 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: A2musician
Date: 2011-08-29 00:53
I have recently played on many types of reeds and continue to search for a better brand. I am wondering if anybody has had experience with all 3 of these reed types and if each type has pros/cons. Your comments are greatly appreciated.
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Author: ThatPerfectReed
Date: 2011-08-29 07:06
Dave--I admire that you're not only good enough to be a company's artists, but you disclose that and still speak honestly of the pros/cons of other brands.
A2musician:
Frankly, even though I'm not Rico Reserve artist.........at least as of lately, I find their reeds far less frustrating than some of the stuff Vandoren is putting out. And I have no expecations of not having to work on reeds. I rather fully expect some work goes into fine tuning nearly all cane reeds.
I know it's not on your list, but have you given Forestone http://www.forestone-japan.com/ a try?
Good luck
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Author: gwie
Date: 2011-08-29 07:22
When I have the time to invest, I can work on my V12's and I get reeds that sound fantastic, and last for many weeks of daily playing.
When I need a reed that works "right this instant" I can pull out a Reserve Classic and call it a day...the consistency and reliability of them is just fantastic. The problem is, it tends to soften up and start sounding fuzzy after a week or so.
So, I keep both kinds in my bag. I get them both in 4.5 strength, and my mouthpiece is by Walter Grabner, his K11* model.
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Author: Clarimeister
Date: 2011-08-29 07:27
V12s to me if you find a good one out of a box, is extremely good. But I have now officially converted to Rico Reserve Classics. I feel that you get double even triple the amount playable out of the box than the V12s, and to me, they have a much warmer, sweeter sound than the V12s. Articulation is easier, the control is easier and the evenness between registers is much better. I still use vandorens for auxiliary instruments such as Eb and Bass (though I'm going to be trying the Rico Reserve Classics for bass very soon), but for Bb/A Rico Classics all the way! I used to play on the Rue Lepic reeds a long time ago, but now almost all of them have played too heavy, stuffy, unresponsive for my liking. In reality the only way to really know, is to keep trying more. Everyone is different. Good luck!
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2011-08-29 09:56
I've used Vandoren reeds forever with only brief flings with Morre so I don't think there IS any other commercially available alternative. That said, the Standard cuts had gone untoppled off their pedestal until up about five years ago when a friend gave up a box of 56s that they didn't like. I decided to give them a chance and haven't gone back since. However, I am a long lay person and I don't think the 56s are as 'astonishing' for those with short lay mouthpieces such as B40s.
.....................Paul Aviles
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Author: sonicbang
Date: 2011-08-29 17:30
I feel the V12s are more universal for mouthpieces with different facings than the rest. BTW B40s have 21-22 mm long facings and they are considered to be medium long at least by europian standards. As far as I know medium long means 18-19 mm by american mouthpiece tradition. Maybe I'm wrong.
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Author: A2musician
Date: 2011-08-29 17:48
I forget to mention that I am currently playing on a Vandoren M30 mouthpiece and a Buffet Festival. Also I have played gonzalez for awhile now and am happy with their consistency, but they often sound very bright and penetrating. If you know of any reed that might tend to produce more of a warmer and round sound that would be great. Thanks again.
Post Edited (2011-08-29 18:17)
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Author: sonicbang
Date: 2011-08-29 19:26
Have you tried Mitchell Lurie 4 with that mouthpiece? You may like it. If you like a bit more resistance, maybe 4.5. They are consistant, and very little (if any) adjustment needed.
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2011-08-30 08:19
I'll take the V12's any day over Rico. They hold up better and the rails are slightly thicker causing a slightly brighter sound, which seems to be the new trend compared to 30 or so years ago.
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Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2011-08-30 13:51
I'm a little intrigued by the responses to this point, and Bob's comment about V12s in some ways crystallized my interest.
The opinions seem fairly unanimous that the Ricos produce a darker and the V12s a brighter sound. This really strengthens for me the conviction that those words have limited usefulness, maybe none in a forum as wide as this one. My reaction to those reeds has consistently been the opposite - that the Reserves and, especially, the Reserve Classics are brighter on the whole than Vandorens. I'm convinced, though, that we're really hearing and feeling the same thing, but our use of the descriptors is different.
Bob, I'm interested in your statement that the V12s have thicker rails. I do find that V12s are generally more resistant for the same strength than Rue Le Pics, but that, when I remove a little cane from very near the rails many of the V12s free up and vibrate more easily than a Rue Le Pic. In particular, I can play with a larger dynamic range and better flexibility on a V12 once I've thinned next to the rails (not all the way out to the edge) a little and balanced it.
I, like a couple of others who have responded, find that Vandorens (V12 or Rue), once I have them balanced or adjusted, seem to last longer without major readjusting than either of the Reserve models do. So, while I enjoy playing on Reserve Classics for the first couple of sessions of my break-in/adjusting period, and while I do find them more consistently playable out of the box, they seem to go dull and stuffy more quickly and either need to be fairly extensively re-balanced or discarded. I get as few or fewer of them out of break-in and into my regular rotation as Vandorens - for me they've been less reliable and predictable despite their greater consistency when new.
Just a few thoughts to add to the brew.
Bob, if you've actually done accurate measurements on the Ricos, I'd be interested to know how their dimensions compare in general and in more specific areas (tip, thickness, taper both toward the tip and toward the rails, etc.) to the various Vandorens. I recently bought a Perfecta-Reed and have done some measuring, but I'm not convinced the tool is precise enough to find the differences that matter - it depends a great deal on human consistency, so I'm never sure I'm measuring exactly the same point each time.
Karl
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Author: rmyoder
Date: 2011-08-30 20:34
Just thought I'd bring up the Rico Grand Concert Select Evolution reeds, because no one seems to play on them but me. I've tried all the other Ricos and found the same thing as gwie: "tends to soften up and start sounding fuzzy after a week or so." I've tried to make them work but when it comes to a performance, I always select the Evolution. They are very long-lasting and have great dynamic flexibility and response.
I'm a bit baffled as to why they work so well for me, because they are supposed to be lesser quality cane than the Reserve lines. I was told that they have a thicker tip, but they never feel that way to me. I currently play on a Grabner K11* but my opinion was the same when I played a Pyne Bel Canto.
Thoughts?
Rachel
http://www.clarinetcache.com
Post Edited (2011-08-30 20:34)
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Author: RyanD
Date: 2011-09-01 01:01
They are all good for me but i find that Rue Lepic have an easyer response and give me my sound better.
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Author: thomas.b
Date: 2011-09-04 17:20
I use Rue epic for my german bassett horn... I did not like the V12 at all
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Author: Chris Hill
Date: 2011-09-04 19:36
Rachel,
I sometimes use Evolutions, as well. I have the most success with the original Rico Reserves (not Classics.) I have no problems with them collapsing after a short period.
Chris
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Author: Iceland clarinet
Date: 2011-09-04 21:03
for me V-12 sounds darker than Rue Lepic and the sound is more stable and uniform throughout the range. Haven't tried the Reserve classic but the regular Reserve sound somewhere between those two.
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