Hi Luke @Luke
These only difference that I know (beyond the price difference) is the material used in the comb and the resulting hole/divider forms (1847 CLASSIC = wood [maple] comb with slightly rounded dividers between the holes & the divider bulges outwards just a tiny bit; the 1847 NOBLE has a milled aluminum (aluminium) comb that is anodized in black, the dividers are not rounded and do not seem to bulge outwards - as far as I can tell). Otherwise they both have higher space between the reeds/reed plates and the covers (to avoid clicking sounds when drawing strongly where the reeds could possibly hit the covers), and they also both come with valves for at least the draw holes 1-6 (not sure about the blow holes 7-10) to improve air-flow efficiency and also to permit blow bending on holes 1-6.
Since I have never played any of the 1847 NOBLE models I cannot say how much difference in tonal quality the metal comb makes compared to the 1847 CLASSIC wood comb.
I personally like the rounded holes and slight bulging of the dividers that you get with the wood comb of the CLASSIC (and also the polished stainless steel comb of the 1847 LIGHTNING) – but some people complain about exactly these design elements. So it appears to be another of those personal preference features!
Regards,
– Slim 