM
I imagine that the different style mouthpiece with this harp is purely aesthetic and concerns player comfort, but doesn't affect function. True?
And I normally would get a C harp with a new product like this, just because I'm comfortable with the note layout, but do certain keys have more sweet spots, in your experience? Such as an A, for instance?
By way of example, I understand that with an XB40, it's advisable to get a G or an A over a higher key, just because those keys tend to have better tone throughout the range of that harp.
@ robbert: All three standard keys work well (that's a C on the video). The high end draw bends require a bit more pressure on the D, and are easiest on the A. The low-end blow bends are easiest on the D.
We also make non-standard keys: G, Ab, Bb, B, Db, Eb
We have recently received e-mail with worries which relate to the unfortunate story of Harrison Harmonicas, in which the writers ask if the same thing would happen to us and to our customers. I feel it is necessary to share some information with you. I don`t know everything about what happened to Brad Harrison's company exactly, but knowing some details there are some principal differences between our venture and his. We are not a harmonica factory built from scratch making every single part of the harmonica as was Harrison Harmonicas. We are not even a harmonica factory. We are a 2 person harmonica workshop using CNC technology and parts available for any of us on the market.
We have not applied for any loans from any banks. We do not owe anybody, we have no debt. We do own 100% of our equipment of which my 4 Axis CNC milling machine represents the highest value. At the moment we are not making reeds and coverplates, which would require expensive machinery and we are not intending to do so in the near future. We are not financing any debt from your incoming orders.
As stated on our website, currently we are concentrating on Custom SUB30 harmonicas. We have plans to do some more interesting stuff (under R&D), and when it comes to the point, we will do our best to estimate market demand and only take as many orders as we can deal with. Hopefully my engineering background and 6 years I spent in the world's leading automotive factories will help me judging what we are capable of, and what we are not.
I hope I managed to clarify our position and ease the anxiety of those, who have suffered a loss from Harrison Harmonicas. We are not Harrison Harmonicas and although we understand the frustration of people having payed for nothing (among them some of my friends) it is not our fault.
