 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Musikat
Date: 2017-05-25 04:59
I don't mean play testing them for various characteristics, but how to you get them to try? From researching on this board it seems like the best thing to do is to try several at once, but there are no music stores that I can find near me that have what I want to try (Moennig and Chadash), so do I order them from Amazon or a music store, paying for all of them, then send back what I don't want? That is a lot of money up front and what if something happens to them? Unlikely I know, but still.... I was lucky with the mouthpiece process in that Gregory Smith just sent them to me and I only had to pay shipping to and from. I went to Walter Grabner's house and was able to play test several to select the one to pay for and take for the trial period. But the barrel was a spur of the moment purchase and I took the one he handed me with the idea that it was optimized to work well with his mouthpiece.
I have decided to definitely keep the Gregory Smith 1+, though, and although I like what the Grabner barrel does for it much more than my old barrel (which was the wrong size for this mouthpiece at 67 mm when it plays low already),
I have never tried either of these other barrels. Gregory Smith recommends the Chadash with his mouthpiece, and I understand both this and Moennig are designed to improve R13's specifically. Unfortunately he is out of stock on barrels right now so can't send me any to try before my trial is up on the Grabner.
So how do you try barrels, typically, and how many of each type would be a good number? Can I get just one of each? Two?
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Author: Musikat
Date: 2017-05-25 05:02
By the way, I am in the Baltimore/D.C. area so if anyone knows of a music store or repair place that sells these barrels to try in person, please let me know!
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Author: Richie
Date: 2017-05-25 06:59
I know buffet's aftermarket barrels are very good, especially for their clarinets, but have you considered backun? They have exceptional customer service and a trial program.
Post Edited (2017-05-25 06:59)
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Author: Musikat
Date: 2017-05-25 07:16
As much as I would love to have a MoBa barrel-- and bell (because they are so pretty), I don't think the tone/projection is what I am looking for with this setup, from what I have heard and experienced. If I could go try a bunch I might just for fun, but the two I have had the chance to try (one from a fellow player and one that was being sold used) both fit loosely on my clarinet and did nothing special for the sound. Too bad, though.
I am really looking to compare how the barrels that are designed for my instrument (to fix intonation and other R-13 specific issues) will sound in comparison to the other one I am trying, which definitely improves the sound but doesn't seem to change much tuning-wise. Besides, these are what the mouthpiece maker recommends so I want to see how that sounds.
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Author: tkillian
Date: 2017-05-25 16:24
Lisa's Clarinets in Chicago.
She sent me 5 moennig barrels to try out. You pick one send the others back. Awesome.
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Author: tkillian
Date: 2017-05-26 00:10
My new barrel changed nothing tuning wise. It just made the clarinet sound like it was plugged into an amplifier. .i.e. opened it up.
Mouthpiece and barrel seem like the two most important pieces of a clarinet
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2017-05-27 07:14
Be really careful of all after market barrels and make sure you can return them without a "Restocking fee." Often a store may charge up to 20 percent. So ask before you buy.
I was kind of a student of Hans Moennig. Learned a lot from him. When he ordered barrels from Buffet often they weren't right and he had a temper. He would have to ream them out correctly. So my advice is to avoid Moennig barrels unless you can find one on ebay or from someone that got a barrel directly from Hans. You may find one, they are still around and in good condition.
I just bought 2 adjustable Chadash barrels last week in person with Guy. I did test several of his before finding that one that rang and played in tune. These are reverse bores, same as the Moennig barrels but you can adjust the pitch. Several of them were good, but I did find 2 that really popped. Some were on the dead side. The ones I got from Guy are fat, so I may mill them down a bit in certain areas. This might help the vibrations of the barrels. Guy is hard to carry on a conversation with. So be careful and be ready to say no if the barrels don't work for you. He doesn't like hearing the word NO.
I've tried other brands, Bob Scott makes some decent ones. Don't like the Backun's, but some people do. I think a lot of people agree with me, because you can find these on ebay for as little as $25.
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2017-05-27 07:27
I must add that there are other barrel makers out there. And I'm sure some are VERY good. Sadly I haven't met very many. These people are usually very gifted.
A good barrel maker may ask you what the measurements of the upper joint bore opening is and the opening of the bore of the end of your mouthpiece. These are often so important. You can buy some inexpensive calipers from Harbor Freight for about $20 or less and this will surely help make that barrel sound and play much better in tune.
It's really an art form and a skill. The A Clarinet bore is almost always smaller.
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2017-05-28 16:17
Probably the best way to try a variety of barrels is to go to large clarinet clinic-workshop like Clarinetfest where many different manufactures have their products to try. There are so many good ones out there these days.
ESP eddiesclarinet.com
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