Okay..

I've had a Gemeinhardt 2SP for, um, 15 years. I started playing when I was 10, and that was what my parents bought me back then. It's served me remarkably well, actually. However, I outgrew it quite a long time ago.

I don't play professionally, and I'm not even taking music in college (I have a Chemistry degree and am a grad student in that field). Flute is my hobby, and I've been frustrated with my 2SP for a good many years now.

I had thought about the Gemeinhardt 3SB initially since I've had a Gemeinhardt since I started, but the more poking around I've been doing the last couple of days, the more I'm wondering if that isn't the right way to go. I'm on a nice tight little budget, but I talked to my parents who offered to put the down payment on a new flute for me for Christmas. Or part of it, if the cost was too high. They love hearing me play, and are always excited when I show up at the open mic my dad hosts asking for a time slot to play a set. (I *have* to do a down payment then make payments route, I simply cannot afford this any other way.)

I think maybe I am a little more out of touch with the flute community than I would like to be these days. So, I'm open to advice from anyone here. For someone who likely will just keep this a hobby.. I would love to take private lessons again, and actually go further on the flute, but I think that I will have to wait until I'm done with grad school for that. So, given that, is the Gemeinhardt 3SB going to be an okay instrument for me? Or am I going to be investing in something that won't hold up or that I won't be happy with?

I just want to buy a good flute that I will enjoy for many years. I'm not going to ever get to the point where it's practical for me to buy a hand made professional grade flute, but at the same time.. I really need more than just my faithful old 2SP student flute.

There are many that you can choose from. You really need to try them out as we can't tell you which one will be right for you, only you will know that. Since you are on a budget you will most likely be looking in to more of the intermediate line flutes. Here are some brand names that you may want to look into:

Yamaha
Azumni
Gemeinhardt
Pearl
Emerson
Armstrong

My favorites and the only ones that I would highly recommend is Yamaha and Azumi. I don't much care for the others.

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If you can give me more of a price range of what you will be willing to spend, then I could give you suggestions on models also. There are a few people who also sell reburnished used flutes that play and look pretty much new, but without the price tag. Flutestar and Liz101 are good.

I would recommend taking your current flute in to a reputable repair technician, seeking out a qualified flute teacher, and THEN buying a new flute with the teacher's assistance.

Nothing worse than studying with someone who is great, but has absolute distaste for your flute brand and makes hints on upgrading throughout your lessons... AFTER you've gotten your new flute.

You will need to try out several flutes and find one that suits you. This may not be an expensive flute - it could even be a student flute which you like and plays better for you than your 2SP. If you go for a little known brand don't expect it to hold its value - its resale price is likely to be a lower percentage than a well known brand.

Perhaps all Chemistry graduates - including me - don't like Gemeinhardts.

Well, that's the whole point of asking what people reccomend. Yes, it's absolutely going to come down to what feels like the best playing instrument for me.

My 2SP is in incredibly good shape. That's part of why I think it's held up so well for so long. I still purchase music from the store where we bought it and used to take lessons at, and I still take it to them for repairs. Though, it's not needed many, truthfully.

I had just realized that I wasn't up on the brands that are considered good quality, so I decided to seek advice from others who have more experience with that.

Gemeinhardt actually does make decent quality flutes, so you might want to consider another Gemmie. There's nothing wrong with them really, but there are people that dislike them. In addition to the brands Kara gave you, I would look at Amadeus, Sonare, Brio, perhaps Jupiter or Muramatsu, possibly Sankyo, or Trevor James. And just as a side note, I believe Kara meant "Azumi" rather than "Azumni" (just to make research a bit easier). Which of those you want to consider may depend on your budget, but all are good quality flutes that should serve you well. You might also consider a used (but in good condition) flute, as you may very well be able to get a very nice instrument for a small piece of the retail price.

Yes, I did mean Azumi, it was a typing error. I did spell is correctly the second time.

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"You might also consider a used (but in good condition) flute, as you may very well be able to get a very nice instrument for a small piece of the retail price."

You just echoed what I said earlier.

Sorry about that. I didn't see that edit.

No problem. A lot of points seem to get echoed on here anyway. It is good to know that we think a like.

My second flute, which served me very well in some ways (but not in others) was a Gemeinhardt.

What I loved: the headjoint articulated really well and helped me get a lovely, rich tone. Also, the flute was reliable in terms of repairs.

What I didn't Know that Hurt Me: The Gemeinhardt is known for having an odd scale. That is, playing along the 8 notes in a scale, three notes may be right on, then you get a flat one, then a really sharp one, then another flat one, and then the rest are OK. I played my Gemmie for a long time, without benefit of a tuner, and so my mind took these off-pitch notes for correct, eventually. This took a lot of work to fix.

Gemeinhardt flute models 2 and 3 are made with the same scale. I believe that some of their fanciest new pro models have a different scale, but I am guessing that those would be beyond your budget.

Some players do fine with Gemeinhardt flutes, but these players do make adjustments to play in tune with others. So, it can be done. Any flute will have a note or two that is a little off- but I've heard the Gemeinhardt scale described as..."Wacky".

Do try out some flutes. My old, original Armstrong had a good scale (but terrible response from the headjoint!). Yamaha, Pearl, and Jupiter are often recommended and have a good even scale.

A used flute in good repair is a great idea to save money. Also, a silver headjoint flute with a plated body should serve you very well- you will not likely notice the difference from a comparable all-silver model. Save more money still if you don't have to have a b-footjoint or open holes, although most of the upgrade models you will look at have them, anyway.

Good luck, and have fun!

Well, my dad took me out this morning to actually try some flutes. He had the day off and I had some forgiveness in my schedule since I was slated to give a research seminar at 3.. :D

So, we had a nice father/daughter morning of breakfast and.. Dead ends.

The store I've always gone to only really sells Gemeinhardts and Armstrongs.. They didn't have a 3SB this morning, but they had a 3B and a 33SB. So I tried the 33SB and.. Was not impressed. Maybe it was the stupid little silver caps they epoxied to the cork plugs in the holes.. That came off when we went to take the plugs out. (I have not owned an open holed flute, but I have played them.)

So we tried another store that my dad knows someone who works there. The lady who was tending the store was so not helpful. And they only had one flute in stock.

Then we went to a third store. The guy there was amazingly helpful. Still a dead end as he said they've been selling quite a few instruments in the last few weeks, and the shipments he had on the way just hadn't come in yet. He chatted with us for quite a while about the differences between Gemeinhardt and Jupiter, which he's been selling both for years. He said if I've been on a Gemeinhardt for 15 years, then the eombesure (I can't spell, I do apologize) issues some people do have with the Gemeinhardts won't affect me at all.

He said a Jupiter that's comprable to what the 3SB is would probably cost a little more, but that he doesn't see either flute more than the other in for repairs. He said they both hold up equally as well...

But.. Then I did ask him.. Okay, that said. How would a Gemeinhardt 2SP identical to mine sold now compare to my 15 year old one.

He said while both brands would last me decades, the Gemeinhardts aren't made the same now as they were 15 years ago, and that my old 2SP is better quality than one would be now.

He's going to call me when his shipments come in so I can try both the Jupiter and Gemeinhardt. It does sound like for the price range I need to stay in, those are my two main options.

Sooo.. Lots to think about. And now I need to not be late for class. Thanks for all the suggestions. I really do appreciate it. :D

Have you thought about having some good name brand flutes sent to you out on trial from somewhere like Flute World? You would have more variety to choose from and I really think that would be the best way to go. For the most part,small local music shops tend to jack up prices and don't have a lot in stock.

Tibbiecow mentioned a few flutes that had pretty good even scalesd and I do agree with the newer Gemeinhardts not having an even scale. The worst one that I have encountoured it the older Yamaha flutes. I did try the newer ones out that are said to have an improved scale on them and they did seem a bit more even. IMHO, I would avoid gettting a used older Yamaha just in case you were thinking about any used flutes. The scale is YUCK!

You didn't mention if your university had a school of music. If they do, I would suggest you talk to the flute professor or some of the flute majors. Maybe you could take lessons from one of them, or have them suggest instruments for you to try. A lot of flute shops or the Woodwind/Brasswind (check them out at WWBW.com) will send out instruments on trial. The good thing about the WWBW is that they do have a 10 month payment option on their beginning and intermediate instruments. I know I am going to get blasted about this on the forum, but I would not recommend the Gemeinhardt. I have found that their scale is "odd" and they are harder to play in tune. Check out the Yamaha flutes. The 500 and 600 series are pretty good upper level intermediate flutes that should do the job for you. You can usually find one of these on ebay for 800-1200. Hope this helped!

I would not suggest WWBW for anything this large. I've had pretty bad experiences with them. They managed to screw up several orders I placed for reeds (eventually I just stopped buying reeds from them entirely), and in my experience, no instrument I've gotten from them has been set up properly when I received it. There prices on larger items really aren't that great anyway. Personally I would go with Fluteworld or another flute dealer (like Carolyn Nussbaum, J.L. Smith, etc.).

I agree with Chris about WWBW, I would not recommend them either. I have had the same exeperience as him. Chris it correct, they don't take time to properly set up any of the instruments. They also don't have much knowledge about flutes.