 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: donutisme
Date: 2014-07-05 15:35
I keep seeing the LeBlanc Bliss on ebay. How good are they and are they worth my time to get one? What is the average price to expect to pay?
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2014-07-05 16:25
I bought one on EBay about 6 months ago. I bought the student model and paid $250 Australian, about $US230. It's probably the best student-level clarinet I've ever come across, the tuning is excellent throughout the range. I particularly like the light weight, it's much easier on my arthritic old thumbs. I've since played the more expensive pro-level wood instrument and find it no better than the one I have. For the prices they fetch on EBay I think they're a very good buy. Your mileage may vary.
Tony F.
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Author: gwie
Date: 2014-07-06 09:56
They're nice instruments. I have two students who purchased the all-wood models (unstained grenadilla), on sale for less than $900 each. They're excellent clarinets with responsive keywork, tons of adjusting screws (makes fixing some of the little issues much easier), and came with a Bonade ligature! In direct comparisons with new Buffet R-13's at the shops, they were quite competitive...at less than 1/3 the cost they were the "best bang for the buck" at the time.
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Author: Roxann
Date: 2014-07-07 00:49
I have a the grenadilla Bliss. It came with a Backun barrel which darkens the tone a bit. I love it. From what I understand, they're made in the USA. The quality is excellent. As previously mentioned, there are lots of adjustment screws, which sometimes work their way loose, but that's easy to take care of. I paid $1200 new, so the prices you're finding on ebay are excellent. You can't go wrong.
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Author: as9934
Date: 2014-07-07 07:50
A ton of the better players at the music camp I just went to had bliss'. The one I tried had a great sound and good intonation and I love the backun innovation on it but I didn't like it as much as some of the buffet's I tried (e12f etc.) I also didn't like the very shallow key press. As far as bang for the buck goes there is not much better, unless you can find a good used buffet e13 or backun protege. I would expect to pay between $400-750. Also try to play one before you buy, that will prevent any buyers remorse. Also make sure to try some other clarinets (E11,E12F,E13, mid to high range leblancs,selmers, and yamahas) I have heard that the Yamaha 650 is just as good as an R13 for a fraction of the cost so see if you could find a used one of those as the price may be comparable. What is your budget? If we know this it may help steer us in the right direction.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Wind Ensemble
Buffet E11 clarinet , Vandoren Masters CL6 13 series mouthpiece w/ Pewter M/O Ligature, Vandoren V12 3.5
Yamaha 200ad clarinet, Vandoren B45 mouthpiece, Rovner ligature
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