 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: UptownDixielander
Date: 2012-11-15 07:02
Hello People!
Ben here, I had a question regarding equipment. I'm currently in grade 10, playing clarinet and tenor sax. I have a great mouth piece, ligature and an acu-bore, but the clarinet itself isn't giving me the tone and comfort ability I'm looking for. Currently I'm using a Yamaha student model. What clarinet should I look at getting next? Please keep in mind I have a budget of 500$.
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Author: pacherry
Date: 2012-11-15 09:33
Having just spent a good amount of time looking for a step up clarinet for my son I can tell you that for $500 you are going to be looking at used clarinets. Most of the step up clarinets that we looked at (Buffet, Leblanc, Yamaha) were in the $1000-1500 category. Coupling that with much of what I have read on here, you are just going to have to look around and play anything you can get your hands on for that price until you find the one that is right for you. If you don't completely trust your judgement, invest the $50 or so to have a private teacher help you try out instruments. Good luck!
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Author: Ron Scholer
Date: 2012-11-15 10:31
used, a selmer 10 series, 1960's and mid 1970's buffet R-13's, these were very good horns.
BA, MA, MSE, MST
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Author: SteveG_CT
Date: 2012-11-15 17:34
I agree with the others that with a budget of $500 you are going to want to look at used clarinets. However I honestly think you are going to have a very hard time finding a used Buffet R-13 or a Selmer Series 10 in playable condition at that price. You can easily find many intermediate clarinets for ~$500 (often freshly overhauled) but they may or may not be a significant step up from what you already have (assuming that you have a YCL-250).
As far as professional models go about the only ones I'm confident you could find in playable shape for ~$500 would be vintage Leblanc clarinets. A late model Leblanc LL (I think they made them up through the early 90's) might be a good option if you could find one. You could also find older (pre-1970's) Leblancs and Selmers in your price range but these may not be good options for a student as these generally have larger bore sizes with different intonation tendencies. They are awesome when you learn how to play them (I probably wouldn't trade my Selmer CT's for any modern clarinet) but can be a handful for players used to more modern instruments.
See what you can find available in your local area. Don't buy anything without play testing it first or getting some kind of guarantee that you can return it if you are unsatisfied. Also be prepared to wait a while until you can afford to spend a bit more. If you can increase your budget to around $800 you will have a lot more options.
Post Edited (2012-11-15 18:03)
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Author: jparrette
Date: 2012-11-18 01:53
In my opinion, the nicest of the intermediate clarinets from the big makers right now is the Yamaha YCL-450. They sound great, and the build quality is terrific. They use great wood, and the keys are extremely solid.
I've seen some not-so-nice examples of intermediate horns from the other big makers, but I've never come across a bad YCL-450. They're extremely consistent.
New ones are over $1,000, but very nice used ones go for under $500. Look on that auction site - there are usually several up at any time. They're also common on Craigslist.
Look at the wear on the logos and you can get an idea of how much play time a used one has seen. You might have to take it to a repair tech for a check-up, but you'll save a fortune over a new one.
John Parrette
CLARION MUSICAL SERVICES
john@clarionmusical.com
914-805-3388
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Author: Timmy7930
Date: 2012-11-18 02:19
Sometimes, the best thing to do is wait. Look around constantly everyday for 5 mins in the morning and in the evening. You might get lucky and find a brand new instrument for half the cost. But if your looking for a clarinet thats affordable at any time and also very good, the Yamaha's are the best hands down. For the price of an e11 you could get a YCL-650.
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Author: clarinetguy ★2017
Date: 2012-11-18 02:37
I agree with John's Yamaha YCL-450 suggestion--a very nice instrument for the money. You could also look around for a used Bliss LB310 (composite body and wood barrel), although it might cost slightly more than $500.
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Author: jparrette
Date: 2012-11-19 00:31
I would also stay away from older pro clarinets. They were made well for the time, but modern instruments from the big makers are just built better. You might find an older one that sounds good, but older horns might also have hidden issues like rusty hinge rods and pivot screws, bad tone holes, repaired cracks, etc.
If you look at a Bliss, pay close attention to the ergonomics. It's going to feel very different in your hands than a Yamaha.
Good luck!
John Parrette
CLARION MUSICAL SERVICES
john@clarionmusical.com
914-805-3388
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Author: Ursa
Date: 2012-11-19 09:09
Assuming the original poster has a YCL-250, I suspect there's something in his/her mouthpiece/ligature/barrel/reed setup that's just not working here. The YCL-250 is a well-engineered instrument that, in the hands of a competent clarinetist with a good setup, should have no issues at all with tone quality.
In my opinion, the YCL-250 is more than up to the task of intermediate-level playing and the logical upgrade path from this is to a pro-level instrument.
For $500, a quality Fobes or Backun barrel could replace the DEG AccuBore unit, the rest of the instrument could be treated to a proper overhaul, and there'd probably be a few bucks left over to start saving for a truly professional instrument.
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Author: SteveG_CT
Date: 2012-11-19 17:56
jparrette wrote:
> I would also stay away from older pro clarinets. They were
> made well for the time, but modern instruments from the big
> makers are just built better.
I strongly disagree. If anything the older clarinets were built better than modern ones due to the superior quality of the wood available at the time.
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