 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Kontra
Date: 2010-10-18 12:47
This clarinet seems to have everything I'm looking for in a bass... 2 piece body, wood, automatic double register vent, low Eb... anyone have any experience with these?
Thanks!
Post Edited (2010-10-18 12:48)
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Author: SteveG_CT
Date: 2010-10-18 15:08
I have a Pedler custombuilt bass and have been fairly happy with it. The tone is nice and the intonation is decent on my instrument. They play well when kept in good adjustment. That being said, they go out of adjustment if you so much as look at them funny, especially the double register mechanism.
The keywork is for the most part fairly comfortable providing that you don't have small hands. The low Eb is tough as there is no left-hand key for it and it's a bit of a stretch unless you have very long fingers. Other than that there aren't many ergonomic issues as far as fingerings go. As with many older basses the mouthpiece angle is nearly horizontal so it is a pain to play while standing and you will need to learn to look around the neck to read music. I suspect that you could alleviate this by having the neck re-angled by someone like Dave Spiegelthal however.
Overall I'd say Pedler's are decent lower-intermediate level bass clarinets. They should be fine for community band duty but look elsewhere if you plan on playing at a higher level.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2010-10-18 15:35
You'd never have a LH low Eb on any Boehm system bass clarinets, no matter how good an idea it would be to have one.
The only clarinets that had a LH low Eb fitted are Selmer full Mazzeos and basset clarinets.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: SteveG_CT
Date: 2010-10-18 19:27
A Pedler bass in good shape is probably a better instrument than what 95% of high school students will have. My high school only had a pair of beat-up Bundy's for bass clarinets and I suspect that this is fairly typical. My Pedler is a fine instrument for playing in the community band but to be honest I'd rather have something better and have been keeping my eyes open for a Selmer, Kohlert, or Buffet.
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Author: Kontra
Date: 2010-10-18 19:39
I'm currently playing my school's Selmer 1430 and would like to step up. Sadly, my budget is maybe about $1000. How would you compare a Pedler that I could get for cheap to a wooden Leblanc or Conn (No double register vent on either, and I always assume that the bass needs repairs). I just want a bass that will get me through high school and maybe college if I dont decide to upgrade further.
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Author: GLHopkins
Date: 2010-10-19 04:01
Find a used Leblanc on that auction site. You should be able to find one under a grand in decent shape.
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Author: SteveG_CT
Date: 2010-10-19 04:25
The Pedler would be a fair bit better than the Selmer/Bundy you're currently playing if you get one in good shape. I had the same budget as you when I bought my Pedler several months ago and was in more or less the same dilema as you. A $1000 budget puts you basically half way between the good student horns and the cheaper pro horns on the used market.
Although the Pedler has a double register mechanism I would probably rank it closely to the better single register horns such as a Noblet. It would definitely get you through high school and maybe college unless you will be playing in an orchestra (in which case you pretty much need a low-C horn).
You might want to contact Dave Spiegelthal and see if he has any used bass clarinets for sale. I know he had a really nice Kohlert for sale at around your price range recently but I'm not sure if he's sold it yet.
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