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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! > Home Practice setup
Home Practice setup
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flbluesharp
7 posts
Nov 28, 2015
6:03 AM
Looking for advice on first mic and amp. Looking for clean acoustic tone that can also break up.

Thanks
Grant

Last Edited by flbluesharp on Nov 28, 2015 6:23 AM
ME.HarpDoc
41 posts
Nov 28, 2015
8:10 AM
A low wattage amp gives you sound without annoying the neighbors (much). I have Lone Wolf's Harptrain 10 (8W) which is a dedicated harp amp. Clean tone when the Balls circuitry is low, breaks up when turned up. I had to replace the preamp tube though for less feedback. A similar low wattage amp is the Memphis Mini. Lots of folks on this forum like the VHT.

If you want clean acoustic sound you may want to avoid "hot" or "dirty" mics. Good all around mics that will give you clean sound and dirty when cupped are the Shure SM57 and 545 you can get these off Amazon or eBay.

Check out Greg Heumann' article on mics and amps on www.blowsmeaway.com to help with your selection.
Popculture Chameleon
106 posts
Nov 28, 2015
8:23 AM
I have been playing for about a year and am starting from scratch- If your budget is fairly tight and you are a new comer to harmonica this is what I would suggest- I have never played through one but have seen many recommendations for the vox mini 3 amp. Its only about 130 on amazon so it wont break the bank- Personally I use a Roland Mobile Cube amp Other forum members on here will give you great amp advice- If I were you I would get your harp mic first and then go to a local guitar center or the like and try out every amp that you could.
As for mics the standard is a SHURE sm 57- I myself use a Shaker Dynamics mic- called the Mad Dog. I have it plugged straight into the amp with no effects. Shaker make some good budget friendly mics that are very harp friendly even Stephen Tyler from Aerosmith uses one. A company called Blows me away makes a good line of mics but they can get pricey . However they are made specifically for harmonica playing. I have one of them myself and plan on keeping it in my gear bag. wait for others to comment on that- I'm no effects expert and I am fascinated by effects but I'm still a beginner to that sort of thing.
But again if you are new I would go low budget at first. Start practicing and if you feel yourself falling in love with playing the harp you can look later down the line at he more expensive stuff.

Last Edited by Popculture Chameleon on Nov 28, 2015 8:26 AM
flbluesharp
8 posts
Nov 28, 2015
9:18 AM
Thanks everyone. Looking into a sonotone voice of music mic and was wondering where I might find one, kind of wary of the eBay adds I've seen.
Kingley
3971 posts
Nov 28, 2015
9:18 AM
The Shure SM57 is always a good investment for any musician. For harmonica it sounds very clean and will drive hard when cupped. Greg Heumann's Ultimate 57 is a great upgrade on the standard mic.

When it comes to amps, it pretty much a minefield of choice. Generally speaking most people seem to go for a 5 watt Champ or 5F2A Princeton style amp. The Memphis Mini is a good example based off the 5F2A, as is the HarpGear HG2 if you can afford them. If you're on a tighter budget I'd heavily recommend either the VHT Special 6 or the Joyo GTA-05. My preference is for the Joyo. It's a classic Champ circuit, has a killer sound and is very cheap. Greg Heumann also sells Kalamazoo amps sometimes, which sound great for harp.

There are also some great solid state amps out there. It might be an idea to get your mic first and then go round the music shops and try out a few small amps, to see which you like.

I'm sure you'll get plenty of other suggestions from the forum too.

Last Edited by Kingley on Nov 28, 2015 9:19 AM
hvyj
2833 posts
Nov 28, 2015
11:10 AM
Get the best quality mic you can afford. You'll never regret it. Mic is more important than amp.
flbluesharp
9 posts
Nov 28, 2015
11:15 AM
Thanks guys, as I'm a novice at all of this, which would you guys recommend from Greg Heumann, the 57 or the 545?
Kingley
3972 posts
Nov 28, 2015
11:32 AM
My personal preference is a vintage 545 element. The new ones are pretty much the same as the 57. Either way I'd go for a Hi-Z with screw on connector as it's just a straight plug and play with an amp. If though you think you might use wireless set up later down the line, then a Lo-Z with XLR may be the better choice. My best advice would be email Greg, tell him what your thinking and see what he suggests. He is a great guy to deal with, very knowledgeable and won't steer you wrong.
flbluesharp
10 posts
Nov 28, 2015
11:38 AM
Thanks everyone
Thievin' Heathen
636 posts
Nov 28, 2015
12:31 PM
Unless you stumble across one at a thrift store, pawnshop or garage sale, you will probably only find a Sonotone CM-10A on ebay. Given those options, I thing ebay is a comparable source. My wifey won a pair of them for me, a couple of years ago. About $20, I think. It is a mic worth having.

I've searched before, and I just searched again, people don't appear to be getting rid of their Joyos, VHTs, or DA5's. If I were just starting out acquiring gear, 1 of Greg Heumann's restored Kalamazoos and the new bullet mic he's building would be irresistible.
flbluesharp
11 posts
Nov 28, 2015
12:51 PM
Only thing I'm not sure of with Greggs Bullet mic is my hands are on the small side
SuperBee
2996 posts
Nov 28, 2015
3:14 PM
Small hands...people worry about it. I worried about it. These days, I wouldn't worry about it.
Old mics are cool, they can suck you in like girls on the avenue, but you may be better taking a more solid approach with a BMA mic from Greg. You spend the dough one time.
Amps...I have a bunch of smallish amps...including a 5F1 and couple harp specific modded valve juniors...but for 'practice' there are 2 I like a lot.
One is an old tube radio which has been gutted and rebuilt as a Kalamazoo type circuit...quite low power I think, maybe only 3 watts and a 6"x4" internal speaker. It's old and crappy, needs constant attention as components from 1964 break down. Great practice amp but don't get one unless you want to maintain it.
The fender Vibro champ XD is a great thing for practice. It's modern, actually is capable of great tone and I've used it for jamming and duo gigs, even an outdoor gig with a 4 piece band at an agricultural fair, where the drummer just had a snare...but mainly, you can dial in gain and volume and get some rewarding sounds at lower volume, it has a bunch of built in effects, among which there are some which work with the harp...and I believe it just has a nicer more interesting tonal character than the completely solid state amps I've used...of all my amps, I think this one has drawn the most complimentary comments about the sound (maybe because I've practiced with it a lot?) they are not made anymore, I guess they didn't sell so well due to most preferring the SuperChamp XD (endorsed by David Barrett, current model is the X2) for its 10" speaker and bigger can, more power, but still good secondhand, not too old examples available, cheap. (The key to using it for harp is just use voice number 4. It's tempting to use one of the others, but stick to voice 4 and work with it. There are rewards for this approach.)
But..while that Fender has the edge in sound quality, and can deliver at lower levels than many traditional 5 watt amps, those Roland and Vox portable amps certainly have their place and especially if you think you may be inclined to play publicly without mains power, they can be very useful. I've used a pignose and mouse and a Roland mini and I do think the Roland is the most suitable of those. The Vox seems similar.
SuperBee
2997 posts
Nov 28, 2015
3:16 PM
Oh, that stuff about the fender Vibro champ XD? I'm pretty much the only harp player on the planet who thinks that. Everyone else thinks it sucks. There's a chance I may be wrong...
hvyj
2834 posts
Nov 28, 2015
3:36 PM
I use a 545 Ultimate and my spare is a 545 Ultimate. The 57 may be a better mic, but IMHO, the 545 is a better mic for harmonica. So, 545 Ultimate is my strong recommendation.

Last Edited by hvyj on Nov 28, 2015 3:42 PM
Popculture Chameleon
107 posts
Nov 28, 2015
4:49 PM
I have a 545 from Greg as well and love it. Although I use a Shaker mad dog as well. Ill switch of from the two every couple of weeks So I can get use to playing different kinds of mics I have thought about the Bulletini Greg has recently done but I'm going to wait awhile to work on my tone and technique
MindTheGap
798 posts
Nov 29, 2015
12:26 AM
Bear in mind that even the low-wattage tube amps recommended here are pretty loud. Some e.g. the Memphis Mini make a feature of being loud. So it may or may not good for a home practice set up, depending on your circumstances - isolated farm or apartment?

Even if you aren't going to annoy anyone else, you'll need any backing tracks up loud too so you may annoy yourself.

If it's for actual practice, you might want to consider a small modelling amp. You can set the volume to be room friendly or use headphones.

Small hands? Consider Greg's new Bulletini mic, although that's less oriented towards your clean sound. It's perfectly capable of a clean sound of course.

http://blowsmeaway.com/bulletini.html

Unlike Popculture Chameleon, I bought one of those to help work on my mic technique.

Last Edited by MindTheGap on Nov 29, 2015 12:27 AM
WindyCity
4 posts
Nov 29, 2015
5:23 PM
Check out the new Windy City amp from Sonic pipe amps...The Windy City is really howlin’ some fierce tone at an extremely low price of $375 plus shipping. Sonic Pipe Amplifiers have designed the paramount of small amplifiers with its astounding array of tonal attributes at various settings. You will hear tone ranging from 1940’s warm crunch, the 1950’s tweed tone, and the 1960’s crispy gain. With an independently designed circuit that includes features like no other amplifier, we are confident that this amplifier will hit the spot. The Windy city was manufactured in China and has been completely rewired and internally redesigned in none other than Chicago, Illinois to deliver the most versatile and striking amplifier to date.

The Windy City Features

1. 1x8 combo with choice of speaker.
Here at Sonic Pipe Amplifiers you have 2 choices of speakers, rather than one.
The Weber Signature 8” Ceramic stock
The Eminence 8” 820H Alnico( $25 upgrade)

2. Brightness Cutoff Switch
The Windy City is not feedback resistant but is easily tamable with very simple settings. To tame the high end even more or to achieve the possibility of cutting more high end, we have included the Brightness cutoff switch.
This can be used in conjunction with any setting on the amplifier and we find it quite useful.

3. Bias Switch
This switch is designed to play at different bias settings and is intended to be used when changing the power tubes. After testing around with it, we have found that there is even more tonal diversity with mismatched tube and bias settings.

4. Switchable Power Tubes
The 6V6 and 6L6 power tubes are included with the Windy City amplifier. This is a genius option, which broadens your amplifiers tonal capacity.

5. 6SJ7 Octal Preamp
This was a recommended preamp tube from our experienced tester to say: “Hey let’s do something different.” Or “Everyone else uses the 12A series of preamp tubes.” This also opens the door for earlier and more of a vintage sounding tone.
6. 6X4 Rectifier
Similar to the 5Y3 rectifier, the 6X4 has been included in a lot of the vintage amps that we have had experience with.

7. Built In Lineout
It is simply that, plug it into any Public Address System and go!

8. Tested from an experienced Blues Harmonica Player
Our testers have donated their time and suggestions to pave the way for this amplifier to be possible.
9. One of a kind circuit
A lot of boutique amplifiers today have copied previous circuits and sound great with plenty of reasons for doing so. The Windy City has a distinct sound of its own and gives you everything that a 1x8 combo can deliver. This amplifier is completely hand wired with no printed circuit boards at all.
www.sonicpipeamps.com
Youtube clips under sonic pipe amps and windy city


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