Looking for recommendations for reeds for both M7 & M9 metalite mouthpieces. Currently I am using just some off brand 2.5 'flying goose' cane reeds that came with my Tenors but will need to buy more soon. I wanted to hear what works best for some of you that have these mouthpieces.
Plain ol' Rico orange box in the strength that you find comfortable.
LaVoz or Hemke in a similar strength would be a good 'upgrade'.
2-2.5 for the 9, 2.5-3/3.5 for the 7 depending on your embouchure and sound concept.
It depends on what sound you want to get. If you want to tone down the natural tendency of these high baffle mpcs to being fairly bright (the M7 more than the M9), use a dark reed like a Vandoren blue or something similar.
However if bright is what you want, and the reason you bought them in the first place, then there are any number of possibilities. I have played Rigotti gold, Java, Francois Louis, RSJ, Forestone and Plasticover on my M7 because I play at loud blues/rock jams where I need to be able to push the thing and peel paint at times just to hear myself.
To find out which work for you personally you have to have a variety of reed brands and try them to find the one(s) that give you what you want. Depending on your chops these could be anywhere from 2.5 up to 4.0 but for me generally they're 3.0 or 3.5 so once you know your general hardness preference just buy one of each and test them against each other to see which floats your boat. One needn't buy boxes you know, nor play only one brand because reeds are organic material and are nothing if not inconsistent.
If you want to avoid that inconsistency then just get one Legere Sig, one Forestone regular and one Plasticover and you'll always have a reed that is playable immediately and much more consistent. Note however that all of these are quite bright on the M7.
As to finding a setup of a reed that will work well with a new mpc the basic rule of thumb I follow is:
Bright mpc , dark sound wanted = use dark, classical reed
Bright mpc, bright sound wanted = use bright reed
Dark mpc, bright sound wanted = use bright reed
Dark mpc, dark sound wanted = use dark reed
I got a Metalite M7 (0.110") for baritone that I love now that I am acclimated to how to play it. The reeds that always work great for me are Plasticover #3s... but I feel as though I may need #3 1/2s. Something right in that range is it, but for sure I love the Plasticovers. And no, neither they nor the Metalite make the horn sound like a chainsaw. In fact it can range from really sweet and mellow (No. Not like the Mulligan thing... that it cannot do) on ballads to wailing on loud up-tempo stuff. Like Pepper Adams, if only I were half the player he was.
Paul Coats told me the Metalites have long facings and that's why it wants a somewhat hard reed.
Rico says M5 "short" M7 "medium" M9 "long". I think Paul meant that they are all on the relatively longer side for what they are.
There's something about Metalites-I keep one in the case because my M7 is always ready to go when I'm having a day where nothing else seems to want to play. Can't say I have mastered it but I can use it for more than just cutting thru wailing guitars. I play cane reeds, usually RG 2.5s but I find that any reed around that strength will play on the M7. VD Reds or ZZ, Rico orange box or SJ or Brancher all seem to work. My $0.02 is just go with what you usually play on your other mps and you will be good to go.
I've been playing a Plasticover 4 on my M7 lately and getting great performance out of it. I've played 3s, 3.5s and 4s with great success, it just depends on the individual reed because even though they have the synthetic coating they are still cane underneath and vary in hardness just like any cane reed.
The thing I like about this set up the most is that it's a no hassle one. You can keep the mpc in your pocket and just stick it on the neck and blow. No wetting or screwing around and the sound you get with it is superb.
Fibracells. No soak, just play! Try 2.5 or 3...wish they had a 2.75. Many say the Fibracells sound too bright/buzzy, but with the Metalites ("bright"!) they're fine for some reason. I can get a very mellow warm French horn sound with Fibracells and Metalites. Just think about that for a while and get that sound down, you'll be able to use that also sometimes!
Overall, you need to try the Fibracells. Maybe even down to a 2 for that M9. But try the 2.5 or 3 on that M7...wish they had a 2.75!
-R
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