I agree. The Crossover is in my opinion the first reasonably priced Hohner diatonic to really impress me with its overall performance, bendability, and build quality. An all round excellent instrument.
I stumbled on the Crossover about a year ago. Blues Harps exclusively prior. I've been looking online without success for a comparison of the two. Forty+ years ago I saw Muddy Waters in front of the Allman Brothers. Blew me away. Blues fan since. Dabbled back then with a blues harp and then got busy in life. Five years ago on a whim bought a new one... or six. I've been listening and learning but no formal lessons. Have a music background and I've become good...not great... solid intermediate I'd say. I get a lot of looks in New York traffic while playing along with blues stations on Pandora in my car. I've messed with Special 20s but Blues Harps have been it until I picked up the D Crossover. I like, no, love it... I think... massively... as you say. But also wanted to hear what real players have to say about the two. Have you done or might you do a comparison...or know of any already done? PS... I knew the click bait thing was really a holiday bit. :). Thanks for your stuff.
I just bought a Hohner Crossover Marine Band in the key of D and it doesn't have that bluesy sound at all. It's literally in the key of which child harmonicas are in, all the notes are major, I don't really know how to explain it. I bought a G harmonica before that one and returned it because I thought that something was wrong with it. I tried all playing techniques and nothing changed. Are the harmonicas you bought custom tuned or something?
I recently put together a Frankenharp - A Dark Comb, Crossover plates (in Ab) and standard MB covers and it plays great, mainly due to the Crossover reeds. I'm looking to get a C next.
Tomlin Leckie Thanks a lot. I'm a big fan of yours. I generally play simple melodies on a hohner golden Melody in C. Just bought a special 20 in the key of Bb to get into blues
Tomlin, great review of this harmonica! It sounds like it plays awesome, but I always have a scruffy face. Is there another harmonica you can recommend that plays as well as this harmonica that also doesn't pull face hairs out? And as always thanks for making your videos!
Hello. I am new to your channel and to the harmonica. I have a vintage marine band hohner in c scale and was thinking of getting this crossover model but i cant decide if i want an A or E scale. Do you have any advice that might help me?
Hiya, I definitely would suggest getting the A. The E is not very common so you will struggle to find music to play on it. The A will allow you to to play Blues in the Key of E in 2nd position. Hope that helps, Tomlin
Vandaag bestelt bij schreven in nijmegen nl de crossover honer c dit is eerste keer dus ik moet dit verkennen, ik speelde eerst een c harmonica maar nu de blues harp altijd gezocht maar nu gevonden, als het binnen is ga ik spelen
Hi Tom. Can you please perform Inochi no Namae with a Hohner marine band? It's a song from the movie Spirited Away by Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. A performance and even a tutorial would be very lovely. I feel like it's a beautiful song and would love to hear a version of a raw diatonic cover of it. Please?
I cut my finger when trying to play with the expensive crossover I purchased and yesterday when I contacted Hohner to ask if it is ok to wash my harmonica as it is not wood but bamboo to my surprise I was told it will swell so why on earth should I pay for this expensive harmonica any more. I have marine band, marine band crossover , rocket and special 20 but it seems paying more does not always mean you get better product :)
Tomlin I find the biggest drawback is the price! On amazon they run from $61.01 to $89.99. I started on > $1 kiddie toys bought 1st Marine Band, about, $2.50 in 69 I believe. I was turned on to Crossovers at amazon bought at $84.99, 4 I think. Great Harps. As to are they better? That's like saying "my girl friend is better than yours!"
Marine band Thunderbird: 💪👌 (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐) Marine band Crossover: 🤌👌 (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐) Marine band Deluxe: 👍🏼👌 (⭐⭐⭐⭐) Marine band Classic: 👍🏼 (⭐⭐⭐) The Best: Crossover! The best is the Crossover since it has good quality, and the best to play what you want, the Thunderbird is the same Crossover but made for low tones
Hollo Tom, Thanks for the video, unfortunately, I do not speak English I am writing to you since I have the crossover in C and A major. I play in tongue blocking Bending very good Channel 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 Blans bending channel 10, 9, 8 very good Overblow Channel 6, 5, 4, 2, 1 very bad Bamboo cane and pelvic plate leaking Triple screwed and is not so good Playability very good very lip friendly I'm going back to the Hohner Golden Melody Overblow, Bending, Blasbending much better, tongue blocking much better What is your opinion greetings from Germany
Hello Tomlin. Thanks for the review. I have one of tjese on order in Bb. Live in the Philippines so it will be along wait. Have a question. I normally play Suzukis (Manjis, Olives, Promasters) and I'm paying about twice as much for the crossover on Amazon. Do you think its worth the extra $. Thanks again for all your great lessons.
Chris Godfrey For me the manji/promaster/olive are better craftmanship than the MBC. But my mustache dont like suzukis. But in sound and playability i would say they are equal.
All the reviews I read steer me to a better harmonica. It’s so confusing to me so I’m going to try the higher up ones and send each back that are not what I want or say they are
ARE YOU JUST MAKING IT SOUND THAT GOOD OR IS IT THAT GOOD ?! PLEASE (MAY BE MY FIRST PURCHASE) & I HAVE NO MONEY TO WASTE (AMAZON GIFT CARD TO SPEND PLEASE HELP) MOVING FROM SEATTLE TO KENTUCKY & HAND DRUM (COCOBOLO WOOD.. LOVE SOUND) TOO MUCH TO CARRY AROUND ALL THE TIME.. NEED MUSICAL RELEASE)
I have one. It is fun to play but I cannot unlock its full potential. It is a combination of player and instrument. The Crossover is a big step up from the Marine Band deluxe. It needs less air and is more responsive. A beginner might need some getting used to it. The sound will be not too good when the harmonica is played with too much pressure. If you want to treat yourself with it, go ahead. If you are on a budget, the Marine Band may be good enough.
Hey Tom if you want more hits on your site minimal talking with the voice, maximum talking with the harmonica. Tip: make a concise script of you want to say, read it over about ten times in the mirror and then shoot your video, reducing your words by two thirds.
I think Tomlin is pretty good about that already, but I like his humility. It's actually v good advice. You should say the same to Gussow - a great player, but he goes on and on and on with his talking in his videos.
