Klarinet Archive - Posting 000653.txt from 2002/11

From: Bill Hausmann <bhausmann1@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] Odd brands.
Date: Mon, 25 Nov 2002 23:58:01 -0500

At 01:56 PM 11/14/2002 -0500, James Marioneaux wrote:
>I received an e-mail from one of the band director lists asking if I had ever
>heard of NYP clarinets. I have not. Has anyone? I wonder what the letters
>stand for (Now Your Problem??? Not Yet Playable??) Also, I was asked about
>a Delphi clarinet. Some of my band director friends are starting to see a
>few of these instruments that uninformed parents are buying from e-bay
>showing up in their band halls. Someone said that Wal-Mart is starting to
>sell instruments and another said that Hastings Bookstore is selling flutes,
>clarinets, and trumpets for under $200.00 (not an advertisement!!). You get
>what you pay for.

The factories in China are more than willing to stamp ANYBODY'S name onto
the junk for the right price. A band director I talked to just today has
seen instruments from Wal-Mart turn up. We have been seeing too many of
the Chinese trumpets in the repair shop. The plating on the valves is so
poor that it flakes off within weeks. Our tech sends sticking valves back
unrepaired with a note that nothing can be done. They do come in nice
CASES, though! The "advantage" of using multiple brand names is that it is
harder for their inevitable bad reputation to be tracked! The trouble is,
to the uninitiated (read "parents") they LOOK just as good as the brand
name products at half the price. Only too late do they find out that the
money was wasted.

Bill Hausmann

If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is TOO LOUD!

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