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BloThru OctaChroms - Octave Chromatic Harmonicas

Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2017 8:44 pm
by Brendan
The rich octave sound, two reeds playing together an octave apart, is one of the most appealing free-reed tonalities. It has never been available on slider chromatics before - but now it is, in two types! My unique OctaChrom and patent-pending OctaChrom Selectable give you that rich double-reed timbre and loud volume with all the sophistication of a slider chromatic. Check out the video to see and hear them ion action:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YklPHYumi0I&t=7s

More info, photos and ordering here:
http://www.brendan-power.com/harmonicas ... a-chrom-bt

Re: BloThru OctaChroms - Octave Chromatic Harmonicas

Posted: Sat Jul 01, 2017 10:05 am
by Andy G.
Wow, what a great invention. I will definitely buy one of these combs since I have a low C 270 as well as a normal one which I nearly never play, so I can use them for the Octachome.

But I'm not sure which comb to choose. While the selectabe offers more possibilities I wouder whether it might be less airtight since there are two separate parts. Is there a noticeable difference?

Andy

Re: BloThru OctaChroms - Octave Chromatic Harmonicas

Posted: Sun Jul 09, 2017 1:35 am
by donoghue
This sounds like a really great development:

Just to confirm:

At the moment this only works with Hohner 270, and for that reason only works in the key of C.

If I would like to have it in the key of D I would have to tune the upper octave one up a whole tone. The lower octave can be purchased in D (I do have that already, but am trying to figure out what to do with the upper octave.) Tuning up a whole chromatic seems a difficult task, but I guess that it could be possible to do.

Is there any timetable for doing this for other make? In particular making it for Seydel would allow almost infinite flexibility using their Configurator with custom tunings. Using the Configurator for two chromatic reedplates would be VERY expensive, but still would open up a lot of options.

Jack

Re: BloThru OctaChroms - Octave Chromatic Harmonicas

Posted: Sun Jul 09, 2017 9:56 am
by Brendan
Hi Folks, thanks for the positive feedback on the OctaChroms. To answer:

OTHER BRANDS
I have Hering and Easttop nearly ready. However both are like the 270: restricted to key of C unless you do retuning. I'm looking at Swan, as they do a high D chrom, but not sure yet if I need to design a whole new comb unit (Ugh! it takes a looong time....).

Seydel is the answer as always for real customisation options. I will definitely make it for Seydel, but need to start from scratch as their hole spacing is wider. Designing/testing for these things is time consuming; can't promise dates but I will make it a priority.

In the meantime, tuning up a chrom to D is not that big a deal if you use a rotary buffing wheel... However going hgher could add pitch issues in top holes.

AIRTIGHTNESS OF SELECTABLE VERSION
The seal between the two units is self-regulating. The rear bolts hold things together but not over-tightly, and the magnets as well, but the main thing is that you are holding the rear unit steady and pushing the front unit on to it with your mouth pressure. As long as the two faces are flat (which I make sure of), the seal is good. I also put a very thin smear of Vaseline on the interfaces for good measure, but the moisture from your breath does the same job (as a gasket).

In practice the airtightness is pretty much the same as a normal chromatic I find. The only difference is that when both units are engaged you air is passing out through two reed slots instead of one, but that's the same as when you do octaves on a normal chrom or the standard OctaChrom.

Re: BloThru OctaChroms - Octave Chromatic Harmonicas

Posted: Sun Oct 15, 2017 8:14 pm
by Andy G.
Hi, just want to give some feedback (It took a while to find the time to install the reedplates...).

Installation was easy, just the same procedure as for the power combs. I had to fine tune a couple of reeds to achieve a clear octave sound without any pulsing, but no problem with that.

The OctaChrome plays surprisingly well. It is loud and clear and easy to play! Air consumption is way lower than I expected. It is really fun to play it!

Now I'm thinking about buying another comb and installing two standard C reedplates for a tremolo tuning. Do you think this will work or is the second part of the comb optimized for low tone only and won't work with "nomal" reeds?

Regards,
Andy

Re: BloThru OctaChroms - Octave Chromatic Harmonicas

Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2017 9:38 am
by Brendan
Hi Andy, glad you got everything assembled and are enjoying the OctaChrom Selectable :-) Would love to see/hear a video of you playing it - let us know if you post one.

As for the Tremolo version: If you used two Tenor C sets of reedplates it should work fine, but I think tuning of the rear unit will be difficult if you use standard C reedplates.

Re: BloThru OctaChroms - Octave Chromatic Harmonicas

Posted: Sat Oct 28, 2017 4:56 pm
by drinhouse
When do you think the BloThru will be available for Easttop

Re: BloThru OctaChroms - Octave Chromatic Harmonicas

Posted: Sat Oct 28, 2017 9:09 pm
by Brendan
Not sure, too busy with other projects at present.