Hohner 595BL Blue Midnight Harmonica Key of C

Comments about Hohner 595BL Blue Midnight Harmonica:

Sounds identical pretty much to a Blues Harp. It does have a plastic blue comb that looks awesome. I have several Blues Harps and Pro Harps, I won't buy anymore because I like the Blue Midnight over both of them. The Blue MIdnight plays really well and is part of the MS series, so it's easy to replace the reed plates when they are dead. I've bought 3 and each one has been quality. I recommend this to anyone.

Comments about Hohner 595BL Blue Midnight Harmonica:

I bought this for the supposedly different sound. I cannot tell the difference from many other blues harps. It is however an awesome harp. It has a nice feel and weight to it and I am buying more of these to replace my older harps.

Comments about Hohner 595BL Blue Midnight Harmonica:

Easily the best value harp for the discerning blues player. Robust and well-rounded tone. Not quite as air tight as the marine band, but with equal response and for half the price there's no doubt it's worth every penny. It needs a little breaking in to really reach full bending capability (or so was the case with mine), but the highs on this thing are impeccable. Quite the head turner and it can take a good beating too. Man's best friend and yet another quality Hohner product.

Comments about Hohner 595BL Blue Midnight Harmonica:

great instrument for beginners or pros. love it.

Comments about Hohner 595BL Blue Midnight Harmonica:

Don't expect to get a playable harmonica straight out of the box. I bought Blue Midnight harmonicas in the keys of G A C D and E. They all needed serious gapping adjustments. Only the E harmonica was gapped in an acceptable way, but it was obviously made in a different plant as many of its details did not match the others. My biggest disappointment with the Blue Midnight was seeing that the reed plates were held on by only two screw. By contrast my Special 20's have 5 screws and my Golden Melody harmonicas have 6 screws. I guess Hohner figured they would save half of a penny and make the cover screws on the Blue Midnight do double duty (hold the covers while also making up for the missing reed plate screws). It's very difficult to adjust the gaping while there's massive air leaks that occur when the cover screws are not in place holding down the ends of the reed plates. What a stupid design! I decided to add more screws but was met with my second disappointment. The comb is completely hollow so, other than an existing screw hole in front, there's not enough comb mass support addition screws.

On the plus side, the reeds are slightly larger and the harmonica feels good against the lips. The sound is full, somewhat gritty, but also has a sweetness to it. In a strange way, maybe the cheap hollow comb and lack of screws contribute to its nice sound. If you have the ability and time to fuss around with its shortcomings, the Blue Midnight will ultimately be one you can enjoy. If you expect a harmonica playable out of the box, don't buy it. As a side note, my set of Golden Melody harmonicas have required extensive gapping adjustments and their protruding reed plates feel horrible against the lips. The Special 20's would be a better choice to buy.

Comments about Hohner 595BL Blue Midnight Harmonica:

I bought the G,A,C pack a few years ago at Guitar Center Hollywood. They were on sale for $29 per harp, about $80 for the 3-pack. While they are a tad leaky (like all MS-Series harps) I've been playing Blues harmonica for 40 years, so I can make even cheapish harps sound good. What I love about the Blue Midnight harps is Hohner's mysterious "Chicago Tuning" "From the vaults. What this actually IS, is the classic "Just Intonation" tuning or "JI." This is the same tuning used by Marine Bands and Special 20s before about 1985. This tuning is set up to accentuate chords and octaves rather than single note melodies. If you want to play beatifully-tuned melodies, get a set of Golden Melodys. But if you want your chords, double-stops, warbles, and octaves to sound like an organ or a Mississippi Saxophone, especially through a bullet mic and an amp, try the Blue Midnight harp. Playing octave runs in third-position, I can make it sound like a Chromonica or a Tex-Mex or Zydeco accordion.

Comments about Hohner 595BL Blue Midnight Harmonica:

All harmonicas, including The Blue Mightnights, require reed adjustments and that's simply a matter of making the gap bigger or smaller. Both blow and draw reeds need to be adjusted together. My biggest complaint about the Blue Midnights is that the reed plates, with the covers removed, are held on by two closely spaced screws. The cover screws act as additional plate clamping but this is an extremely poor design. For example, you can't easily adjust the reeds when you have massive air leakage caused by the lack of screws holding down the plates. Otherwise the Blue Midnights are very nice with have a wonderful tone.

Comments about Hohner 595BL Blue Midnight Harmonica:

Don't expect to get a playable harmonica straight out of the box. I bought Blue Midnight harmonicas in the keys of G A C D and E. They all needed serious gapping adjustments. Only the E harmonica was gapped in an acceptable way, but it was obviously made in a different plant as many of its details did not match the others. My biggest disappointment with the Blue Midnight was seeing that the reed plates were held on by only two screw. By contrast my Special 20's have 5 screws and my Golden Melody harmonicas have 6 screws. I guess Hohner figured they would save half of a penny and make the cover screws on the Blue Midnight do double duty (hold the covers while also making up for the missing reed plate screws). It's very difficult to adjust the gaping while there's massive air leaks that occur when the cover screws are not in place holding down the ends of the reed plates. What a stupid design! I decided to add more screws but was met with my second disappointment. The comb is completely hollow so, other than an existing screw hole in front, there's not enough comb mass support addition screws.

On the plus side, the reeds are slightly larger and the harmonica feels good against the lips. The sound is full, somewhat gritty, but also has a sweetness to it. In a strange way, maybe the cheap hollow comb and lack of screws contribute to its nice sound. If you have the ability and time to fuss around with its shortcomings, the Blue Midnight will ultimately be one you can enjoy. If you expect a harmonica playable out of the box, don't buy it. As a side note, my set of Golden Melody harmonicas have required extensive gapping adjustments and their protruding reed plates feel horrible against the lips. The Special 20's would be a better choice to buy.

Comments about Hohner 595BL Blue Midnight Harmonica:

I just bought the c and d keys for replacement and they are jUst as good as my blues harp but for half the price. I will be buying more of these. I recommend these to anyone. Buy one and you want be dissapointed