Klarinet Archive - Posting 000022.txt from 1994/02

From: Cary Karp <nrm-karp@-----.SE>
Subj: Re: Clarinet in Ireland
Date: Wed, 2 Feb 1994 10:45:17 -0500

On Tue, 1 Feb 1994, Niall O'Byrne wrote:

> The Elite is a new design brought out about 3 or 4 years ago. The wood
> is thinner hence the instrument is lighter. Many of the key arrangements
> have been reworked for better tuning or removed because nobody uses them.
> All the pillars are gold because Buffet claim they resonate better.
> There are no metal joint rings and it comes with the fanciest suede lined
> case I've ever seen. The single instrument case is slightly smaller than
> a briefcase. It's shipped with two barrels as standard, 440 and 442
> Cost ? in Ireland #IR2,500 or US$3,500

I've had a pair of Elites for about two years and really like them. It's
amusing to note that Buffet's reasons for the unusually thin-walled
construction are the same as those given by Selmer for their making
instruments with unusually thick walls. I never heard the story about the
gold posts having an acoustic effect, nor do I believe that they are
anything other than gold plated. Solid gold would be a pretty dumb choice
for any point of friction in keywork. No keys have been deleted and
although it has no metal rings, it does have carbon fiber rings --
claimed to be stronger and probably are, but are certainly not problem-
free.