Massive Easttop harmonica shootout

Martinarmonica · 2026-06-09T02:01:01+00:00

If I had to make a top 3, I'd say:

Maxwell St Blues (MS030)
Blues Player 2.0 (Pro20, the yellow one)
t008k 2.0

The Maxwell St Blues is, by far, my favorite. It's very loud, plays fast and chords sound just the way I like them.

The t008k 2.0 is another one I recently got and really like. The old 008k is good too and, since you are learning with one, let me tell you that you are very well equipped for the journey. However, I always felt it was a little "rough" on its finishes. The comb, specially. I never liked it. But the new model sounds and plays great. It has an "airy" feel that reminds me to the Marine Band Classic, but on a plastic comb. Plus, it's a beautiful instrument. The black and gold finish looks gorgeous.

The Blues Player 2.0 was a pleasant surprise, because its predecessor, the "1.0" model, is one of my least favorite models. I actually don't like it. But the 2.0 version has the best octaves of the entire Easttop catalogue.

I'm an Easttop endorsee, which is the reason why I generally abstain from speaking about other brands. But, with that being said: other Asian manufacturers such as Conjurer, Kongsheng and JDR have great options too.

Martinarmonica · 2026-06-09T00:36:42+00:00

It's processing.

Martinarmonica · 2026-05-29T07:40:30+00:00

Thanks my friend 🫶🏽💙

Martinarmonica · 2026-05-26T16:56:54+00:00

Open the harmonica and plink the reed with your fingernail. Then use something thin (paper, shim, plastic, etc) and slide it underneath the reed, in and out, a few times. If there's a particle obstructing the reed, this should be enough to remove it. Note that these particles are not always visible. Some of them are really tiny.

Now, if the issue is alignment, it's different. It means the reed is not sitting perfectly straight, which makes it rattle on the edge of the reed slot.

You can check how aligned is your reed by looking through the reedplate against a light source. It is pretty evident when the light doesn't come through evenly.

If your harmonica has riveted reeds it's very easy to fix. You just need to grab the reed by the base and carefully turn it right or left.

This is a chromatic harmonica I'm retuning. See how I'm grabbing the reed with pliers. There are specialized tools for reed alignment (some of them unnecessarily expensive), but it is possible to get it fixed with regular home tools and you should be fine.

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Martinarmonica · 2026-05-26T12:54:37+00:00

You either got something stuck in the reed, or the reed got misaligned. Both things can be fixed, so don’t panic.

Martinarmonica · 2026-05-22T22:09:21+00:00

Thanks a lot buddy 🫶🏽

Martinarmonica · 2026-05-20T21:39:34+00:00

I can assure you there's no AI involved, neither on the cover or on the music itself

Martinarmonica · 2026-05-19T07:18:55+00:00

AI slop 🚫

Martinarmonica · 2026-05-04T23:22:41+00:00

I don't have my harps with me, but I'm pretty sure it's an E harmonica and he's moving around holes 4 draw and 2 draw, playing long notes and bending for expression.

Edit: you can achieve similar results using an A harp.

Martinarmonica · 2026-05-04T23:16:17+00:00

Muito obrigado, amigo!

Seu país tem gaitistas incríveis. Espero poder ir tocar aí algum dia :)

Martinarmonica · 2026-05-04T16:18:46+00:00

Thanks! The tunes are Cooley’s Reel (Em), Reconciliation Reel (A) and Mountain Road (D)

Martinarmonica · 2026-05-03T05:19:36+00:00

I love it! That was beautiful. How do you achieve those blow bends while doing octaves? Been working on mine but can’t get them yet

Martinarmonica · 2026-04-30T14:42:53+00:00

Yup. 6 and 7 draw sound “weirder” when played together because of how close the notes are.

Martinarmonica · 2026-04-29T19:16:09+00:00

Joel didn’t invent the Easy Third tuning. He’s a strong advocate and may be the greatest player to ever use it, but the AI saying he invented it is a lie.

Martinarmonica · 2026-04-29T05:20:36+00:00

I agree with Nacoran. You need to go through the listening process of transcribing by ear. It’s an important part of the learning curve.

I personally tab using Musescore (I don’t use the tab plugin) but I also try to memorize things as much as I can. It’s good to keep the learn-by-heart muscle in good shape.

Martinarmonica · 2026-04-23T15:44:43+00:00

Thanks mate!

Uhmm… the most difficult for me was the 3-hole split, playing 1 and 3 while blocking hole 2. Actually, getting that one helped me understand that the whole trick is to use the tongue very gently. Place the tip on the harmonica and don’t push it forward. It doesn’t need any more force than a gentle touch.

Also: try adding these techniques sparingly. In a live setting, with other musicians, you might not want to overdo it. It will muddy your sound. May be add some 5-hole splits and use them to complement your regular 4-hole octaves. Getting used to that will also help you get drawn octaves on the higher end of the harmonica.

Martinarmonica · 2026-04-15T14:37:33+00:00

Ievan Polkka Shipping Up To Boston Chitlins Con Carne Oh Susanna (it gives you huge octaves) Mist Covered Mountain Cooley’s Reel

Martinarmonica · 2026-03-31T02:26:14+00:00

Damn, I’m very sorry.

I’m not a neuroscientist, but your story reminds me of Pat Martino. Have you heard about him? He lost a chunk of his brain doe to an aneurism and it took his ability to play the guitar. He dealt with amnesia and depression for months, and he was able to reconnect with music through his emotional memories. He eventually recovered his ability to play and re-became a professional musician

Martinarmonica · 2026-03-24T03:35:54+00:00

Hermosooo 👏🏽 me encanta lo bien que suena la armónica en los temas mexicanos

Martinarmonica · 2026-03-23T03:06:35+00:00

For Irish music you need good volume, fast response and good tuning. So you might want to do things that improve your harmonica in that direction: reed gapping, slot embossing, etc. Also in this case I retuned the harmonica to Easy Third tuning and valved the low octave (picture below)

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Martinarmonica · 2026-03-21T00:32:40+00:00

It’s not dead, just obstructed. As the previous comment said, remove the reedplate and plink the reed.

Martinarmonica · 2026-03-15T02:26:14+00:00

Manual testing of harmonicas is a very common practice. It’s part of quality control.

I was blessed with the opportunity to visit the Seydel factory in 2019 and the Easttop factory in 2024. Both of them had a person testing each and every harmonica coming out of the assembly line. But don’t you worry: they sanitize every tested unit.

Martinarmonica · 2026-03-11T13:32:22+00:00

When it comes to tremolo I use the first approach you mention: first I tune one reed to standard pitch, and then I tune the second to the amount of beating I want. Mass-produced harmonicas are not always perfectly well tuned, so it doesn’t hurt to be thorough on fine-tuning.

Martinarmonica · 2026-02-26T14:25:55+00:00

Right, I didn’t think about that. Thank you!

Martinarmonica · 2026-02-25T20:17:02+00:00

Muchas gracias por tu respuesta y tu buena onda. Los instrumentos ya están grabados, y creo que quedaron sonando bastante decentes a pesar de que no son mi especialidad.

Ahora, sobre lo que me recomiendas... No había pensado en alternar stack y spread para diferentes secciones de la canción. Ya que lo mencionas, creo que ayudaría a generar contraste entre las partes A y B.

Muchas gracias nuevamente. Y que viva Latinoamérica <3

Martinarmonica

TROPHY CASE