im ordering 4 or 5 flutes to try.
im ordering:
1 powellsignature
2 muramatsu Dx...whichev is in the 5 grand range (one heavey wall and one regular)
1 sankyo
and possibly one altus.
all of the models are the ones around 5000-6000 dollars.
here are my questions- what is your opinion on the heaviness of the wall? do you think it makes a huge difference? is a C sharp trill key super beneficial? what do you think of the split e mechanism or the facilitator thing? which brand do you have or prefer?
o and plese tell me models of the altus and sankyo that are in my price range.
o and does anyone play a powell sig? how do you like the headjoint?
so yeah i have a milllion questions. i know that are alllll opinionated questions but i would like to hear what everyone thinks.
I usually prefer heavy wall as they play darker and have more resonance for me. Some models it did make more of a difference than others, but never a HUGE difference.
I LOVE my C# trill key, it is my favorite thing about my flute. Get one if you can! I use it all the time.
As for the make and models of Sankyo and Altus in your price range, I would suggest just looking at Flute World at prices and comparing. A simple search will tell you this.
I had a Powell Signature for a short time. I hated the headjoint. Nice flute, but a bit clunky comparing to the upper models. I much prefer the Conservatory model.
I prefer Powell the best, but like many others.
You are very lucky to get any of these flutes especially at such a young age. Will you parents adopt me? lol! You must be really good!
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I don't like split E's only because I could never get used to the added bar because of my small hands and it feels very clunky to me when pressing down the F key. As for the G disk, I am not sure if I would notice either way. I have one on my main flute, but not on my back up and I don't notice any difference. I have never had a problem with the E as I learned without any of the extra features.
hmmm yeah i guess i am lucky. i know im young, but i have been playing since i was in 2nd grade and i realllllly do need a new one. i would love to get a powell because that is my favorite. i just cant afford anything out of the 6000 range (ie a conservatory) because my brother is getting a new clarinet and i just got an alto. hahahaha ill ask if my parents will adopt you hahahaha.
thanks o and i tried split E and i feel it dwindles the pitch/sound of the high f sharp. that might be just me
I love my powell conservatory. If you're going to spend that amount of money, I'd say skip a signature and find a used conservatory.
I love c# trills. I hate split e mechs and prefer a donut or nothing at all. It's not necessary and just takes a little bit of work to hit those notes consistently.
I never had trouble hitting the high E, I have never seen the use for a split e, it just adds another mess of keywork to your flute. I never new it was a problem note, therefore I was never afraid of not hitting it.
yeah i prob wont get a split e but im ordering one with it. i would loveeee to get a conservatory but its out of my price range they are very expensive i more then likely am going to get the muramatsu with the heavy wall and c sharp trill and go from there. ill have to wait and see i guess
yeah i had a powell signature with an aurumite head joint on trial and i sent it back. it had a g disk. the high f sharp was extremely flat nomatter what. my teacher thought the g disc could have caused that.
If the ring/donut whatever you want to call it is in the second g hole and you have it closed to play a high f#, then there is no way I can think of that it would affect the pitch of that note. It's used to lower the pitch of high e, in which case the g key and its other corresponding hole would be open.
Well, as long as the flute is checked out carefully before purchase, it's a fabulous way to save a ton of money. Let the original owner be the one who pays a markup. And sometimes, especially for us poor college music majors, the only way we can afford a professional flute is to buy used. Generally, the more expensive the flute (original price), the more likely it has been taken care of. High end flutes are not only nice to play on, they are an investment.
getting advice is great, especially from all the friendly and experienced people on this forum..that said, you are the one who will have to make the decision..
one thing you could do is to take a few of them and play them for teachers/conductors behind a screen...play chromatic scales throughout the range of the flute and listen for the clarity of the intervals, fade out on low and high notes and listen carefully...
Kaflute wrote "i tried split E and i feel it dwindles the pitch/sound of the high f sharp. that might be just me"
It is impossible for a split E mechansm to affect the F#.
So it was either you, or the flute was poorly adjusted (check the linkage from the D to F# keys), or it was just part of the design (but had nothing to do with the split E).
Since the bodies are pretty much the same at this level, you might well look at this as a test-run of the keys and mechanisms.
I would get any good professional level plated body and save a ton of money. Get this used from a good source if possible. The body is just a body, after all. 90% of the sound is coming from the headjoint.(and the differences between that 10% from the body at this level are roughly nil between makers). Find something comfortable with accessory keys and so on that you like, plus has a nice fast action. Brand is largely moot. Figure $2000-$3000 tops for this step of the process.
Buy a custom headjoint.
I found that stock headjoints are rarely what you would really desire. Some are good, but most are just not worth the money as they all force you to pay silly money to actually get their best effort. Why pay $6K for a flute versus their $3K model when the only real difference is the slightly better headjoint(usually $500 more if ordered individually). Yes, that's $2500+ profit since it actually costs them virtually no more actual money to make a flute out of silver versus plating it.(maybe $100 in actual metals cost)
Also, if you want a darker, more classical sound, you can get a good wood headjoint. I'm not a fan of this super-bright, super-forward soloist approach to headjoints that has recently become all the rage. Doubly so since I rarely get into the fourth octave in my playing(mostly modern and jazz) - so a warm, fat sound is something that I could only do once I added a wood headjoint to my trusty Yamaha.(saved a silly amount of money over a new flute as well)
http://www.headjoints.com/ - I've had good experience with this company, for a reasonable cost. Lots less money than the similar Yamaha 800 series wood headjoint. I get Yamaha's fantastic quality and scale and the tone and gorgeous sound I wanted. Plus, it looks really cool. Heh.
It's not for everyone, but is something to think about.
P.S.
A bit about wood versus metal bodies -
Wood headjoints are good for maybe a decade or so like most wood instruments before they need serious overhauling or replacement. Instead of replacing the entire wood body, you just swap the head - and can always use the stock one if you really need it for something.
i have a plated body now. i am looking to upgrade and that is why im looking to get a solid silver body. im not sure what i want. im ordering a few flutes tomorrow and i guess ill have to see how it goes from there.
searching...
they are very expensive 
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