Hello. I am thinking of upgrading my clarinet. It is a plastic buffet crampon and has done me proud for 20 years! I am considering the BC E11 France. Has anyone opinions on it? My friend has been advised to purchase a Yamaha clarinet. What do you think of these instruments?
Opinions please.

It's really best if you can try as many as you can within your budget.
What one person likes another may not get on with at all.

Top advice

to the forums Fenix. Both Buffet and Yamaha are good makes, as are Leblanc, Hanson and many others. The E11 France is a brand new model from Buffet, replacing the current E11 model. I passed my grade 8 on an old E11 nearly 20 years ago, and was very happy with it.

I will have a try of the new E11 France when I get a chance, and will let everyone here know what I think, though I cannot believe it'll be a bad instrument (I've used Buffets for most of my clarinet playing career)

When I upgraded my clarinet, I tried 2 yamahas and 2 buffets (E11, E13). I eventually went for the buffet E13, but they were all great instruments. It depends which one suits you. Try them out, and you don't immediately have to rush into a decision.

Thanks. I am going to try an E11 next week at a music shop in Northallerton where I purchased my first clarinet 20 years ago! Will let you know how I get on.

Bought a new piano earlier this year and am very pleased with it so hope clarinet choice will follow suit.

Hi Fenix. Have PM'd you with a suggestion of another place to try.

Edit: That's not meant to sound like a reflection on the Northallerton shop - I haven't used it, so can't comment on whether it's good, bad or indifferent. It's just a suggestion of a woodwind specialist in the area who sells a good range of claris and knows a lot about them.

If it's the new E11 France in particular, do let me know what you think of it : it's a model I'll try out very soon, as I suspect many of my pupils will like it

Hi Fenix -

I live near Thirsk and suspect you're off to 'Greensleaves' to look for your new clarinet. If that is indeed the shop you are going to - much as I like the shop - I don't think they will be able to offer you much of a choice apart from the beginner's range. Far better is 'Music House' in Harrogate who have liteally dozens of clarientes in stock at any given time.

I went to 'Music House' earlier this year and tried 3 or 4 Buffets and 3 or 4 Yamahas, and without much hestitation decided on a Yamaha Custom SEV. I didn't buy it there as I found one online that was considerably less expensive. Six months down the line I have no regrets whatsoever about my choice, although my teacher (who I love dearly) is a bit snooty about Yamahas!

Talking about new pianos, about a year ago I tried a Casio 'Celviano' in Greensleaves and liked it a lot. I think Casio refer to it as the AP200. One of my piano pupils has now got one and I am hoping that Santa Claus might bring one to another two of my pupils at Christmas. At around £700 I think they compare very well to more expensive Clavinovas. Sorry to hi-jack the original thread with this observation.

Going in the opposite direction, George Gladstone in Darlington is well worth a visit. It's very easy to get to - around 3-5 minutes walk from the train station with car parks nearby. I always take my clarinet to him if it needs work doing, and he has a decent range of instruments ranging from beginner ones to professional models. If you want to try something he doesn't have then he may be willing to order it in for you to try - but I obviously can't guarantee this.

Thanks for that input. Certainly it's useful to know of other dealers. I found an E11 offered on line for £670 which seems a very good deal to me but obviously I want to try it and a few others before making a decision. I phoned Greensleeves and the lady said she would put my name on the E11 till next week but I hope she doesn't think I will automatically buy it. I merely want to look and try at this stage and will certainly bear both the Harrogate and Darlington outlets in mind. Thanks again.

Have looked at the Harrogate and Darlington websites. With regard to the E13 what is meant (excuse my ignorance) by a high position bore (plenty of those at Westminster!) resulting in less resistance?

Don't know if my query got through. What is meant please by a high position bore resulting in less resistance. The E13 apparently has this! Thanks!

Am going to Banks in York on Thursday to try the E11 and some other models. Can anyone answer my previous query please? I have gone on the website of the Yorkshire manufacturer - rather like the idea of getting a local made instrument but obviously don't know how good they are.

Someone has recommended a LeBlanc - any input anyone?
Thanks. Exciting times!!!

Were it me, I wouldn't get too hung up about jargon about high positioned bores giving less resistance. It basically means the inside of the clari is designed to make it easier to produce a sound, but really all I'd do is try several clarinets in my price range, and I'd see what's best, both in comfort and sound.

Leblanc is a very good clarinet make, and having them on your shortlist is good.

I play an E13 - lovely instrument I was advise this was better than the E11 (German made) as it was basically a wooden B12 student clari (Barry may beg to differ here but that's what I was told anyway) and the B12 wasn't too different to the Yamaha i'd been playing. I know nothing about the new E11 France though. French Buffet is meant to be better than the German i take it.

The Leblanc is also a good instrument and French made but just didn't suit my hand.

Think it was the Esprit I tried but understand the sonata, Concerto are also great instruments depending on your budget!! Enjoy trying out anyway

Barry agrees with Dawn : the E13 is a step above the E11

Sorry Barry I didn't make that clear did I?? I knew the E13 was better than the E11 but what I meant was is the E11 basically a wooden B12????? That was the bit I thought you may differ on knowing you used to play one

Lucky you, Dawn - the E13 will definitely be on my list to try when I upgrade!! My understanding is the same as yours regarding the E11 being a wooden version of th B12 and I also understand that the French made instruments are more highly regarded than those made in Germany.

Fenix, going back to your original post regarding Yamahas, my original clarinet (as with many of us I think who started to learn around the eighties or earlier) was a Boosey and Hawkes Regent (yes, the one with the attractive high gloss finish!!) As a child I loved it but I had never played anything else (other than a very well used school clari for a few weeks at the beginning!!) When I started to play again, I bought a student model (plastic) Yamaha CL250, which is what I play now, though it has had an upgrade of mouthpiece and ligature! What I will say is that I found the key work very heavy when I first got it (and therefore very noisy). From what I remember of my Regent (as a rough comparison) the keywork was much lighter. My Yamaha was much better when it came back from its first service and the springs had been adjusted a little.

I have also heard criticism of the quality of the throat notes on Yamahas (at least at the bottom end of the range), though I haven't had a problem with this. I plucked up the courage to record myself playing at the weekend and really was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the tone - certainly didn't sound like an entry level instrument and my Regent definitely did (or perhaps that was just me at the time!)

If you can, take a clarinet playing friend along to listen when you try the instruments. I think it's actually very difficult to judge the quality of the tone when you are playing yourself and you may just want a second opinion!

Happy shopping!

The original E11 is basically a wooden B12 with minor differences, yes, but the B12 is already a very good plastic clari. It may well be that the new E11 France has more significant differences, so I would like to check one out sometime...