 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Connor
Date: 2005-10-08 05:39
Has any one actualy tried something other than a vandoren reed lately?
If not, your truly missing out.
Oliveiri reeds are a phonominal competitor to the V-12, however, consistancy seems much higher, and over all, i think the reed is much more focused. Comparison to the V-12 shows that the Oliveri reeds have more wood twords the butt of the reed, and are cut to mimic the V shaped rails of the clainet mouthpiece.
My Masterpiece reeds are another great reed, i got 4 out of 5 playable in a box. I haven't determined if they play with the same foucus as a V-12, however, the respond very nicely thought the range of the horn.
What else is out there?
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Author: Morrigan
Date: 2005-10-08 08:24
Try Gonzalez and Zonda - I play on them and not on Vandoren at ALL anymore.
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Author: redwine
Date: 2005-10-08 11:18
Hello,
No more VanDoren for me!
Ben Redwine, DMA
owner, RJ Music Group
Assistant Professor, The Catholic University of America
Selmer Paris artist
www.rjmusicgroup.com
www.redwinejazz.com
www.reedwizard.com
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Author: Ed
Date: 2005-10-08 12:15
Strangely enough, I have tried most of the other reeds out there and keep coming back to Vandorens. They all work in their own way, but for me, nothing else quite has that same ring or resonance that I am looking for. I know just what to do to get them working just right for me and get most of them working. Obviously, from the posts I reed, others have different experiences.
It is great to see that these days in reeds as well as clarinet, there are lots of great choices and people are not afraid to use different equipment.
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Author: Shawn
Date: 2005-10-08 13:05
I'm sure that other reeds are fine, but Vandorens has always worked for me. No reason for me to change.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2005-10-08 13:46
They're good all-round, off-the-shelf mouthpieces and reeds, and I know I can always get another one that's very similar if the worst should ever happen.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2005-10-08 13:47)
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-10-08 17:45
DavidBlumberg wrote:
> I like their Rue Lepic reed
I don't ...GBK
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-10-08 19:05
David,
In all seriousness, I would like to know your reasons for liking the 56 Rue Lepic reed.
As we all know, the choice of a particular brand has a lot to do with (in no particular order) style of mouthpiece, mouthpiece facing and curve, embouchure, style of playing, etc...
What works for me on my set-up will undoubtedly not be to the liking of someone else. The same, of course, goes for you.
But, as I found little to like in the newest iteration of Vandoren reed, I'd like to hear the positives which you find.
BTW - Even though I primarily play Gonzalez, I am not totally negative on all Vandoren reeds, and actually think their most consistant reed (and seemingly overlooked) as to accuracy of cut and grading is the Traditional Blue Box ...GBK
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Author: msloss
Date: 2005-10-08 19:06
Who cares what the brand is? This isn't high fashion. Be glad for the diversity of options out there. It raises the likelihood there is a reed that will work for your setup and approach to playing. I play what works, and tell my students to do the same.
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-10-08 19:15
Well, they aren't bright sounding like the V-12's are, that's the main thing. The cane in the 6 boxes I've used was quite good as it seems like they are selecting a higher grade of cane (not nearly as crappy looking as the regular vd reeds) for them, and I like the thickness of the blanks.
Price doesn't factor into it at all.
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-10-08 19:19
What didn't you like about them compared to the regular ones? You like a thick blank as you like Gonzalez (I do too and like them also).
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2005-10-08 19:31
I try whatever I can find cheap, but given a choice all at equal prices, I guess from what I've tried I'd go gonzalez. However I do have five boxes of vandoren reeds sitting right in front me me as we speak, and although they are a much harder strength than what I need, I'll probably end up keeping them and adjusting them slowly but surely to whatever mouthpiece I use at the time.
Vandoren DEFINITELY has a nice ring to it when you get the right reed, but gonzalez sounds very nice to me too and I don't feel like getting one "ringing" reed per box and would rather get 10 GREAT reeds per box.
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-10-08 19:32
David =
I only tried a few boxes of the 56 Rue Lepic reeds when they first came out. This is excerpted from my review (7/25/03) at that time. Perhaps things have since changed:
Observations:
The packaging is a bit more elaborate than the traditional or V12 reeds, but the reeds still come in the same individual plastic holders found in other Vandoren reeds.
The 56 reeds are single cut, as opposed to the the straight file cut of the V12's and Blue box.
The blank is thick (slightly more than the V12) and tapers to the butt end (similar, but not as tapered as the Gonzalez FOF or older Morré)
The tip seems to be thicker than the V12.
The tip is more rounded than previous "flat tip" V12s - they now are reminiscent of the older Vandoren reeds with the more curved tip profile.
Playing (after break-in):
The 3.5 strength of the 56 reeds seem to play a bit softer than V12's of the same strength, but the thicker tip makes them a bit darker and initially less responsive. To achieve the response I prefer, the tip needed to be slightly worked down.
Of the samples I tried, the consistancy of grading was only fair - a few played much harder than the median 3.5 and a few much softer than 3.5.
The quality of cane seems the same as the V12 - a few reeds had a nice fiber pattern extending to the tip, but the majority had inconsitant grouping of fibers, some with large gaps. Many had fibers that did not reach the tip area at all.
There were no severely miscut reeds in the samples I tried.
Most reeds played adequately right out of the box.
Conclusions:
The inconsistant fiber pattern initially troubled me, and as suspected, many of the 56 reeds had a short useful life.
Of the reeds that were the most promising, the sound is more compact, and seemingly one dimensional. I never was able to get the "ring" that previous V12's or Blue box reeds would often give. I am also a bit tentative about their projection in a large hall, however I was not able to test them in a large stage setting.
Thus, as I did not see a vast improvement in the cane quality, but merely a different cut and profile from previous V12 or Blue box reeds, at this time I do not think the suggested retail price is justified ...GBK
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Author: supercharged
Date: 2005-10-08 20:42
Really all this fuss over the reed you play on?
I stick to what works. Why fix it if it's not broken?
V12's for me.
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Author: vin
Date: 2005-10-08 21:01
supercharged- We are reed players. We make music and when we are not doing that, we must try to sound our best and so we must weigh all our options and indeed, fuss about reeds. V12s are indeed "broken" for a lot of us (pros and amateurs alike) and not "broken" for others.
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Author: supercharged
Date: 2005-10-08 21:38
I'm not saying it's bad to experiment with different reeds, that is afterall how we all got to our conclusion of which ones we currently play on. I'm just saying that if something works for you and something works for another person why try to persuade them otherwise?
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Author: Ed
Date: 2005-10-09 00:08
I have had good luck with the Rue Lepic reeds that I had tried.
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Author: EEBaum
Date: 2005-10-10 03:56
I have a love-hate relationship with all my reeds. It seems, though, that on a day when one brand performs badly another picks up the slack. So I've come to an equilibrium of variety.
-Alex
www.mostlydifferent.com
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Author: OpusII
Date: 2005-10-10 07:29
I've switched to Rico Grand Concert Select Thick and married them....
Just search for the reed that works best for you....
A special note... I find on this BBoard a lot of negative response on the Vandoren Reeds.. Why? I think they're doing just fine, because there are still many people who play the Vandorens... as long as that is the case, they are doing something good... aren't they???
If you don't like them, then don't use them... Let the people who like them use it and search for a better match yourself...
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Author: beejay
Date: 2005-10-10 19:30
I've used Glotin Gaia reeds on a Charles Bay mouthpiece for many years with great satisfaction. Unfortunately, Glotin seem to have stopped making clarinet reeds and my stock is coming to an end. If anyone has had the same problem and has found something acceptable, I'd like to know about. I've tried Zona and Rico, but didn't like them. Have nothing agains Van Dorens, but they have a square cut that doesn't quite match my mouthpiece.
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Author: Sylvain
Date: 2005-10-11 14:28
Hi all,
Based on this board I recently tried gonzalez fof reeds and was unimpressed. I can see the quality of the cane and the consistency of the cut, but the reed profile simply doesn't do it for me. I cannot get an even sounding scale out of them and when I play a large interval I am never quite sure how the next note is going to come out. I feel I am fighting with the reed all the time. I tried 3-1/2 3-3/4 and 4. My favorite reeds is still the V12 but I regularly play traditinal cuts and Rico Grand Concert Select.
-S
--
Sylvain Bouix <sbouix@gmail.com>
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 2005-10-15 19:16
My problem is that now there are literally no good reeds for me such as Vandoren's hand select or Olivieri before 1970's.
As a test to find a good reed I made it a rule to see a reed with a light behind it and almost no conspicuous black lines. Now I never find any reeds to pass this test of mine. French Var region plantation may have been desrupted by the cold summer in 1980's (or the region's climate itself may have become totally different from the past) and besides because of the lack of enough dry up period to pursue profit.
As a compromise I use Steuer or Rigotti with my setup.
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