CX 12 fan club

[harpman54]

Okay, I'm in. I REALLY like my CX-12's. I have a Tenor C and the 'normal' C pitch in gold. Both have given me years of use without a problem. So you may count me in as a member of the CX-12 fan club, I'm seriously looking at the Jazz model also....the new mouthpiece intrigues me. Call it gear acquisition syndrome, but I'll probably have one soon. ( I hope my Super 64 doesn't read this...it'll give it a complex!)

bill

[Grizzly]

Slim, yes, it's plastic. Sorry I didn't make that clearer. It's gold plated.

Tom

[smojoe]

The gold plating is on top of copper which is stuck onto the plastic. Much the same as those little metallic toys that used to come in the gum machines and cracker-jacks. Once a piece breaks off. you can see the jagged plastic underneath. Pretty common toys back in the 50s. 

smo

[rgn39]

Lol. Somehow, Joe, I get the impression that youre not too impressed with the CX12. I read somewhere that gold plating does not hold up too well on the mouthpiece. Hows yours doing Griz? Gold on top of copper on top of plastic sounds like too many possiblities for problems. Flaking would be hard to fix, I would think.

[Grizzly]

The plating is holding up, partly because I don't play it that often, saving it for performance. But it's developed little pits somehow.

Tom

[Gene D]

I have 2 gold CX-12's that I have had for several years.  So far, no trouble with the plating on either one of them.

Regards,
Gene Dodson

[rgn39]

The reason I am asking these questions about the plating is because while I love the CX12 I notice that my lips tend to stick a bit more on it. I guess you cannot have everything. As I have mentioned I get no buildup on the plastic and I have no problems with sticking windsavers. Almost a perfect world. Almost. The only problem Im having is that my lips seem to go dry very fast and if I wet them a bit too much I start slipping and missing my holes a bit. So.... I was wondering if the gold plating was an attempt to address this problem. Do you guys get buildup on the gold plating similiar to a metal mouthpiece?

[Grizzly]

It's been awhile since I've played the Gold, but the plating doesn't seem to be any particular advantage. It's different, but both can go dry. My experience is that the Black, when wet, doesn't build up like metal can. It doesn't "scum up."

You'll eventually get a balance between too dry and too wet. Too wet is preferable; practice should take care of accuracy, while too dry can really mess you up.

If you're playing dry, try drinking some water before you play, to be hydrated.

Tom

[rgn39]

Im still looking for easy answers. Ill work on getting the right hydration. I just watched one of Brendans  videos on Youtube. That sure looks and sounds like a CX12 to me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8IyJGyvQm8&feature=related

[Gene D]

I have never had any problem with buildup on my CX-12's.  After playing each time I do go over the mouthpiece with an alcohol pad.  This has been my practice for years.

Regards,
Gene Dodson

[mikeboy]

Im still looking for easy answers. Ill work on getting the right hydration. I just watched one of Brendans  videos on Youtube. That sure looks and sounds like a CX12 to me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8IyJGyvQm8&feature=related

I think you are right rgn. It must be an earlier post.

Has anyone had any experience with painting a cx. MP or body?

Mike

[llumagsara]

The reason I am asking these questions about the plating is because while I love the CX12 I notice that my lips tend to stick a bit more on it.

helo rgn39

i notice that also, but only a little of saliva and the thing slips easy again, so i use more the tongue between lips playing a CX...

good health

Agustín

[Grizzly]

The reason I am asking these questions about the plating is because while I love the CX12 I notice that my lips tend to stick a bit more on it.

helo rgn39

i notice that also, but only a little of saliva and the thing slips easy again, so i use more the tongue between lips playing a CX...

good health

Agustín

Good argument for tongue block.

Tom

[rgn39]

[/quote]

I think you are right rgn. It must be an earlier post.

Has anyone had any experience with painting a cx. MP or body?

Mike
[/quote]

I hadnt thought about painting but I was wondering if buffing would make the mouthpiece even smoother. Im thinking about jewelers rouge type buffing on a buffing wheel.

[dddeon]

I hadnt thought about painting but I was wondering if buffing would make the mouthpiece even smoother. Im thinking about jewelers rouge type buffing on a buffing wheel.

How about a urethane-based car wax like NuFinish or Formula2000?

A little bit goes a long way, so there shouldn't be any build-up.

It works great on my 2002 Saturn, whose body panels are made of plastic, and it lasts a looong time.

I don't know about toxicity, though (I try not to kiss my car too much ).

[rgn39]

I don't know about toxicity, though (I try not to kiss my car too much ).

Don't hesitate to let your vehicle know that you love it. They say plants can feel love and I say that machines can feel it too. My truck is forty years old this year. No computers. Manual choke, transmission, brakes and steering.I intend to be buried in it. I talk to it all the time.

[mikeboy]

I think you are right rgn. It must be an earlier post.
Has anyone had any experience with painting a cx. MP or body?
Mike
[/quote]

I hadn't thought about painting but I was wondering if buffing would make the mouthpiece even smoother. I'm thinking about jewelers rouge type buffing on a buffing wheel.
[/quote]

I'm such a wet player ( still! ) that the MP isn't a problem.

I was thinking more about the body while taping off the MP. A friend and I bought some liquid truck bed liner spray
and its pretty nice stuff. It dries to a tough, scratch & chip resistant, black matte finish with plateau type texture. How much texture you have is determend by how heavy the coats are sprayed or brushed on. I would also like to hear what it might do to the tone or resonance.

  Any thoughts?

Mike

[Grizzly]

It shouldn't affect tone or resonance; but you may find the finish a little abrasive. I'd suggest trying it on something that doesn't matter, to be sure.

Tom

[dddeon]

Insert Quote
Quote from: dddeon on Yesterday at 02:36:07 PM

I don't know about toxicity, though (I try not to kiss my car too much ).


Don't hesitate to let your vehicle know that you love it. They say plants can feel love and I say that machines can feel it too. My truck is forty years old this year. No computers. Manual choke, transmission, brakes and steering.I intend to be buried in it. I talk to it all the time.

I think that I would've bonded with it more if I could actually fix it without investing in and using a diagnostic computer. I can see why you like your truck (manual choke, yeah!).

If chromatics start coming with OBD (On Board Diagnostics) or computerized performance management systems, the Luddite in me might give up on them and go exclusively "old school".

[rgn39]

Every once in awhile I get the urge to buy a new vehicle but I have this thing about driving something I do not understand and cannot fix myself. On the other hand Im all for advancements on the chromatic. I dont see it going electronic tho, but you never know.

[dddeon]

Every once in awhile I get the urge to buy a new vehicle but I have this thing about driving something I do not understand and cannot fix myself. On the other hand Im all for advancements on the chromatic. I dont see it going electronic tho, but you never know.

Rgn, they have'em. They're called MIDI harmonicas. I've heard of two different models.

[rgn39]

Griz, can you tell me something about the tenor CX? Ive been looking around the net for a note layout but the Hohner site seems to be down and all I can find is descriptions of the standard CX. Does it add some lower notes to the regular?


edit: I did finally find a note layout. The tenors seem to be one octave lower, is that right. Does this mean that I could play all the songs that I have tabs for using the same tabs? They would just be an octave lower?

[Grizzly]

The answer is yes to all your questions. It's the exact same range as a 64 for the first three octaves, plus that very handy C# and D at the top—just like a Standard, only an octave lower.

Tom

[harpman54]

Playing tab, you'd be okay. Of course you would be an octave lower, as if you began on the lower octave of a 64 for instance. They are low so it will change the entire mood of the piece, in other words if you're playing an airy upper register piece for flute or violin, it'll come off sounding more like a cello instead.

If you don't have a 64 (4 octave) chromatic though, the tenor voiced CX-12 is a good addition when you're reading a piece of music that plays into the lower registers.

bill

[rgn39]

Ok. Thanks. Changing the "mood" of the song is just what I am interested in. I am discovering that some songs just dont sound good on the harmonica, at least with my playing, and others sound much better in a lower register. If I can just pick up the tenor and do the same tabs an octave lower would be great. This will be my christmas present to myself. I do have a couple of 64s but I like the CX so much better that I seldom play them any more.

[Gnarly He Man]

As posted elsewhere, I have converted my G CX-12 to C, starts on G. This is the arrangement of tones on the bottom 12 of the 14 hole harmonicas.
I have also lowered what would have been blow 4 a whole step, the bebop tuning. It appears on holes 2, 6 and 10.
This gives me the lower tones and omits the "squeekers" on holes 11 and 12.
The top hole is the E--I have it going up to G on the button draw.
And setting the gaps is a lot easier with the CX--popping the cover off is a breeze!
Gary

[rgn39]

Is this a cure for the slide noise?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OS89n2mieQM&feature=related

[Grizzly]

What Wim is doing with his modifications doesn't seem to lessen his slide noise, at least in his demo at the beginning. The sound of playing goes a long way to mask the slide noise, at least when played acoustically. I don't usually mic, so picking up sound isn't an issue.

The modifications he's made add a measure of ergonomics to the harmonica. They're interesting innovations; but I'm reluctant to cut into the cover, not because I think it would weaken it, but for the esthetics. It also would necessitate my changing how I cup.

I have no comment on removing the spring.

Tom

[rgn39]

Your ears are a heck of a lot better than mine Griz. I cant hear the slide when he plays. Maybe I just dont recognize it for what it is.

[Grizzly]

Hi, Ron, I don't hear the slide when he plays either; just at the beginning of the demo when he's holding it up to the camera. I guess I wasn't clear on that point.

Tom