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Re: "stuff" in the sound

Author: jhoyla
Date: 2010-07-04 11:23

That extra "buzz" is usually a sign that a section of the blade tip is vibrating independently. There can be many causes of this, but I will begin by describing features that EVERY good reed tip, whatever scraping style, MUST have.

(note that I am talking only about the tip - this is almost always the source of buzz)

1. Gradation. The tip MUST get evenly thinner from the back to the front edge, and from the middle to the sides.

2. Balance. All four quarters of the tip must be of similar thickness and gradation.

Almost every other piece of advice you will hear regarding tip adjustment can be seen as "corollary advice" to these two basic principles, but here are a few specific defects to look for:

1. humps, or troughs in the reed tip - smooth them out
2. thick corners - the extreme corners of the tip must be the thinnest part of the reed, the sides and edges must be thinner than the center of the tip
3. too much taken out of the spine through the tip - not much to be done here, unless you can thin the rest of the tip to make it even thinner than the central spine
4. uneven quadrants - try and make all four quadrants look exactly the same.

In really disfunctional reeds the buzziness can start in other parts - but my money is on the tip. Especially since you say it is hard to put your plaque into your reed! This immediately suggests to me that your corners are too thick.

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