Best Harmonica Microphone?

This is a harmonica microphone shootout between the Bulletini from Blows Me Away Productions, my vintage Astatic J-45, and a Hohner Harp Blaster HB-52.
If you wanna pick up a Bulletini, you either need to talk to Greg Heumann - scroll to the bottom of this page: www.blowsmeaway...
OR you can pick one up from Rockin' Ron's: rockinronsmusi...
You can order the Hohner Harp Blaster HB-52 from any music retailer such as Sweetwater.com
www.sweetwater...
Which harmonica microphone do YOU think sounds the best, or is there one that's better that needs to be included here?
Drop a comment below...

[@Jim-ro5sl]

I've been collecting harmonica mikes for about forty years. I have just about everything you can imagine. I bought a bulletini about four years ago. Absolutely my favorite microphone. I bought two more just in case they ever went out of business. If you buy one you won't regret it.

[@Froggyh63]

I switched to a Bulletini about 3 years ago, never regretted it. Awesome mic!

[@Harmonicacom]

Agreed. fantastic mic.

[@Jonathan-L]

For anyone on a budget, the Superlux D112 (Ebay, Aliexpress, various music stores, etc) costs about $45USD new is actually pretty good for what it is, and handy to have as a backup mic. I've got a Bulletini which sounds good, but the compact size makes it easy to put in my pocket when I go into a GUITAR store to test amps (that are NOT made for harmonica). I should do some comparisons between my Bulletini, Superlux, JT30 (re-issue, purchased in 1988) and a Shure Green Bullet. My Bulletini cost a lot due to exchange rate, delivery fee and tax, but the price is soon forgotten once you become accustomed to using it, so it's my #1 go-to mic. You really have to be prepared to apply a good playing technique and the Bulletini will reward you. If you're not a good player, you won't sound good on ANY mic, so concentrate on playing technique. Good technique matters, because it brings out the best from a mic AND the amp. The Bulletini is rugged and if you look after it, then it should last for a long time.

[@rexdiamond]

One thing I love about the bulletini is it's ability to play clean as well as raunchy. When put through a clean channel the sound is full and rich.

[@Harmonicacom]

Right on Rex

[@MrRezillo]

Thanks for that info; I wasn't sure.

[@ericallen9415]

Some FANTASTIC playing, Sir! And the mics do have their own characteristics, making for some extra nuances in your playing. Now I just have to get my harmonica playing up to snuff before I invest in a specialized mic!

[@Harmonicacom]

I now use a Jason Ricci signature mic - also worth checking out.

[@ericallen9415]

@@Harmonicacom I bough a Green Bullet about 20 years ago, just to have it for the studio -- certainly not for my own playing! Haha! Sounds really nice through my Fender Quad Reverb (the only amp really accessible to me at the time). But yeah, really hard to hold onto, due to its bulkiness. And I never knew of any other harp mic back in the day, since I am not a real harmonica player.

[@kennethskaggs2832]

I been playing for a day or two and as many Microphones that I have had, the Bulletini hands down is the best damn Harp Mic I have ever played. I have a HB52 EV 630 and the old standby JT-30. if you are a Harp Player and do not own a Bulletini.....You are as Wrong as they get ! Thank you for the Review !

[@Harmonicacom]

LOL. Right on Kenneth! Yet another happy Bulletini owner I see...

[@mikemyles4916]

All sound great, but the Astatic J-45 really stands out from the other two. Not as harsh as either of the modern mics. Rounder and more pleasing tone. Setup could probably be tweaked to smooth out the Bulletini and HB-52 a little. However, in the video to treble setting looks to be much higher with the Bulletini vs Astatic J-45 (treble at 8 vs 2.5 - about 180 deg turn of the knob). So, that accounts for a significant of the tonal difference between each. In the Bulletini HB-52 comparison the bass, middle, and treble are all maxed out on the amp, so the results is an apples to apples mic tone difference without amp tone stack factored in.

[@Harmonicacom]

Yeah I guess you're right. I was trying to see if I could get them to sound similar. HB-52 has less gain and the Bulletini is super-dark. My go-to mic now is the Jason Ricci signature from Lone Wolf.

[@mikemyles4916]

@@Harmonicacom I just picked up a Bulletini this week. The tone is quite dark, but not muddy. It has the right frequencies for a fat driven harp tone. Able to get lots of volume without feedback or cutting all the treble from the signal. I have a modded EV-664 (with original capsule) and modern Green Bullet as well. I've had the Green Bullet the longest, but I find it pretty tough to work with because it has such a spike in the upper mids that just want to feedback at giggable volumes. So long I felt like I was struggling to find the right amp but now I realize the real issue for me was the mic. The EV-664 is brighter than the Bulletini and not as hot but still very usable with the treble cut a little more. The EV-664 has a much more full and balanced range than the Green Bullet. I've met some players that use the Jason Ricci signature but haven't tried one myself. They sound great live.

[@MrRezillo]

Thanks for the vid. I do have somewhat smaller hands and always found the bullet mics unweildy. Most harp players seem to like a lot distortaion a la Little Walter. I prefer playing clean line runs with as little distortion as possible. It's just a matter of prefernce. I will check out the Bulletini, though.

[@Harmonicacom]

You might like the Heumann's 58, which is on the same website as the Bulletini (Blows Me Away Productions.) It's cleaner than the Bulletini.

[@MrRezillo]

@@Harmonicacom Okay, thanks for the tip. I'm a jazz trumpet player; blues harp is my second instrument (and gets more applause!). I'll check out the Heumann's 58.

[@robb8773]

Regarding size, how would the Builetini compare to the Hohner HB52 Harp Blaster, same diameter or which one is smaller?

[@Harmonicacom]

Bulletini is slightly smaller.

[@pinakidey7172]

Excellent sharing. Love from India♥️. Is it available in Amazon 🤔

[@Harmonicacom]

You can get the Bulletini from Rockin' Rons or directly from Greg Heumann. I put links in the description. 👌🏼

[@czarcastic1458]

What's the elements?

[@larbueno]

I am getting back into harp playing more seriously than any time in my 60 years of playing. A few years ago I bought the Shure Green Bullet mic. It sure does sound nice using a distorted guitar setting on a little Vox amp. How come no one is talking about the venerable Green Bullet?

[@Harmonicacom]

Hey Larry - I always found the green bullets a bit shrill, and more importantly had trouble with them producing unwanted feedback (high shrill pitches.) But if you're getting a good result, then ROCK ON my brother!! 🤘🏼

[@larbueno]

@@Harmonicacom Wow! Thanks for replying! You're great!!! I admit, I do deal with the feedback a bit. Wonder if I tried one of the others if I'd be surprised by how much better they are. I heard a few years back that the vintage Green Bullets sounded much nicer.

[@keefmeister77]

​@@larbueno Shure/Hohner changed the element (the inside part that is the microphone) when they started making the 520DX in 1997; the new ones sound very different from the older ones (which didn't have the feedback issues).

[@goldenteledy2002]

I have a question. What about if I want to play clean amplified harp compared to the dirty bullet mic sound? I want to play country as well as blues and I want to sing into the mic as well as free body movement. Many people forget about the free body movement part and have said go for a stand and don't cup the mic, but Terry McMillan (the harmonica player I try to be like the most) almost never uses a stand when he plays. Greg Heumann of BMAPro has recommended me the Ultimate 58 and I would like to see a review of that for diatonic playing as most of the reviews are for chromatic.

[@elmerseiscientos]

SM57

[@goldenteledy2002]

@@elmerseiscientos I actually own one. It's very slippery when holding it with a harmonica.

[@Harmonicacom]

Yeah, I think the ultimate 58 is a great option. Roly Platt used one on his Inside Out album. Just bear in mind that if you go through an amp it's always gonna be slightly dirty compared to just going through the PA which will give you the cleanest tone.

[@goldenteledy2002]

@@Harmonicacom I own a Fender Champion 20, which is a starter guitar amp. What I do to get a clean sound is to have the gain and bass low, the treble high, and in the Tweed setting so I could replicate the PA speakers decently well. And if I wanted to play blues like Junior Wells, I could either keep the same settings or just turn down the treble so that my tone sounds warm and mellow.

[@nodemever3291]

​@@goldenteledy2002spray it with wrinkle finish automotive paint If you can find the two part or the epoxy paint and give it a couple of days to harden it should last forever Just spray the shaft and keep the mesh head clear of spray

[@terryhoffman8049]

Really ought to check out an Audix Fireball. Great sounding harp mic.

[@Harmonicacom]

Just was thinking the same thing after seeing Moses Concas play one!

[@JoeLarge]

Bulletini sounds little clearer

[@Harmonicacom]

Right on Joe. 🤙🏼

[@raymondallanwing]

I use the Hohner Harp Blaster on a wireless connector has I play on a lot of pubs and leads get damaged a lot plus not got the drummer right on top of me 🤣. The Bulletini great sound not keen on it connections when on a belt pack can't just put it down when not using it.

[@Harmonicacom]

Hey Raymond - yeah man the Hohner really is a good little mic. But you could use a guitar-style wireless unit on the Bulletini and you wouldn't have to have any wire on it (if you have the switchcraft quarter-inch female attachment on it like I have on mine.)

[@artwhat..]

Luke..nice that bull would be the way to go, thanks for the review..I need one,ha..

[@Harmonicacom]

Right on. So you like the bulletini best?

[@artwhat..]

@@Harmonicacom not much of a sound critic(I could be,ha) but black is cool and small,I would think would be easier to hold..

[@barkeater9606]

What amp do you use when you play live?

[@Harmonicacom]

In a loud situation I've used my 1972 20W Marshall PA head into a 1972 Marshall cab with 2x12" speakers in it. But I've used that black heart with the crate cab that I'm using in the video (and put a mic in front of it). It doesn't quite cut thru when the band gets too loud though. I'm actually thinking about picking up a lil Hohner amp and running stereo for my next gig. All that to say, I don't have a really killer dedicated harmonica amp right now, nor a budget to acquire one in the near future.

[@SKILLS2KILLS_QC]

@@Harmonicacom are there really harmonica's amp out there if so i want one you should try to make a vid about them with à musiciens or music shop that has one or more of them id like to get info on that ive been playing for 20yrs now and it is my main instrument im 26 and i like harmonica better then any other instruments i had and i had drums bass guitars piano accordeon organ i even had a violon but next thing i want is a banjo i played with mixing software a bit and im at the point where i need à good harmonica reccording set up and playing set up too to Jam with the local bands

[@bedirhannkose4346]

mate. please answer me.. i want harmonica pleaseeeennnnn 🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂

[@Harmonicacom]

what's good?

[@misterharmonica]

nice

[@Harmonicacom]

Glad it was helpful.

[@hypnosiscenternyc]

Bullitini

[@JoeBananas77]

$10 for harp, $200 for a mic? Nahh 🤷‍♂️

[@Harmonicacom]

Ha! Nice.

[@charleshopkins87]

where can you find a decent harp for $10 please tell me

[@Myrobik]

If you are going to do the demo hire someone who can really play, this is same old same old . A blues player of 21C use all keys all OBs all OD's. This is just a poor impression of nothing second pos rubbish sounds terrible.

[@Harmonicacom]

Don't sugar coat it now. Tell me how you feel. 🤣 Thanks for watching! 😎🙌🏼🎶

[@tacobruisedays]

@@Harmonicacom you should definitely write a blues song using this dudes comment. he's feeling really blue these days.

[@hypnosiscenternyc]

Bullitini

[@Harmonicacom]

Great mic. Very dark. These days I'm loving the Jason Ricci signature mic.