ValleyDuke
30 posts
May 17, 2016
3:47 AM
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Besides blues harp, I like to play bluegrass guitar, mostly just boom-chuck rhythm. After a few years, I settled on phosphor bronze strings - they had my favorite sound, although they don't last long.
Same thing happened with harps - I settled on Promasters and Manjis with phosphor bronze reeds. I find the reeds last me much longer than the strings - they can last me a couple years if I keep them clean.
So, I thought I liked guitar and harmonica, but I think I just like the sound of phosphor bronze. What I hear is a lot of amazing high harmonics from the strings/reeds.
Anyone else use phosphor bronze strings on guitar? What are you hearing in the reeds/strings?
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Goldbrick
1451 posts
May 17, 2016
5:06 AM
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I suppose it depends on your body chemistry
I play guitar at least an hour a day and the strings last quite a while ( and for blues- I think worn in strings sound better)
String choice , I think, depends more on the individual guitar- 80/20s are bright- PB give more bass
If you dont like to change strings 80/20s sound like PB after a few weeks
I hate to say it but I dont hear much difference in harps.
PB might have a slightly mellower sound but playing live its hard for me to tell- I play Suzis and Hohners and maybe the Hohners are a bit tinnier sounding
I know I dont care much for steel reeds
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Killa_Hertz
1404 posts
May 17, 2016
5:31 AM
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I don't play guitar enough to know anything about strings n such, but i do play Manjis.
I love the way the marine band sounds. Nothing can exactly sound like a marine band. But I think the same about the Manji. It's not the classic sound, but it's surely a sound of its own. I associate it with Jason Ricci just because hes the one that i listen to who plays them.
I had very mixed feelings about the Bronze reeds at first. They are a bit harder to play at first, but once you get used to em and fix the manjis air leaks from the crappy comb, they are great.
I have found that not only do they play better when broke in. But they also pay much easier when warm. If i pick a Manji up that had been sitting on the seat in the car baking in the sun for a bit, it plays beautifully. So ..
I love the sound of the bronze. Ofcourse a bit of this is also the tuning. Im going to buy a second Manji in A and C so i can tune then to 19Limit JI, to see how they sound.
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ValleyDuke
31 posts
May 17, 2016
4:21 PM
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@Glodbrick All the bluegrass guys play 80/20s but I found them too bright for my guitar. Like you said, I'm not sure I can hear the difference in reeds, but you can sure hear it on guitar. And I am addicted to those higher harmonics on the guitar.
@Killa I always have to warm up my harps! Ever notice how warm they are after playing? I like the idea of putting them in the sun for a natural warm up. You're right about the tuning - maybe I just like Suzuki tuning,
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STME58
1702 posts
May 17, 2016
9:45 PM
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Be careful with harps in the sun. I left my case open in direct sunlight at an outdoor gig and they got so warm it was a painful surprise!
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KingoBad
1690 posts
May 18, 2016
10:00 AM
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that must have been doubly painful...
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Danny
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