 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: clariknight
Date: 2008-10-30 01:44
I've been looking around for a reed strength comparison chart that shows Gonzalez FOF reeds compared to Vandoren V12. But all I seem to find is Gonzales reeds. I get the feeling these arent's the same, and if they aren't, can anyone point to a chart that has Gonzalez FOF reeds on it, or even someone who has tried both types and can give me a general idea. Thanks in advance!
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Author: larryb
Date: 2008-10-30 01:50
The most I can offer is that Gonzalez FOF come in a blue box; Gonzalez regular cut come in a reddish box.
I play Vandoren V12 3.5; the Gonzalez FOF 3.25 is comparable (and superior in terms of the price:quality ratio).
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Author: clariknight
Date: 2008-10-30 02:02
larryb- thanks, I guess I'll order a box of 3.25 and a box of 3.5 and see which one I like better.
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Author: GBK
Date: 2008-10-30 02:09
Attachment: Reed comparison chart.bmp (641k)
Courtesy of the Wayback Machine, here is the reed comparison chart that Phil Shapiro assembled when he was running Davie Cane.
...GBK
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Author: Eh.Steve0
Date: 2008-10-30 03:23
Is there something wrong with my computer or is it a problem with that chart? All I can see is nonsensical characters.
-Stephen Ian Savage-
Clarinet Performance
CCM
"The first question I ask myself when something doesn't seem to be beautiful is why do I think it's not beautiful. And very shortly you discover that there is no reason." -John Cage (1912 - 1992)-
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Author: Ed
Date: 2008-10-30 13:04
larryb says:
"I play Vandoren V12 3.5; the Gonzalez FOF 3.25 is comparable (and superior in terms of the price:quality ratio)."
I have found the Vandorens to work better for me.
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Author: Iceland clarinet
Date: 2008-10-30 14:10
Well I do not agree with this chart!!!!!!!!!!
Gonzalez FOF are stiffer than Vandoren V-12 and Vandoren Rue Lepic are "56" are Softer than V-12. So Gonzalez FOF #3.25=V-12 #3.5 and Vandoren Rue Lepic #3.5+=V-12 3.5
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Author: GBK
Date: 2008-10-30 15:12
Iceland clarinet wrote:
> Well I do not agree with this chart!!!!!!!!!!
When Phil Shapiro originally made the comparison chart he sampled 2 boxes of each strength within the each reed brand, discarding the unplayable reeds and finding a general consensus for the playable reeds in each box.
As he originally noted, reeds (obviously) react differently to individual mouthpieces, instruments and environments. The chart was merely intended as a general guide and your individual results could vary up or down by a small margin.
Perhaps you should make your own chart for us to see.
...GBK
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Author: larryb
Date: 2008-10-30 16:22
Ed wrote:
"I have found the Vandorens to work better for me."
I don't disagree - I played V12s for many years with much success and satisfaction.
My point about the superiority of Gonzalez FOF reeds includes consideration of price. With a little effort, I find that the Gonzalez reeds play as well as the Vandorens at less cost to me.
Throw in consideration of Vandoren's excess packaging, and Gonzalez is preferable to me.
I might reconsider if Vandoren went back to the little purple cardboard boxes, no plastic (or cardboard) sleeves, and a little piece of foam to protect the reed tips (all of which pre-date the V12, I know).
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Author: mrn
Date: 2008-10-30 19:04
larryb wrote:
> My point about the superiority of Gonzalez FOF reeds includes
> consideration of price. With a little effort, I find that the
> Gonzalez reeds play as well as the Vandorens at less cost to
> me.
I tried a new reed brand the other day (new for me, that is). With my new instrument I got a free sample of the Grand Concert Select Evolution reeds Rico puts out. I had sort of set it aside when I first got the instrument, but I pulled it out the other day and gave it a try. Much to my surprise it was one of the best reeds I've ever played on! Nice sound and very responsive! VERY different feel from Vandorens--this reed had almost a "hair trigger" response (which I like), yet it still had a nice rich sound to it and, in fact, actually felt a little on the stiff side at first (which is amazing for a reed that responsive).
I plan on ordering a box here soon, and if the whole box plays like that (or enough of them do...you know how that goes), I may never go back! It was that good! (and I'm very finicky about reeds)
One reason I'm mentioning them is that (at least here in the U.S.) they're less expensive than Vandorens, too. (And much less expensive than the Rue Lepic variety, which is what I've been playing on lately) So they're worth trying, if for no other reason than that.
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Author: Ed
Date: 2008-10-30 21:04
The Grand Concert Evolution have not worked well for me, but I have had good luck with the Grand Concert Thick Blank reeds.
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Author: cxgreen48
Date: 2008-10-30 21:12
The GCS Evolution are definitely more responsive and resonant than Vandorens; however, I still prefer the sound of a good Vandoren. The GCS Evolution reeds sound a tad too bright for me.
I find GCS Evolution #3 to be comparable to a "#2.75" Vandoren Traditional.
Are the GCS Thick Blank reeds that much different from the GCS Evolution reeds? And are the reed strengths different?
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Author: mrn
Date: 2008-10-30 22:18
The strengths are supposed to be different, according to the Rico website. The free sample reed I liked so much was a 3.5 GCS Evolution. I've been playing on 3.5+ Rue Lepics. Strengthwise, the reed I played was somewhere between a 3.5+ Rue Lepic and a Blue Box 4. I tried the GCS Evo 3, too, and it was clearly too soft (for me and my mouthpiece, anyway). If the 3 is too soft and bright, you might give the 3.5 a shot (if you haven't already and are still interested in them, that is--I don't want to sound like a reed salesman ), because for me it was considerably stiffer and more mellow in tone than the 3, but still very responsive (and not airy sounding at all).
Obviously, I don't want to get too excited about just one reed--who knows if I'll like a whole box. For all I know, I may be disappointed. But the one I tried I liked a whole lot--definitely enough to convince me (a long time user of French reeds) to buy a box and give them a real try, anyway. For me, it was better than the "one good reed" I usually get in a box of Vandorens, so even if that's the "one good reed I get in every box" of GCS Evo, I'll be a satisfied customer.
By the way, in case anybody wants to know, I play on a Eddie Daniels/Zinner mouthpiece with a Rovner Mark III ligature, which is a really dark-sounding setup to start with (at least I think so), so having a little bit of "zip" in the reed is not necessarily a bad thing in my case.
Post Edited (2008-10-30 22:23)
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Author: elmo lewis
Date: 2008-10-30 23:56
I agree with Iceland. I used the chart to order reeds a few years ago and ended up with boxes of reeds that were way too hard. The Gonzalez reeds are much stiffer than the Vandorens of the same number.
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