 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: kfrank1
Date: 2006-05-10 04:11
I would like to get an idea of how much one would be expected to pay for a good used wooden bass clarinet, say something like a Selmer (to low Eb). I may be able to get one in good playing condition for around $1800. Does this sound about right? I think it will be about 20 to 30 years old. I don't have much of an idea of the value of these. Thanks.
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Author: Merlin
Date: 2006-05-10 09:46
It's not unusual to see a good early 70's Selmer to Eb fetching up to $3500 CDN around here, but most of them go in the $2500-3000 range.
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Author: DougR
Date: 2006-05-10 14:37
I paid $2500 for my Selmer Series Nine bass (low Eb) around 12 years ago, and I haven't seen similar horns anywhere for less. I almost never see low C instruments advertised anyplace, but when I do, they're almost always in the $4,000-4,800 price range. $1800 sounds like a really good price, IF it's a top-line model, but be sure to have the horn checked out.
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Author: ohsuzan
Date: 2006-05-10 15:06
We found a Buffet "Professional" (now Prestige?) bass clarinet from a local dealer for $2,000 -- in pristine condition. It eventually needed a repad, since it was 35 or so years old. But it's a gem.
Susan
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Author: Bob A
Date: 2006-05-11 00:33
Many 'professional' bass clarinet players use, successfully, hard-rubber horns with no noticable difference. Ask Dave S, he might be able to find you one. I play (when I can) NON_PROFESSIONALLY, a hard-rubber Conn (R.Malerne ) Dave fixed it up for me. I trust him to give you a good response. He may have one on his shelf he is refurbishing.
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Author: Terry Stibal
Date: 2006-05-11 03:29
About 80% of the quality of the performance resides north of the mouthpiece...
One thing that I've always liked about my Selmer is the smell of the thing. Much more than any of my sopranos, it has a wonderful "woodsy" smell emitting from the wood. Don't get that with polypropylene or rubber...
leader of Houston's Sounds Of The South Dance Orchestra
info@sotsdo.com
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Author: kfrank1
Date: 2006-05-11 05:03
Thanks everyone. That gives me a better idea of the price range. The price I gave was based on a horn like his, which he said was a Selmer model that came after the Series 10. Would this be considered a top-line model? Thanks.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2006-05-11 05:44
You should find what is the model.
From looking at eBay, where the price for bass clarinets is usually not favorable to the seller, low Eb Selmer bass clarinets vary from $1,500 to $3,500, depending on the model and condition.
A few Series 9 just went for around $1,500-$2,500, but a model 35 was sold for $3,400. Non-online sales are usually more but not always.
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Author: LeeB
Date: 2006-05-11 14:09
You might keep a look out for stencils, too. A year or so ago, I bought a wood Thibouville Freres bass clarinet on eBay with a low Eb for only $350. Took it to my repair person for a bit of tweaking, and it turns out that it was actually made by Buffet. It's an excellent instrument, and at that price, a real bargain.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2006-05-11 15:07
LeeB, are you confident in your tech's assessment of the Thibouville bass? I've seen a few, and they were all Robert Malerne stencils, not Buffet.
"But I could be wrong."
R.M. Nixon
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Author: crnichols
Date: 2006-05-11 16:01
I think $1800 dollars for that instrument is a fair price, if not a great deal, depending on it's condition and how much work it will need. Make sure whoever does your work is very familiar with the idiosyncrasies of the bass clarinet. I've had work done on a bass clarint in the past by "reputable" techs that turned out to be unacceptable. The instrument then required more work by someone else to make it usable.
Christopher Nichols
1st Infantry Division Band
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Author: Lisa Argiris
Date: 2006-05-11 23:32
1800.00 is a pretty good price. Make sure it does not have any cracks. Selmer's from the era usually do not have a very good scale. Has it been overhauled?
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Author: pmgoff78
Date: 2006-05-11 23:53
My parents spent $1500 in 1994 on a 1960ish Leblanc 400. That same horn from the same shop goes for $1800(I think). So, somewhere between $2000 and $3000(my repairman is reall generous with pricing.) It depends on how much is on the horn. An extended horn will command more cash.....really smooth vintage models(like the Buffet Radio Model) will also command more cheese ;o)
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Author: kfrank1
Date: 2006-05-12 05:38
Lisa, it will be fixed up before I buy, so I can try it out first.
Sorry, I don't know what you mean by Selmers from that era not having good scale.
I saw an article on bass clarinets on this site and it said pre '83 selmers were quite good. If I was interested in Series 9 and later, does anyone know what other models would this include? Thanks.
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Author: LeeB
Date: 2006-05-12 23:59
<<<LeeB, are you confident in your tech's assessment of the Thibouville bass? I've seen a few, and they were all Robert Malerne stencils, not Buffet.>>>
Reasonably confident. My repair person is a bass clarinetist himself, and had his Buffet bass clarinet in the shop when I brought my Thibouville Freres in. He took his out of the case and showed me that they were identical.
That's not to say that Thibouville Freres didn't also put their name on Malerne bass clarinets at some point. My tech estimated that my instrument was made around 1950 (although from the condition, it obviously wasn't played hard for 5+ decades).
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2006-05-13 03:37
Anything's possible, I guess....I've seen a couple of Evette & Schaeffer (a Buffet subsidiary, correct?) bass clarinets that were Malerne stencils. Seems like there were many incestuous musical instrument relationships around that little district near Paris back then.
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