It would be good to see how Easttop would respond to the qc problems you encountered. Maybe you could share one of your terrific videos with one of their player/reps. Plus, it would make another great video.😊
I'd be sorta curious about that too, but I've never tried to contact the company directly. I'm kinda thinking I might need to try these harps again sometime - it's been a year, and Easttop had only kinda just started with their pro line at that time. Maybe they've gotten some of the production kinks out by now. These harps had/have great potential....
A sober and fair analysis Tim! FYI Amazon/Easttop has a 30 day return policy. That should help you and themselves into favorable circumstances... You mentioned bronze reeds; I thought they were Phosphorus Bronze. ... You sound good! Keep posting. I enjoy it.
@@bobward7260 I think I said brass reeds, but you're totally correct - these are Bronze Phosphor - not sure why I had brass in mind, maybe because of the comparison to the Marine Bands.... ? Ah well, age, infirmity.... sigh.....
Great review Tim. I was hoping these would be great. With these are 70 buck with the Canadian exchange. So I thing I’ll stick with the cheaper Easttops. Btw. I saw a post in Jake Facebook page saying his account was hacked and he lost all of his TH-cam videos. Which is too bad.
Thanks - and they *could* be great, but at least based on the sampling I have, they're so wildly inconsistent... and yes, it IS a shame about Jake's account - that sucks.
Harps in Canada …quality ones cost an average of $80…I have an Eastop Forerunner chromatic and I love it . Never tried the diatonic…yet! I’ve been a marine band guy for years but I love trying new stuff. These I’m wary of now lol. Great tuning job on the F!
I tuned the G.... The F & the D are over on the desk, left for dead. If you want to try the Easttop diatonic, give the T008k a go. Great harp for the money. Not a marine band, but still....
Hi Paul - the outtro pattern was essentially cribbed from one of WIll Wilde's excellent tutorials - more double-tonguing than tongue blocking - you can find the whole thing and some other patterns here th-cam.com/video/jm3m7ls8jP0/w-d-xo.html . Will is an amazing talent. And yes - huge Easttop fan here - and I'm really hoping they get their ducks in a row on these PRO10s, 'cause the bones are outstanding.
Marine band crossover copy... Não sei até que nível eu gosto dos chineses, eles copiam as coisas na maior cara de pau, mas as veses, são boas e baratas...😅
I had the same experience with Easttop. I bought the same model twice and it was a completely different experience. Also some reeds were retuned so much that they left deep groves. Unsurprisingly, after six months of playing the reed broke at exactly that spot. Yet they offer no single reeds and no reed plates (anymore). I don't want to buy a new instrument every 6 months and then rely on luck that it works properly. It sounds all like a big scam to me. In general, production quality of harmonicas is a mixed bag. I'm not sure whether it is because of the little tolerances that you have to achieve in production or whether the companies simply don't care because they effectively have an oligopoly. But no one can tell me that flat-sanding a reed plate and comb or setting up reeds costs more than 10 dollars in production cost (at least with proper machines and technology).
Peter, I have no idea. And the PRO 10 has brass reeds, the T008k has bronze phosphor. China is a big place, and Easttop is a big operation, so they might well have multiple production centers? Dunno.
I don't really know... I haven't tried the 008L... Looks like it's a similar harp, just with the white covers and clear comb... So probably not all that different in terms of tone/playability, would be my guess....
@@Tim48103 have you tried easttop unchained? What' your take on it? It's just 5 dollars difference from the t008k... Just wanna know which is better ..
Well, I went ahead and ordered two more, they came in today. Bb and Eb, just 'cause I can't leave well enough alone. And, I gotta say, these two are perfect. So now the score is, what, A, C, Bb and Eb great. G, D and F, not great. Maaaaybe they've got their production QA/QC ironed out? Gonna wait another month or so and order a couple more, lol.
I hear you. But to clarify, only the F harp ended up just "okay" and the D harp is still a mess - I've given up on it. But the A, the G and the C are really, really good now. Anyways, like an idiot, I went and ordered two more - a Bb and an Eb in the hopes that they've gotten their ducks more strictly aligned. They haven't arrived yet. I think if the kinks get worked out of the production line(s), these would be my go-to's. So. Keeping fingers crossed (kinda like the Seinfeld bee - maybe this time, maybe this time....)
It would be good to see how Easttop would respond to the qc problems you encountered. Maybe you could share one of your terrific videos with one of their player/reps. Plus, it would make another great video.😊
I'd be sorta curious about that too, but I've never tried to contact the company directly. I'm kinda thinking I might need to try these harps again sometime - it's been a year, and Easttop had only kinda just started with their pro line at that time. Maybe they've gotten some of the production kinks out by now. These harps had/have great potential....
A sober and fair analysis Tim! FYI Amazon/Easttop has a 30 day return policy. That should help you and themselves into favorable circumstances... You mentioned bronze reeds; I thought they were Phosphorus Bronze. ... You sound good! Keep posting. I enjoy it.
@@bobward7260 I think I said brass reeds, but you're totally correct - these are Bronze Phosphor - not sure why I had brass in mind, maybe because of the comparison to the Marine Bands.... ? Ah well, age, infirmity.... sigh.....
Lovin’ your videos Tim!
Hey Pat 👋! My fellow Canadian dipper and Harmonica Player! Lol
Loving ya work Tim..it's great to see honest reviews.
Great review Tim. I was hoping these would be great. With these are 70 buck with the Canadian exchange. So I thing I’ll stick with the cheaper Easttops.
Btw. I saw a post in Jake Facebook page saying his account was hacked and he lost all of his TH-cam videos. Which is too bad.
Thanks - and they *could* be great, but at least based on the sampling I have, they're so wildly inconsistent... and yes, it IS a shame about Jake's account - that sucks.
Harps in Canada …quality ones cost an average of $80…I have an Eastop Forerunner chromatic and I love it . Never tried the diatonic…yet! I’ve been a marine band guy for years but I love trying new stuff. These I’m wary of now lol. Great tuning job on the F!
I tuned the G.... The F & the D are over on the desk, left for dead. If you want to try the Easttop diatonic, give the T008k a go. Great harp for the money. Not a marine band, but still....
I love eastop harps they are awesome 👌! On your outro were you tongue blocking the whole thing?
Hi Paul - the outtro pattern was essentially cribbed from one of WIll Wilde's excellent tutorials - more double-tonguing than tongue blocking - you can find the whole thing and some other patterns here th-cam.com/video/jm3m7ls8jP0/w-d-xo.html . Will is an amazing talent. And yes - huge Easttop fan here - and I'm really hoping they get their ducks in a row on these PRO10s, 'cause the bones are outstanding.
@@Tim48103 Thanks Tim. I appreciate it! That's a cool chug!
Marine band crossover copy... Não sei até que nível eu gosto dos chineses, eles copiam as coisas na maior cara de pau, mas as veses, são boas e baratas...😅
I had the same experience with Easttop. I bought the same model twice and it was a completely different experience. Also some reeds were retuned so much that they left deep groves. Unsurprisingly, after six months of playing the reed broke at exactly that spot. Yet they offer no single reeds and no reed plates (anymore). I don't want to buy a new instrument every 6 months and then rely on luck that it works properly. It sounds all like a big scam to me.
In general, production quality of harmonicas is a mixed bag. I'm not sure whether it is because of the little tolerances that you have to achieve in production or whether the companies simply don't care because they effectively have an oligopoly. But no one can tell me that flat-sanding a reed plate and comb or setting up reeds costs more than 10 dollars in production cost (at least with proper machines and technology).
At the price they are charging for these they need to do something about QC. This is not acceptable.
Agreed - and if/when they do, these'll be awesome harps, serious. I'll try 'em again in a year or so....
Hi Tim..does this harp have that reedy metallicy sound like the T008k?
NO. It's a sweet Marine Band-like tone. The good ones of these are stellar. But it's a crap shoot.
Tim do you think that all these phospher bronze reeds harps are all made at the same place in China ?
Peter, I have no idea. And the PRO 10 has brass reeds, the T008k has bronze phosphor. China is a big place, and Easttop is a big operation, so they might well have multiple production centers? Dunno.
Let Jake go, Tim! Let him go! ;)
thinking about marketing a series of "Free Jake!" shirts.....
@@Tim48103 that would be hilarious! Lol
Is there any difference between easttop T008k and T008L in terms of performance and durability?
I don't really know... I haven't tried the 008L... Looks like it's a similar harp, just with the white covers and clear comb... So probably not all that different in terms of tone/playability, would be my guess....
@@Tim48103 k thanks
@@Tim48103 have you tried easttop unchained? What' your take on it? It's just 5 dollars difference from the t008k... Just wanna know which is better ..
Lol I went from I'm going to get a few to ahh maybe not.
Well, I went ahead and ordered two more, they came in today. Bb and Eb, just 'cause I can't leave well enough alone. And, I gotta say, these two are perfect. So now the score is, what, A, C, Bb and Eb great. G, D and F, not great. Maaaaybe they've got their production QA/QC ironed out? Gonna wait another month or so and order a couple more, lol.
I think I'd rather pay the extra $20 than put in hours of work to make something "okay".
I hear you. But to clarify, only the F harp ended up just "okay" and the D harp is still a mess - I've given up on it. But the A, the G and the C are really, really good now. Anyways, like an idiot, I went and ordered two more - a Bb and an Eb in the hopes that they've gotten their ducks more strictly aligned. They haven't arrived yet. I think if the kinks get worked out of the production line(s), these would be my go-to's. So. Keeping fingers crossed (kinda like the Seinfeld bee - maybe this time, maybe this time....)
Those extra two harps came in today - and they're perfect.... gonna wait another month and order some more, lol....
@@Tim48103 Nice!