mild bill
1 post
Sep 22, 2014
5:29 AM
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Hello everyone, my name is William and I have a question about Marine Band in G.
My first Harmonica was a C followed by an A, both Special 20s
I recently purchased the Marine Band in G and I love it, the 20's now seem fat.
I had been reluctant to get a harmonica with nails rather than screws but I vowed to stop carrying them in my pocket and work harder at clearing them without digging into the innards.
So far that has worked but the 1 thru 3 draw holes have always required a harder draw and are less responsive. doing a little research I read that the lower the Key the longer the reeds and thus more effort is required.
My question is should I remove the cover and try to tinker with the 1-3 reeds or is this just the way things are with the G ie they are not uniformly harder to draw across all the reeds just the big end. The complication is not only the first G I have played but it is a new type of Harmonica so it is difficult for me to know the elements at play here.
I am beyond a novice and clearly have no business touching a harmonica, I am OK with that but hope you guys have mercy and don't make like Charles Atlas and kick sand on the wimp at the beach. I normally spare the internet my musical ignorance but I really want to get the most out of this G.
Should I mess with it or no?
Thanks, William
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tookatooka
3699 posts
Sep 22, 2014
10:06 AM
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Maybe close the gaps if they are excessive but just be very gentle and take your time.
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SuperBee
2206 posts
Sep 22, 2014
3:02 PM
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gday Bill, marine band shouldnt really be any different in playability than a special 20. they are really very similiar instruments.
a g harp i suppose may take a little more movement to get the draw bends but shouldn't take a noticeably bigger breath to just play the reeds in chambers 1-3. the difference between your C and your A may be the same or a little more than the difference between a G and an A. the longer reeds do have a characteristic difference, but i wouldnt describe it as a 'harder' effort, or the reeds as 'less responsive'. i reckon theres a good show your harp would benefit from resetting the gaps.
removing the covers from a nailed marine band is pretty easy. Adam has a video showing how he does it. azajac also has a video showing how he removes covers. no doubt there are others.
there are plenty of videos about gapping too. its easy enough to do, but its easy to mess it up too, so as tookatooka said...if you go a little too far, thats ok, you can open up again. you just dont want to slip and move the reed a long way in a short time..says the voice of experience...
it is a skill you need to learn though imho. some recommend practicing on cheap harps. something to be said for that probably
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didjcripey
822 posts
Sep 22, 2014
3:55 PM
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I always thought there was something wrong with my G's; I'd get a buzzing sound from the low reeds that was obviously not right. Now I know that it was from using too much breath force. I don't think it is correct to say that you need to use more force on the lower reeds; what you need to do is change the shape of your mouth/jaw/throat/diaphragm to create a larger resonating chamber. Ultimately you will find that you automatically create a cavity that resonates with the note being played.
p.s. after quite a few tries, I still usually do more harm than good when messing with my reeds. The adjustments that you need to make are tiny.
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Lucky Lester
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mild bill
2 posts
Sep 22, 2014
5:00 PM
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Described another way, the first three holes seem to let more air pass before they make a sound. So if I am moving from 4 to three draw then I get a fraction of a second pause before the sound kicks in.
Harder draw is probably the wrong term since I imagine that is me trying to force the sound quicker. It is really just a matter of slower response than the other holes. To my understanding that sounds like a gap issue.
I appreciate the responses, they confirm I might be on the right track.
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