Very true, Kari...

I`m still here, just don`t have much to say, since I got my Jupiter 711 (BTW I`m very happy with it, and it`s a good instrument for the flute diletante that I am). I`m just being an adult here, but forgive me if I do get snarky here. There have been several times I`ve typed up a reply, but never submitted, as I have read what typed and said that`s not me. But I may slip occasionally (but you will know it`s me). I do look at the Galway forum, but there is not a place for Rock/Jazz flutists.

Beware of people who state such things as that list in absolute terms. Play what you prefer. There`s no argument that can`t trump what you like. Drill some holes in a piece of PVC, if it gives you what you want.

I refuse to get in brand arguments; there`s always someone who knows "better".

I meant "There`s no argument that CAN trump what you like".

Had a brain fart.

""There`s no argument that CAN trump what you like"."

I don`t really agree with that. IMHO for every thing I like, there is somthing else I would like better, if I only knew about it, and it was available to me.

When things are being COMPARED in a forum, some people have little or no experience of some of the items being compared. In such cases, such people are not in a position to make valid COMPARISON comments. Unfortunately, this is what does often happen.

For example (exaggerated for illustration) when a Haynes is being compared with a Lark, sombody comes in and says, "I have had a Lark flute for 20 years and it has been fantastic! It has never let me down, and I can play awesomely with it. Larks are AWESOME instruments! I LOVE my Lark!"

This person has never played a Haynes, nor anything other than his precious Lark! In the context of a COMPARISON discussion, his comments are meaningless, totally irrelevant, and exceedingly misleading to readers who do not have the knowledge to recognise the meaninglessness.

This sort of thing seems to happen far too often in this forum.


Under the heading "My Emotional Relationship With My Flute" perhas the comments would be totally valid, but not in the context where flute comparisons are being made.

Are you seriously right in the HEAD? You probably dont even try out flutes other than the ones you have! If you were gonna post that you should´ve really researched your info first!!!

As I said, there`s always someone who "knows better". "This is the best flute" and "this is my favorite flute" are hardly synonymous.

You like what you like; no self-proclaimed expert can discredit your preference, much to their consternation.

Pearl should never have gone on bad because pearl are one of the most top-notch,expensive,great flutes ever. You dont know what youre talking about!!!!
geminhart is one of the worst flutes in my opinion!

Yes, there are some very good Peal flutes, made in Japan.

However the STUDENT Pearl flutes, made in Taiwan, do not match your description at all. In my experinece (servicing and playing hundreds of them) they have major unreliability problems caused by non-level tone holes, slooppy fitting pivot tubes, sloppy fit of pivot rod in the post above G & Bb keys, regulator silencers that fall off, regulator screws barely contacting misaligned tabs, excessively hard pads which accommodate the above sloppiness poorly, and a tone/response that is poor compared with Yamaha. It is pretty expensive to put these things right, so you may as well buy the student Yamaha even if it costs more.

Oh my God! This thread is still going?

Yes, things like this do drag on and on and on...
Sorry I have not checked in for a while...my computer has broken and I am using a friends...

Hey Jessie, nice to see you back.
It has been rather boring around here, so I don`t think that you missed too much.

well i dont know if this kid was posting against me or the person against me so ill just write back.

I live right in PA and I played flutes with a guy from the Weissman company and guess what when I tried them there were all trevor james`, miyazawas, a murmatsu, some amadeus` and some other flutes NOT GEMEINHARDTS, ATRLYS AND YAMAHAS. i have experience with oher flutes and ive played both a yamaha 700 and for bout 3000 less a a treovr james was better and the gemeinhardt was a piece of c**p. and as long as the flute is relieble it all comes down to your preference and ur playing abilities. In alot of cases there is no better flute (except in cases that i mentioned above) but when comparing semi pro and proflutes against eachother it comes down to what u like. James Galway plays a muramtsu, gary schocker plays a a haynes, and from what william bennet plays an altus (well according to the website he does).
end of story

There is a little more to the story... a VERY important addition:

How a player evaluates any particular flute depends hugely on the state of adjustment of that flute at the time.

There are not many people in a position to compare flutes that are all in a state of adjustment where there are no leaks while using light finger pressure.

OFTEN, brand new flutes are poorly adjusted. Sometimes this may be simply because they are in a different climate from that in the factory, and this has altered the seating of the pads, or the thickness/squishiness of silencing material in the linkages

Wo! think before you speak, please! I would say alot of those brands are good especially for beginners! Maybe that`s why you think they are bad? But please don`t say something totally irrelavent if it`s not true.