What tuning is this?

[Chromatonic]

I should probably just phone or email gnarly he man, but then again, I’m probably doing no harm to post the question here...

I remember discussing with someone (gnarly?) an alternate tuning to solo that has the same breathing pattern all the way up the octave. What’s that called? I’d like to see if there’s some discussion of that tuning here on SlideMeister that I could read.

Oh, my perspective - I’m a non reading ear player, I guess barely intermediate with that other harumpka, and barely a beginner on a button chromatic. I dream of actually learning how to play a chromatic instrument but so far have lacked anything resembling discipline in my so-called practice. Thus...

[John Broecker]

Hello, Chromatonic.

On the "spiral", "circular" or "zirkular" harp (all the same harp, with different names),the breath pattern
is the same from lowest pitched reed to highest (no reversals of breath pattern):

( + ) = exhale;  ( - ) = inhale;  ( | ) = hole divider

     1        2       3       4       5       6       7       8        9      10
||+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  ||    (on a 10-mouthpiece-holes harmonica)

     1        2       3       4       5       6       7       8        9      10     11     12
||+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  |+  -  ||  (a 12-mouthpiece-holes harmonica)

The circular reed placement system may be the one that you are discussing. The 12-hole slide chromatic circular
has no redundant (repeated) notes between octaves. As a result, the scale pattern is reversed between octaves:

In the following chart, the LARGE letters are exhale notes; the small letters are inhale notes:

This is the setup on my Seydel Chromatic Deluxe Baritone Circular harp, range C3 to E6:

||DO re |MI fa |SO la |TI do |RE mi |FA so |LA ti |DO re |MI fa |SO la |TI do |RE mi||

Robert "Crazy about Circular" Coble's setup starts on "SO" of the scale (G3-B6). Both of these 12-hole harps are
slide chromatic harps.

Circular harmonicas are single-reed per note harmonicas. They offer many more chords than a standard 10-or 12-
hole Richter system or solo system harmonica. Diatonic scale root chords through 11ths are playable, on each scale
degree. With tongue blocking, more chords are added. Bending and possibly overblowing techniques are available.

Circular harps are usually diatonic harmonicas (one factory-installed major scale); but a few of us have slide chromatic
harps with circular reed placement (2 factory-installed diatonic scales, a 1/2 step apart, like other slide chromatics).
The circular slide chromatics are special order harmonicas, custom-made by the Seydel company.

I'm not an employee of any harmonica manufacturer, distributor or seller.

Best Regards

John Broecker

[Chromatonic]

Thanks, John, I’ll search for those terms. 

[Winslow Yerxa]

Gnarly is also a proponent of another tuning that fits that description and is known as bebop tuning.

In standard Solo Tuning, the breath direction reverses every fourth hole, then reverts back in the following hole:
 
Blow is in caps, draw in lower case:

Cd | Ef | Ga | Cb || Cd | Ef | Ga | Cb ||, etc.

Notice that you have two Blow Cs side by side. The one one the left goes down to B (that's the every fourth I was talking about) while the one on the right goes up to D.

Bebop gets rid of the C on the left and replaces in with a Bb (B-flat):

Cd | Ef | Ga | Bb,b || Cd | Ef | Ga | Bb,b ||, etc.

So your breathing pattern doesn't change, but you've also added a note to the C major scale that wasn't there before (Bb). The resulting scale is one of a group of scales known as bebop scales, as they're used a lot in that substyle of jazz.

[streetlegal]

The tuning called 'classical' has this layout which eliminates the double draw at holes 3 and 4, with alternate breath direction all the way up the scale.

Blow - CEGBC
Draw - DFACD

My Major 7 layout does the same thing, but differs at hole 4. I always play blow B to blow C - the duplicate draw B is nice to have for the usual solo layout draw chord or double stop.

Blow - CEGBC
Draw - DFABD

[Crawforde]

There is also C-6 which replaces the first duplicate C with an A.
I like Bebop and C-6. I haven’t tried a Classical yet. 
I’ve been jumping around tunings for a bit trying to see what I like.
Experimenting is a lot of fun, and for me, was a good way to learn about music.
When you get out the soldering iron and file you have to map out the notes and also think about where they are and how they work together.  It’s been a fun education. As a bonus while experimenting you get experience with tuning reeds, breaking reeds, replacing them, and General chromatic maintenance. Some hate getting under the hood and doing maintenance, I like it and seeing how they work gives me a better appreciation for those who can really play and optimize them. 
I will settle on one tuning soon, so I can actually learn to play it.