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 Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2014-10-24 20:24

OK, a couple of days ago I was yet again pondering my reed choices, so I followed the BBoard sponsor link over there on the right of your page, and AW reeds sounded interesting. But they don't sell directly to consumer (right?) so I followed their links to places to buy. As usual not everybody sells everything, and it took several tries to find a place to order reeds. Which brought me to this page:
http://www.clarinetmouthpiece.com/reeds/

Nice writeup and offer. But as I read Brad Behn's insistence on humidity control and how they do it, I was reminded yet again that I've been ignoring the humidity issue all along, even though many here on BBoard have hammered it over and over, and I've even had private emails telling me it's a big deal.

OK, I can be slow, but eventually I do listen. And I figured it was more important to address humidity than pursue another brand of reed, just yet. So I bought 6 "Boveda 72% RH Mini 8 Gram Humidpak Packets" for about $7, and they showed up yesterday. I put a 2 gallon ziploc around my reed storage rig with 1 packet. And I put another in a smaller ziploc with some previously rejected reeds. So now we will see... miracles of playability?

But even if I have some wonderful play days, I will remain skeptical. The placebo effect is more pronounced in clarinet play than it ever was in medicine. In another week or 2 I will also receive a $1.45 hygrometer from China, which I hope is small enough to fit in my ziplocs with the reeds and humidipaks. And first I'll measure the ambient humidity here in my Orlando FL warm fall A/C'd house. If it's anywhere near 70-75% the game is already up- I was already OK. But if it's low or high, then I'll measure inside the bags, and verify I'm getting near 72% as advertised. If I prove the paks are in fact changing the humidity, I still won't know the humidity changes the reed play, but I guess I'll be satisfied it's worth the effort. Maybe.

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

Post Edited (2014-10-25 23:38)

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: TJTG 
Date:   2014-10-24 20:38

my 72% Bovedas measure in at 78%

If you do live in florida.... I'm sure the benefit will be nowhere near as large as those who love more north, such as Chicago, where I live. The most noticeably helpful time is during the winter months here when reeds dry out from severely low humidity.

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2014-10-24 20:47

We keep our house pretty comfortable at 75 to 78 F. So I'm sure the AC is pulling out a lot of water (the drip tube outside goes all the time). Still I have no idea what the humidity level is inside. Toward fall and winter I expect it's a lot lower. Will be interesting to actually measure.

Actually I'm doing the humidity control more just to remove one more variable from the equation than anything else- not really expecting much. But if the clouds part and the angels sing (we do all have those kind of play days, right? but few of us can keep it that way day after day, sigh)- I will be singing the praises of Boveda.

Stay tuned for further updates.

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

Post Edited (2014-10-24 21:01)

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: kdk 2017
Date:   2014-10-24 22:39

Funny thing is, after you've wet the reed before playing on it, it's probably more than 79% saturated and after ten or fifteen minutes of playing, it has probably absorbed pretty much all it can (100%).

I realize the humidity levels on the humidipacks refer to the ambient humidity of the air around the reed, not the level of saturation of the reed itself. But it seems to me the generally claimed benefits of keeping your reeds humidified are (a) the reeds are supposed to be less likely to warp and (b) it takes you less time to get the reed wet enough to play on. So, you should be able to tell pretty quickly whether or not the humidification is making any positive difference.

FWIW, I don't find that reeds warp any more consistently with or without humidification. Reeds that I keep in a humidity-controlled case do need less time to be ready to play, but within a few minutes of playing, I've never noticed that they play differently from unhumidified reeds. Some players claim they get better reed life with humidification. Of course, you can't do the same reed both ways, and different reeds will have different lifespans anyway, so that's also a hard one to "prove."

Karl

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: bmcgar 2017
Date:   2014-10-24 22:49

In 55 years I've never concerned myself with it, nor do I intend to...unless I someday find myself in an environment so high in humidity that my reeds might get moldy in storage.

Once a reed has been played sufficiently, previously humidified or not, it stabilizes to the humidity of its environment (mouth cavity humidity, breath humidity) then gradually changes according to the humidity of the outside environment once the mouthpiece leaves the mouth and depending on how long the reed isn't being played. In other words, the effects of humidity control "systems" fall away once a reed is removed from the system.

Humidity control may shorten the time it takes to get a reed up to snuff once play begins, but in my occasional empirical experiments with humidification, I haven't seen any advantages in playing qualities, reed life, and so forth.

Also, for what it's worth, I've never personally known one professional-level player who bothers with it, though I know of those who do.

B.



Post Edited (2014-10-25 06:18)

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: Paul Aviles 
Date:   2014-10-25 03:43

I first wish to point out that the number that is REALLY important is the Dew Point. Here is why: you can have 100% humidity but if the ambient temperature is 60 degrees, then the reed only gets 60% humidity. This is why things get bad up north in the winter. When the temperature outside is in the 10s or 20s, then 10 to 20% humidity is all that gets in the house. If you don't humidify your air, then you cook off even that meager amount of water from the air.


I recall a particularly bad winter in Boston (where my apartment had radiator heating) where I would soak a reed in water, then have it in my mouth for a minute, put it on the mouthpiece, start playing and in just over 50 seconds (of playing!) the reed was completely dried out and warped. And these were fully broken in reeds too by the way!



As for pros humidifying, I'd say many AT VERY LEAST put there reed case in a ziploc bag (partially open....never let the moisture just sit there) to aid in preserving moisture in the reed. I have a plastic sandwich bag in which I put my reed case and always blow a bit of warm air both when I retrieve a reed and when I put one back.





.............Paul Aviles



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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: DavidBlumberg 
Date:   2014-10-25 04:34

Not only does the humidity pack give out water, but it also absorbs excess water.

In Florida, I'd probably want a pack in the 59% range

http://www.SkypeClarinetLessons.com


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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: bmcgar 2017
Date:   2014-10-25 06:17


Paul Aviles wrote:

"I recall a particularly bad winter in Boston (where my apartment had radiator heating) where I would soak a reed in water, then have it in my mouth for a minute, put it on the mouthpiece, start playing and in just over 50 seconds (of playing!) the reed was completely dried out and warped. And these were fully broken in reeds too by the way!"

An example, though an extreme one, of why trying to control the humidity in the reed container probably is a waste of time, effort, and money.

Take a reed out of the humidity controlled container--regardless of how sophisticated--and it will "adjust" to the environment that it's then in, though it will do so quickly or slowly depending on the differences between the two environments.

Locking bags, humidity control packs, or more complex (and expensive) equipment? The same thing happens.

B.

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2014-10-25 07:15

I'm an engineer, let's think about this in engineering terms for a moment.

Let's assume that a reed waiting to be played (however it is stored) has reached some kind of equilibrium with its environment, unless the player takes no kind of care at all. Let's call that moisture level "HS". Then when it's in use, regardless of the situation, within a few minutes it will be at a new equilibrium moisture level for playing, let's call that "HP".

If you believe that only HP controls the playability of the reed, then you shouldn't care a whit about HS. Some of you are talking like you are in this camp. I actually don't think you are, because I don't think you'd store reeds for months under water, or in a dessicator. Or do you think even that wouldn't matter to playability, once you got a reed going?

The only way reed storage humidity control matters is if HS has an effect on reed playability independent of HP. Some of you must believe this, then... right? And the only argument is over how big an effect HS is, compared to HP, and how careful one needs to be about storage to control HS.

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: bmcgar 2017
Date:   2014-10-25 08:21

Stan, that's precisely "where I'm at."

It would be silly for anyone to say that controlling the humidity of reeds while in storage has absolutely no affect on "HS," especially for the extremes you mention: long-term storage in water and complete dessication. But based on my own experience, the practices of other competent and sensitive players, and what seems reasonable, I think it's a stretch to say that the affects of humidity control for stored reeds within the range that people talk about here is significant; that playing characteristics are affected enough by storage humidity in that range to warrant special handling, especially to the extent that some people go to control it.

(No charge for the run-on sentence.)

B.

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: Jarmo Hyvakko 
Date:   2014-10-25 12:15


When you buy the hygrometer, the most useful place to use it is outside your reed humidifier. Because what matters is, what is the humidity of the environment where you are living in. Those who live in 50-75% don't need a humidor because the world is their humidor. But the rest of us who live f.ex. in a very dry climate need it desperately. I believe what kills the reeds is the constant wetting-drying of them. That weakens the fibres of the reeds even more than playing them. The other thing is warping. What I understand, it means the thing, when the edges of the bottom of the reed turn to either direction causing the bottom not to be flat anymore. Just what happens to any wood-board!

Using a two-way humidor helps in this. It's true that using a humidor may cause a new reed warping even quicker but that reed would have warped anyway. You just have to reface the bottom with a piece of glass and sandpaper.

I have been using a twoway humidifying system (rico reed vitalizer, the bags are made by boveda) for years. I try to have at least a dozen of playable reeds at the same time in order to rotate them. While playing I put the cap on always when there is time. And if I have a longer break, even 15 mins, I put the reed back into the humidifier. In orchestra I change the reed during every break and even in concerts I usually change the reed during the intermission. Result: the oldest still playable reeds are almost one year old. And believe or not, after the summer holiday I can start my practising with the same reeds!

-Yarmoh

Jarmo Hyvakko, Principal Clarinet, Tampere Philharmonic, Finland

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: Paul Aviles 
Date:   2014-10-25 13:39

Yeah, maybe my 'extreme' example threw the argument under the bus a little bit. The whole process of "breaking in a reed," is based on re-hydration. What happens to a reed over a month or two of playing with regard to hydration has always been beyond my comprehension. I just do the most I can to keep some moisture around (in my little plastic baggy) so as to allow the reed to stay in a 'play ready' condition.


Bottom line, you should have a hygrometer in the room where you practice (a $10 one from a hardware store is good enough) and if you dip below 60%, then you need to crank up the humidifier. If the humidity level in your practice room goes above 75%, you can dehumidify your air (slightly).


When I actually put a hygrometer in my Boston apartment I was shocked to see it at around 30%. That's when I started boiling water like crazy on the top of the stove (ok...... that's the ghetto way out of the problem).






..............Paul Aviles



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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: Jarmo Hyvakko 
Date:   2014-10-25 13:54

Welcome to Finland Paul! That is exactly the case with humidity (humility?) in Finland during the winter (concert season) You are absolutely right in re-hydration. I have found the twoway humidifier an excellent way of gently rehydrating the reeds. I just test the reed with few notes if it is anyhow promising and put it in the humidor for a day or two before I little by little start working on them.

Yarmoh

Jarmo Hyvakko, Principal Clarinet, Tampere Philharmonic, Finland

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2014-10-25 19:34

Thanks for all the great comments.

Clearly, if you live and/or play in a really dry environment, you'd better pay attention to this issue. And if you live and/or play in a really wet place, ditto but perhaps not to the same extent. Though if you're too far in either extreme, you may be in some trouble no matter what you do. Better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.

And when my mail order hygrometer arrives, I'll find out (over a period of months) how severe my own environment is. I kind of doubt it's extreme in either direction.

I'm still a bit confused over folks in the middle, that is- with no humidity care taken at all, reeds would see some variation of humidity but nothing extreme. For them, is there still a benefit to humidipaks, vitalizers, ziplocs, special reed holders, and such? Enough to justify a little bit of trouble and expense? ...or a lot? Is there any consensus out there?

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: kdk 2017
Date:   2014-10-25 20:45

fskelley wrote:

> I'm still a bit confused over folks in the middle, that is-
> with no humidity care taken at all, reeds would see some
> variation of humidity but nothing extreme. For them, is there
> still a benefit to humidipaks, vitalizers, ziplocs, special
> reed holders, and such? Enough to justify a little bit of
> trouble and expense? ...or a lot? Is there any consensus out
> there?
>


I don't know about a consensus, but my vote is that in my environment - Philadelphia northeastern suburb - I have never noticed a benefit to humidifying my reeds on the several occasions when I've tried it. I don't have warping reeds. My reeds *are* ready to play more quickly when humidified, but I don't mind the extra wetting time at the beginning of a playing session. Some of my reeds last for months without the help - and some are done after a couple of weeks. I've just never found any of this to be different with or without humidifiers.

Karl

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: DavidBlumberg 
Date:   2014-10-25 21:09

In Philadelphia - I absolutely have with students reeds - if their humidity pack dries out, their reed often warps.

Every reed I see warped is due to a dried out humidity pack.

Unless they have played way too much on a brand new reed, with the pack there is no reed warpage.

http://www.SkypeClarinetLessons.com


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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: kdk 2017
Date:   2014-10-25 21:29

I take better care of my reeds in other ways than most students do. Using humidipaks can help prevent warping by preventing the reeds from ever drying out completely, but drying and storing them with only one side exposed to evaporation is the main cause of warping. If the reed never completely dries, it probably *is* less likely to warp. But humidification isn't the only way to avoid the problem.

Karl

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2014-10-25 21:30

At the top of this thread I noted that Brad Behn's AW reed order page insists on humidity control, and how that made me begin pondering the whole issue. So after all this discussion I decided to ask him his thoughts. With his permission I'll quote some of that exchange.

I asked, "Are you insisting on humidity control for the AW reeds just as kind of insurance in case a buyer lives or plays in extreme dry or wet conditions? Or do you think all players in all conditions ought to be using reed humidity control, for all brands of reeds? Thanks!"

Brad replied, "I am suggesting that reed consistency, longevity, and your quality of playing experience is improved with humidity control. The idea being that if a reed goes from totally wet (from playing) to totally dry (depending on atmospheric conditions), this can happen quickly (not good), and it can be a shock on the reed causing it to warp or more quickly deteriorate from the extreme contrasts therein. So, by humidity controlling a reed, it goes from totally wet, to a safe (mold free, yet slightly humid environment - around 70-75%). This in turn keeps the reed from shocking contrasts in humidity, and helps stabilize it and prevents warpage... I do note that humidity is much more of a crucial thing in dry climates. So Florida may offer different challenges - like how to prevent reeds from water logging. In the most humid times of year, I expect it would be fine to simply leave a reed out on your desk overnight, pick it up next morning and it is probably ready to play. But in Colorado - if you do that, the reed is a shriveled up prune. It simply kills reeds in dry climates to leave them without humidity-protection. The great thing about the Boveda packs is that it regulates to a consistent humidity point. You can get a bunch of different humidity levels - to properly suit your individual needs as well."

Thank you, Brad!

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

Post Edited (2014-10-25 21:31)

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: kdk 2017
Date:   2014-10-25 22:20

fskelley wrote:

> Brad replied, "... The idea being that if a reed goes from
> totally wet (from playing) to totally dry (depending on
> atmospheric conditions), this can happen quickly (not good),
> and it can be a shock on the reed causing it to warp or more
> quickly deteriorate from the extreme contrasts therein...."

Although I have always kind of accepted this, at least regarding overall deterioration, on an intuitive level, I'd love to see a systematic study of the effect that wetting and drying really has on the cane fibers, both in quickly drying situations and ones in which the drying is slowed or at some point stopped by some humidification process. All I have to go on, as is the case for most of us, is my own experience, which I know is not the same as that of some others here.

Intuition is fine, practical decisions based on experience are better, but it would be really interesting to see a demonstration of real deterioration not deduced from the performance of the reed over time, but based on some kind of observation of the cane structure itself.

Karl

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: alanporter 
Date:   2014-10-25 23:21

Having read and digested all of the above, I'm so glad that I only play on synthetic reeds.

tiaroa@shaw.ca

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: WhitePlainsDave 
Date:   2014-10-28 00:50

I have found that placing only my synthetic reeds under humidity control vastly improves their capabilities compared to cane. (Yuc)

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2014-10-28 01:10

Based on my own synthetic reed experiences, I would compare the situation to the guy who avoided arthritis pain by taking cold showers every morning. And his friend said, "Oh, you have cold showers INSTEAD."

http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=401328&t=401328
see my post 2014-02-25 20:50.

I sincerely hope some of you have had wonderful experiences with Legeres and other synthetic reeds. And perhaps one day I will rejoin you.

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2014-11-06 07:39

My hygrometer arrived today from China, nice little gadget about 2" diameter dial, no battery needed, easy to read, and it was only $1.45. I do not understand the economics of this (I couldn't package and mail it across the street for $1.45), but that's a topic for another thread on another forum.

I'm reading a consistent 40% in my office / music room this evening, which I think is pretty dry. It's nice outside, a/c not running much. I bet it is even drier in summer and winter, we'll see. In my bag of reeds with the humidipak I read 65-70%, right on target. Brad suggests humidipaks last about 3 months. With the hygrometer I can monitor and replace pretty much exactly when needed.

No dramatic improvement to my reeds happened when I started humidity control, but on the other hand I've upgraded several things all at once so it would be tough to isolate the effects. No reason to stop now.

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

Post Edited (2014-11-06 08:49)

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: WhitePlainsDave 
Date:   2014-11-06 23:26

I use a container of my choice with the Boveda humidity packs. Whether you buy the Bovdea packs directly, from someone in the humidification business (e.g. a cigar retailer) or through Rico/D'Addario shouldn't matter as it regards the product's performance.

And I like the results. I think my reeds warp less, are ready to play faster, and last longer. But my observations are purely anecdotal and subject to my own biases. I could be wrong, or even if the cause and effect is there and I'm right, the benefits I get may not be transferrable to others or overstated.

A young aspiring player noticed my doing this once at a community band rehearsal. I basically gave the player the same talk from above, with the stipulation that she check with her teacher: an extremely recognized name in clarinet circles, on this subject matter.

So the student did, and reported back to me. She said her teacher said he was fine with this humidification, even though he didn't do it himself, but had an even better idea how she could improve her performance.

As told to me second hand, the teacher opened up Klose's 2nd manual to a particular page and said, "get this perfect by next week at 110 beats per minute."

.............

I suspect many who contribute here know there's no substitute for practice, and are at such a fine level in their craft that they seek marginal improvements in play through instrument and reed diligence---and who could blame them?

But for those reading this who don't know so, humidification isn't the holy grail of clarinet playing, as there is none.

Julian Bliss drives this home better than I possibly could here.

http://youtu.be/zUVNYVKA0z4?t=41s

Remember, this is not a dig at the previous advanced players postings who seem to know a LOT about this subject matter. It's just an attempt to put things in context that I suspect a lot of these posters would agree with (i.e. practice makes perfect), even if they haven't expressly said so themselves here.

Yes, get the best equipment, reeds, and learn the best in reed care. But then put your heart and soul into Klose, or Lazarus, or 30 different and wonderful practice methods, knowing that for decades, clarinetists survived without these humidification steps. Know that if a reed isn't doing everything you want it to, that it's quite possible that it may still be close to the best reeds will delivery for you, and the rest comes from the ability thatI suspect most players posting above already have. Two ways I measure clarinet growth is 1) when reeds you could have never played on in the past become ones you live with today, due to ability and reed care improvements, and 2) to know when it's the reed, not you, and the cane needs to be trashed.

(That doesn't mean we should turn our backs on reed care and equipment technologies. Here's Karl Leister, one of my favorites, telling us "how good we have it today," and how "back in his day 'clarinets would explode without warning'."

Snippets of that: http://youtu.be/uJrZfe3sTjM?t=4m17s)

Okay--that's an exaggeration into fiction! No exploding instruments. But he's pretty harsh about us not putting the blame of our reeds.

..............

Two final thoughts.

1) If I were to guess why this works I would say that benefits are achieved from reducing the difference between the storage and playing humidity of the read, HS ans HP as the original poster puts it. I feel (and I could be wrong) that a dry reed experiences physical trauma as its wetted because reeds often dont absorb this water evenly at first, causing them to warp and suffer damage when done repeatedly, as dry cane, takes on such water. (Maybe as it loses it too.)

I submit that HS doesn't change or affect HP, but rather reduces trauma to the reed incured when the reed goes from HS to HP, and that the closer these 2 readings are, the less the trauma.

2) If it's all about performance, let me share something I think IS detrimental to clarinet play: spending more time on humdification that the benefits it may yield, and at the expense of time on meaningful practice.

(That doesn't mean taking a break to chat on this wonderful site about such stuff with experts like many above, is anything but good.)

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: Paul Aviles 
Date:   2014-11-07 00:05

Hey Stan,

Now if you can get your practice room up to about 60% with a cheap humidifier, you'd really have something!





..........Paul Aviles



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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2015-05-31 03:35

A couple of things...

1) I read I could recharge the Humidipaks, and think I've got the procedure down. Ought to save a few $ and some trouble (or substitute different trouble). Details on request.

2) I reported on another thread I think I have been causing myself trouble by not adequately drying reeds before returning to humidity controlled storage. So for now I deleted the Humidipak (so I'm at 40% now not 70%) to dry things out, and I'm keeping wet reeds out until they dry. And play seemed to get better. We will see where this goes.

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: Paul Aviles 
Date:   2015-05-31 05:11

I don't think that came up in this discussion before! Allowing the reed to become dry to the touch, and visible inspection is important. Usually though this takes care of itself as I get my clarinet all swabbed out and everything packed up (a rather long process usually).


I also would like to compare/contrast this with Ed Palanker's discipline of only wetting the vamp of the reed. I think the reed needs to have a "neutral" state so that it can work well on a mouthpiece where it really only gets wet down to the bottom of the window as you play. In the "hydro-case" or whatever we use, the entire reed will be subject to equal amounts of moisture.


As I've said in the past, I dunk the butt end first for a few seconds then let the vamp end of the reed sit in a small water bottle for a few minutes before I start the playing process. My method works fine for me, but as stated above letting the reed "dry" evenly before going back into storage may be the real reason this works well for me.





...............Paul Aviles



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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2015-05-31 06:51

Hey Paul- I saw your comments on both threads. Actually, I DID think about this before, but had decided that to let the reed dry too much (to match the 40% humidity room) would be to allow it to go too far. So I decided to continue putting them away wet (or partially wet- not consistent I admit) into the controlled space.

I really wish or hope (or something) that it actually is not that sensitive, that there is a reasonable zone of OK on all this. Or we are truly miserable, like someone who is comfortable at 70 F, but is chilled at 69 and sweating at 71. Science escapes us and we are left with a zillion anecdotes that tell us conflicting things. Sigh. BTW I am doing pretty well with my new Legeres, that's another story for another thread, LOL.

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2015-11-23 08:03

Another quick note here that I removed the humidipaks from my storage container a couple of weeks ago, and now it's running 40-50% instead of 65-70% humidity. And reed playability is up or at least is not down. I have suspected for a while that 70% was contributing to reed "mushiness" for lack of a better word (not the same as a reed being too soft and needing a trim, and not the same as being out of balance either).

Possibly this means I need 40% humidipaks- or I can just abandon any control on humidity (? I think not).

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: cxgreen48 
Date:   2015-11-23 10:00

I've noticed that my reeds generally sound more vibrant in low humidity than higher humidity. "Mushier" when using a humidipak, I guess the same as Stan.

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: Paul Aviles 
Date:   2015-11-23 16:26

I don't really do much for reeds in storage (not on the horn while playing that is) besides throwing a plastic sandwich bag over the reed case (NOT closed, just flapped over loosely). I really just rely on the moisture that's in the reed from playing to stay in there, so I'm sure it's no where near 70%.


I am more concerned with the prevailing humidity in the room. As long as that is at or above 50%, things are usually fine.


HEY WAIT A MINUTE !!!!!!


I am now "Paul from Orlando!!" I can tell you from the two weeks I've been here that YOU DON'T NEED ANY MORE HUMIDITY IN FLORIDA !!!!!!


So, this morning (Nov 23rd), it's a frigid 50 degrees and I'm sure the locals are cranking up the heat. I bet the humidity in their houses has gone down to about 70%.




...............Paul (From Orlando) Aviles



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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: fskelley 
Date:   2015-11-23 19:46

PAUL- you're HERE? We must get together. I'll shoot you an email. I owe you for your embouchure suggestions and other helpful advice.

60%-70% was the suggestion from somewhere. And I've pretty consistently measured 40-50% in my playing space (office). Now I think I should have left well enough alone. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. As I've said elsewhere, clarinet is a nonlinear problem. Which is to say, if 70% was better than 50% for some given combination of equipment, 50% could still be better for some OTHER combination of equipment.

I think we can all agree that 0% or 10% is bad.

Stan in Orlando

EWI 4000S with modifications

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: Ralph Katz 
Date:   2015-11-25 19:57

In Orlando you may have to dehumidify reeds or they might mold. My nephew in Corpus Christi had this problem.

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 Re: Reed humidity control
Author: Paul Aviles 
Date:   2015-11-25 21:01

Yeah, still trying to figure out what needs to be done out here. After two day of FRIGID temperatures in the sixties, the relative humidity in the apartment is still 70% !!!




............Paul Aviles

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