The SBS has a lot of potential. Many of them were built during the dismal years at Hohner, but can be made to really sing with some comb and reed work. Pity they stopped making them along with the 14-holer they were based on, the Hohner 365.
Here's a tune I recorded using the low register of the SBS in D (the first tune; the second was on an XB-40 in A):
A limited number of SBS in G and A were made in the low+regular format (which is the format for all the Lucky 13 harps) instead of the stupid regular+high format that Hohner normally used for these keys. I managed to get some, and used the low+regular G to record a "groove reel" - a tune where you take a fast Scottish (in this case) or Irish reel, slow it down, and put it to a groove other than what you'd normally hear. This one is Forfeit O' Da Ship, set to a New Orleans-style piano backing (audio only, no video):
In June of last year I received an order from a customer who wanted custom SBS harps in the keys of G, A, Bb, C, D and F. Hohner does not offer them in Bb so I tuned an A down 1/2 step. As far as I know, they are still available in those 5 keys. ---------- Tom Halchak www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
Last Edited by florida-trader on Sep 28, 2017 11:39 AM
I've got a 365 in C, but I prefer the SBS. If I want to noodle on a low harp I prefer my low D to my 365. I only got it in case I ever wanted a low C. Ah, screw it, I don't know why I'm being picky - there's nothing wrong with the 365. ---------- Andrew. -----------------------------------------
Last Edited by Andrew on Sep 28, 2017 12:47 PM
In August of last year (2016), Drew Lewis of Hohner told me, at the SPAH convention, that the 365 and SBS were being discontinued, but that the 364 was staying in the product line.
In that case, I got them just in time. A quick search of eBay and Amazon reveals that there are still some to be had. ---------- Tom Halchak www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
I have a pair of 365s, C and G. In as new condition but they were new in the late 70s. I'd like to play the C but haven't really tried it yet, beyond a test to see it was all working. That was enough to tell it could work better.
For once in my life I must have gotten lucky since my SBS in C plays like a dream. Perfectly set up (yields OB´s all over) and generally really tight and well made. Now, if it wasn´t for those annoying extra holes in the bottom (altough they have their, limited, uses) and the Marine Band feel (protruding reed-plates ...) it would have been just perfect.
The Lucky 13 looks like a nice alternative. And Seydel still sells the Solist Pro 12 (steel) in C and D, which has the same layout as the Lucky, minus the 13th hole.
Sorry Andrew, didn´t mean to shock you. If one is looking for uses of the SBS in a more blues-ish context, aside from what Winslow showed above, I can recommend Steve Baker´s own playing on the records w/ Chris Jones. He doubles the octaves down quite effectively every now and then.
Ok i always contribute to threads on this model as mine really is my 'desert island harp' ..and like what Martin said it plays like a dream but I only find the very top hole pretty useless. It has a Randy Sandoval hardwood comb and I have hot rodded it 'a bit ' love it for fat low octave splits...and chords in c minor and the like... But yeah I bought the Amazon SBS in A hoping for the lower octave but disappointedly got a few more useless high holes instead of that lower end I wanted! Then I got a lucky 13 in A to solve that problem! But wish it was a bit more like the sbs........ ---------- Old Man Rubes at Reverbnation Dads in Space at Reverbnation
PS I yes I forgot to ask......I recently got a prewar 364 to do more SBWII stuff but find it a LOT less responsive than the SBS.......can it play as good as the sbs I wonder?? It feels like a dog in comparison?... ---------- Old Man Rubes at Reverbnation Dads in Space at Reverbnation
That SBS of yours is exceptional Rubes. I have a couple ‘standard’ (ie non-sbs) 365s and neither are within a bull’s roar of yours. I’ve had a very nice low C SBS here too, but even though that was a decent player, again it was not a patch on yours.
I have an SBS in A which I was dissapointed to learn after I bout it was normal and high. I was expecting the extre 3 holes on the bottom to be low A. The reed in the top slot is very short and I have not been able to get it to sound with just gapping. Can this reed be made playable?
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