Christmas is coming and my family wants ideas. I have a few harps… couple of Golden Melodies, two crossovers, special 20, etc. A chromatic isn’t at the top of my list, but I’d like to try one. What do you recommend and why?
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Hello @DukeSilver, yes Christmas is coming… 
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I also recommend the Easttop T10-40 in C to start with. It has a good price, fits well in the hands and on the mouth, and the latch is easy to use without making any noise (with a little practice). Despite the repair, I was not satisfied with the Chromatic Seydel Chromatica 270/48 C-Deluxe and returned it. It is called a bestseller, but I found the valves to be too bad. You can get the Easttop almost everywhere at a fair price. I also find them visually very beautiful.
Regards from Astrid 
. Ho, ho, ho 
Hey @DukeSilver my chromatic brand recommendations are here:
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Astrid and/or Luke - I’m now an intermediate diatonic harp player. How difficult would it be for me to learn chromatic (I have an Eastop T10-40). Any videos you’d recommend?
Thanks and season’s greetings.
Robert 
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Hello @robertchartrand2104,
Congratulations on your Easttop T10-40! You have made a good choice.
I occasionally play the same harp and found switching to the diatonic harp easy. Of course you shouldn’t play blues with it, that means there are genres where the chromatic is suitable and others where you should stick with the diatonic.
If you type “chromatic harp tabs” into the search bar on YouTube, there will always be hits for songs. Otherwise, it’s YOUR hard work to find out!
I wish you and everyone a nice Christmas holiday.
Best Regards from Astrid
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@robertchartrand2104,
I forgot something very important.
What counts for the diatonic harp is even more important for the chromatic harp:
Always start slowly and warm the harp to hand warmth first!
Never play the harp when it is cold!
Ensure good ventilation with the holes facing downwards after play.
If the slider no longer works easily, put a few drops of water on the outer part of the slider, then move the slider back and forth several times.
NEVER use oil! Stay away from the reeds, it’s not a diatonic harp!
If you follow this, you will enjoy your harp for a long time.
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@robertchartrand2104 sorry I’m not a chromatic guy. If you’re wanting to learn Blues stuff on chromatic, David Barrett has some lessons devoted to chromatic. If jazz stuff, maybe check out Flip Jars website?
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A belated thanks to Astrid and Luc for your fabulous advice,
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Robertchartrand2104 I know it’s some time since your original post but I’m relatively new to the forum and I pretty well always play chromatic. You’ve been given some good advice but don’t ignore your chromatic for blues, it can give a new twist to blues and the T10/40 is, I believe a non-valve so you can bend notes if you really want to. I now almost exclusively play EAST:TOP instruments but like some others I to have noticed a taste/smell to some EAST:TOP combs. If it’s a problem remove the cover plates and lightly smear toothpaste in the inner surface, your harp will then taste of peppermint. Jay1
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As somebody who just got their first chromatic harmonica as a diatonic player, I highly recommend that you go for something from Kongsheng. I was recently gift a Kongsheng Lyra 12-hole chromatic from a friend of mine and it’s been a blast getting to play it. However when it comes to budget chromatics with valves, I recommend the Kongsheng x Boogieman KB-12. The KB-12 is priced at $70USD and the Lyra costs $167. So the KB-12 is more friendly on the pocketbook compared to the Lyra, but I never tried one so I can’t compare the playability of each model.
The Lyra that I own plays as smooth as butter. It may take a while to get used to the layout of a chromatic, but it’s very fun to play. I won’t abandon the diatonic, but learning the chromatic is pretty cool. Not just for 3rd position blues, but for jazz and pop too. I’m currently learning “Fly Me To The Moon” on chromatic and it’s a genuinely fun piece to play on it compared to the diatonic in 1st position with bends or 2nd position with overblows. I haven’t tried a country tuned diatonic yet, but I hope to get one in the future.
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