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Mike Lowenstern/Earspasm's CPAD

Author: SecondTry
Date: 2026-02-07 21:48

CPAD stands for Clarinet Performance Analysis Dashboard. Pardon if this was discussed already but I think this new 411. The acronym's mine, not Mike's, born of keeping this thread subject title of limited length.

Thanks to David Kinder for tangentially exposing us to this tool when he discussed Mike's review of the Fox clarinet in the recent "Fox Clarinet" thread.

I wish I could provide you with a single link to get you to the service I am talking about, much as one may exist that I don't know of. Instead I'll provide a sample link and explanation:

https://www.earspasm.com/products/backun-model-q-bba-clarinet

(Then click view model dashboard on the right.)

In short, Mike has analyzed every (Soprano?) clarinet he sells and you can find this analysis under the clarinet he sells, that you first select to review from his eapspasm.com site.

Despite all the limitations (I can hear the naysayers) this seems to really be a great source for making comparisons across instruments.

And sure, let's get it out of the way, Mike's but one player, he hasn't tried 10 of every model he sells, (Mike probably wishes he only had the capital to keep 10 of every model in stock) he hasn't tried models he doesn't sell, these tests don't cover everything, etc....but I think he deserves kudos for providing about the best starting point I've seen in making informed comparisons.

Of course, we are each but one player, buying typically one instrument, that *for us* represents the best compromises in play that these tests may or may not support.

IMHO, critics should feel to produce a better analysis for less money (Mike's reviews are free.)

Post Edited (2026-02-08 00:45)

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Re: Mike Lowenstern/Earspasm's CPAD

Author: David H. Kinder
Date: 2026-02-07 22:08

ClarinetPages.com did some of this as well, but he also discloses the mouthpiece and barrel used in the analysis. It's not a recording, but it is interesting.

https://sites.google.com/clarinetpages.net/clarinetpages/

Ridenour AureA Bb clarinet
Ridenour Homage mouthpiece
Vandoren Optimum Silver ligature (plate 1)
Vandoren Traditional #5 reeds
ATG System and Cordier Reed Trimmer

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Re: Mike Lowenstern/Earspasm's CPAD

Author: paulyb
Date: 2026-02-07 23:51

Mike's reviews *are* free but they are also a promotional tool. They encourage people to visit his site / store and explore the clarinets he stocks (and possibly compare them to their own clarinet if they happen to play one that he stocks). This makes good business sense and I definitely approve. He probably also had some fun setting it up.

There are, however, a few simple (and slightly less simple) things he could do to improve things significantly:

- State what mouthpiece and reed these tests were performed with (from the video the mouthpiece is a BD something, possibly non-13 series)
- Normalise for best average tuning across a wide range of notes (e.g. low G to high C) rather than to middle B
- Write a short blog post describing roughly what the repeatability of these tests is (e.g. +/- 5¢) when testing the same clarinet on different days
- Add a short Your Mileage May Vary warning on the results saying that you might get different results depending on mouthpiece / reed / physiology / playing mechanics etc.

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