Uptonk
7 posts
Jan 06, 2015
3:34 PM
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As I understand it, buying a harmonica is a matter of personal choice. No one is forced to buy any harp at any price. If you have the funds and see the value, then I couldn't care less what you pay for a harp. If there are not enough people who see value in high priced harps, then the makers will either stop making them or will reduce the price. It's how the market works.
Whether the harps are really that much better than a decent quality off the shelf harp is up to the purchaser to decide. If he/she thinks it is better, then to them, it is. There may be no objective way to demonstrate that it is better,but if someone is happy with it, then I would say that they got their money's worth and good for them.
I play guitar and harmonica, neither particularly well. For me, there is no advantage to buying a high end instrument. My skills are the limiting factor, not the quality of the instruments. If I played better, I might be inclined to spend more money on a harp that I felt was superior. I don't see that it is a problem for anyone.
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rbeetsme
1607 posts
Jan 07, 2015
5:59 AM
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Uptonk, you are right, someone obviously thinks these harps are worth the money. I notice Denneker is still in business. BTW: Have you noticed what some people are paying for Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Steve Tyler out of the box Marine Band harmonicas? Yikes!
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ridge
581 posts
Jan 07, 2015
6:04 AM
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Lots of recordings of Dannecker Harmonicas in action
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Ridge's YouTube
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DannyRanch
36 posts
Jan 07, 2015
6:14 AM
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I looked at those harps and I got the Steve Tyler one in my hands, as my boss approached me one day and told me he is interested on harp and stuff so we had a small conversation about it.
He showed me a Suzuki Promaster (cool one) and the Steve Tyler signature series (he got it for the name)
He told me he paid $10 on some shop on the U.S and he asked why it was so cheap, and they told him, since we got them (at stock price) we have never sold one...
Well at least the Steve Tyler is really far away to be on the Marine Band Category.
I compared it to a Blues band and are basically the same thing, just the Steve Tyler "looks prettier"
Sounds the same.
If I were someone releasing a signature series for something I will be expecting something cool, not a "Made in China" stamped on the back...
The only tour I have performed playing harp, my C marine band broke 3 days before, and harps were out of stock on the only 2 shops that carry them on my country.
I had to replace the marine band with a blues band since it was the only thing I had on the shelf..
I messed with the reeds and slots for hours until it sounded "decent"
But most of the people was unable to hear the difference on playing it "customized" and a Marine Band...
Last Edited by DannyRanch on Jan 07, 2015 6:17 AM
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florida-trader
587 posts
Jan 07, 2015
6:43 AM
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Danny - there is a version of the Steven Tyler harp that was made with MS Cross Harp reed plates which are the same as Meisterklasse reed plates. It was made in Germany. They originally retailed for $125 but have been available in various places on the net for much less. A quick seach on Amazon shows that they are available for $54.95. They are a pretty good harp with the same comb as the Blues Harp and they have the covers with the black finish - looks like powder coating. Not worth $50++ in my opinion but not junk either. I know that there is a Chinese made version that is junk but I thought that people should know that there is another version that is a decent harp. The German made version I belevie is only available in the key of A.
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Tom Halchak
www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
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joshnat
228 posts
Jan 07, 2015
7:15 AM
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@warren, where do you park your car? I'm in Boston too, and I could shoot right over there when you leave the amp in overnight! ;)
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rbeetsme
1608 posts
Jan 07, 2015
9:26 AM
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As for insane prices...Check out some of the better chromatics. Most start at about 800.00. Suzuki Fabulous is around 5 grand.
Last Edited by rbeetsme on Jan 07, 2015 9:27 AM
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nacoran
8200 posts
Jan 07, 2015
9:47 AM
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Bends had a diatonic that costed about $2000. To be fair though, it had silver inlay and inset gems.
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Nate
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First Post- May 8, 2009
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barbequebob
2809 posts
Jan 07, 2015
10:35 AM
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Just a quick note here about the MS Cross Harp and MS Meisterklasse reed plates. They are essentially the same, except that the MS Meisterklasse reed plates are nickel plated, which gives the instrument a much brighter sound.
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Sincerely,
Barbeque Bob Maglinte
Boston, MA
http://www.barbequebob.com
CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
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florida-trader
589 posts
Jan 07, 2015
4:58 PM
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BBQ - The reed plates on the Steven Tyler MS version are nickel plated too.
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Tom Halchak
www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
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SuperBee
2312 posts
Jan 07, 2015
6:56 PM
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@ joshnat; i guess your post was addressed to me, but I'm not Warren, and i'm not in Boston. but i park the car in my carport. i figure if someone breaks in to the car they'll be most likely a kid looking for money or cigarettes, or other easily transported swag. usually they open the ashtray and the glovebox and leave the door open which inconveniences me with a flat battery. i doubt they'll want to try opportunistically stealing a 410 DeVille while i sleep. Sometimes that risk seems worth it, compared to the hassle and household disruption caused by bumping that amp back into the house at 2 am.
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indigo
35 posts
Jan 07, 2015
8:50 PM
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@Bee
I was living in a two storied house when i owned a De Ville and my man cave(attic?) was up a flight of stairs.
3AM after a gig, tired with a few beers..not a good time to be lugging a De ville up stairs..physics took over and gravity pulled it to the centre of the earth ..but of course it stopped at the bottom floor.
600$ repair bill.
By the way are you using that L/W reverb what do you think of it?
(Indigo was Jehosaphat)
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SuperBee
2313 posts
Jan 08, 2015
2:23 AM
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Indigo: $600 damage would see mine in the spare parts basket i think...i don't recall what it cost..about $800 i think.
The LW Reverb just sits around. i dunno...i mean it sounds well-enough like a real spring reverb and is adjustable enough, but it doesn't quite play like any i've used. but mainly i just use my amps which already have reverb
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