Hohner Meisterklasse fan club

[The Lone Harper]

A.J. why would you prefer an acrylic comb?

They seal up much better. Bill Romel told he never had  a customer tell him they'd ever go back to a stock comb afterwards.

That might have been a result of better flatness and not of materials. MKs have goen through perhaps two generations of improvements since Bill's day.

Jerry Murad told me that when Dick Gardner serviced his MK's for him he would dab a little silicon gel on the aluminum comb so as to create an airtight seal between the comb and the reed plates. I don't think it is a coincidence that by sanding my reed plates flat and using a brass comb that has been milled flat, that my MK is VERY responsive without requiring the warming up most players say their brass-combed chromatics need before they play well.

[Carl SC270]

I had a MK and thought is was very well made but not my sound so I sold it. However I would not change the comb to acrylic because it would change the tone and not in a good way as far as I'm concerned. Keep the original Hohner sound.

[SlideMeister]

Careful! I think I hear Vern coming.
FTR: ~I~ don't perceive any difference in sound from different comb materials. Strangely enough, I do/can sometimes notice differences in two different harmonicas of the same model, make and key. Go figure!   I feel I can effect more variation in tone "with my head" than any possible comb materials ever would. To me, metal combs, just make the thing heavier.

[The Lone Harper]

Careful! I think I hear Vern coming.
FTR: ~I~ don't perceive any difference in sound from different comb materials. Strangely enough, I do/can sometimes notice differences in two different harmonicas of the same model, make and key. Go figure!   I feel I can effect more variation in tone "with my head" than any possible comb materials ever would. To me, metal combs, just make the thing heavier.

I have a wooden MK comb made by Bill Romel and I cant detect any difference in sound when using either that or an aluminum comb.

[SlideMeister]

There ya go!

[SlideMeister]

It's no big deal to take two of any brand of Chromatic exact same model, out of the box, and make one sound tiny, and the other mellow, and attribute the tonal difference to sun spot activity. 

[Crawforde]

Some of us have trouble with the mellow part. 

[Mick]

Some of us have trouble with the mellow part. 

yeah mine sound equally raucous no matter the comb material 

[Edward Brock]

It's no big deal to take two of any brand of Chromatic exact same model, out of the box, and make one sound tiny, and the other mellow, and attribute the tonal difference to sun spot activity. 

Sun Spots ?  Sure, Why not..?  That works for me.

[wolfman]

Sun spots? No,it's pull of the full moon.

Roman

[Gene D]

I earlier reported that I got my MK in 1991.  Correction.  It was 2001.

GeneD

[AngelDeVille]

As I have mentioned elsewhere, I got my MK several months ago and love the same things about it that most of you guys do.
I have been slightly puzzled at a couple of remarks about its not being so suitable for novice players ... is this a generally-held view, and if so why, please (apart from its price, which I do 'get'  ) ?

Both the MK and my recently serviced 270 seem to have a low draw note which is quite difficult to play (#3, I think) ... is this a 'normal' problem for that note/hole and is there any remedy, or does it just require a slightly different playing technique?

Thanks.
Roger

I think you should get the best instrument you can afford when learning.

There are some notes that are notoriously difficult to get a good sound, but changing the shape of your mouth and airspeed changes will correct this.  Practice, practice, practice. Soon it will be second nature.

[BillGoelz]

Agree with the above.  PPPPPP -the 6 P's, Poor Prior Practice Prevents Proper Performance.

Love the MK.  Looks feels and sounds great!  Cupping most notes makes it heavenly!!  Give it a go - how many chromes do you have now anyway?  Buy another one - you won't be disappointed!

[The Lone Harper]

I've worked on my Sirius 14-hole and it is now much louder, airtight, and more responsive than it came from the factory. Quite an impressive instrument! Even so, there is something about a well set-up MK that gives it a superior response, and it has what I can only describe as a 'hollow' sound as if playing each note into its own resonating chamber which gives much more opportunity for shaping the sound. And the Hohner reeds are so much easier to get a throat vibrato on.

[deepsouth]

Kimosabee -  Mind if I ask what work you've done to improve the Sirius 14 hole?  I'm in the process of acquainting with one... a pretty sweet experience thus far.  One thing I encounter is some resistance in the high register -  but I haven't really broken it in yet.  Ain't played much up there to limber it up.  I do have a set of Power Plugs, not yet installed.
I'm curious what you've undertaken, and what's gained, if you'll permit.

[AngelDeVille]

$700 is a mid level guitar, The MK isn't that expensive....

[Wendellfiddler]

Hesitant to drift into Suzuki stuff here - but I have several Suzis of the S and G type.  I always flatten the tops of the combs some and polish the slides.  I also smooth out the sharp edges on the reedplates.  It only takes a few minutes but makes a big difference - especially on the button end of the slide where the oblong hole (for the screw and buffer).  There can be a sharp edge on comb side where you can get a little drag.  sometimes you might see a scratch there on the comb.  If you buff that slot it eliminates the drag and makes the action a little better.  I work on them until they are "perfect" and having done it a bunch of times I can tell when that is!  Brings em' right into line!

Back to MK's.  I find it's important to get the reedplates lined up just right on the top of the comb.  Makes a huge difference in airtightness.  I used to put them on a flat surface to line them up but discovered I could actually do a better job doing it visually.  Don't know why, but it just works better based on actual results.  I also use a wee bit of vaseline/chapstick on the top of the comb - mostly to reduce the amount of chemical interaction between the aluminum comb and the backplate.  It clearly makes a difference.  I get much fewer spots on the comb.  They've improved the metallic interaction but have not eliminated it.

My nephew made some 3D printed combs for me.  I set one up but haven't spent enough time with it to get it perfect.  There's a bit of filing and polishing you have to do with those 3D prints.  I sent one to George Miklas but I don't think he's gotten around to setting it up either.  There is potential there.  The combs you get from 3D printing are softer than the milled acrylic ones - more like ABS.  And they don't crack like like the acrylic ones do.  I had an Amadeus comb crack -
 Hohner sent me a new one.  I wonder if the new Hohner Orchestral harps with acryllic combs have had that problem. Softer material seems to seal up better - but it can't be too soft.  It's a delicate balance!

Doug T

[Danny G]

I wonder if the new Hohner Orchestral harps with acryllic combs have had that problem.

I don't know but being acrylic, I strongly suspect that if they haven't yet, as time marches on they will

[Edward Brock]

$700 is a mid level guitar, The MK isn't that expensive....

That's a good way to look at things. My wife bought me a $3000 Martin.
Sure plays better than my $400 Fender.
I wonder of the New MK are better than some of the older ones.
The MK is the Only Hohner that I would consider.
Well, Maybe the 64-X too. But this is all about the MK so never mind.

[Wendellfiddler]

My understanding is that they changed the MK because the early version was inflicted with too much chemical reaction between the aluminum comb and the brass parts.  I owned one - and it was certainly true of that one.  It was a mess with pitting everywhere. You would even get an mild electrical taste if your tongue touched a mouthpiece screw! They suspended production while they made changes - for quite a while.   The newer version(s) have less tendency to reaction between the metals and they changed some of the reed/slot lengths -  and they added the cool leather case.  You can always tell an older version if it has a plastic case, of like a 270 or 280 case.  I have more than one of the newest version and it is way better than the early one in terms of metallic stability. 

I love the new ones, but there is still a small amount of brass/alum reaction. 

Doug T

[The Lone Harper]

Kimosabee -  Mind if I ask what work you've done to improve the Sirius 14 hole?  I'm in the process of acquainting with one... a pretty sweet experience thus far.  One thing I encounter is some resistance in the high register -  but I haven't really broken it in yet.  Ain't played much up there to limber it up.  I do have a set of Power Plugs, not yet installed.
I'm curious what you've undertaken, and what's gained, if you'll permit.

*Sanded the front and reed-plate sides of the comb flat, and polished the front
*Converted it so that each reed-plate and cover-plate can be removed/attached separately from each other.
*Added 3 screws at the front of the reed-plates where you would find them on the MK
*Filled in the gaps in each read chamber between the chamber wall and the ramp.
*Filled in each reed slot in the top octave to the length of the reeds hence reducing empty space.
*Polished the slide and removed rough edges.
*Some light sanding in one area of the inside of the mouthpiece so that the mouthpiece screw can be tightened without seizing up the slide.
*Embossed each reed slot
*Shortened the stiffener on each valve to reduce their resistance to movement
*Replaced the Suzuki cover-plates with MK cover-plates

These modifications have certainly worked for me, but YMMV. This was done on a Sirius 56-s. I have another brand new Sirius 56-s with no modifications and to me the difference in playability between the 2 is obvious.

As pleased as I am with my modified Sirius, my brass-combed and heavily worked-on MK has qualities that the Sirius doesn't and certainly holds its own.

[deepsouth]

Thanks, masked man and Doug T for instructive information.

[HUGO]

Greeting to my fellow SlideMeister Forum subscribers and Meisterklasse fans.

INTRO
 My name is Alejo and I am the recent proud, owner of a used Meisterklasse (M.K.) which I successfully sniped ($230) late last night.

HISTORY
 Let me first say that: I'm a newbie to this forum with little experience with forums in general. I posted my introduction when I joined S.M. a couple of weeks ago.

 As a semipro musician who simultaneously plays a rack mounted harmonica and classical guitar or, ukulele, I require a very responsive, extended range model for melody playing that can sound good without the benefit of the hand's flesh on hand effects or, the cupped, tight mic sound.
 

CHROMATIC CHOICES
 With partiality towards German engineered Chromatics, I recently began accumulating some Hohner 16 holers from online classifieds, I noticed that for the most part: you get what you pay for. As I found the Super 64 a step up from the 64 Chromonica, it in turn was eclipsed by the Super 64 X. I could only surmise that the M.K. would be the next logical step up in quality. Posts in this club seemed to confirm the M.K.'s high quality unanimously. I also based my M.K. purchase decision on the fact that the M.K. 10 hole diatonic I once owned was my favorite from all those in it's Klasse.

M.K. LESSONS LEARNED FROM S.M. FORUM & KEN LIEBOFF'S VIDEOS
Be on the lookout for powder from the negative reaction of the dissimilar metals (I find it hard to imagine that such an obvious flaw got past engineering and QC on this high end model)
A coating of Vaseline may help to prevent this dissimilar metal reaction and also as a side benefit, help seal it.
It has a short stroke slide which can be noisy.
The newer models are preferred. They come in a leather case and can be distinguished from earlier models which come in the more common plastic case.
They generally play evenly well across their range.
Their volume output isn't very strong
There aren't any aftermarket combs currently available

IN CLOSING
 I welcome any advice I can obtain from fellow S.M. Forum users regarding the M.K. or, to answer any questions about my own instrument choices.
 When I re-entered the Chromatic World, my online searches often led to S.M. There, I always found the forum very informative, focused and fun. So much so that I had a desire to join it. From that perspective I hope you all know how important you are in the roles that you play in assisting those Chromatic Players out there who are desperately seeking a good knowledge base for making important decisions regarding an obscure instrument, in a “You blow it, you buy it” world.
 Kudos ladies and gentlemen of this SlideMeister forum and Mr. Fedor for the excellent job you do. It's my hope that in the future I might also join you by making a meaningful contribution of my own.

- Alejo

[SlideMeister]

Just thought I'd dig this thread out of moth balls and sticky the thing. Lotta good posts in here.
@ge ><((((º>

[frankyb]

Just thought I'd dig this thread out of moth balls and sticky the thing. Lotta good posts in here.
@ge ><((((º>

Thanks Age.  Good reading.  Maybe there are enough of us now with a MeisterKlasse to keep it going.

[SlideMeister]

Yeah, it was buried from back in May of 2017, and since the MK has been the air lately, it gave me a chance to sticky the topic along some other stuff I'm not more interested in.

Now that it's "stickied" at least I know it won't get buried again

[Swaggerton]

Speaking of "stickied", I had a strange thing happen with my new Meisterklasse: the 4 draw (A) windsaver was sticking on me. Not every time, but occasionally in the middle of a tune. I've never had a draw reed windsaver stick before. However, I did play it for over an hour a day pretty much everyday since the beginning of January. It started over the weekend so I opened it up yesterday and cleaned it and everything seems good now. No biggie, just unexpected. 

[Aluvsupreme]

Mine has been trouble free. I love the mouthpiece!  Let's keep this one going.

[frankyb]

Mine has been trouble free. I love the mouthpiece!  Let's keep this one going.

When I first got my MeisterKlasse , a little over a month ago, I found that I had to get use to the mouthpiece.  Probably, due to the squarish holes and the fact that they are a little closer together than the holes on my Seydels. Now I prefer
the MeisterKlasse mouthpiece. 

[SlideMeister]

Speaking of "stickied", I had a strange thing happen with my new Meisterklasse: the 4 draw (A) windsaver was sticking on me. Not every time, but occasionally in the middle of a tune. I've never had a draw reed windsaver stick before. However, I did play it for over an hour a day pretty much everyday since the beginning of January. It started over the weekend so I opened it up yesterday and cleaned it and everything seems good now. No biggie, just unexpected. 

Very uncommon problem (especially I would think on a MeisterKlasse ) It's either a genuinely faulty/bad wind saver OR one that somehow managed to get dirtied with a foreign substance that caused it stick. I suppose you could try tossing the whole thing in warm, soapy water, as many seem to suggest, but I've always had my reservations about stuff like that and just took the thing apart (to bits, as they say) if it were giving a ration of guff. Once apart, all mysteries should be quickly solved. I'm sure there's nothing wrong that a new wind saver wouldn't fix.

@ge ><((((º>