 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: John Peacock
Date: 2019-02-19 16:21
Attachment: 20190219_105843.jpg (628k)
I was just trying out a recent Buffet RC Prestige, bearing the new logo. Not only is the new design utterly lacking in style, but it seems they can't even be bothered to put it on straight - well, what can you expect for £3600 these days? The best to be said is that this is still just foil pressed onto the wood, so it will wear off in a few months, and then you won't have to look at it. When you compare with the beautiful deeply engraved logos from Yamaha or Uebel, Buffet's offering is just so cheap and nasty.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2019-02-19 18:24
Um...........
The last time I checked we PLAY a clarinet. Functionality is the important part of musical instruments. I am trying very hard to check myself here. There are aspects of the Buffet clarinet that can be better. For some reason, they use perfunctory felt based pads that will clearly wear out within a year or so of descent use.
However
I have recently procured an R13 Greenline which is best horn I've ever played. I immediately turned around and did a $400 repadding job (using Quartz Resonance Pads)....incredible sound!
New logo; no problem
The last Uebel Superior I tried was irrevocably out of tune with itself and I sent it back (nice logo though).
That all said, for me the Prestige are a bit too bright. You may want to give the R13 a go.
.......................Paul Aviles
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Author: John Peacock
Date: 2019-02-19 21:44
Paul: you're right that all I should care about is how it plays. But first of all psychology does come into it: an ugly instrument is less likely to put me in the frame of mind to make a beautiful sound. And if a manufacturer can't be bothered to put any effort into something simple like a logo, what chance is there that they've done any careful adjustment of toneholes and pad clearances to optimise tuning? I see the logo as a bit like the canary in the coalmine.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2019-02-19 22:01
Hey John,
I want to apologize. I am sorry for a rather inappropriate diatribe.
There are some folks though that may take aesthetic considerations a bit too seriously. I've some students that are thoroughly disgusted by all the "spit" on the floor after rehearsal and I have to talk them down from THAT.
Speaking of going in with certain expectations, I would also put in a good word for the Greenline concept. The material doe not "settle" after manufacture and does not contort due to exposure to moisture over time. So the instrument you try will be the instrument fine tuned just before leaving the factory. It makes a HUGE difference!
I see your point of concern but I firmly believe that like the finishing process (crappy), the logo and stamping are the concerns of "others" in the process and do not in any way reflect the workmanship of the horns themselves. One last example to put a fine point on it. My Wuriltzer 100Cs (which today would be $20,000 worth of horns) had the cork silencers placed on the adjustment screw side of the mechanism........stupid, and had to be redone. So $20,000 doesn't get you much as far as finishing is concerned either.
....................Paul Aviles
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Author: fernie121
Date: 2019-02-19 23:46
I guess my biggest issue is with the fact the prices do not reflect the quality of the instrument. The cheap aesthetic of modern buffets could be forgiven if the prices were made more accessible. But so far, prices have only gone in one direction.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2019-02-20 01:00
And there it is.
There is no lack of quality amongst the Buffet top of the line instruments. I found a SEVERE lack of quality with one particular Uebel Superior. The pitch was NOT fixable. At least Buffet makes the pitch tolerances in a way where if it does not come out just right, there is a fix for it. In that sense they make a wonderfully usable horn.
I'll take the crappy logo.
....................Paul Aviles
Post Edited (2019-02-20 02:06)
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2019-02-20 03:47
Top end Buffets are by no way finished to a standard worthy of their cost - I'm appalled they can get away with it to be honest.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Caroline Smale
Date: 2019-02-20 04:05
I agree with John, that logo is just tacky.
Leblanc went the same way when they introduced the Concerto and Opus models.
I have never been a fan of bright gold logos though. Many of the instruments made in the first half of the 1900s had a simple engraved logo but no colouring added. I think that does look classy.
When I bought my "new" Leblancs in 1960, I immediately rubbed linseed oil into the engraving of the logos to dull them down to look more antique.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2019-02-20 04:14
If you thought the old Leblanc logos were tacky, then they're nothing by the logos they started using in the early '90s with the advent of the then revamped model lineup - some were retina-burningly garish, but the saving grace was they were foil stamped on fairly shallow, so they wore off easily.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: J. J.
Date: 2019-02-20 04:22
Love the new logo. Even if I wanted to criticize it, “tacky” isn’t the right word.
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