 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: martinw
Date: 2011-01-30 18:36
I bought my Yamaha 650s three years ago and had no problems with it until after I had it serviced about 3 weeks ago. The technician who serviced it is well respected in our community and after the service it played better than ever for about 5 days (1-1.5hrs per day). The next day, after practising for about 45 minutes, I stopped for a break. When I went back to it about 10 minutes later I was unable to play any low notes. Everything below low c sounded a 12th higher even though I was not using the register key and higher notes screeched. I took it back to the shop and guess what, it played perfectly when the technician tried it. He kept it for a few days dismantled it and put it back together and couldn't find anything wrong with it. It then played fine for about a week and the same thing happened again.
Has anyone else experienced this problem?
Does anyone have any idea what it could be?
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2011-01-30 18:43
Looks like the throat A or Ab pads are not closing completely. Check the adjustment screw and make sure there is a tiny bit of play between them, ie when you press the A lever, the Ab pad should be go up a fraction of a second later.
Also make sure you don't inadvertedly press the A touchpiece with your left hand first finger. Maybe the spring is a bit weaker than you were used to, or a new A pad changed the geometry a bit, or something else is preventing the pads from sealing properly. Maybe one of the pads up there swells with moisture. Shouldn't be, but can happen.
Do you got this symptom only after a break? Do you disassemble and swab your clarinet after every use?
--
Ben
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Author: marcia
Date: 2011-01-31 03:47
>Does anyone have any idea what it could be?
And I thought gremlins only lived in computers! ![[grin]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie5.gif)
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Author: pewd
Date: 2011-01-31 04:23
Hard to diagnose over the internet - but - a guess:
Perhaps one of the pads has a tear in the membrane, and when you play for a while, it swells up with water, causing a leak, and the issues you describe. Later, the pads dry out and the problem goes away the next day.
I think I'd remove the G# and A keys, and check and possibly replace those 2 pads. Possibly the top ring pad as well.
- Paul Dods
Dallas, Texas
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2011-01-31 15:56
Try a different barrel.
Kal Opperman made me a boxwood barrel, which had the same problem, caused by a tiny leak in the grain. It went away when he found the spot and sealed it with Super Glue. Dip the barrel in a bowl of water and let the water drain out. Then block the bottom against your hand and blow hard at the top. A leak will cause bubbling on the surface.
Along with pads, check for a nick or warping in a tone hole rim. The top repair techs level the rims and seal the wood grain.
The other possibility is, knock on wood, a crack in the top joint, or, if you're lucky, a leak around the register vent or the thumb hole insert.
Ken Shaw
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Author: wrowand
Date: 2011-02-01 17:37
I've had a similar problem and it was the A key (the key you push to play second space A, I guess that's A4).
Because it's mounted on a cross-hinge, in drier weather especially, any shrinking of the wood in this area can make the hinge tube bind between the posts. When this happens, sometimes the pad does not close completely when the key is released. I fixed it with some very fine sandpaper (3/0 emery paper) on the ends of the hinge tube.
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