 My favorite harp... |
| Review Date: July 8, 2005 |
| Reviewer: Scott Pointon, Crest Hill, IL United States |
Back when I was learning to play harmonica I tried many different styles and brands before discovering these Golden Melody harps. I really like the sound they produce and the ease of "bending" notes, even for beginners. I also really like the fact that all of the edges are rounded, making it much more comfortable on both your mouth and your hands. I know many of the greats swear by the "Marine Band" harmonica, and to tell the truth I wish the Golden Melody had wood instead of plastic edges, but I choose this one as my favorire based on the results I get with it.
Now as for the key of C... I get a lot more use out of the keys of A and E, but thats another story... |
a harp you could set watch by
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| Review Date: March 17, 2006 |
| Reviewer: Der Hammer des Kuchens, Kalifornia |
| I really enjoy playing with this harp whenever I get a chance to because it produces a very good sound without having to blow or suck a lot of air in. I found it very easy to bend notes, in fact this is the first harp in which I was able to bend notes on. The roundedout edges are also very nice on the hands and it makes it easier to hold. It is made of plastic and not wood but that hasn't caused a problem so far. So I would reccomend a Hohner Golden Melody in any key to anyone. Although I would choose the one in the key of C, if you're a begginer because it would be easier to learn on I think. |
Even better
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| Review Date: January 12, 2007 |
| Reviewer: CPM, Vinton, VA |
Still just a novice, but bought this more expensive model by looking at the reviews.
WOW, what a nice sound, and still a great price.
I find hitting single notes easier on my Hohner 81 Pocket Pal (still entry level skills), but if I want to sound better than I am, and I'm playing chords, I go for the Golden. |
Comfortable, air tight, and rich sounding
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| Review Date: June 11, 2009 |
| Reviewer: M. Mason, Alaska USA |
| I have played the Golden Melody since 2006. I have played several other harmonicas prior to that, but Hohner Golden Melody is by far the MOST comfortable. The Marine Band harmonicas sound good but have sharp corners that can irritate your hands and make it more difficult to get a good seal around the instrument. This harp is comfortable in both the hands and the mouth. This harp is also VERY tight; meaning the reed covers are snug against the reed plates with no gaps for air to escape. The plastic comb will not warp as will wooden combs (e.g. Hohner Blues Harp Harmonica, Key of C); therefore, these harmonicas stay air tight. The less air that escapes--the less effort it takes for you to get a loud, rich tone. These harmonicas are loud, comfortable, and very responsive to your breathing. I used to play the Hohner Blues Harp but the wooden comb warped over time and caused air leaks. I have also found it easy to bend the notes (in Blues style) on the Golden Melody. Due to the comfort and the efficiency of airflow caused by a plastic comb and tight reed covers, I think this is the BEST choice for a "first harmonica" for beginners. They are comfortable and easy to play. Some professionals (e.g. Jason Ricci) played Golden Melody harps. Although Jason Ricci plays customized harps now, he states that he had played Golden Melody harps for quite awhile. That should be considered a good testimony to the quality of these instruments. |
Limited knowledge, but this one works for me.
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| Review Date: December 26, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Wood Wren, U.S.A. |
| Being something of a beginner, I cannot use the technical terms many reviewers here can, only give my impressions and experiences. I have several different harps which I use in my learning process, but find myself using this one more often than not. The Key of C seems to sound better and with the book I have seem geared toward this key. I like the rounded edges of this harm; they are more comfortable. The instrument is quite easy to hold (I have small hands) and hitting single notes seems to be easier with this one. I like the sound of this harp. I have little musical talent and need all the help I can get. I carry this one with me. It does have plastic edges and I suppose the wood is better, but I really have no complaints in this area. I can only speak as a beginner, and as a beginner, I do recommend this one. Perhaps those with more experience can make better recommendations and give advice that I do not yet have access to. |
Hohner harmonica
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| Review Date: January 17, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Hedy Streiff, SAN ANTONIO, TX, US |
| Delivery time was perfect. Product is excellent musical instrument, great tone and ease in learning to play. Would definitely order more products from vendor! |
Plays Better Than Expected
|
| Review Date: January 27, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Michael Paul Sebek, Georgia, USA |
| I bought one of these a few weeks ago, and it has played better than expected. I'm just a beginner - having started out with a cheap Hohner "International" (made in China) BluesBand harp I received this past Christmas. After practicing with the Golden Melody for only about two weeks, I have two observations: 1) I don't understand why ALL harmonicas aren't made with rounded corners like this one. It's just so much more comfortable to hold, plus I don't see any "acoustic" difference between round corners and sharp ones. 2) How to "bend" notes just came to me the other day while reading how and trying to do it on the Golden Melody. It's just like the light bulb came on and *poof* I started doing it. I find that on this harmonica, I am able to bend just about every note - blow or draw - even the high blows. It's amazing. Highly recommended!!! (Now if I can just figure out "tongue blocking......") |
Golden Melody Harp -- all harps should be this way
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| Review Date: July 28, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Edward Balen, Bradenton, Florida |
This is the most revolutionary harp I have ever owned and played. There is nothing bad about this harp, just innovation and comfort found with no other.
The tone is rich and pleasant. The harp itself and its box are my favorite color, red. There is one thing else about this harp that makes it stand out.
Look at other harps, rounded 90 degree angle corners. This harp is curved, making it easier to hold in your hands. The rounded shape also makes hand vibrato easier to execute.
If you want a harp that not only looks great, sounds awesome, but is easier to hold in your hands, this is the harp for you. |
Very happy with it
|
| Review Date: September 2, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Siddharth Joshi, |
| Haven't been able to use it as much as I had wanted, but it was great for a starter like me who wanted to learn the harp from scratch. |
Great Harp from Hohner
|
| Review Date: May 14, 2010 |
| Reviewer: John D. Roberts II, Jax, Florida |
| this is a great classic by hohner and every harp player should try it. harps are going to vary depending on how they are tuned and the make, etc, but hohner will never let you down. For a harp straight out of the box, this one is great. If you cant play single notes on it and get good bends and overblows, you ned to be digging ditches somehwere. I can wear a solo out on this thing with dramatic highs and lows and never skip a beat or deal with it sticking or leaking or anything. You'd be a pure moron not to try it. |
Great Christmas gift
|
| Review Date: December 19, 2006 |
| Reviewer: Kathy Barajas, Gila Bend, AZ |
| I got this for my husband for a Christmas gift. It is so nice! It came in a hard plastic case and I cannot believe how fast it got here. I was expecting it not to arrive until after Christmas and I actually got it in three days! I'm extremely satisfied. |
4 star harp
|
| Review Date: June 13, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Live to play harp, Moorhead, Mn. USA |
| The golden melody is a nice harp though I prefer the delta frost by bushman it has a better sound and only cost about five dollars more. |
Nice harmonica, but i can't play it.
|
| Review Date: May 25, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Andrew Tane, Toronto, ON Canada |
This is a nicely built harmonica, easy to play and notes bend easily. However, because of the exposed brass strips above and below the holes along with the stainless steel metal covers, there is a strong bi-metal/galvanic effect. I have a silver filling in the back of one of my front teeth which hurts whenever I play this harmonica. My wife can play it without any problems and just looks at me weird when I describe the problem, but she's only got one or two silver fillings in her back molars. I don't recommend this harmonica to anyone who has silver fillings in the front teeth simply due to the galvanic effect.
Otherwise, this harmonica has a beautiful sound, and is comfortable to hold and play. |
Not comfortable and sounds thin
|
| Review Date: June 5, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Constantin Novoselsky, |
I'm new to harmonica and started with cheap Hohner GLH (Great Little Harmonica). It worked OK but was cheaply made, lips sometimes got caught in corners and higher pitch reeds did not sound well. So I decided to upgrade - thanks harmonicas are relatively inexpensive.
My natural choice at first was going with Hohner. Marine Band had wooden mouthpiece (too much hassle). Choosing from Big River/Special 20/Golden Melody the latter was supposedly higher quality.
I bough Golden Melody on Amazon, but while waiting (very impatiently) for the shipment got this Lee Oscar at local music store. I loved it so much, it played effortlessly, all notes sounded bright and clear, I could do bending more easily. And a week later, when Golden Melody arrived, it did not stand the competition. The rounded corners try to slip out, the sound was "thin" and there was no narrowing on the lip side of the case, pushing harmonica out of your mouth. Not good.
Save some money, don't get Golden Melody. I'm staying with Lee Oscar (and the reeds are replaceable, just gotta find them somewhere online). You may have luck with other Hohners, just definitely not this one. |
protruding rails are a bad design
|
| Review Date: July 31, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Redgecko, USA |
If it weren't for the protruding rails I would most likely give this harmonica a 5 star rating. But, the rails ruin the experience for me. I have a small, well-groomed mustache and the protruding rails catch and pull the hairs at the corners of my mouth. This is quite painful when it happens and I have even regroomed my mustache so as to minimize the chance of this pulling, but to no avail. The protruding rails also make it more difficult to produce a tight seal and the feel is strange. Why they designed the harp with protruding rails is a mystery to me, I can see no advantage whatsoever.
What I do like, which keeps this harp from getting a one star rating, is the rounded corners, which make it more comfortable in the hands than other designs. And, the covers install a lot more easily than on the Special 20 that have those small nuts that are difficult to thread.
But the negatives of the protruding rails far outweigh the advantages of the rounded corners and ease of assembly. Why Hohner doesn't combine the best features of the Golden Melody & Special 20 hardware design is beyond me.
I can see no reason to buy the Golden Melody unless you don't have a mustache and you can form a good seal inspite of the terrible design.
|
Seems well constructed but, sorry, I just don't like it
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| Review Date: March 22, 2010 |
| Reviewer: T. Park, San Francisco, California |
I was really looking forward to getting a nice harmonica, as the other one I have is an old Pocket Pal. However, when the Golden Melody arrived, the first thing I noticed is that it's almost impossible for me to play single notes on it. It's actually much easier to play single notes on the cheap ol' Pocket Pal.
After a lot of experimentation with both, I realized that the problem is the brass rails on the Golden Melody. There's another reviewer on Amazon who says the brass bothers his teeth fillings. That's not the problem in my case.
On the Pocket Pal, the plastic comb protrudes out from the casing, and my lips can easily seal around a single blow hole. However, on the Golden Melody, those brass rails stick out 1mm farther than the red comb, so my lips won't seal against the comb where the hole is.
I'm a beginner so this problem probably doesn't exist for better players, but I would not recommend the Golden Melody for beginners. The Special 20 would probably have been a better choice for me. |
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