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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! > Marine Band Quality
Marine Band Quality
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Rustys26
28 posts
May 01, 2015
5:44 PM
Hi all,
I have a sneaking suspicion that the 1896MB has been diminishing in quality recently. A few years back, Hohner slightly changed their most famous product. The back and sides of the comb are no longer black, but now they are the colour of the wood and say "HOHNER" on the back. Also, the engraving on the cover plates are not as deep....if I look at an old MB harp I have carried around in my pocket for years compared to one I bought a few months ago, I can read the engravings of the old harp better still despite tons of 'weathering'. Also, the 'A440' isn't stamped on the side of the top cover plate.

Now...all of this is aesthetics, and isn't that big of a deal. But the point here is that they have clearly changed some things in their production process. What the problem is however, is that I feel the quality of the instrument itself has gone south. I have been playing MB's almost exclusively since the beginning. So Ive gone through >20 of the old MB's (with the black painted comb) and they were all great out of the box. Now, I have gone through 8 of these new style MBs and TWO of them were pretty bad out of the box. One of them needed serious reed adjustment/gapping and was leaky as all hell. The other bad wasn't quite as bad...but still not what I have come to expect from Marine Bands.

I'm just wondering if anyone has noticed anything like this in recent Marine Band purchases. I just imagine they are pumping out tons of these things every day at the factory and have cut a few corners to make things faster.

P.S. the other 6 new Marine Bands i've bought were brilliant so I haven't given up on them
nacoran
8466 posts
May 01, 2015
6:12 PM
I think the black back switch is when they started fully sealing the comb, which should be a good thing for quality, especially durability, but I haven't tried a newer one myself (although I have played a MB Crossover- good, but not amazing).

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Glass Harp Full
25 posts
May 01, 2015
7:17 PM
I recently received one as a gift and it's almost unplayable. It takes a lot of air to get any sound at all, although some holes are better than others.

I'm going to try gapping which I think is a useful thing to learn, but it's still disappointing to get one like this considering the MB's reputation.
Thievin' Heathen
522 posts
May 01, 2015
9:53 PM
MB's are not expensive harps. Maybe Hohner is not putting a lot of focus on consistency on that line.
Gipsy
147 posts
May 01, 2015
10:48 PM
I can't answer for the previous quality of MB's as previously I have avoided them in favour of plastic combed harps. However a couple of weeks back I bought 2 MB 1896's, one in A and one in C. They weren't perfect out of the box, but no more than 10 minutes of gapping on each of them and they played wonderfully. I revisited the gapping a couple of days later just to make some fine adjustments. The 6 overblow is easy to achieve on both of them, and the 7 overdraw is also there after a fashion. I am so pleased with them I plan on getting a few more in the next couple of months.
One other unlooked for and totally unexpected finding. I feel a closer connection to the blues music and musicians that used the MB's over the years. I can't explain the feeling, but it is real. It's also nice to know that if I need a new harp there's a good chance of being able to call into my nearest music store and get a good one.

Last Edited by Gipsy on May 01, 2015 10:49 PM
Goldbrick
980 posts
May 02, 2015
7:04 AM
The last 3 I got were very good.

The real issue I believe is Hohner has zero quality control

I have not had a bad Suzuki or oskar- but they just dont sound as good as an MB
Kingley
3872 posts
May 02, 2015
7:21 AM
I've found the Marine Band quality today, to be the better than it's been for decades. Not had a bad one yet of the new sealed combs. Far better the old black backed unsealed ones from years ago.
A440
362 posts
May 02, 2015
7:31 AM
The basic MB is better OOTB than it has been for decades. But still very inconsistent quality, nails, and a cover that bends. Its better to spend the extra for the MB Deluxe, which has the same tuning and voice, but a much better comb - well sealed with beveled edges, and better covers. And screw construction makes the MBD less leaky and easier to clean/maintain. The MBD is more responsive OOTB, and I suspect has a bit more care/precision in the assembly/test process.

The basic MB is a good platform to customize, but I do not consider it a good model for OOTB players.

Last Edited by A440 on May 02, 2015 9:57 AM
marine1896
113 posts
May 02, 2015
7:40 AM
I agree, I've never really had problems with them. I've been buying them since the 80's and the only thing I have ever done was gapping. I do seal combs sometimes but apart from the odd duffer I like them and I do also like the MBD and crossover but money is an issue these days so I tend to stick with MB. I don't do any reed work I have a touch like an elephant so gapping is as far as I go!

Last Edited by marine1896 on May 02, 2015 7:49 AM
Mahcks
37 posts
May 02, 2015
9:19 AM
I've found quality control issues in all brands so far. Its the same with other instruments, too, so harmonica isn't any different than a $2k Fender when it comes to lemons.

Most of the time it's an easy fix. The worst I've seen on a Hohner is on a Thunderbird. One the reeds was twisted away from the slot. It wasn't even a little misaligned. That thing was almost touching the next reed. Easy fix, but how'd that get out in the wild?
Destin
124 posts
May 02, 2015
9:51 AM
Only problem I ever have is every now and then the 4 and 5 overblows don't work well. A little gapping and they are all good.
I like the change they made with the comb.
Meaux Jeaux
71 posts
May 02, 2015
9:54 AM
The length of the reeds in the Thunderbird can cause the reed to become misaligned quite easily. Hohner does not recommend tapping these models to get the moisture out but to allow them to air dry. This harmonica could have been dropped or banged around at any time after leaving the bench, resulting in the reed
swinging away from its slot. I am not affiliated with Hohner, I am a big fan though.
Pete
Littoral
1239 posts
May 02, 2015
11:27 AM
I asked Dennis Gruenling about just this last night. I knew he played XO's now almost exclusively but I wanted to see if he'd tried a MB recently. He said he had and was happy with the ones he tried. A few were in his kit. Out of the box is great but at least some set-up is standard.
Mahcks
38 posts
May 02, 2015
11:36 AM
I've never seen that. Good to know.
Rgsccr
331 posts
May 02, 2015
1:01 PM
Like marine 1896, I've been using Marine Bands since the 70s with relatively few problems. My gigging harps are all Marine Bands with a couple of MB Crossovers in lower keys (seem a bit louder and brighter). Some of them are MB Deluxe, but most are regular MB which I then take apart and seal and drill for screws. I haven't learned to gap for the most part (occasionally I will), but usually find things in tune (checked against a tuner) and easy to play. In the past, I've tried SP 20s and Lee Oskars and a couple of Manjis, all of which were fine, but I just like Marine Bands better. I agree with Gypsy that I feel a connection to earlier bluesmen.
SuperBee
2577 posts
May 02, 2015
4:20 PM
I bought a set of 5 recently. All had outrageously over wide gaps. A couple just wouldn't play and the others were way hard to play. Easy fix, no other problems.
The previous 5 I bought included a 4 old-style lacquered combs and I new style sealed comb. They were all great, the best set up harps ootb I've ever had. That was just after the new combs came out and there was a clearance special on the old ones.
I've converted some to screws but I reckon there's a good argument that the nailed construction is inherently more airtight. I haven't touched the F and Eb in the old ones because they are so good, I won't do anything until they need it.
New combs, I agree with others; they are an improvement.
Also agree that QC is an issue with Hohner, but I've had some very poor Suzuki harps and some dodgy Seydel stuff in the solist pro and session lines.
Those bad gapped marine bands I bought recently were a very cheap special btw. Like half price. That maybe relevant.
sonny3
259 posts
May 02, 2015
7:49 PM
Yeah, I haven't had any quality problems with 1896s.I think it's just a matter of gaps set really high.Steve Baker made a post that answers a lot of rumors about Hohner quality and where harps are made over at Harp l.I'm fine with Marine Bands nail construction I've yet to find one that was leaky.
blueswannabe
564 posts
May 04, 2015
6:48 PM
I find the marine bands are very airy - the reed gaps are high. I really like the crossover which is nicely gapped and airtight.
groyster1
2787 posts
May 04, 2015
7:23 PM
when mb1896s were poorly manufactured I went to sp20 and golden melody.........but now I have a very large collection of NOS and star of david marine bands,also a few custom marine bands....once detested them but now my very best harps are marine bands


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