Hohner32B Instructor Melodica, Black

This melodica is exactly what I wanted. It comes with two different types of mouthpieces that allow you to play it in alternate ways. My personal favorite mouthpiece is the tube that allows you to play it on your lap. The piece in the original picture is nice if you'd like to play it while standing it upright and walking around.The sound is amazing. The length of the notes and decibels obviously depend on the length and force that you blow into the mouthpiece with. If you've got some powerful lungs you could wake up your whole house with this thing or at least jam with your friends on an acoustic set.This also comes with a handy case that zips up and also features two pockets for the mouthpieces and whatever else you might want to take with you on your play session. The case is durable and I've used to to store my melodica in a storage unit and behind my acoustic guitar case without any breakage or visible wear on the case (or my melodica of course).This instrument is made out of hard plastic and seems durable all on its own. I've let some of my buddies play this things after a few drinks and as you can imagine they didn't treat it with the delicacy or poise I find myself treating it with. This has been dropped on tile and hardwood floor and there's not even a scratch on the thing. Amazing and affordable. It sounds as warm and cute as you'd expect a melodica to sound.I highly recommend this fun little instrument for anyone from children to serious musicians. This is a great gift for someone you love or even yourself. This was a great self-birthday-present to myself and I haven't regretted it.

The tuning was fine, within five cents of concert on all notes I checked.The tone is a nice reed sound. Immediately upon opening the box, I started playing Careless Whisper (aka the song Sexy Sax Man plays). It doesn't exactly sound like a saxophone, but it does a reasonable impression for a <$50 instrument.Playing chords takes a significant volume of air. If you don't have enough lung power, you might lose your high notes (or worse, produce just a wheezing sound). It's worth spending the effort to play chords though, as your dynamic control increases dramatically when you play more than one key.If you're alternating pressing notes above and below a sustained key, you might notice a bit of clipping as the air re-routes. There's not a lot you can do about it though; I think every melodica will have the same issue.The keys are slightly larger than the mini key size I'm used to. I guess there's no real standard key size for small form factor keys. The action on the keys is nice; you can press the keys from 3/4 the way to the top and still get a note to come out.The short mouthpiece is a bit uncomfortable for me to use. The handstrap is rather small (I imagine they expected more children to play this than adults), but it is possible to play with one hand in the strap and one on the keyboard. I mostly lay it down on a table and use the longer tube.The case is about what you'd expect for the price point. It's a little flimsy and the band that holds the long mouth piece to the top of the case looks like it will only last a year or two before it starts to go, but... it's a toy in a case, what do you expect.Only real downside to this instrument is the lack of a spit valve. If you play with it for more than an hour, you'll probably want to have some paper towels underneath the instrument and a few more ready for when you take the mouthpiece out.All in all, I'm very happy I bought this instrument. I played it for ~10-15 hours in the first week before I started to fatigue from the constant reedy sounds I was generating. I've used it a few times since, mostly to play lead parts over acoustic instrumentation in impromptu jams. It's not an incredibly versatile instrument, as the reed sound cuts through most everything else that gets played, but it does provide a nice sound when you want/need it.

I bought the 32 key Hohner Melodica. For the price, I was not expecting such superb quality of this instrument when it arrived. The instrument plays beautifully and sounds great. In addition, it comes with a tube to use if you prefer to place the instrument on a table and play it that way instead of holding it to your mouth. And much to my surprise, it came with a beautiful black cloth cover for the case! My 13 year old grandson immediately began playing it with ease. It has a rich, full tone and the keyboard is very responsive. This is a fantastic and affordable quality gift to give to someone who loves to sing and wants to make music as a singer would!!!! Bravo Hohner!