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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! > What are your thoughts on the set up?
What are your thoughts on the set up?
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DWilz
1 post
Mar 08, 2021
1:13 PM
So currently i have a standard dynamic microphone and as my effects pedals i use my boss br 800 recorder which has tons of settings for guitars and microphones etc.
My question is am i missing out by not having all the specific pedals or will the sounds im abke to create sound somewhat similar? Also should i use a harmonica specific microphone as i dont think this mic has the same attack on chords or when i try cup it. (be aware in new to the amplified world.. So it could be me)

Thanks for your thoughts.
LFLISBOA
118 posts
Mar 09, 2021
3:58 AM
If you're happy with the sounds you get, there's no reason to change. I think you have some player as "reference". How far are your sound from your "reference"? Since you're new to amplified harmonica, keep in mind a learning curve, and a little bit of addiction on getting gear, always there's a lot of room for improvement.
DWilz
2 posts
Mar 09, 2021
4:30 AM
Thankyou. I ask because im still not fully happy with the sound but theres alot to play with. Patient i will be!
Raven
199 posts
Mar 09, 2021
7:54 AM
Welcome to the forum, DWilz! You'll probably get a lot of similar answers from members telling you to first concentrate on embouchure and developing technique to obtain the various results you are looking for, and they will be right because you can create a whole variety of sounds from that "tin sandwich" just by the way you position your mouth and tongue and how you control your breath force. You'll also receive comments favoring the use of a crystal or ceramic element mic over the dynamic and tube over solid state amps. Since the majority of amps and pedals are designed with guitar as the main target, harp-specific gear is often recommended over the popular stuff for the axe shredders. Like the majority of us, you'll probably experiment with various mics, amps and effects until you find what you like for the sound you're looking for and the type of music you like to play. This forum is loaded with lots of guys and gals who know their stuff and can make suggestions for you along the way. We also have a number of repair people and customizers who do good work at fair and reasonable rates. In the archives are thousands of posts about effects and how to acheive them. Happy harpin'!
jbone
3327 posts
Mar 09, 2021
8:59 PM
Yes welcome to you DWilz! Your question has many answers. I'm a long time player with experiences from all acoustic to many amps and mics and a lot of work through p.a. as well. My comments are along the lines of Raven above.
I don't have a lot of experience tweaking p.a. settings for harp, although our small Yamaha p.a. has some pretty good effects I could use. Mostly reverb kind of stuff and adjusting high, medium, and low response per channel. When we do play amped- I am in a duo with my wife these days-we use low powered vintage tube amps and I have a couple or three mics to choose from. But mostly we do play acoustic like on the street.
Over about 30 years I have had many amps and a lot of mics as well. The big question you must ask yourself is exactly what you see as a benefit if changing your current setup. Better tone? Higher volume? Feedback suppression? Do you want to emulate a certain harp player's sound?
I started out as pretty much a 2nd position "blues snob" sort of player. I wanted to be like Little Walter, James Cotton, and many other blues guys. Not that I had the chops of those heroes but I was trying. Those guys and many others inspired me and still do. Over the past couple of decades I have expanded my horizons into roots rock, Americana, swing, jazz, and gospel, and my style has had to expand to do some of that material justice.
My answer for many years, even though I had no very deep understanding of how to play a harp, or what kind of gear lends itself to better tone, was to buy stuff and try it out. Also to borrow stuff and play other players' rigs. I went to a lot of open mics and jams over many years and began to get an idea of what I wanted, but I either could not afford it or could not find it locally.
Long story short, I ran around in circles a lot looking for better tone and higher volume. It's kind of a oaradox that increasing volume many times will limit tonal possibilities and I think this is true with p.a. as much as tube amp/bullet mic outfits. Conversely, there are some great add on gadgets that go between mic and p.a., and there are some very good bullet mic/amp combos that will give good tone and good volume. I use a Lone Wolf Delay pedal these days if anything. I've had a holy grail amp- 1959 Bassman replica, with a vintage crystal element bullet mic, and it sounded glorious. But at 45 pounds it was a pain to lug around and I was asked many times to turn down, which I thought was funny at the time. Usually in my tenure with live bands I was drowned out. Eventually I decided to sell that rig off and go smaller- bands, venues, and watts. Or just all acoustic.
I do love to plug in with my partner and blow some hot sweet great tone stuff here and there, always will. My days of high volume big room are pretty much done. What's left of my hearing I want to preserve!
I have no doubt you can see many different perspectives and answers to your questions here. Hope you hang out and look at the archives and keep us up to date on how you solve your issues!


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Kingley
4176 posts
Mar 09, 2021
11:43 PM
Some great advice in the comments above. You say you're new to amplified playing but not how looking you're been playing harp. So I'll approach my answer as if you're a complete novice to playing harmonica.
Bear in mind that acoustic tone and playing technique will always be the biggest single factor in creating a good sound/tone. My advice for what it's worth would be to work heavily on those areas first and foremost. Then work on mic cupping technique. Jason Ricci has some very good videos on mic cupping on YouTube. After that the source of amplification becomes the thing to look at. Now where that's concerned there is no "one suits all" answer. Some use valve/tube amps, some use solid state amps and some use effects pedals into the amp or PA. So I'd concentrate on the first three things and then reassess how you feel about your "amp". My only other piece of advice would be to maybe invest in a low-hi impedance converter for your mic (which it seems is a low impedance mic). As hi impedance mics tend to be better for harp.

Last Edited by Kingley on Mar 09, 2021 11:43 PM
DWilz
3 posts
Mar 10, 2021
1:44 AM
Wow thanks for the all the thoughful responses! Carnt believe iv waites this long before getting involved here.
Iv been playing for a couple years and i think the main thing im getting from your answers is i actually have no sound in mind that im trying to reproduce. So maybe there is my start.

Thankyou and for sure i will be returning!
Tonyblues
78 posts
Mar 10, 2021
9:13 AM
We all get addicted to gear but I think you should keep in mind that the greatest players didn't use any gear at all. Try to focus more on playing technic and practice than gear. The fact is gear will Not make you better. Think about this, the average listener will not be impressed by your gear, Only your playing. Good luck DWilz with the journey :-)


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