 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Morrigan
Date: 2007-05-13 23:12
I'm having a very consistent problem with reeds (Vandoren V12, 3's, from flow-pack) since getting a new Greg Smith mouthpiece (my previous mp was a Greg as well).
A reed will play well loud, but when played softly, it is breathy, hashy (if that makes sense), and buzzy and just doesn't vibrate much.
This happens from new to broken in, from hard to soft, from unbalanced to balanced. Of course I don't claim to be a master of adjusting reeds to this is why I ask here - does anyone have any suggestions on what to do to get rid of this problem?
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Author: GBK
Date: 2007-05-13 23:51
Experiment with any of the following remedies:
1. From your description it sounds as if the tip is not vibrating fast enough and/or evenly. Remove a very small amount of material at the corner of each side of the tip.
2. To eliminate fuzziness, especially in the lower register, at softer dynamics, try taking a bit of material off of each corner of the lower side of the reed, at the beginning of the second cut.
3. The heart of the V12 reeds is often too thick and not evenly tapered. With one or two strokes at a time across the heart and tapering to the sides, take off a bit of material.
...GBK
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2007-05-14 01:36
Of course I am gonna say somethin' different.
Since this is a "new" mouthpiece my guess is (since all your reeds manifest this character) that the lay is shorter than your previous mouthpiece. I too have a Smith (K - A183) and have had a similar experience when bouncing back from a stint on a Vandoren M15 (very long lay). Try taking less mouthpiece, or variations on that theme.
.........Paul Aviles
Post Edited (2007-05-14 02:16)
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Author: grifffinity
Date: 2007-05-14 02:05
Paul Aviles wrote:
> Of course I am gonna say somethin' different.
>
> Since this is a "new" mouthpiece my guess is (since all your
> reeds manifest this character) that the lay is shorter than
> your previous mouthpiece.
>
I have no experience with this mouthpiece, but if the lay is shorter how about trying Vandoren Blue Box instead of V-12's?
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2007-05-14 07:14
I use the same reeds, Vandoren V12 strength 3, and I don't have any of the problems you describe. Since you say "since getting a new Greg Smith mouthpiece" it seems to me that it's because of the mouthpiece. Probably wrong match of reed type/strength and your mouthpiece.
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Author: JJAlbrecht
Date: 2007-05-14 20:45
I would suggest speaking/corresponding with Greg Smith directly. It's his mouthpiece, and he should be able to offer concerete suggestions.
Jeff
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