Black Diamond accordions

[CJ1942]

My Black Diamond 48 bass arrived and it really does represent excellent value. The tone from Italian reeds is lovely plus good positive keys, and excellent bass side tone. The company are very helpful and if you look on eBay now they are offering great deals. It would be so good if us forum followers would support their sales. I already have a new Chanson 72 bass but had I known about BD accordions I would have purchased their 72 bass with Italian reeds. CJ.

 

[dunlustin]

What a pity there was so little support of the company over the last few years.
By all means be wary of Chinese manufacture but don't indulge in blanket dismissal.
If you're in the UK, just think BD: the Enfield India of the accordion world

 

[hais1273]

At some point the Chinese will start to export Very High Quality "stuff". Chinese mopeds, motorcycles and cars are now quite passable. Chinese "tec" is very good. Good for BD to get a Chinese factory to make instruments of reasonable quality. Could a Chinese instrument factory ever make an accordion of comparable quality to an Italian factory such as Bugari Armando or Brandoni. Almost certainly, maybe they do now but don't export the instruments. The accordion world needs a good quality entry level instrument.

 

[CJ1942]

The Italian reeds in the BD 48 are good but interestingly Mr Allodi told me that Chanson is made at the Baile factory and the reeds had been improved. I tried 3 different Chanson 72 accordions and chose the one with the best sounding reeds. On comparing the Chanson tremolo sound with the BD today the sound is very similar. CJ

 

[Ventura]

" Could a Chinese instrument factory ever make an accordion of comparable quality to an Italian factory "

no

because they have a different way of thought than Western manufacturing,
and a different set of resources available to them
and so primacy in repeatability and sustainability are at the highest
importance in their factory process and value system

while individual skilled masters of a craft or specialty are not

therefore it will always be apples VS oranges

 

[dunlustin]

Thank goodness the Chinese do not aspire to a space exploration programme or mistakenly believe they could design and build military aircraft.

 

[Ventura]

aircraft based on oranges may be as effective as ones based on apples

but don't swap pilots or ground crews as you will crash both devices

 

[saundersbp]

Great idea to buy Chinese and Italian bits and make a fruit salad then. They sound nice and I like this simple tune a lot.

 

[debra]

My Black Diamond 48 bass arrived and it really does represent excellent value. The tone from Italian reeds is lovely plus good positive keys, and excellent bass side tone. The company are very helpful and if you look on eBay now they are offering great deals. It would be so good if us forum followers would support their sales. I already have a new Chanson 72 bass but had I known about BD accordions I would have purchased their 72 bass with Italian reeds. CJ.

Italian reeds is a good first step towards producing better sound. But the weak steel is still used in for instance springs, which are not "springy" enough and break more easily than springs made out of good steel. Even Hohner accordions made in China suffer from bad steel resulting in springs that break too easily.

 

[CJ1942]

Many of us have either returned to accordion during COVID lock down or started learning during lock down. How many will continue cannot be predicted but the chance to buy a budget accordion or melodion is duly valid given the difficult financial times during lockdown and indeed since. CJ

 

[hais1273]

All this depends on what you can afford and aspire too. Some are lucky enough to be able to afford top notch instruments and aspire to play demanding music that is in all likelyhood is "easier" to play on top notch instruments. However, if you want to knock out * "easy" and *"straigtforward" folky type tunes on a Baile, Chanson or any other Chinese or East-west fusion instrument then good for you.
* Straightforward and *Easy. Hmm not sure about that statement. Anyway, its better to play something rather nothing?

 

[Dingo40]

Speaking of quality Chinese instruments, is there anything wrong with this guy's
( Yang Yi) "Parrot"?

famous Chinese accordionist YouTube - Google Search

I note he uses actual sheet music and has a page turner assistant .

 

[JerryPH]

Speaking of quality Chinese instruments, is there anything wrong with this guy's
( Yang Yi) "Parrot"?
I note he uses actual sheet music and has a page turner assistant .

I think I mentioned before that he is a government sponsored musician. What he is playing, you won’t be able to buy, and is nowhere even close to being representative of what is available from any accordion manufacturer in Asia.

 

[Ventura]

just as the excellent accordions carried and played by the
Chinese accordion (orchestra) and entrants at the Coupe Mondiale
and other international competitions are not simply Pearl River
standard models

but their exact specs and origins of materials are as obscured by the
smoke and mirrors as the rest

nevertheless, some of those kids can play the snot out of those boxes
when no-one is watching (which is almost never)

 

[CJ1942]

Thank you all for a variety of responses to my appeal for supporting Black Diamond accordions. I am pleased with both my Chanson 72 with 3 year guarantee and my new BD 48. At 80 I am hoping that the springs etc will last until I go back to clay. CJ

 

[Monkeybrand]

I got my 72 bass BD last week and must say I am very pleased with it. Easier on the back than my Hohner 120 musette IV and sounds a lot better than my old Chanson 48 (£1 on ebay). Three accordions now and can't play any of them, must stop buying and practise more.

 

[Ventura]

well here you are boosting this Chinese brand and a-whoopin' and a-hollerin'
about it being so nice to have affordable instruments like this

but

not one of you bothered to give a source

(like the website URL)

Black Diamond Accordions, West Mersea, UK

Black Diamond Accordions sell piano accordions, button accordions and melodeons from Italy, China and Ireland.

www.blackdiamondaccordions.com

so here this morning some newbie asks where he can buy one
somewhere in England

maybe when you wonder why (out loud) there has been such
lack of support you consider the apparent lack of follow-through
from the fans ?

so here is the one he wants

Black Diamond Chromatic Button Accordions

Black Diamond's 60-bass chromatic button accordions are made in China, using Italian reeds by Cagnoni, giving them a great sound at an affordable price.

www.blackdiamondaccordions.com

for L899
and here is how

For all purchases and enquiries,
please call Greg Dunn on
07801 308054 or 01206 381521​

maybe he will notice

and just to be clear, for 899 with a warranty and dealer
oversight of final adjustments and quality, one would be
an idiot to buy a used one as the difference in price would be
insignificant, and the cost of out-of-warranty repairs and
adjustments (as well as the likelyhood of needing them)
quite high

 

[petch]

One would assume if someone managed to find this forum to ask the question they could also find the website for a particular brand

 

[dunlustin]

Re: Whoopin & hollerin
To the best of my knowledge, I am still unsullied on both counts

 

[saundersbp]

For all purchases and enquiries,
please call Greg Dunn on
07801 308054 or 01206 381521

well I contacted them and they never replied so perhaps no longer trading...