I recently got a Manji low F, and have enjoyed using it on a number of songs where I feel a lower harp works better with the guitarist. I see that the Special 20 comes in a low D, and wonder if anyone has any ideas or opinions on the low D.
My Big River Low F sounds like a river boat whistle,LOL. I can only imagine what a Low D would sound like. Heck, I'd say "go for it", if for no other reason just to say you have it. ;)
I like regular D, for the same reasons I prefer regular F.
Solo and acoustic, low keyed harps are lovely and rich and are worth having just for that.
Amplified and driven, I find they just become too muddy to cut through. With a bass, keys and overdriven guitar in the mix I find it a struggle to be heard - not a matter of volume before feedback, but just simply in terms of tone. I concede that in a small band (classic 50s blues-style) there might be more tonal space, but I'm not in that kind of setup.
I know the low F is pretty deep, but I have gotten some nice horn sounds out of it. Sometimes when jamming, there is a melodica in the mix, so I like to come across with a sound that is not so much the same. The deep tones are the answer for me. My concern with a low D is that it may be too low. At $32 a pop I am not going to get a harp just to say I have it. The volumes I normally play at do not affect my cutting through. I have been able to be heard without problems.
I would think a Marine Band in Low-D would sound much better than a special-20. I bought one, but got two (long story...)
The first one played perfectly and sounds exactly like I thought it would. The other one was airy. But after sanding down the comb, it plays as well as the other one.
I like working on my harps, so to me, it's worth the hassle. I only have one Special 20, (In the key of "A") and it plays really well, but the sound it makes cannot compare to my other A harps.
So if it's the low-D sound you are after, no doubt I would go for a MB.
@arzajac..Hey that sounds good. Nice groove. Thank you for the great sound sample. I am a Special 20 guy as opposed to MB. Go figure tastes. How is 3rd position sound?
My lowest harp is low C--I consider my low D, low C, low E flat to be indispensible harps for just playing for the fun of it. They don't cut well for anything but solos, but they are great fun. . . ----------
Thanks for the input guys. My low F has worked well for slower stuff like "Bring it On Home To Me" , to faster pieces like "La Bumba". I believe a Low D will be useful. Once again, thanks for the input.
Last Edited by on Oct 20, 2010 10:32 PM
Most of what we play is blue, R&b, rock stuff. The melodica when used makes it feel like a foreign film sound track. The guy with the melodica ususly sits in for a few songs. "Moondance", "La Bumba".
I have an 1847 Low D. It sounds really good and plays really nice, but I still struggle with bending the 2 hole down a whole step. You need to open your throat like a bull frog to pull it down there. It is fairly quiet, but when I mic it clean through a PA and it sounds awesome. I still pull out my regular D when the band is loud and I need to cut through.
I bought both a Low D and a Low E (Big River Harps, in both cases)...find I use the Low E quite a bit, as the Regular E is a bit shrill.
The Low D only gets used on a few tunes, but it's good to have for those ones. ---------- [img]http://images.tribe.net/tribe/upload/photo/91b/e79/91be79eb-f703-4fc2-acb3-4132c3cdeef0[/img]
Never convicted of murder or selling used horseshoes...
check out Brandon Bailey's new album- he's using quite a few different keyed Low harps (I think Adam keyed each song out in a thread). It'll give you some idea of just how useful and nice those harps can sound.
