 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: mmatisoff
Date: 2020-12-23 19:50
Up until a few days ago, I played a Vandoren B50 mouthpiece on my bass clarinet. I use Vandoren Blue Box and Vandoren V12 2.5 strength reeds. I wasn't getting the response or sound I wanted with this setup, so I began searching for an MP with a smaller tip opening. I play on Rico Reserve MP and Vandoren M15 mouthpieces on my Bb Soprano with Pilgerstorfer Dolce 3.0 strength reeds, so I decided to try the Fobes MPs: San Francisco CF and San Francisco RR (both have considerably narrower tip openings). The Fobes MPs were worlds apart from the Vandoren (for me, at least). It takes very little effort to play CF. Whereas the RR facing was good, the CF gave me more control, better resonance, and a clearer sound (even throat Bb -- better but still not my favorite note).
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Author: clarin-ed
Date: 2020-12-23 20:57
Congrats on finding something that works well for you! I have to ask–is it the Zinner Fobes blank or the latest 10k model? I personally like the zinner blanks and haven't had as much success with the 10k blanks, though I know some people really like them.
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Author: kilo
Date: 2020-12-24 13:30
I really appreciate my (quite old) Fobes CF; I can play it with regular 3½ Legeres and get a clear ringing tone. However, I just bought one of Walter's new Hi Tech mouthpieces, a "White Velvet". I'm still dialing in the right reed set-up but I'll post my review in a week or so.
Does anyone have an explanation for the current popularity of the B50? (Other than that it works for some players!)
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Author: Ed
Date: 2020-12-24 16:23
Clark makes great stuff. His bass mouthpieces are superb.
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Author: Mojo
Date: 2020-12-24 18:17
On the B50, I think players are impressed by the louder sound capabilities of a wider tip opening. But I find there is a trade off. If you need to articulate something fast, it is a lot more difficult with a wider tip opening.
MojoMP.com
Mojo Mouthpiece Work LLC
MojoMouthpieceWork@yahoo.com
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Author: Max S-D
Date: 2020-12-24 19:50
The B50 offers something that not much else on the market does, at least from major manufacturers. I made the switch from a Fobes to a B50 a few years back because I much prefer the feeling of headroom that it gives, especially in the upper register. For me, it gave a broader tone that felt a lot more stable without sacrificing much in potential for sweetness.
I think it's especially good for non-classical players, though I played classical music on mine quite often.
I personally prefer the feel of getting my resistance more from the mouthpiece and not the reed. It makes me feel like I can relax the embouchure more and let my voicing do more of the work.
I've since gone off the deep end experimenting with more open mouthpieces, but the B50 was a great option for me that really opened my eyes a bit in terms of understanding my own preferences. I'm very glad that Vandoren took a chance on something that is a relative outlier in this pretty conservative market.
But, of course, it's not for everyone.
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Author: Mojo
Date: 2020-12-25 19:00
I have a couple larger than the B50 if you to try them.
MojoMP.com
Mojo Mouthpiece Work LLC
MojoMouthpieceWork@yahoo.com
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Author: Bob Bernardo
Date: 2020-12-27 23:00
Contact Fobes or Behn mouthpieces
Designer of - Vintage 1940 Cicero Mouthpieces and the La Vecchia mouthpieces
Yamaha Artist 2015
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