Inexpensive autoharps?

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VPO
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Inexpensive autoharps?

Post by VPO » Wed Jul 17, 2019 4:48 pm

I would like to buy autoharp and I know for sure that I wouldn't propably use it that much. I don't have too much many to throw away so are these under $400-$500 autoharps with pickup good enough or are these just waste of money?

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chrisrnps
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Re: Inexpensive autoharps?

Post by chrisrnps » Wed Jul 17, 2019 9:35 pm

We’ve had good luck with any of the Oscar Schmidt offerings - I don’t play, but have bought as gifts and tuned / tested / set up. They’re pretty standard and all within your price range. If you’re not sure you wanna be the next John Denver I wouldn’t spend more.
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Re: Inexpensive autoharps?

Post by VPO » Thu Jul 18, 2019 2:16 am

Thanks for the info. My local guitar store did sell those (or it was secondhand) but they sold it before I was able to test it.

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Re: Inexpensive autoharps?

Post by fuzzjunkie » Thu Jul 18, 2019 9:35 pm

That’s something you can find at an antique shop or estate sale. They will probably need some cleaning up. I have seen several over the years in the under $100 range. Maybe cheaper at a flea market? Do they still have those?

I think I saw one in good condition at Trading Musician, a local vintage and used music shop, last time I was in there.

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Re: Inexpensive autoharps?

Post by mgeek » Sat Jul 20, 2019 12:03 am

My girlfriend has an electric one with...21 chords? It's awesome and well worth spending proper money on. oscar schmidt os45ce I think. You could certainly spend less and get a functional one, but I think that comes within the amount you said.

It goes without saying that you want one with as many chords as possible and a lot of the time with ones you find in the wild they'll have 5 chords or something like that, and a lot tend to be ruined as there's a huge amount of tension when they are strung to pitch.

Some years back we got an absolutely HUGE one via a not very good Ebay listing which had 100 chords. Zimmerman Concert Grand from the 1880s. It needed too much work in the end, so we ended up selling it to a proper nerd, but it was a thing of beauty, all incredible flame maple and adirondack spruce...

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Re: Inexpensive autoharps?

Post by VPO » Sat Jul 20, 2019 1:56 pm

mgeek wrote:
Sat Jul 20, 2019 12:03 am
My girlfriend has an electric one with...21 chords? It's awesome and well worth spending proper money on. oscar schmidt os45ce I think. You could certainly spend less and get a functional one, but I think that comes within the amount you said.
This could be perfect one for me. Thanks for advice.

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Re: Inexpensive autoharps?

Post by burpgun » Thu Jul 25, 2019 9:17 am

A couple of years ago I got a decent one off Amazon for around $300 for a gift and it seemed decent enough. I suspect it was that Oscar S. brand but I can’t really remember.

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