Hi there,
Can anyone recommend a good harmonica holder? I don’t even know if that’s the correct name, but I’m talking about the thing that sits on your shoulders so you can play guitar at the same time.
Any positive brand recommendations and things to look for will be helpful, equally so brands to avoid and common issues.
Many thanks,
Jeff
Seydel Gecko , I heard good things about it.
Ciao
Stefano
I don’t use them, but what you are talking about is a ‘harmonica rack’
Seydel Gecko. It’s kinda pricy but, I’ve tried tried them all. It’s a fully adjustable magnetic harp holder. They do make one more model called the sidenote, it’s lower in price but, still has some of the same features. Hope this helps.
Check out this thread - there’s info in the replies about which brands can be held by magnets. My favorite over the years has been the Seydel Sidenote, but the Gecko is also great:
If you’re wanting a dirty/amplified sound, check out this thread:
Seems to be a bit of love for them, thanks for the tip.
Definitely helps. Seydel seem to be the industry standard from what I’ve seen so far.
Thanks!
Thanks Luke. I’ll have a look at the link you sent me. I did a search before posting but didn’t see that.
Ho-lee BLEEP!
The prices on harp holders and the range available in Australia is terrible!
I’ve got a feeling I’m going to have to make my own Franken-rack to make the best of what’s available.
Juzzie Smith uses a Gecko and he is enthusiastic about it. They are a bit pricey I know, but I think you can find one in Australia.
Ciao
Stefano
Oh yeah, for sure. I haven’t given up just yet.
I know Juzzie is an Oz, but I reckon he spends a lot of time overseas as well.
Write him an email, he’ll be happy to tell you where he got his harmonica holder.
Ciao
Stefano
I’ll let you know how I go.
I play a 4-octave Tremolo harmonica and this is the only one I am happy with.
If you play dick-swinging vanilla cliché blues harp you can probably get by with a smaller contraption.
hahaha. You might raise a few eyebrows with that dick swinging comment, but not mine. I might be new to the harmonica, but I know where you’re coming from via the guitar world.
Even if I had the chops to play that type of stuff, I wouldn’t. I’m more interested in the country/folk side of things.
I take it you’re referring to the Gecko holder, which does seem to be the most popular here by a long shot.
Thanks for your response, gave me a good chuckle.
I made a harmonica holder from a boom mic stand that sets in front of the microphone. I’m a drummer and neck holders did not work for me. The holder lets me use both hands to play drums and harp, or one handed harp leads while drumming with the other hand. Move the harmonica out of the way for lead vocals.
At the moment I either bite the bullet and go for the Gecko, or grab one of the cheaper ones from my local music shop.
The Gecko costs the equivalent of 2 pretty good harps, which is a considerable outlay. I mean, I don’t actually know that I CAN play harmonica and guitar at the same time.
On the other hand, I like to get quality gear because experience has shown that cutting corners on gear will bite you on the arse. At least there’s no hurry.
Thanks for your reply
If you want my suggestion, I use the Farmer Sidenote for my harmonica rack which is essentially the same as the Gecko model they made in collaboration with Seydel, but more budget friendly. I’m definitely not skilled at playing two instruments at the same time (I also play a bit of guitar and have extremely basic piano skills), but I always enjoy having fun while doing it.
Thanks mate!
I think the Sidenote looks better, too.
The Farmer models seem to be far ahead of the others, from what I have found so far.