harmonicanick
2519 posts
Sep 03, 2016
1:23 AM
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Is this a Marine Band in new clothes?
Not bad OTB
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SuperBee
4078 posts
Sep 03, 2016
3:28 AM
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Nick? The blues harp MS has been around for 20 years.
I think they probably are quite good these days. I played them almost exclusively for a decade or so before I started switching over to Marine Bands. I still have a few but I haven't really played them for 4 years or so.
I still quite like them though.
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Killa_Hertz
1732 posts
Sep 03, 2016
4:39 AM
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No its FAR from a marine band. Take one apart and compare the plates. You ll see what i mean. I have a few, but have yet to play one i liked.
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SuperBee
4079 posts
Sep 03, 2016
5:43 AM
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They kinda were introduced as the new marine band, (actually the new blues harp, duh) although the big river cover plates were used. I have some MS marine bands in my boneyard.
I like the size, and I have a couple of hetrick bamboo combs for them. Better than most preMS blues harps I think.
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harmonicanick
2520 posts
Sep 03, 2016
7:21 AM
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this is the first I have bought, I only buy GM's
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Thievin' Heathen
827 posts
Sep 03, 2016
8:04 AM
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I find them to be "Playable" harmonicas. Not very rewarding to work on, I can't seem to find the magic. I lost interest in the MS series when Hohner doubled the price of the replacement reed plates.
I'm happy to hear you got a good one. I see a lot of MS Big Rivers hanging around the necks of folk singers.
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SuperBee
4081 posts
Sep 03, 2016
2:10 PM
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Crummy combs let them down IMHO. For the entire ms series.
I don't bother with them mainly because I can't obtain new individual reeds. But people sometimes ask me to work on them and I have quite a few secondhand to recycle reeds from.
Neil Graham builds his top-of-line custom based on meisterklasse MS reedplates with a custom comb.
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nacoran
9227 posts
Sep 04, 2016
4:08 PM
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I like their sound, but the combs are lip rippers.
The pre-MS ones were nice, but had the same issue. I think, with some comb either pre-or post MS can make really nice harps. My favorite harp, actually, is a modified pre-MS Blues Harp.
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Nate
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First Post- May 8, 2009
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SuperBee
4088 posts
Sep 04, 2016
4:41 PM
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Pre MS were marine band with different covers.
I had one I asked MP to put a new comb on, years ago.
He did so and sent it back to me with some marine band covers, encouraging me to make comparisons between marine band covers and original covers.
It was much better with MB covers, in my opinion.
Still a sow's ear of a harp though.
It was an early 90s product.
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harmonicanick
2521 posts
Sep 05, 2016
12:49 AM
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I agree Nate, how can they make the comb so rough and sharp?
Is there any way of softening the comb without changing it?
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the_happy_honker
256 posts
Sep 05, 2016
4:05 AM
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The doussie wood used for the Blues Harp comb is not so great. I've never had one swell like pearwood, but the heavy grain ensures that there will always be small air leaks between the channels, no matter how much you sand it.
If you want a perfect seal between reed plate and comb, you are better off just replacing the comb with one from Tom or arzajac.
I still have some Blues Harps with the original combs. I have rounded off the vertical edges of the tines with fine sandpaper and daubed 3 or 4 layers of my daughter's clear nail polish across the front of the comb, plus sanded and smoothed down the front edges and corners of the reed plates. The result is a much more comfortable harp.
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harmonicanick
2522 posts
Sep 05, 2016
7:34 AM
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thanks honker
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6SN7
661 posts
Sep 05, 2016
8:48 AM
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Blues Harps were the first harps I played because , well, they were blues harps. I liked the way they sound but the combs were lip/mouth rippers, never comfortable and certainly not good for tongue blocking. Over the years, I would pick one up when a special 20 was not available, but always had that crummy comb. Today, if I am to replace a comb, I'd rather a Marine Deluxe or X-over.
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MP
3400 posts
Sep 06, 2016
6:20 PM
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Bee,
If I was sure the Blues Harp/MB was post 1992 I'd suggest flat sanding the bottom reed plate, installing a GOOD comb ala Blue Moon, and straightening any curvature found in the reeds themselves.
Or, use the bugger for parts unless the reeds sound dull and lifeless when plinked. :-)
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Have good day. M.A.P.
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Joe_L
2671 posts
Sep 08, 2016
3:21 PM
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I play them all the time. They are decent harps. I have a few that I've replaced the combs on and I've done some reed work to them. They are solid performers.
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The Blues Photo Gallery
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shakeylee
573 posts
Sep 11, 2016
10:30 AM
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I think the best deal in MS harps is the blue midnight
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www.shakeylee.com
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