 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: contragirl
Date: 2003-11-12 19:37
I have recently gone crazy trying to find an affordable A clarinet. I'm a poor college student trying to find a good Buffet A (R13) clarinet for $1000 or lower, which I have seen in some places.
I'm wondering where can I look (outside of ebay, and the local music store) that would give me good results. No one seems to answer my classified here, where else can I look? PLaces like Weiner, and WW&BW still want almost $2000 for a used R13!
Thanks,
Contragirl
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2003-11-12 19:50
Your expectations may be too high. An R-13 A for less than a grand would indeed be a find. Seeing as A clarinets are normally pricier than Bb's, and that R-13 Bb's normally go for over $1,000, you just may need to adjust your criteria. Adding "good" into the mix -- even scale, good 12th interval, no upper register grunting -- will only make it tougher for that price range.
Keep scouring eBay and maybe you'll get lucky. Otherwise, increase your budget or consider other makes. People here are raving about Amati A clarinets, which are less than a grand new.
Now watch somebody come here and tell me I'm full of it and that cheap R-13 A's grow like crabgrass in my hibiscus (was gonna say "on trees" but I guess they literally do)...
--Ralph (who found a Leblanc LL A last year for $650 and is happy)ly
________________
Artistic talent is a gift from God and whoever discovers it in himself has a certain obligation: to know that he cannot waste this talent, but must develop it.
- Pope John Paul II
Post Edited (2003-11-12 19:53)
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Author: msloss
Date: 2003-11-12 20:18
cg, the only way you will find a R13 in your price range is by exercising extreme patience. A colleague of mine sold a decent R13-A to a student of mine a couple months ago for about $1K because he had just acquired a new Prestige A and needed the cash to make up part of the purchase price. First and last time I saw one go at the price in recent memory.
That said, $2K for a used horn is a bit of a ripoff -- new ones don't cost much more than that. If you are set on an R13, consider it an investment and find a way to make it happen. You can obviously see from the used market that you can always get a significant amount of your money back out of it if you need to. And, borrowing money will never get any cheaper than right now.
Best of luck in your hunt!
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Author: GBK
Date: 2003-11-12 21:29
contragirl ....Used A clarinets (especially R-13's) are considerably more difficult to find than used R-13 Bb's.
It is strictly a case of supply and demand, thus these instruments are commanding premium prices.
I think $1000 is a bit low to expect to find a quality R-13 A clarinet. Most used R-13 A clarinets are going for about $1300 - $1400 (or more). Of course there are always special circumstances (buyer needs cash immediately, etc...) but you may need to increase your budget if you have your heart set on a used R-13 A.
Remember, used clarinets will probably need some additional work done by your local tech, so factor that cost into your budget...GBK
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2003-11-12 21:53
Depending on how soon you need it, you can either wait till you've raised the money, or take out a personal loan. You figure if you take out the personal loan, then pay off with whatever money you have saved already, you'll have it completely paid off very quickly. And you'll have the A clarinet while you're paying. Ah. America. The truest practitioner of the "play now, pay later" plan.
Or keep checking those consigment/pawn shops and hope for the best!
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2003-11-12 22:04
Hey Buffet Mafiosi,
Doesn't your precious favorite clarinet manufacturer also make an E-13 "A" clarinet (or something like that) that's pretty good and probably under $1000 US brand new? And is the Noblet "A" reasonably good? Must we be obsessed with the R-13 and have blinders on to other instruments? If a clarinet falls in the woods and nobody is around............?
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Author: contragirl
Date: 2003-11-12 22:50
I don't think $1000 is too low for an R13, I have seen people sell their's for that much. And I do expect to take it to a tech for tweaking and stuff. I almost got a used Festival A from a lady who was going to take her's off ebay and sell it to me, but when she was about to do it, someone bid on it. :( She was going to sell it for $1200, which isn't too bad for me. $1500 (even though it is only a few hundred more) just seems to be too much to me.
There is also the problem that I have no cash, so I'll be using a credit card or through Paypal. I just can't write out a check and be on my way, which would be so much easier. I am just getting desperate for one and I would rather have a matching R13 to go with my Bb.
Why are A clarinets so hard to find?!?! Don't they grow in fields or something?
--Contragirl
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Author: Synonymous Botch
Date: 2003-11-12 23:45
Sounds like somebody crying "PO!" with money in the bank.
Perfakly good alternatives out there are being dismissed by cheapskates bent on a Buffet. Pry open the Trust Fund, already.
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Author: contragirl
Date: 2003-11-13 00:06
Umm... not really. I have no savings account, and my checking account has $200. I'm not holding out at all. I'm very poor. I have a job enough to pay for food and credit card bills.
--Contragirl
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Author: LeWhite
Date: 2003-11-13 00:18
I've said this before and I'll say it again...
Don't sell yourself short on your education. Take that personal loan and get the instrument that will serve you well. If you can deal with repayments for a while, then go ahead, LOAN is not a dirty word.
I recently loaned a LOT of money to buy a new set of LeBlanc Concertos. Do I regret it? Absoloutely not, these instruments have helped me incredibly, and all I have to do is make the repayments, which is not that difficult at all.
Thought about cutting up your credit card? I am, lol!
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Author: msroboto
Date: 2003-11-13 01:49
If you are diligent you can find one in your price range.
I got my R-13 A for $600.00 off EBay about 6 months ago. It plays well and the pads were even good. I was shocked at that last part. I figured add cost of complete overhaul to the $600.00 and it would still be a good deal.
The case was funky so I had to buy a new double case that was it.
The problem with this strategy is you probably need the horn now. I had the option to wait until the right one came around.
Good Luck!!!
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Author: JMcAulay
Date: 2003-11-13 03:58
If no Clarinet is better than an R-13, then perhaps you must be stuck for a while with no Clarinet. Or, if you can find just about any playable A Clarinet on the cheap as an interim stick, why not buy the thing and play it while waiting for your magic inexpensive A-pitch R-13 to appear. Surely, you now know that dumping a playable A Clarinet is hardly like trying to dispose of a Yugo with a blown engine.
Play, play, play. Hard to do with no Clarinet.
Regards,
John
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