After more than nine years of continuous development based on
feedback (no
pun
intended) from many of the world's greatest harmonica players,
I'm
happy
to announce the all-new, completely reimagined Harmonicaster electric
harmonica. A true electric instrument, with steel reeds and inductive
magnetic pickups, it has a vibrant and exciting native tone, you can
play as loudly as
you want without feedback, and it's compatible with any effects
device or pedal, greatly expanding your tonal palette. Most importantly, you can take the
harmonica to musical places where it hasn't been before. Imagine
being one of the first musicians to get to play one of Leo Fender's
electric guitars or one of Laurens Hammond's innovative new organs. I
can't imagine what you can do with the Harmonicaster any more than Leo
Fender could imagine Jimi Hendrix but I'm not imagining the fact that
you have to go back to the first bluesman who cupped his harp to a
cheesy PA mic and plugged in to find as groundbreaking technological
development for harmonica players as the Harmonicaster represents.
Working with Lace Music Products I've developed a purpose-built version of their revolutionary Alumitone pickup. At just 1/16" thick the Harmonicaster pickupt may be the thinnest pickup ever made, thin enough to slide into our harmonicas, out of your way, so you can play them just like any other harp with your favorite technique, pucker or tongue blocking, all bends and overblows included.
Before you ask, no, you can't use other brands of harmonicas. The Harmonicaster
electric harmonica is a system made up of two main components that are
designed to work together, the control & pickup housing, and our
purpose-built Harmonicaster harmonicas. Our reedplates are custom
made by Seydel specifically for the Harmonicaster system and the
coverplates on our harmonicas are designed to accommodate the pickups
and also mate to the housing, secured by small but powerful neodymium
magnets embedded in the housing and coverplates.
The two pickups (one for each reedplate) are mounted in a compact, lightweight housing that contains volume, treble, and bass controls located at your fingertips, a premium multi-contact PureTone 1/4" output jack for connecting to an amplifier, and a switch to toggle between humbucker and single coil pickup tones.
Our harmonica specific components are custom fabricated for The Electric Harmonica Company in Klingenthal, Germany, by Seydel,the oldest harmonica company in the world (established in 1847, ten years before Matthais Hohner set up shop in Trossingen), using the same durable and great sounding stainless steel reeds as they use in their Session Steel harmonicas, highly regarded by harp players around the world, along with Seydel reedplates and combs. While we think our harmonicas sound best as part of the Harmonicaster system, they're fully functional harmonicas that can be played with a cupped mic or acoustically. The coverplates are 3D printed with durable and food-safe ABS plastic, the same material used to make most plastic harmonica combs.After printing, the are sanded and polished in a ten step process to achieve a mirror smooth playing surface and then clear coated with a food-safe and durable high-gloss 2K automotive clear coat. In addition to being designed to match the Harmonicaster control housing, when playing acoustically, the open, parabolic coverplates project a rich tone.
The Harmonicaster is lightweight and compact. The
Harmonicaster system weighs just 204 grams with one of our
Harmonicaster
harmonicas.
Compare that to 348 grams for a JT30 with a Marine Band and 424
grams for a Green Bullet with a Marine Band.
While size and weight are important, the most important thing about
the Harmonicaster is how great it sounds and what you can do with it.
You can hear some samples
below.
Changing keys is simple and takes just seconds. Just remove the
harmonica from the housing and replace it with another. The pickups
slide into the harmonica and it snaps
securely into place, thanks to powerful, embedded rare earth neodymium
magnets, and you're ready to go. The basic package comes with one
Harmonicaster harmonica in the key of A (standard Richter compromised tuning), but
we'll be offering
additional
Harmonicaster harmonicas in keys
from Low F to High G. Special and custom tunings will also be available
on special order. Harmonicaster harmonica
coverplates and combs are color coded and labeled with key signatures
so you can
identify keys immediately, even on a poorly lit stage.
Speaking of colors, the Harmonicaster control housing comes standard
in black with your choice
of a black, silver, or gold colored grille. Avaiable for a slight extra
charge are dozens of premium colors as well as our Custom Shop
Metallics. You can see the color choices
here.
Price: $325 plus $15 for domestic
shipping and handling. International
shipping charges available upon
request.
Premium Colors: $25
Custom Shop Metallic Colors: $35
Additional Harmonicaster Harmonicas
(Low F to High G): $85
The Harmonicaster is now available for order. Click here to send in an order form. Once I receive your order, I'll send you an invoice via PayPal. Your Harmonicaster will be made to order and once funds are sent assembly will begin. Funds will remain in my PayPal account until your order will be shipped and at that time I'll transfer funds to my bank.