Don't waste your money. It will have dodgy valves, out-of-tune reeds, sharp edges, a rattly, sticky slide, inconsistent response and be as leaky as a sieve. Been there, done it, got the tee-shirt. Read between the lines and you'll see that the seller is hardly a harmonica expert, yet he makes wonderful claims all the same. Pay a bit more and go for Hohner or Hering chroms. Or Suzukis. Not Chromettas though, which are horrid, rattly things. As for suitability for beginners, now there's the old conundrum again. I can't think of anything less suitable for a beginner, even an impecunious one, than a pile of cheap, unplayable junk.
I did buy a Swan a couple of years ago because I wanted a chromatic in D. It's not too bad to practise on because it's surprisingly well tuned, but it was cheap and feels cheap, and it isn't all that loud. You've got to be prepared for some disappointment buying harmonicas because the tuning can be a bit haphazard. Clever and patient people do retuning - I've had a go with mixed results. I wouldn't try retuning a tremolo harmonica because they are double-reeded, but my favourite harp is a Susuki humming tremolo in D - nicely tuned and very sonorous and loud in the low register.
...I wasn't implying that I'm one of the clever and patient ones! You need good eyesight, a lot of patience and manual dexterity to tune harmonica reeds and if I ever had those qualities they're evaporating with age.
I had to get a special pair of reading glasses that focused closer than usual, but as it was BOGOF time at Specsavers this didn't put me out of pocket! I also discovered that one of those LED headlights is fabulous for getting a good light on to the harmonica you're working on. I got mine for a few quid in Woolworths RIP. All you need is a cheapie tuner and a Lee Oskar repair kit, together with a little flat-bladed screwdriver. Get comfy and make sure you can't lose tiny nails or screws in your shagpile, and it isn't hard from then on in. I'm the clumsiest bugger on the planet and I can do it. Then again, I made dozens of mistakes along the way. Just make sure you make your mistakes on clapped-out harps, not your treasured possessions. Tweaking your own harmonicas is incredibly rewarding, because you can routinely get them to play much better for you than when you first took them out of the box. Just don't diddle around too much with valved harps until you've looked up how to do it and thoroughly understand how valves work!
And good swans belong on canals. Other kinds of Swans belong in them.
Cheap Chinese 10-hole Chromaticas on Ebay ?
Cheap Chinese 10-hole Chromaticas on Ebay ?
just wondering if anyone ever got one of these no-name china import Chromatics on ebay before?
they are 10-hole, they are all screws assembly, etc...
Just wondering if worth trying it for a beginner, or if it's just $30 wasted.
anyone ?
http://cgi.ebay.ca/Chromatic-10-Hole-40-Tone-C-Tuned-Key-Harmonica-New_W0QQitemZ300283981645QQcmdZViewItemQQptZHarmonicas?hash=item300283981645&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2%7C65%3A1%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318
# Posted on January 2nd 2009 by jimbo77
Re: Cheap Chinese 10-hole Chromaticas on Ebay ?
SWAN also has a cheap one
anyway,thanks
# Posted on January 2nd 2009 by jimbo77
Re: Cheap Chinese 10-hole Chromaticas on Ebay ?
Don't waste your money. It will have dodgy valves, out-of-tune reeds, sharp edges, a rattly, sticky slide, inconsistent response and be as leaky as a sieve. Been there, done it, got the tee-shirt. Read between the lines and you'll see that the seller is hardly a harmonica expert, yet he makes wonderful claims all the same. Pay a bit more and go for Hohner or Hering chroms. Or Suzukis. Not Chromettas though, which are horrid, rattly things. As for suitability for beginners, now there's the old conundrum again. I can't think of anything less suitable for a beginner, even an impecunious one, than a pile of cheap, unplayable junk.
# Posted on January 2nd 2009 by Steve Shaw
Re: Cheap Chinese 10-hole Chromaticas on Ebay ?
I did buy a Swan a couple of years ago because I wanted a chromatic in D. It's not too bad to practise on because it's surprisingly well tuned, but it was cheap and feels cheap, and it isn't all that loud. You've got to be prepared for some disappointment buying harmonicas because the tuning can be a bit haphazard. Clever and patient people do retuning - I've had a go with mixed results. I wouldn't try retuning a tremolo harmonica because they are double-reeded, but my favourite harp is a Susuki humming tremolo in D - nicely tuned and very sonorous and loud in the low register.
# Posted on January 2nd 2009 by RichardB
Re: Cheap Chinese 10-hole Chromaticas on Ebay ?
...I wasn't implying that I'm one of the clever and patient ones! You need good eyesight, a lot of patience and manual dexterity to tune harmonica reeds and if I ever had those qualities they're evaporating with age.
# Posted on January 2nd 2009 by RichardB
Re: Cheap Chinese 10-hole Chromaticas on Ebay ?
I had to get a special pair of reading glasses that focused closer than usual, but as it was BOGOF time at Specsavers this didn't put me out of pocket! I also discovered that one of those LED headlights is fabulous for getting a good light on to the harmonica you're working on. I got mine for a few quid in Woolworths RIP. All you need is a cheapie tuner and a Lee Oskar repair kit, together with a little flat-bladed screwdriver. Get comfy and make sure you can't lose tiny nails or screws in your shagpile, and it isn't hard from then on in. I'm the clumsiest bugger on the planet and I can do it. Then again, I made dozens of mistakes along the way. Just make sure you make your mistakes on clapped-out harps, not your treasured possessions. Tweaking your own harmonicas is incredibly rewarding, because you can routinely get them to play much better for you than when you first took them out of the box. Just don't diddle around too much with valved harps until you've looked up how to do it and thoroughly understand how valves work!
And good swans belong on canals. Other kinds of Swans belong in them.
# Posted on January 3rd 2009 by Steve Shaw