Chrometta 12
Hi Winslow!
I've been thinking of buying a chromatic harmonica, however, it seems that there is no big market of them in my country. What I can buy immediately is Hohner Chrometta 12. For Chromonica I'll have to wait a bit longer (probably more than a month) since they are more expensive and not available in stock ...
What's your opinion of the Chrometta? Is it worthy or to have more patience and buy the Chromonica.
Mihail
Mihail -
I have a new Chrometta 14 right now that I'll be reviewing for harmonicasessions.com in the March issue. I also have a Suzuki SCX-56, which costs about $20 more in the US, and is a much more airtight instrument, well worth the difference. The Suzuki SCX-48 is the 12-hole version. A Super Chromonica 270 (also 12 holes) is also a very good instrument, and here costs a bit more than the Suzuki SCX-48.
The Chrometta is made in China, but to Hohner specifications, and it's well made with good reeds and precision tolerances, and the one I have is in pretty good tune.
The one problem with the Chrometta design is that the slide leaks air more than I'd like. This means you need more breath to play it and that the tone isn't as strong or bright as it could be - the reeds are certainly capable of delivering lots of sound.
The reason is that the mouthpiece and the body of the Chrometta are all one piece and so you have no way to adjust the space around the slide to reduce leakage.
But you can improve airtightness on the Chrometta with a simple trick: make the slide thicker. To do this, apply adhesive tape to one surface of the slide, then cut out the air holes. Use thin, smooth tape such as the frosty-surface tape you'd use to tape paper together.
How do feel about the amount of money you would spend for the Chrometta? If it's a big expense for you and would prevent you from buying a better harp for a long time, you might be better off saving up for another harp. But if you're willing to make this your first (and not your only) chromatic, and maybe also willing to do a little taking apart on your Chrometta and experimenting with tape, then go for it.
Hi, Winslow!
Thanks for the reply! It helped me make up my mind and buy a Hohner Super Chromonica 48 :-)
It's already been dispatched.
Mihail -
I have a new Chrometta 14 right now that I'll be reviewing for harmonicasessions.com in the March issue. I also have a Suzuki SCX-56, which costs about $20 more in the US, and is a much more airtight instrument, well worth the difference. The Suzuki SCX-48 is the 12-hole version. A Super Chromonica 270 (also 12 holes) is also a very good instrument, and here costs a bit more than the Suzuki SCX-48.
The Chrometta is made in China, but to Hohner specifications, and it's well made with good reeds and precision tolerances, and the one I have is in pretty good tune.
The one problem with the Chrometta design is that the slide leaks air more than I'd like. This means you need more breath to play it and that the tone isn't as strong or bright as it could be - the reeds are certainly capable of delivering lots of sound.
The reason is that the mouthpiece and the body of the Chrometta are all one piece and so you have no way to adjust the space around the slide to reduce leakage.
But you can improve airtightness on the Chrometta with a simple trick: make the slide thicker. To do this, apply adhesive tape to one surface of the slide, then cut out the air holes. Use thin, smooth tape such as the frosty-surface tape you'd use to tape paper together.
How do feel about the amount of money you would spend for the Chrometta? If it's a big expense for you and would prevent you from buying a better harp for a long time, you might be better off saving up for another harp. But if you're willing to make this your first (and not your only) chromatic, and maybe also willing to do a little taking apart on your Chrometta and experimenting with tape, then go for it.