Dirty-South Blues Harp Forum: freewheeling chat about all things blues harmonica, including harmonica amps, harmonica mics, harmonica players, harmonica tabs, Little Walter, Kim Wilson, Sonny Boy Williamson, Sonny Terry, Jason Ricci, Adam Gussow, harmonica tone, and blues harp amplifiers

the frozen canuck 58 posts Oct 15, 2009 8:41 AM	Just recieved my new suzuki manji ,OMG WOW!!!!!.the vid was right you can over blow right out of the box.this harp has a fuller & richter sound than any of my other harps in the key of C.I would recommend this harp over a mb any day
ZackPomerleau 394 posts Oct 15, 2009 8:53 AM	Where is money when you need it!!!
Buzadero 181 posts Oct 15, 2009 9:00 AM	On the street corner. Spend a few hours.....earn your new Manji. Take my word for it. The Public doesn't care if you're fat, bitter, and ugly. ---------- ~Buzadero Underwater Janitor, Patriot
Buddha 1069 posts Oct 15, 2009 10:32 AM	"The Public doesn't care if you're fat, bitter, and ugly." Isn't it a little early to be drinking? ---------- ~Buddha Pennsylvania - H.A.R.P. (Harmonica Association 'Round Philly)
Kingley 430 posts Oct 15, 2009 10:47 AM	"Where is money when you need it!!!" I know the feeling Zack! :-)
jaymcc28 170 posts Oct 15, 2009 11:12 AM	"Where is money when you need it!!!" Hey, I can answer that question easy: My ex-wife has it! ----------
Buzadero 182 posts Oct 15, 2009 12:59 PM	"Isn't it a little early to be drinking?" For who? ---------- ~Buzadero Underwater Janitor, Patriot
Buddha 1070 posts Oct 15, 2009 1:06 PM	we'll its never too early for an ungly fat person... in fact a few screw drivers in the morning make us look good. ---------- ~Buddha Pennsylvania - H.A.R.P. (Harmonica Association 'Round Philly)
Buzadero 183 posts Oct 15, 2009 1:13 PM	Tell that to poor Zack. He's too young to drink. ---------- ~Buzadero Underwater Janitor, Patriot
tookatooka 637 posts Oct 15, 2009 1:37 PM	@frozen Canuck@ Tell us more. Tuning? Overblows? Come on, don't tease, you know we really get off on this sort of dirty talk. ----------
djm3801 239 posts Oct 15, 2009 7:31 PM	In the other manji thread I remarked I just got mine in key of F and I like it. Bright sound. Nice response. Loud. May try one in C next.
LittleJoeSamson 85 posts Oct 15, 2009 11:03 PM	Hey Jay...Where's your ex-wife? I think I need her! Don't worry..I'll send a commission. ( Geez... this sounds like a Blues song! ) ;>) LJS
the frozen canuck 59 posts Oct 16, 2009 6:12 AM	hey there tookatooka,i had my first chance to play w/band last evening ,the guys could not beleive the tonallity of this harp,overblows are a breeze (no pun intended) the tone is so colourful ,easy to control with very little effort,i`m still working out toung blocking yet .i`m sure that will be great aswell .Thanks the frozen canuck
Andrew 670 posts Oct 16, 2009 6:38 AM	"I would recommend this harp over a mb any day" Since it's more than twice the price, that's a relief! ---------- Bollocks, Wiglaf!
HarpMan Freeman 74 posts Oct 17, 2009 7:29 AM	I have a request from someone who just got a Manji? Could you make a YouTube video where: 1) You play a short, maybe 30 secs, playing the Manji 2) then play the same lic playing your normally used harmonica. It is one thing to say a harmonica plays better, and it's another thing to say a harmonica sounds better. The reason why I ask is, some in my family does not prefer the sound of Manji.
sorin 86 posts Oct 17, 2009 8:01 AM	harpman , I just got mine and I promise to do an ample review , in the next couple of days.
the frozen canuck 60 posts Oct 19, 2009 6:30 AM	hey there Andrew,i don`t know where u live but here in Canada ,to have it shipped to me frm California,was less than i could buy a MB here with taxes in ,sorry to hear they are that costly elseware
isaacullah 402 posts Oct 19, 2009 10:34 AM	yeah, from what I hear, they really ARE going for the $40 price point. A marine band is going for $30 to $32. The extra $8 to $10 for the Manji gets you a product that you'd have to spend ~4-5 hours working on a Marine Band to get (remove all nails, drill and tap for screws, open up cover plates, sand and seal comb, emboss reed slots, etc.). It seems like a no-brainer to me. Next harp I get will def. be a Manji. Likely not until Christmas though.... ---------- ------------------ The magnificent YouTube channel of the internet user known as "isaacullah"
jbone 174 posts Oct 23, 2009 4:41 AM	i just got one in A. awesome harp, first impression is it's the best out of box harp i've ever had. i have not tried most higher end harps from manufacturers like mb deluxe etc. the big difference in this harp according to guys in the know is, longer reeds and slots and the tightest reed to slot tolerances ever on a production harp. this translates to better performance where it counts. i had the manji, a bluesmaster, and a suzuki pure harp out at the jam last night. the manji was loudest hands down. the pure is much more suited to lower volume material imho but has a really warm tone and playes very well indeed. the bluesmaster seems a dang good harp for the $$, under $27 each. i have to work more with all 3 to make more observations on them. on the manji, ease of play from low to high and really big volume are the 2 features i noticed right away. it has the compostie resin/wood comb which i think may account for some of the increase in volume. my gut tells me the manji is most suited for the kind of playing i usually do. really great harp and really good price! rockin' ron's has the manji for $45 with free shipping.
tookatooka 681 posts Oct 23, 2009 5:03 AM	I hope Adam gets one sometime. Being a dyed in the wool MB user, it would be great to get his professional opinion. ----------
stikhon 3 posts Oct 23, 2009 2:04 PM	Hi guys! Has anybody compared Manji to Crossover?
harpcrab 24 posts Oct 23, 2009 4:26 PM	I want to give a thumbs up to Ron at "Rockin' Ron's"- got my Manji today, ordered it 2 days ago- he has a good selection of other brand harps as well. So far I really like the Manji- brighter and seems a bit less effort to play than Promaster (previous favourite) MB, SP20 bluesharp, bluesmaster etc. I need to play it a bit more for a full review but the wife has heard enough for one nite.
jbone 175 posts Oct 23, 2009 9:08 PM	i'm with you crabby, ron is a great customer service guy with great products.
Gwood420 58 posts Oct 23, 2009 11:12 PM	i like mine so far, but i had a bit of an issue with hole 3 bends and blow.. i adjested the blow reed a bit, and worked out most of the issue.. couldnt tell you about overblows, im not there yet.. but the playability is great! and harpcrab is right about ron, GREAT service.. he answered my questions within an hour of asking, and kept me posted on my order..
sorin 91 posts Oct 24, 2009 7:10 AM	I wanted to make an extended review of Manji , but now I don't know if I should do it ,everybody praises this harp , including experienced players , and my review would have been a negative review . My Manji is a bad harp , so I guess I am unlucky , got a bad one .OOTB is the worst Suzuki harp I ever bought, I will try to fix it or to return it for repairs .
harpwrench 108 posts Oct 24, 2009 7:38 AM	You should be honest about it, IMO. If a manufacturer only hears "this is great!", they have no reason to further improve things. Each time a customer has told me something he didn't like, it results in better harps for everyone.
LIP RIPPER 127 posts Oct 24, 2009 8:14 AM	I'll have to say that after having read some of this I jumped in and bought one. Definitly wasn't the best out of the box harp I've bought. I immediatly opened it up and work on the reeds because of the lack of response with the 3 draw. I've massaged it over the past week and it is a good harp. I will work on it some more, I'm sure of that. LR
Gwood420 59 posts Oct 24, 2009 9:59 AM	i would like to hear(read) everyones opinion sorin.. especially people better than me(thats about everyone).. i like it, but i like playing my promaster better cause of my issues with the manji's hole 3.. and to be honest, i like the shape of pro and blues coverplates in my hand(more comfortable).. write your review!(ment in a nice way)
snakes 376 posts Oct 25, 2009 10:56 AM	I've had a Bb and E Manji from Rockin' Ron from his first delivery and have jammed with them a couple of times. In an attempt to be totally transparent in my review I'd like to say that I am a loyal regular customer of Rockin' Ron and a died in the wool Suzuki player. That said my favorite Suzuki is the Fire Breath. I must say I do like the Manji sound and playability. The tone does seem to be a little better for chords on the Manji than on the Fire Breath. I do prefer the rounded cover plates of the Bluesmaster, Promaster, and Fire Breath. I read sorin's review and totally respect his opinion as he is obviously farther along in his skill than myself. I'd advise him to give Suzuki another try. I have over 20 of their harps and have never got a bad one. I only have about a dozen Hohner's and at least 20% of them are unacceptably of poor quality. My take on my purchase experiences is that Suzuki has a much better quality control process in their manufacturing methods. I spent 21 yrs. in manufacturing and realize that everything mass produced has a percent of what is produced that fails quality specs. They key is to develop processes to weed out the failed quality items before they get shipped. Finally I'd like to just add to the kudos for Rockin' Ron. Best customer service, reliability and pricing I've found. And I've bought several harps from the guy.
snakes 377 posts Oct 25, 2009 10:58 AM	Thought I might add that if I get my way I'll have my Fire Breath set completed and have a set of Manji's as my backup and chording set.
sorin 93 posts Oct 25, 2009 1:06 PM	snakes , I am with you man, I said it in the video , I always recommend people Suzuki harps , you know what you get in the box , a harp that works , I have around 8 harpmaster, bluesmaster, deltafrost , and they were all very good right out of the box . This is exactly why I was so shocked when I got the Manji , it was the first bad Suzuki harp .
barbequebob 2 posts Oct 28, 2009 7:34 AM	The actual increase in volume has absolutely nothing to do with the comb at all. It comes from the fact that these harps now use long slot reeds, which is a very radical departure for any Asian made harp, as Asian made harps use short slot reeds, and more important is that they have THE tightest slot tolerances of any stock harp I've ever played, and only a custom instrument is gonna be tighter. The tighter tolerance keeps more air directed to the reed, making them play louder and more aggressively (as this is where most air leaks in harmonicas really are coming from), but the drawback, especially if it's in the hands of a very poorly skilled player who tends to use far too much breath force in their playing 24/7 is that they are more susceptible to getting the reeds clogged up with moisture and/or layers of dead skin, and even worse, it will risk getting blown out much more easily. I recently got one in A and its attack had far more pop to it than any Asian made harp I've ever played and without a doubt, as someone who has never been particularly fond of any Asian made harps, it is hands down the best Asian made harp I've ever played. It uses a comprimise tuning, but if they also came in either 7LJI/19LJI/ET as choices plus tunings from Low C thru Low Eb, they'd be putting a real big dent in Hohner's sales, especially among the tradtional blues players, who as a whole, hate Asian made harps. I'm not an overblow player, but these do overblow pretty easily out of the box as well. Last Edited on 29-Oct-2009 7:46 AM
oldwailer 925 posts Oct 28, 2009 9:18 PM	It's really cool to see you over here on MBH, Bob--I have always liked to read you posts. Welcome to this forum, I hope you enjoy it here. . .