Help: Harmonica Effects Anyone?

Subject: Harmonica Effects Anyone?
From: GUEST,Knappo
Date: 08 Feb 02 - 03:00 PM

Do any of you harpsters or harpstars use any kind of effect units(boss, etc)? I've tried mine through a boss distortion pedal but didn't care for it. I was reading about a pro harp player who uses a Boss Bluesdriver at times. I'm interested in adding more "color" to my sound on certain tunes. Opinions on any effects you use or have heard and liked? Thanks, Tom

Subject: RE: Help: Harmonica Effects Anyone?
From: GUEST,Knappo
Date: 09 Feb 02 - 08:57 AM

Anyone? Tom

Subject: RE: Help: Harmonica Effects Anyone?
From: Ebbie
Date: 09 Feb 02 - 12:49 PM

refresh

Subject: RE: Help: Harmonica Effects Anyone?
From: Lonesome EJ
Date: 09 Feb 02 - 02:47 PM

Well, knappo, I don't know if this will help. I use a Crate Acoustic 60w amp with DSP(digital signal processing), and lately I have been playing harp through the "vocal" input, with max reverb and distortion. This gives the harp sound a kind of fat, tremolo weight, with a trailing echo. For heavy blues and rock playing this works pretty well, but it might be too much for acoustic type blues or straight harp styles. I find this amp makes an excellent harp amp as well as a versatile guitar amp, and eliminates the need for many basic pedal-type processors.

Subject: RE: Help: Harmonica Effects Anyone?
From: Kaleea
Date: 10 Feb 02 - 01:10 PM

In our local music organization is a retired gentleman who won the 2001 harmonica player of the year by M. Honhner Co. He uses a (one) big chromatic harp 99.9 % of the time, and a little teeny one for funny effects, and just plays, michrophone or no. He don't need no stinkin' electronics, but you go for it & have fun! Harmonica is a wonderful instrument, and has been around longer than when my Grandad played his old Hohner-- still permeated by the tobacco he chewed daily, & harps will be around for many more years, I hope.

Subject: RE: Help: Harmonica Effects Anyone?
From: John in Brisbane
Date: 10 Feb 02 - 11:04 PM

You could try a Chorus box for times when you're playing clean single note breaks. Only you can tell whether it works for you.

The only other point you might consider concerns the output from your mic when you're playing hard. This creates a moderately high signal voltage which MAY overload the input into your mixer or mixer/amp causing uncontrollable distortion. There are a lot of variables here but one of the better answers is to use a mixer which lets you adjust the sensitivity of the input channel in your mixer. You then have the choice of selectively adding distortion if you wish - better to always start with a clean sound which you can then experiment with.

For a good rich sound it's hard to beat a good quality chromatic harp, but for the most part a diatonic harp is the way to go for blues playing.

Regards, John

Subject: RE: Help: Harmonica Effects Anyone?
From: GUEST,Knappo
Date: 11 Feb 02 - 12:31 PM

Thanks folks, I know there a lot of factors in sound production. I'm currently playing a 10" tube Laney. Not bad, a bit too clean but I was reading on a harp site about changing tubes to get more distortion. I think I may try that. I may be able try out some pedals to see what I like. Thanks for your input. Tom

Subject: RE: Help: Harmonica Effects Anyone?
From: Dipsodeb
Date: 23 May 03 - 09:24 AM

Hi knappo, what I have purchased, is a Zoom 505/II guitar effects pedal and I find that quite good, all effects are programable, delay reverb etc..... as a harp player myself i have found it is good. you just have to muck around with it, if the effects on there are not quite what you want. if you know a good guitar shop, get down there and ask to try one out. good luck. patches.

Subject: RE: Help: Harmonica Effects Anyone?
From: JedMarum
Date: 23 May 03 - 09:32 AM

For the longest time I refused to play harmonica when I couldn't play it solo because I couldn;t use my "Harmonica Effects" - that is my hands! I play as much straight harp as I do cross - and I would always rather use my hands cupped and the angle at which I make the notes for Harmonica Effects - but I now play quite a bit from a rack while I'm playng guitar or banjo - so Harmonica Effects are really not even an option to me.

I do love the sound some of the good blues players get from their amp, mic, effects pedals. It's just not the kind of harp I play ...

Subject: RE: Help: Harmonica Effects Anyone?
From: GUEST
Date: 30 Jul 06 - 04:47 PM

Crate has a wonderful acoustic amplifier was several effects such a doubler, chorus, reverb and delay. It also has two programmable notch filters to "eliminate" feedback ... point the open mike next to the amp ... when feedback occurs just press the notch filter button and the volume of feedback is reduced to about 10% ... works great but not perfect.

VOX has a Tonelab multi-effect foot board that includeds a tube for the blues sound. Switches can be programmed for favorites. VOX offers one and two expression pedal models ... to control effect volume and speed. The tap switch can control the speed of delay and other effects. The foot boards include hundreds of effects ... most not suitable for harmonca ... but does include chorus, rotary (for the Leslie sound) and harmonizer (i.e., adding the 3rd and 5th to make a chord). Put those three effects together and you've got a Hammond B-3 organ ... great effect for a small band.