 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: rick77
Date: 2011-11-24 16:16
I've read a few threads about reed selection for this particular mpc (Fobes Nova). I've tried the following brands/strengths:
Mitchell Lurie (3.5) and (4) Seems to be the wrong style of cut, thin and bright. I think the tips of the reed are too thin
Vandoren Traditional (3) and (3.5) (these reeds are very inconsistent but the rare decent ones work fairly well on the Nova)
Vandoren V-12 (3.5+) pretty good playing/sounding reeds after miserable break in period and lots of sanding. the 3.5+ are a bit hard for the Nova mpc that I have. More good reeds in a box of 10 compared to the Traditional Blue Box.
I have on order from Muncy a box of Vandoren V-12 (3.5) and am hoping they won't be too hard for me. I like the sound and response of the V-12's as far as i can tell from using the 3.5+ ones I have.
What other brands/strengths of reeds are any of you using on a Fobes Nova mpc? I'm wanting to try the Gonzales reeds but not sure which cut or strength to get. Maybe the FOF (3) or (3.5)
Thanks and Happy Thanksgiving to all!
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Author: cxgreen48
Date: 2011-11-24 16:29
I was going to recommend the Gonzalez FOF. You do realize they have a 3.25 also right? 3.5 seems a little hard for me on the Nova; 3.25 is pretty much ok. I would think 3 would work just as fine as well though.
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Author: Ed
Date: 2011-11-25 00:52
I would also consider contacting Clark to ask what he likes on it.
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Author: rick77
Date: 2011-11-25 02:23
If I remember correctly Clark Fobes says his mpc's are designed for use with Vandoren reeds. I've been trying various cuts and strengths of Vandoren reeds but haven't settled on any that I like with the Nova. Hopefully the Vandoren V-12 3.5's that I've ordered will work well for me. If they're too strong I'll sand them down so they won't go to waste then order size 3 next time. As I stated in my initial post I've tried the blue box 3.5's and 3's and also the V-12 (3.5+) I didn't care for the blue box reeds but the V-12's seem like a winner as soon as I get the right strength.
I can tell that the Nova is a really good mpc but when I get the reed selection that is just right for me it will be a great mpc. I'm sure there are other brands of reeds that will play well on the Nova so hopefully others that have been through the "perfect reed" search for the Nova will chime in with a little input.
Post Edited (2011-11-25 02:25)
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Author: georgec
Date: 2011-11-25 04:22
With my Nova I have used Gonzalez FOF 3 1/2, Xilema C, and Forestone 3.
All have seemed fine to me--but then I guess I'm not very particular (and not a very good player.).
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Author: rick77
Date: 2011-11-25 19:37
Hey stuper1, I think I'd like to try a synthetic reed on my Fobes so I won't burn through so many cane reeds. I'm mainly a tenor/soprano sax player who doubles on calrinet so a good synth reed would come in really handy when doubling on jazz gigs. Thanks for the reccomendation! I'll try a Legere and see how it works for me.
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Author: clarinetguy ★2017
Date: 2011-11-25 19:38
I tried a Nova several weeks ago, and noticed that Rico Reserves and Reserve Classics did not work very well with it. I'm wondering if anyone else has had the same experience. I'm not sure how the measurements of the Nova compare to those of the Debut, but the Debut (clarinet and alto sax models) plays very well with Rico Reserves.
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Author: rick77
Date: 2011-11-26 12:39
clarinetguy, were the Rico Reserves/Classics brand new reeds or had they been played and broken in on another mouthpiece. If they had been played on another mpc they would've been broken in for a different facing curve than the curve on the Nova. That could cause the Rico's to not play well on the Nova. But then again, maybe the cut on the Rico Classic is not right for the facing on the Nova, or maybe just not right for you. I haven't tried the Rico Resrve/Classics on my Nova.
FWIW, just yesterday I read an older post that Cark Fobes posted on Sax On The Web (clarinet mouthpiece subforum) and he stated that he uses Vandoeren V-12 (3.5) or (4) when he's making his mpc's. He said that he never liked the Vandoren Traditional (blue box) reeds as they were very inconsistent and that he could never play them on any mpc.
I've had the same experience as Mr. Fobes with Vandoren Traditional reeds. They pretty much suck.
I got my Vandoren V-12 (3.5) reeds yesterday and they are much more suitable for me than the V-12 (3.5+) that I bought last week. Unfortunately the reed strength varies greatly withiin this particular box of V-12's. If this is intentional then Vandoren is taking us for a ride when they print 3.5 on a box of 10 reeds and you get three 2.5 reeds three 3 reeds and three size 4 reeds.
I still plan to try the Gonzalez reeds on my Nova. I'll compare them with the v-12's and make a decision after some time using both.
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Author: clarinetguy ★2017
Date: 2011-11-26 14:09
Rick77, to answer your question, I tried both new and older Reserve reeds on the Nova. I've had great results with Reserves on other mouthpieces.
Clark Fobes is a great guy, and I use and highly recommend some of his other products. When I tried several mouthpieces, though, the Nova just didn't do it for me. Having said this, I wouldn't hesitate to suggest that others give it a try. We all have our personal mouthpiece-reed-ligature preferences, and the Nova is a great choice for some players.
You mentioned the different reed strengths in your box of V-12s. About a year ago, I had a chance to meet a Vandoren representative. I found out that all reeds are cut exactly the same way, and they're later sorted by strength. There will be 3.1s, 3.2s, 3.3s, etc. Because few retailers are willing to stock separate boxes of 3.1s, 3.2s, etc., reeds in a particular "strength range" are placed together in one box. That's why your box of 3.5 V-12s includes reeds that are a bit harder and softer.
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Author: rick77
Date: 2011-11-26 16:11
I didn't care for the Nova at first and questioned it on and off for a few weeks but with the right reeds it's a pretty good mpc for me. I don't feel that it will be "the one" for the long haul for me but it's a good player and sounds good. But maybe even with more time with the Nova I'll learn to appreciate what it has to offer.
Being primarily a sax player who now takes clarinet serious for about the past year I'm not quite ready to spring for a $300.00 mpc since I'm not totally acclimated to the clarinet. As I progress on clarinet I'll probably zero in on a definite tone concept preference and find that another mpc will be more suitable for me.
One thing for sure, mpc selection is a personal thing.
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Author: rick77
Date: 2011-11-29 16:59
Well it's been a few days ago since I got the Vandoren V-12 reeds in 3.5 strength and I've been carefully breaking them in and testing them on my Fobes Nova mpc. I've got to say I'm really disappointed with the quality of the V-12 reeds. On my Nova the ones that actully play have a brittle sound that is not full bodied. The sound is rather thin and powerless. The other reeds in the batch are very stuffy and don't sound/play well at all. I'll have to do some careful sanding/balancing of those reeds before they'll play well.
I had almost kicked my Fobes Nova mpc to the curb but yesterday I stopped by the music store and got some regular Rico (3's) on the way to the dress rehearsal for a community concert band. I actually played the dress rehearsal with my Vandoren B-45 and the Rico 3 reeds. They played pretty good considering I didn't have the chance to put them through a proper break-in period, although I did give them a good soaking prior to playing them.
So this morning I played the Rico (3's) on the Nova and they played and sounded great. So I'll be playing the concert tonight with the Nova and Rico #3 reed. I may give the V-12's another chance on down the line but in a size 3. They just might play well and sound good but I'm guessing that they'll sound even thinner than the 3.5 V-12's I've been playing.
It's good to know that I can buy Rico 3's just around the corner from my house any time and they'll work for me. I'm also going to try the Gonzalez (3's) very soon.
I'll be trying varous brands in strength of 3 and see which ones I like best. But I don't think Vandorens are going to work for me at all. They never have on my saxophones for the past 40 years on any set-up I've ever played. I guess it's a good thing we have so many different brands of reeds to choose from. No certain brand is going to work for everyone.
Thanks for listening and for all input!
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Author: rick77
Date: 2011-11-29 17:54
Admittedly I've never been a fan of Vandoren reeds and also haven't used regular Rico's since my High School days. But......the (three pack) of Rico (3)reeds I bought yesterday do in FACT play better (on this particular mpc) than the two boxes of Vandoren V-12's I bought over the past two weeks.
I don't actually plan to settle on regular orange box rico's for my clarinet but they're actually not bad at all so if I need them in a pinch I'll definitely use them as they do work well.
I realize Vandorens work for lots of folks but many players don't care for them. I never have found them to be special at all, at least not on the set-ups I've used.
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Author: rick77
Date: 2011-11-29 21:32
O.K..............Here I go out the door to play the Aiken, SC Community Concert Band Christmas concert with a regular ole #3 Rico reed. Certainly no big feat but I didn't want my last post in this thread before the concert to be reply # 13. 
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Author: DrewSorensenMusic
Date: 2011-12-05 02:43
Vandoren is terrible. One good reed in a box of ten.
Rico Grand Concert Select Thick Blank are fantastic. Every one is decent to phenominal. Lots of heart, rich tone. Even over all breaks and registers. #4.5 for me.
I play a Fobes Cicero 13, which may be shaped a little like yours if you got the CWF. I also dig their barrel. A great combo.
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Author: rick77
Date: 2011-12-16 00:33
Well, it's been a few weeks since I started this thread so I've had time to experiment with new reeds on my Fobes "Nova" mpc. After using various brands that didn't quite do it for me I started trying out the Vandoren V12's about the time (or just after) I started this thread.
I started out with a box of V12 3.5+ which were a good bit too hard and stuffy. I tried breaking them in for about one week and they were still hard and stuffy so I had to break out the sand paper and doctor them up. The second week I bought a box of V12 in 3.5 strength and after a week I still felt that they were stuffy and a bit hard so I ordered V12's in strength of 3. About half of them played well but half of them were too soft or thin. So for the Nova mpc the V12 3's would be a waste of money if half of them are too soft right out of the box.
So I went back to the V12 3.5's and with more playing time they seem to be the right strength of this particular reed for my Nova mpc. Some of them are still stuffy so I played the hardest one for about 8 hours today. I had the day off from work and nobody home but me so I just practiced all day on that stuffy reed. But that hard stuffy reed did play well enough for me to practice a long time. I didn't want to blow out any of the better reeds in the bunch and now I can see if extended play time helped the stuffy reed.
I read in recent post that some players have gotten stuffy reeds from the V12's with the new style logo or stamp on them so a half size lower strength was needed. I guess that scenario fits right in with Vandorens theme of inconsistency. But the V12 reeds that are good are really good reeds even if they are a pain in the butt to break in.
I think I'll start a seperate thread about how we all break in our reeds, especially the Vandorens which seem to take quite an effort to break in.
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