Hering harmonicas

[Joe Piccirilli]

Who in our group sells Hering harmonicas.I am looking for two sets of tenor tune reed plates so I can build a Infande design mussette.Reed plates only.

[Danny G]

I talked briefly with the Hering rep at NAMM and unless something happened after our conversation,I don't think there are any Hering dealers in the US

[smojoe]

Which begs the question: IF there are no Hering dealers in the U.S., what would be the point of being at the NAMM in the first place? Where is this not like weatherstripping windows and placing dux-seal around all the openings and cracks in the house while the front and rear doors sit open to the harsh elements?

smo-joe

[Danny G]

Ralph Waldo said something to the effect of If you you have something that's better than anyone else , the world will lead a path to your door.  So it only makes sense that if what you have is very poor quality, you don't back it up or at least try to make it right, the world turns around and lets grass grow on your path. Hering came to NAMM to find a US distributor.

[smojoe]

Hmm, well I have heard a lot of conflicting reports (from my spies). Word on the street was that several people tried to be distributors but did not do the warranty work. And wound up with a back store room full of broken chromatics. IOW they would send out a replacement chromo and never fix the faulty one.
Then they either wouldn't pay Hering OR Hering wouldn't back up their product? Take your pick.

I tend to believe that at least one of the distributors was at fault. And I dispute that Herings are any more prone to failure than other brands. Dom Sgro and several other 'Hard Chargers' have played them, and I don't hear a lot of complaints from them. Back in the mid 90s (when I discovered them), I moved over TO them and while I have an equal number of Hohners, I use the Herings 2/3rds of the time when playing chromo. Nothing else has the response speed and evenness. I also use spl-20s (exclusively) for all my diatomaceous stuff.

If I were a rich man (yada bee-ba bee-ba, yada bee-ba bee-ba bee-ba bum), I would alleviate their query.

smo-joe

[Danny G]

I tried being a dealer, I bought all of the stock they brought with them for a Spah convention, (which wasn't all that much) took the time and effort to put all of their products on my website. I was told that if I wanted to have a good inventory for Christmas, I should order right away. I made a big order and when the following March rolled around and I had still not received anything, not even an excuse, I decided Hering wasn't my cup of tea. About that same time I got 2 large boxes of defective Hering chromatics that Harphouse could not get replacement combs for. I do not have those parts any longer, (so don't ask) I'd rather invest in New Mexico swamp land.

[smojoe]

Ok, NOW I understand. Apparently the reason work wasn't done on the Herings is because it was Hering (themselves) who starved suppliers out of the market.
Therefore a giant bad bad on Hering. Brasil is not as far away as Asia. Nor even parts of Europe for that matter. Well, maybe to California? So I don't understand the delay in shipping. Kinda reminds me of the harmonica dealer who sold me a cajun diatomaceous accordeen, promised it by Christmas, took my money in October, and by next buckeye (April) I finally got it. AND it was the wrong color. When I have trouble with anything, I pull out the boycott card. I would have done the same thing.

smo-joe 

[Gnarly He Man]

I want to like Hering-- but I already have a job, working for Suzuki.
It was interesting to see Hering at NAMM, they had a modest booth--I didn't make it to Easttop, but did stop by Seydel, saw Ross Garren playing with his talented guitar buddy, said hello to Rupert and PT.
If Hering wants to make a showing here in the old US, they have to step up their game. They make a fine product, but the reeds break (Americans probably play too hard).

[SlideMeister]

I had three Herings; Two Charley Musselheads and a Baritono. I tend to keep harmonicas but I actually disliked these enough to get rid of all three of them. While I did like the response, I didn't like the mouth pieces or the thin, tiny sound.

[Giuliano]

Good luck with Hering...

[smojoe]

I guess Giuliano's wish rubbed off on me. (always liked that guy, lol), because I used to carry 5 chromos in my gig case for the last 10 years. All Herings. A 56/c Stan Harper (from SlideMeister John Nauta), and  15-20 year old 48s in C, Bb, G, and F. Former SlideMeister Bill Price needed and F chromo, but instead of sending him my old Hering , I sent him a newer Hohner. That's how much I like them. Are there better chromos? Probably. But it depends on what one considers as better. Plus Brasil can use the business.
 
One of the reasons I like the new Caberet (supplied by Danny G @ Newharmonica), is that it is just like my Herings in many ways. If I were a professional, I would have a brace of them in deference to a silver concerto. But then again I am the type who can take down an oak tree with a bow saw.

smo-joe

[dougharps]

I still play and enjoy playing my Herings. I no longer play quite as hard s in the past, and I have not had to repair/replace as often as I used to. That being said, the lack of support offered by Hering in the US would lead me to purchase other brands of chromatics in the future.

The Caberet definitely has my interest for that time in the future when I need a new chromatic.




Doug S.

[carlrosetti]

Get one!  I got one and its sweet!!!   Plays as good as one that costs twice or 3 times as much!!   And the case it comes in is nice!!   I have 4 Herings-1 Special 48 and 3 6164's.  One still plays very well!!  I used it last week for a program is an asst. living facility.  But my favs are my 2  Suzuki SCX64s and brass Easttop(which I haven't played yet).   Yea...I know;I know-play it.  I'm just happy to have one!!!!