 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: sinkdraiN
Date: 2006-02-20 20:34
The B40 seems to be a somewhat popular mouthpiece. Has anyone compared it to the new B40 lyre. WW/BW claims it has a larger tip than the regular B40; yet Vandoren says the Lyre is slightly smaller. I'd love to hear your impressions...if you played one.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2006-02-20 22:03
I hate having to come back to the whole Vandoren thing after just having a revelation that made me humble and look like a total idiot, that is, I just tried one that plays better (for me) than any either of the two more "specialty brands" I currently use.
BOTTOM line, you simply MUST try the mouthpieces yourself, either in-store or trial via mail.
My B40 experience was that I went to a store based on the "numbers," the specs as Vandoren describes them. The only other mouthpiece they had for me to try was an M30. The B40 was ok, but the M30 played a little more like what I was used to. Both had a thuddy, covered sound. I would never have used either.
And still I purchased a B40 Lyre through the mail just to have the exact configuration that I wanted (Vandoren has sooooo many possible combinations of styles to each size). Despite the specs sounding better to me, the mouthpiece played like they described - VERY open, much more suited to softer reeds (I am a Vandoren Nr. 4 guy). I don't like it at all.
Comparison: B40 was open sounding and had no "ping" or supporting overtones to carry the sound. B40 Lyre is even more of the above.
But YOU MUST TRY these YOURSELF!!! Even the numbers tell you very little about how a mouthpiece will play. The mouthpiece I alluded to at the top is a 5RV Lyre Series 13 Profile 88 (possible M13). I have tried numerous 5RVs over the years and they were all stinkers (for me). Now I have to go soak my head.........the room is spinning.
...........Paul Aviles
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Author: Bassie
Date: 2006-02-21 06:59
"... you simply MUST try the mouthpieces yourself ..."
Seconded!
I too have seen confusing specs for the B40 Lyre. I'm sure we'd all be interested to hear your opinions if you tried one.
My own B40 experience was similar to what Paul describes - a clumsy piece (for my technique). Very stable tone though. Rather like driving a tank. Instead, I walked away from the shop with a 'B45 dot'. Work that one out - those two pieces are supposed to have the same facing!
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Author: D Dow
Date: 2006-02-21 18:47
The B40 Lyre is so close to the B40 design in tip as to be of little difference in terms of feel..
.however the baffle work and rails are the area where it is quite different. I have had no problems with projecting through an orchestra with either mouthpiece and find the covered sound to be more from the player perspective rather than the conductor or other people's sense of the sound. All in all the B40 is still a fine mouthpiece capable of greater sound provided one matches a reed well to it!
David Dow
Post Edited (2006-02-21 18:49)
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Author: sinkdraiN
Date: 2006-02-21 19:26
I just ordered one to try. David, was either of the mouthpieces more focused than the other? Was there any difference in tone or response from your ears?
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Author: D Dow
Date: 2006-02-22 14:31
To my ear I find the B40 slightly more focused
theLyre version has a slightly finer sense of freedom...so it may be worthwhile to eventually get one of each if affordable to the player.
For Altissimo I found the Lyre to have great ease yet I like personally to have something to work against for more stability...I aslo find the reed that works well for the B40 to work the very same for the B40 Lyre....
As to a preference I really think younger players would prefer the freedom the B40 Lyre offers....as to more professional players it would be hazardous to offer a subjective preference...for me I like the B40 and it's sound and it is not so far away from an American style tone(as well as in feel) as not to be troublesome.
Best of luck..!
be sure to choose what is most comfortable for you to use and stick to it!
Although some like the M30's better I still prefer the more open tip B40 in the Vandoren line!
David Dow
Post Edited (2006-02-22 14:33)
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Author: sinkdraiN
Date: 2006-02-25 19:26
Ok, my B40 Lyre came in today so I was able to compare to my trusty B40 (regular). I used V12 3.5 reeds. Visually, both mouthpieces look very similar. One small difference seemed to be on the baffle. To my eye, my B40 had a slightly higher baffle just at the tip than the B40 lyre which slopes downward faster.
Both mouthpieces have the same resistance and both mouthpieces responded similarly to reeds (meaning the reeds that didn't work well on my B40 also didn't work on the Lyre...and vise vera). Pitch and response...exactly the same.
The tone is where things difffer. The B40 has that nice round covered sound with a distinctive "ping" just above it. The B40 has this subtle higher overtone above everything. The Lyre removes this higher overtone. So both mouthpieces have that velvety bottom (slightly covered). The B40 adds a slight brilliance above it.
I prefer my regular B40 only because I like the addition of the higher overtone. It seems more complex to my ears. I don't think a B40 Lyre would make a "B40 hater" happy because it still has that B40 core...in fact it is a B40 core <period>. I think the B40 lyre is suited best for someone who likes the B40 but is always trying to play to it's dark/covered side.
I think it's real nice to have a company like Vandoren making mouthpieces. It's nice to be able to buy a mouthpiece like a B40 that has a variation of the theme all for $60
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Author: D Dow
Date: 2006-05-25 18:53
After a few weeks of working with the B40 Lyre I am very impressed with its wonderful flexibility and range of tonal colors...as to the cost it is quite low considering how finely it plays in tune as well. I prefer the 13 series of this mouthpiece and will also add that the soft notes maintain a nice "hold" and centre to the tone. I am also very happy with the freedom of staccatto and feel that Vandoren are on a very fine road to excellence in matching the facing to the type of material used in their pieces.....I would hasten to add that the M30 is quite good but not as warm in the upper register as the B40lyre...these are only opinions.
David Dow
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