Reed help...I think I'm going crazy

[zorneatsham]

I've been playing a reed for awhile (I know bad) and I've been trying to get a couple of other reeds ready to play, but ran into a problem. The remaining 5 reeds in my box sounded horrible; either they were fuzzy sounding in the midrange or were very hard to blow. I tried soaking them for awhile and playing with them for awhile, to no avail. I've played Vandoren 2s for a long time with out ever having a problem. I bought a new box of my tried and trues and the first one I pulled out had a similar fuzzy sound. Just to check my self, I put on the old, but still good, reed and it sounded fine--it blew easy and had a nice sound across the entire range. Is there just something about me and new reeds or is there something I should be doing to break in the new reeds? Could it be possible that I've just had a string of bad luck with Vandorens? I've never really had too much issue with reeds, so I'm really perplexed by this. Any pointers will be very appreciative.

[Kareeser]

As far as I know, Vandoren isn't changing their reed style...

Perhaps you've just gotten used to your current reed.
Remember, there is no substitute for proper breaking in than just playing...

[sax_appeal]

If you have been using that one reed for a while it is likely that it is much softer than when you first played it (when it was as hard as your other reeds). As it softens gradually you have become accustomed to the condition of that reed, so you are not used to the strength and condition of the new ones anymore.