[MD1032]

I use Vandoren reeds on my Clarinet. I have a student B-12 (plastic) that I use. Great instrument, and fine for marching band since it's plastic. I used those really cheesy Rico reeds that the school supplies the first few years I played. I switched to Vandoren and never looked back.

I ran out of reeds and used a Rico for a day until I got another box and it was simply AWFUL. The sound quality was like putting a muffler inside my clarinet. Oh gosh, and the fizzly sound was awful too!!

Just curious as to what you guys use.

Hey, why should I strive for the best audio equipment and recordings when I can hear it live and play it?

 

[D-EJ915]

The bad thing about Wood clarinets is that they sound a lot different based on what the weather's like...even more so than regular instruments. It's terrible sometimes, luckily I play the Baritone (B.B.C.)

, Vandorens are stiffer than normal, correct?

 

[Zanth]

Vandorens are harder but provide the best tone by far. Once you go Vandoren you never go back...unless your reeds are hand carved...

 

[MD1032]

I use a Vandoren 3 and a half. Seems to be the right size for me, I like my high register.

Most others use 3's but my tone's fine with a 3 1/2, plus the high notes come right out!

Quote:

The bad thing about Wood clarinets is that they sound a lot different based on what the weather's like...even more so than regular instruments. It's terrible sometimes, luckily I play the Baritone (B.B.C.) , Vandorens are stiffer than normal, correct?

I don't know whether they're stiffer than normal, but they're good in the 3rd register. Errrrr... if you own a wood Clarinet, it shouldn't be exposed to "weather" at all. It could ruin the thing. the main thing is to keep them DRY. the other problem with regular wood clarinets is that they age and don't sound as good after a long time. I've hear that the R-13 Greenline Clarinets don't age as much, so if I ever get a new Clarinet, that's the one (save my shillings!).

 

[nately]

Hey, the hand carving thing isn't so far-fetched. If you get something harder like a 4.5, and use a sharp, straight blade to thin it down a bit, you'll end up with a more balanced, customized reed. It takes some time, and you'll screw up a few reeds while figuring out what you're doing, but it's worth it in the long run.

Ricos suck, but Rico Royals can be okay. Some other brands are Mitchell Lurie and La Voz, and I think there's lots of "boutique" brands and imports. I tried a plastic reed once, which was weird. If you like Vandorens though, just stick with those - I think they are the most widely used reeds at all levels, so they can't be bad.

 

[Zanth]

I was not joking about hand made reeds. I use them for my sax and my clarinet. I violin maker I know also makes these reeds for me. His son is a professional saxophonist and it was he who insisted his dad get into making them.

They are in fact rather hard..4.5 even 5.

 

[GanChan]

Quote:

Originally posted by Zanth I was not joking about hand made reeds. I use them for my sax and my clarinet. I violin maker I know also makes these reeds for me. His son is a professional saxophonist and it was he who insisted his dad get into making them. They are in fact rather hard..4.5 even 5.

When i played the oboe I had to make my own reeds. Man, that sucked. I usually ended up paying my teacher or another oboist to make reeds for me.

I used Rico for my alto sax, and Vandoren for my clarinet (though most of the time I was on bass clarinet, and I can't remember what I used for that.) Sometimes I had to borrow a sax reed from the guy next to me. He was so fond of hard booze that I'm lucky I never got a "contact" drunk off of him..

 

[bralack42]

I'm a saxophonist, but I would definitely try out Alexander Classiques. They provide a full, rich "classical" sound with so much warmth it's amazing. They're also very consistant, unlike the big name brands. Almost every reed is playable. Very highly recommended at least to try.

For marching band, Bari plastic reeds are the way to go--they last forever if properly cared for, don't mold, and are harder to chip (although unlike cane reeds, if you chip them they quickly become unplayable). Soundwise, they're not wonderful--that's why I said they're good for marching band.

And I'm not a fan of the Vandoren blue box reeds.

 

[myself, aka me]

I play rico select jazz. They're nicer than rico royal, for sure

 

[MD1032]

Actually, I already use this stuff called "Reed Rush" to work on my reeds if they look a little screwy or don't sound right. I don't quite have it mastered, but I've at least learned to seal the pores before I use these things. Vandoren Blue Box? What are those? Mine come in kind of a black-blue box. edit: I do use Blue Box. Are those bad?

Oh yes, and BTW, I use a Premier (by Hite) mouthpiece. For a long time I used the stock mouthpiece and then I got this thing and was like WHOA!!! This thing really kicks ass! Much better than stock (hmmmm...makes me think of headphones lol). BTW, my Clarinet is made in Germany and I live in the US so I'm wondering if my old mouthpiece was actually a German mouthpiece which I was using American reeds on, causing half the problem. German stuff is a bit thinner than American stuff.

 

[MD1032]

bump

 

[jhawk1729]

I don't remember what reeds I used when I played clarinet, but when I was playing bassoon I'd buy Arundo reeds and either my teacher or I would do some adjustments. I have a very nice, very sharp reed knife in my case along with a bunch of other unexplainable paraphernalia for dealing with reeds.

 

[raif]

vandoren jazz 3's

but those days are behind me now.

 

[MD1032]

So, which ones should I switch to? The V12's or the new 56 Rue Lepic's? It seems no-one here like the Traditionals. BTW, I've heard the traditional Sax reeds suck, but the Clarinet ones are OK, at least for me. I had a nice one I just wore out.

 

[MD1032]

bump

Dang it people...answer!