If not Fibracell than what?

[segaleon]

I've been playing a Fibracell for the past year, and have enjoyed it a lot. I understand they've gone through a change, and am exploring the possibility of changing to another brand: still would like synthetic.

What would you recommend as a good old-Fibracell-like reed?

[JL]

"If not Fibracell........"

Cane.

[rabbit]

I'm thinking of try Hahn, available from 'Sax Alley,'

'Bari'-brand did not float my boat, for what
that's worth.

[rjsaxman]

...but I like the new Fibracells. Despite the fact that it took them 4 months to ship me a reed (their factory was under attack by fires twice!).

If you haven't tried one of the new ones, give it a shot. They're more cane-like.

[Nathan Bellott]

i play fibracell, and think the new ones are great.
if want a good cane reed thats much like fib. try out la voz
theyre what i use between reeds

[bari_sax_diva]

On what? I use different reeds for every horn.

[saxplayr2000]

I played for a bit on Ligere and really liked them, but have since switched back to Rico Jazz Select.

[Tobias]

There is a man, who wants to try other synthetic reeds and you are sugesting cane?


Ok, I've made good experiences with legere but IMHO they were a bit to straigt (boring) to me.
There the normal one (classical reeds, darker more complex sound) and the studio cut (jazz reed, bright and straight)
I also played Fibracell a long time.

But now, I'm only playing Fiberreeds.

www.fiberreeds.de

exelent reeds, the carbone toptone is a great reed (but you need some time to get used, because first you sound horrible but later you have a strong loud monstersound).
When you order from Harry, say hello to me

For everybody who is able to reed a bit german, here a little test from me about synthetics:
http://www.saxophonforum.de/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=2

[Blowhard2]

But now, I'm only playing Fiberreeds.

www.fiberreeds.de

exellent reeds, the carbone toptone is a great reed http://www.saxophonforum.de/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=2[/url]

Speak as you find !

I agree the Fiberreeds suit me fine, and play pretty well out of the box.
Good After Sales Service from German manufacturers, who will exchange if reed chosen is too hard / soft

Blowhard2

[larryleung]

I've tried Fibracell Premimum, Legere and Fiberreeds.

To me, the Fiberreeds are the winner among these three synthetic reeds, Fibracell sounds a bit too thin.

[JL]

There is a man, who wants to try other synthetic reeds and you are sugesting cane?

Yes, that's right.

Q. "If not fibracell, then what?"

A. "Cane"

Pretty straightforward answer. Doesn't mean anyone has to take that advice, though.

[Carl H.]

You've got to try them to see what works.
I play fibracell on a Dukoff and it is a great combination. On my Berg I play a Bari, and it plays very nicely too. On my Vandoren I used Legere with pretty decent success. None of these reeds were particularly good on the other mouthpiece combinations, but they worked very well as listed - for me.

[Tobias]

I've been playing a Fibracell for the past year, and have enjoyed it a lot. I understand they've gone through a change, and am exploring the possibility of changing to another brand: still would like synthetic.

What would you recommend as a good old-Fibracell-like reed?

Yes, that's right.

Q. "If not fibracell, then what?"

A. "Cane"

Pretty straightforward answer. Doesn't mean anyone has to take that advice, though.

: still would like synthetic.

What would you recommend as a good old-Fibracell-like reed?

tssss

[Durand]

Would somebody write which are all the synthetic brands of reeds at this moment available for alto and tenor sax?

[skippy]

Would somebody write which are all the synthetic brands of reeds at this moment available for alto and tenor sax?
Off the top of my head...

BARI (http://www.bariwoodwind.com/index.html)
Fibracell (http://www/fibracell.com/)
Fibercane (out-of-production, but you can find them on ebay sometimes (http://shop.ebay.com/items/_W0QQ_nkwZfibercaneQQ_armrsZ1QQ_fromZQQ_mdoZ))
Hahn (available at saxalley (http://www.saxalley.com/reeds.html))
Harry Hartmann's Fiberreed (http://www.fiberreed.de/)
Legere (http://www.legere.com/)

You can get some cheap molded-plastic pieces of junk from www.wwbw.com (http://www.wwbw.com/Woodwind-and-Brasswind-Plastic-Synthetic-Alto-Saxophone-Reed-i78542.music) and www.muncywinds.com (http://www.muncywinds.com/product.php?productid=642&cat=208&page=1)

I have never found one retailer who carries all of the above.

Did I miss any?

[ChuBQ]

You should try bari-star, legere studios and carbon harry hartmann

[Durand]

Off the top of my head...

BARI (http://www.bariwoodwind.com/index.html)
Fibracell (http://www/fibracell.com/)
Fibercane (out-of-production, but you can find them on ebay sometimes (http://shop.ebay.com/items/_W0QQ_nkwZfibercaneQQ_armrsZ1QQ_fromZQQ_mdoZ))
Hahn (available at saxalley (http://www.saxalley.com/reeds.html))
Harry Hartmann's Fiberreed (http://www.fiberreed.de/)
Legere (http://www.legere.com/)

You can get some cheap molded-plastic pieces of junk from www.wwbw.com (http://www.wwbw.com/Woodwind-and-Brasswind-Plastic-Synthetic-Alto-Saxophone-Reed-i78542.music) and www.muncywinds.com (http://www.muncywinds.com/product.php?productid=642&cat=208&page=1)

I have never found one retailer who carries all of the above.

Did I miss any?

Thanks a lot!
I am making some research about synthetic reeds. I am in Central America so I have to order online my reeds. I want to start on synthetic reeds as an option. I am playing mostly Rico Plasticover 2.5 on alto and 3 on Tenor. But:
I play also Superial 2.5, La Voz medium and Vandoren Blue 2 on alto.
I play also Vandoren 2.5 blue, Rico orange 3 on Tenor.
Rico Royal 2.5 and Rico orange 3 on soprano.
As you see I have to make some trial and error as I supossed do every sax player. I want to order maybe three reeds (three diffrent brands) of synthetic reeds for alto, just to start my trial, any suggestions are welcome,
Thanks

[skippy]

I'd say try a Fibracell Premium #2.5, BARI soft, and Legere Studio Cut #2.

[buffalobill]

i play fibracell, and think the new ones are great.
if want a good cane reed thats much like fib. try out la voz
theyre what i use between reeds

Since the fibracell reeds seem to have changed recently, I've noticed that they don't last as long as before. Did you notice the same thing or am I just changing the way I play? I'm on baritone sax and had been using medium hard. Maybe there's still a possibility to get the older version somewhere somehow? Otherwise I have been switching to Rico Royal to avoid spending too much on the fibracell.

[Tobias]

do you mean that this plastic film under the reed gets loose?

[buffalobill]

I mean they get soft like the cane reeds.

[buffalobill]

I've been playing a Fibracell for the past year, and have enjoyed it a lot. I understand they've gone through a change, and am exploring the possibility of changing to another brand: still would like synthetic.

What would you recommend as a good old-Fibracell-like reed?

Are you looking for another brand because of this change? Did you experience the same problem as I did? They don't seem to last as long as before for me.

[Honker]

I was recently given some Rico Plex reeds for alto and tenor. They seem to play fine for me, but the packaging looks old. Are they still available?

[SaxMoose]

I was recently given some Rico Plex reeds for alto and tenor. They seem to play fine for me, but the packaging looks old. Are they still available?

Nope, those were probably from a while ago.

[MartinMusicMan]

I used to play Rico Jazz Select cane reeds. Thanks to SOTW, I started trying out other reeds. I bought several types of Van Dorens, then several synthetics - Fibracell, Legere, Bari - and now I've been playing Plasticovers for a while. You've got to try them all to find out whether you like them. On the other hand, if you're happy with your current reed, you may not want to go down the road of looking for the perfect reed because you can end up back where you started - and poorer. Maybe there should be a thread about reed GAS. RAS?

[ljclancy]

I play in church every Sunday, and I have found that the last 2 or 3 fibercell reeds (2.5) I purchased didn't last more than a a few weeks and that time period was just Saturday band rehearsal and Sunday church playing. They became soft and the plastic film started coming loose from the bottom of the reed, making them very hard, if not impossible to play.

I tried playing on a Legere reed for several weeks (after the Fibercells failed to live up to my expectations). The Legere reed played ok, not as bright or as lively as the fibercells, and a little bit more stuffy or subdued, but it did last and is in still like new condition.

Last Saturday,at band rehearsal and again on last Sunday morning, I tried a Hahn synthetic 2.5 reed. Boy, was it the best synthetic I ever tried, (including both models of the Bari synthetic reeds which have an loud and aweful sound). The Hahn was very easy and free blowing. It was lively and full of life. It wasn't quite as bright as the fibercells (if I remember correctly how loud the fibercells were). It definitely was louder than as the Legere. I got a lot of positive comments from the church members and my wife on how nicely I both played and sounded.

For your information, the Fibercell was on I had owned and had played on for some time ago, but didn't like the way it felt to my top teeth, at least on other various mouthpieces I had previously played on. However, on my Jody Jazz DV 7 alto sax mouthpiece, I didn't notice the odd feeling of the reed against my teeth, and I really loved the sound of it on my Jody Jazz DV. In fact, I ordered a second one from Sax Alley on Monday. As I previously stated, the Hahn reed I used was a really used reed, but it played like a new one. They cost $20.00 plus $4.00 shipping to Ohio, but I was well pleased with the setup on my Selmer Mark VI alto sax and feel it was worth the investment to get a second Hahn 2.5 alto reed. I hope this helps you!

I also tried Rico Plasticcover reeds in the past, but wasn't really super inpressed with them.

Lester J. Clancy