Forerunner Chromatic Harmonica

Rich deep base tones and great build quality Am late in reviewing because as a beginner , though its not my first harp ,I thought it only fair to judge when can do it a wee bit more justice. first thing you notice is the solid build quality and good heft , its a quality instrument that sounds fabulous IMHO for my purely hobby usage on ( alas all too frequently days ) I believe I can modestly say by now that it is air tight and therefore easy to play physically and the slide is smooth and responsive. It comes with a very good protective travel case and a small service kit which indicates to me that the makers want it to last a long time, therefore from my perspective , its a lovely harp in every aspect of MY criteria.

Good looking harmonica, for the price. A two octave harmonica for less than £37. Wow. Sounds good when played. I have been playing the harmonica since I was 4 which is 72 years ago. I have recently restarted playing music after a break of a few years. I dot read music, just play by ear and practice. Great fun

The reviews listings here are meant to be for the Easttop KING DREAM harmonica but these reviews seem also to cover reviews of the Easttop FORERUNNER. They are in fact two quite different instruments so I am going to review each in turn. The King Dream is a 12 hole VALVED harmonica. This means that theoretically when you blow or draw a note, nearby notes are blocked by a strip or double strip of thin plastic. This makes the note you are playing less prone to leakage and therefore the note is easier to play, requiring less "wasted" breath. The King Dream is a good sounding instrument and is decently in tune, but like nearly all valved harmonicas some notes get "stuck" when the plastic valves do not lift due to excessive moisture. The King Dream is TWICE as expensive as the Easttop Forerunner because it has valves. I give the King Dream 4 stars, but if you are unlucky enough to get multiple stuck valves you will need patience in adjusting them, in which case this instrument maybe worth only 3 stars. But apart from any valve problems this instrument, though not quite up to semi-pro Hohner standards, is pretty good. The Easttop FORERUNNER is also a 12 hole chromatic harmonica but it does not have valves, which explains why it is half the price of the other instrument. However this is the only valveless harmonica I have tried that performs as though it did have valves. In other words there is almost no leakage even without the windsavers/valves closing and opening according to which note you play. It is just about the most leak-free valveless harmonica available at its very affordable price. But - and you might be more lucky in this regard, my iForerunner is quite badly out of tune on 3 notes: 1st Octave A (flat), 2nd Octave C (very sharp) and the next blown C (slightly flat). This means you have to constantly adjust your technique as you play, which is a pain. You can adjust tuning of each reed if you know what you are doing, either by playing differently, or shaving material from the reed, but nevertheless it is a pity that this particular instrument was not thoroughly checked by Easttop's quality control department before shipping. It is likely that other examples are perfectly in tune in which case I was unlucky. So in summary, the reviews in this section refer to 2 different instruments. Many of the reviews here clearly refer to the valveless Easttop Forerunner and others refer to the Easttop King dream WITH valves.

I like this sound.

The best and most comfortable 10 hole harmonica I have. Very easy to get my lips around it and get a good seal and precision. Blow and suck notes both easy and well matched. 100% recommend it.

I bought this as a gift and it arrives in a card box. Within there’s a plastic case for the instrument along with a cleaning cloth. It’s nicely presented and looks professional. I don’t play harmonica, but I’m told by the recipient that the chromatic button is very easy to use and changes the sound with ease. It’s smooth against the lips and the quality of sound is crisp and clear. It’s lightweight and whilst it’s suitable for beginners, the quality is such that it’s also a great buy for a professional or expert player. Very pleased with this purchase.

Not sure how they do it but East Top have produced an amazing instrument - all in tune right out of the box, smooth slide action, phosphor bronze reeds - even the plastic storage case looks and feels great and for less than £40! I am very pleased with my purchase. Making the switch from harps I now need to get down practising in all the different keys.

Chromatic without valves can be difficult, and 'airy' taking more breath. This is a beautiful harmonica, well made with everything fitting as it should. It feels chunky in the hand and the slide works really well. The mouthpiece is sublime, really comfortable and rounded. The ingredients are all as they should be so I had high expectations, and had already bought the Swan, which was cheaper.....in every way. The price and build quality were all much cheaper than this....but, the playability was massively different. I have a number of Easttop harps and they are an eye opener at the quality, great sounding, easy to play and airtight. This one just wasn't. So in every way it was better than the Swan, except the important bit, when you play it. Sounded good too, but way too leaky for me, but I couldn't get over how nicely it was made....but not so easy to play.

I am a beginner. With no education in music. The only love I have is for the classical Indian music. I bought this instrument on an experimental basis. But my personal learning from the past is that never invest in a cheap equipment when you want to learn anything new. (In my case I want to limit my excuses if I am unsuccessful - and hence it allows me to give my 100%). Meaning, this is not the cheapest harmonicas out there, but if you can afford, this is a great harmonica to learn all tricks of the trade that you need to. Of course you further upgrade when you start playing at professional level. King dream feels great in hand. Looks very elegant. Very smooth in functioning. Sounds just perfect (see Caution 1 below). Caution 1: After using for a couple of weeks, the sound from 1-2 holes starting sounding unexpected. Upon research I found that this is normal with any harmonica, even the most expensive ones. You just need to take some precautions and at the same time keep maintaining it he harmonica yourself to keep it in right order. Caution 2: When searching for king dream on Amazon, I found a ‘duplicate’ version as well. Please be careful about not buying that instead.

Ayant eu pas mal de problème avec la qualité des Harmonicas de la marque HOHNER que j'avais commandé juste avant celui-ci, deux autres modèles de la même marque (12 et 16 trous chromatique, mais chacun 4 fois plus cher que le modèle FORERUNNER 124NV ). Pour l'instant, je n'ai gardé que le modèle HOHNER 12 trous. Du coup, mon but n'étant pas de renvoyer systématiquement à Amazon, les articles que j'achète, j'ai décidé de changer de marque en me basant en partie sur les commentaires. J'ai donc acheté le modèle FORERUNNER 124NV de la marque EAST TOP. Je ne suis pas un pro de l'harmonica, j'ai toujours joué (d'oreilles) avec la marque HOHNER. Mon premier harmonica qui a 50 ans d'âge (véridique), correspond au modèle 270 chromatique d'aujourd'hui (mais sans la qualité et le son d'autrefois), joue toujours aussi bien, sauf que l'embouchure est usée, il manque pas mal de chrome, il faut que je la change (d'où mon achat de l'harmonica 12 trous chromatique HOHNER 270, que j'hésite à garder, les notes aigues ont du mal à sortir, et le son métallique, ne me plait pas beaucoup). Après avoir reçu l'harmonica FORERUNNER 124NV de la marque EAST TOP, dois dire que j'ai été très agréablement surpris de l'esthétique, de la qualité, du son de ce modèle, qui est nettement plus doux et mélodieux, agréable à l'oreille, que le son métallique de l'harmonica chromatique HOHNER 270. Du coup, j'en ai acheté un deuxième (pour mes petits enfants). Après, cela n'est que mon avis personnel, les goûts et les couleurs, cela ne se discute pas ! Maintenant, une chose sur laquelle je ne peux pas encore donner un avis juste, c'est sur la durée de vie dans le temps de cet harmonica. Il va falloir patienter, j'ai 70 ans, je vous donnerai la suite dans 50 ans... :).

Muy buena presentación y calidad de la armónica. Precio muy asequible. A diferencia de las armónicas diatónicas, el principiante tiene disponibles todas las notas de la escala (incluidos sostenidos). Una maravilla.

I recently bought this harmonica and I must say, I’m really impressed! The build quality is solid and it produces a smooth, melodious sound. It's easy to play and comfortable to hold. A perfect choice for both beginners and hobbyists. Highly recommended.

Sono agli inizi ma, avendo un’ottima conoscenza musicale, seguendo il metodo per armonica cromatica di Max de Aloe, sto riscontrando i primi progressi con lo studio dell’armonica cromatica. Lo strumento è perfetto reattivo e dal suono pieno. Su tutte le ottave. Lo slide per i cromatismi è fluido e silenzioso. È un piacere approcciare lo strumento. Consigliato