I recently picked up an Edwards T396-A. Before playing the horn, I always presumed the harmonic pillar device was a bit of a sales gimmick but it does seem to make some small difference. I've been playing the horn without using any of the pillars while trying to get used to the horn.

I was thinking of playing around with the pillars now and was wondering what those who have played around with them have come up with. 100% trial and error seems a little dumb because 3 holes in 2 positions with 8 pillars is a ridiculous number of combinations.

It seems the largest effect the things have is by changing the feel of the partials, more flexible vs more solid slotting, and subtle changes to the resonance of the overtones, emphasis on core/lower partials vs more brilliance/higher overtones.

So what are the tendencies you have noticed between the soft metal vs the hard metal?, For example, what differences have you noticed having the pillar toward the bell vs toward the tuning slide, using the holes closer to the bell vs the middle vs the valve, etc.

Thanks

Think of the hole on the neckpipe side as a leadpipe adjustment. The center is for changing the core of the sound and the bell side is for bloom around the core. Make a log of which hole and what material and the effects so that you aren't chasing your tail as you try the different combinations.

Honestly, I played around with them a LOT when I got them and never settled on anything that I liked. I like the way the horn plays without them the best, I guess. It seemed that whenever I added a pillar I lost something that I liked about the horn while something else felt better.

E: On another thought, I'm not really sure where my harmonic pillars are anymore....

Sounds a bike like when I was a kid and you would try to hold the TV antenna at various angles to try to get a picture.

I’ve spent a few hours playing with different positions and materials. I settled on the stainless long pillar in the position closest to the bell. For me it stabilized the upper register, allowing for cleaner landings on big leaps to the high range. I also have an axe handle on the horn that I am sure is also influencing response to some extent.

I really like the horn without any pillars. That said, a small trade off in sound, and a single pillar, gives a lot of ease of play across the registers of the horn.

I like the copper "1" pillar in the bell side hole, facing towards the bell end. This to me feels best, and the horn really resonates and can feel dark.

I also like the copper "1" pillar in the middle hole, facing towards the tuning slide. This is great for full on, ensemble style playing because it seems to add a ton of stability to the sound, and each partial slot feels ridiculously well defined, like a canyon that is kilometers deep, but only a few meters wide. Vibrato feels extremely difficult to do, which is actually nice for a lot of ensemble playing.

I also like to do an offset pair based on both of the positions above, using both the 1 and 2 copper pillars. Which one goes where doesn't really make too much of a difference. It's fun to play and sounds nice, but I mostly use both of the ones above instead, and mostly just the first one.

The other pillars and combinations have not been what works for me.