Harrison Harmonicas
Does anyone on the site use his harmonicas? Has anyone tried a B-Radical yet?
They just announced they are going out of business. The B-radical rights are getting sold off to another manufacturer...
-Taylor
I waited about 2 years to get my C harp, with another D in waiting. The only reason that I received my C harp was due to my persistance in calls and emails. Their customer service was crap however, I have to admit that the harp is a piece of artwork. Sounds and plays amazing. Almost too clean for me. Better for jazz or minor keys in my opinion.
I prefer the crossover's sound and feel in the mouth to the B-Radical but it's all subjective.pho
If you were fortunate enough to get one before they went belly up, consider yourself lucky. It's a sad thing as I was looking forward to seeing the company thrive. I don't know exactly what the problem was (ie: management style, personality differences, communication, money, etc...) but it's a shame to see it go downhill in such a short timeframe.
The company's assets have been sold and we're working on the backlog. It's going to take a while to sort things out but all the harps will be delivered.
Any idea what the chances are that we'll start seeing those harps before the end of the year?
We're not going to ship harps until quite a few harps are made. It's a slow process to make each harp, there's quite a bit that goes into a B-Radical. Including being setup and tuned by hand. To make a long story short... probably not.
And I'm very reluctant to give a estimated time when they'll ship.
Jon,
Thanks for the reply, much appreciated. I understand your hesitancy to give ets's, and avoiding doing so until things are more certain seems the better course of action at this point, particularly considering how things went down previously. As one of those waiting for harps, I appreciate the candor.
Thanks again for taking the time to reply
Loren
Jon,
I have a Bb harp, is there ANY possibility of buying a set of reeds such as Brad had originally envisioned in order to replace them if they break? I can provide serial number and pictures if needed.
-Brian
Reeds will come available for the Bb in the future. Right now we're still working on C.
Thanks for the feedback Jon, much appreciated
I got my C before they bit the dust. When I got the notice of the buyout, I sent an email to cancel the others (A, Bb, D, and G). I never received a response from that.
The instrument is so good, I wish I hadn't cancelled if the same quality will be delivered after recovery. Will the same team and quality control be retained? And how can I find out if my backorders are still good? I can't get a response from the company.
The same team is on board with the new company and there has been some improvements that will help in the playability. If you paid the full price for your harmonicas and didn't get a cancel confirmation then I think there's a good chance your order still stands. If you just paid the deposit you will be contacted and given an opportunity to purchase your order. Hope this helps.
Jon, can you tell us if everything will be done by key or by paid vs deposit orders? By that I mean, will all paid orders be filled in all keys before deposit orders are dealt with? Or, will all orders (paid in full and deposit) be filled as each key is being produced? I know you mentioned you are working on C harps now, so I am wondering if paid in full, as well as deposit only orders, are going to be filled at essentially the same time.
I really don't know the answer to that question. The best bet is to hang on the words that Brad wrote when he put out the e-mail to the public. Hopefully there will be some official info soon.
In that case I won't hold my breath, soon passed a long time ago.
Thanks for responding, I do appreciate it.
Having just played a couple of B-Rads dated 2010, the situation regarding production is all the more frustrating: They really are nice harps, at least the A and Bb I played.
Its now February 2012 and no update on the B-Radicals as yet.
With all due respect to you Jon, What gives man?
BBR: Thanks for updating this thread. I have no idea what's going on. Up to December I was talking to Brad on a regular basis. After the Holidays all communication basically stopped except for some text messages asking how I was doing. As of now I'm not doing anything with the company and I don't know what will happen in the future. I wish I had more info. I'm just moving forward with my own customseydels.com business and will be glad to help anyone with their Seydel needs. My relationship with Seydel is quite stable. Currently I'm a Authorized Seydel Sales Partner and plan on staying with Seydel.
They are a great harmonica.