I recently got a Pearl 795-RBE CODA. It has a 10K gold lip(forza hj, silver), solid siver body, open holes, offset g, e mech, c sharp trill, d sharp roller, b foot, drawn tone holes, pinless mech, one-piece core bar. It plays very well and leaves my old gemeinhardt in the dust!

Now although im happy with it, I have a few questions/concerns:

1. How do you adjust a pinless mechanism? Is it better than a flute without pinless mech?
2. Are pearl flutes reliable in terms of their mechanisms and how well they hold up over time?
3. Can a normal repair tech repair these?
4. Are these made in Japan or taiwan, and if in Taiwan, are they still a good flute?

i was just wondering. I love this flute and i sound ad play great on it, but i just need some reassurance.

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sound *and play great on it.

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ah I forgot a question:

should new pads be sticky? like they dont stay stuck down, but i hear certain pads make that sticky noise and it worries me.

Sounds like a nice new flute

There should be adjustment screws for keeping the keys properly closing in time with each other. DON'T MESS WITH THEM!!! But if you look at your flute, underneath the A key (left hand 2) you will see an adjustment screw. There will be more, if you look for them, under other keys. There is also a back-connector that will be adjusted with different thicknesses of felt or cork, as needed, during a clean-oil-adjust service. And of course, a good technician will pad (or shim the pads) on the flute as usual.
So yes, a normal repair tech should be able to work on your flute. (If you can call most repair techs normal!!-just kidding, of course )

I have definitely seen that new pads are sticky. As long as you haven't been eating something sugary before playing, they'll quiet down after a while. A pad actually needs to have a little bit of 'grab' if it is to seal the tone-hole properly, and new pads just grab a little more, hence the noise.

Oh, and your Pearl should hold up just fine if you take good care of it:
1)Take it in for a clean, oil, adjust service once a year. Even if everything seems just dandy, you can have the internal parts wear out and such if the lubricating oil inside the mechanism runs dry, or gets gooked up from something.
2)If you put your flute down, put it on a stand (so it is vertical). If you put it down horizontally, with the keys down, condensed moisture inside the flute can get the pads too wet, shortening their life. Putting the flute down on a soft surface can (so I've heard) bend the mechanism slightly. So if you have to put it down, put it down on a hard surface, keys up.

Tenorsax13 asked:

"1. How do you adjust a pinless mechanism? Is it better than a flute without pinless mech?"
Pinless mechanisms are adjusted the same as any other flute. Cork, felt and (on some flutes) adjustment screws are used to adjust the various key interactions. From the player's perspective, I don't think there is any real advantage to the pinless mechanism, but from the repair tech perspective, it's easier to do a COA since all of the shafts can be cleaned and oiled without having to remove any pins (which can sometimes be a real pain in the #$^ even with all the right tools). On the other hand, the pinless mechanism has a few extra adjustment points that may take a little more time to get right.

2. Are pearl flutes reliable in terms of their mechanisms and how well they hold up over time?
Pearls are probably as good as any other pro-level flute.

3. Can a normal repair tech repair these?
Any FLUTE tech can repair them.

4. Are these made in Japan or taiwan, and if in Taiwan, are they still a good flute?
Most all of the Asian made flutes have good reputations except those made in China.

Thanks! I appreciate the help. I love the flute I got and I was just a bit worried. I'm still wondering though, which country THIS flute is made in?

I don't know about Pearl, but some manufacturers stamp the country of origin on the rib underneath of the key rods. My Muramatsu has "Japan" stamped on the rib. BUT - you might need a magnifying glass to read it - At least I do at my age... :-(

it doesnt say anywhere. but I guess it doesnt matter as long as it plays well.

I've heard about Pearls, in Europe not a bad brand, more popular than in US/Canada. Muramatsu, Altus, Miyazawa (especially Miyazawa) are very well handmade flutes, mechanism is reliable, not like Yamaha flutes wich is the best only as a student flute (model).

Yea I called them and apparently they are made by"Japanese technicians in taiwanese factories". A little weird...but again it plays fantastic and i like the Forza cut quite a bit. At fff I liked the Vivace the best, but sadly its not an option on the elegante. :[

Suzie, I highly appreciate that! I'll pm you about the oil.

lol: I take apart my gemeinhardt all the time. Now i can whenever since i no longer use it.

made in Taiwan??? awww I am afraid of these products... i can't believe japanese technicians did these flutes in taiwan... it must be taiwan technicians...

My high-school aged daughter got a new Pearl 765 exactly two years ago and despite taking care of it we have had to have it adjusted about every 3-4 months or certain notes wouldn't play. It's a real pain as the only technician we can trust is not in our home town. The technician told us that the Pearl has a very soft mechanism (compared to other brands) and that causes it to go out of adjustment more easily and more often if it is played a lot. He said he can tell that this flute is played a lot but there is nothing she is doing wrong to damage the flute. The technician is always booked up yet it seems that before a big concert or competition this flute always needs some emergency adjustment or certain notes can't be played (usually in low register but not always). It sounds much much better after the adjustment. Had we known about the need for frequent adjustments I think we would have looked at other models. Some people have said you have to use a very very light touch with a pearl, but I can't see any evidence that my daughter has a "heavy" touch. The thing sounds great when it's all tuned up, though. We always have a complete tune-up in the summer and then about 4 adjustment sessions during the school year.

^the 765 (Quantz model) is a lot less in terms of quality. The 795, or the Elegante should be a lot better as it is partially handmade. My friend has a Quantz flute (665 Coda) and has had quite a few problems with hers.. but as I said, the Quantz are of lower quality because they are all machine made.

I have a Dolce (695. Essentially the same as the OP without a silver body) and I love it The headjoint is not my favorite, so I have a Yamaha EC and that combo is amazing for me

I've had my flute almost 2 years and its still plays perfectly. Some of the pads do stick sometimes (but a few probably need to be replaced.. some are pretty dirty), especially when its new. It should get better over time.

The only complaint I have at all is the thumb key gets to be pretty loud. I took my flute in after a year and they fixed that with some oil and she said it was a super easy fix. It did go back to that after a few months. I could have taken it back in, easily but it still plays fine. That would probably get better over time as well.. especially if I had that done more often.

I'd say you got yourself a pretty nice flute, and you should have no worries about it

Hi. I used to play on a Pearl Elegante until I bought a new flute. There are a few pros and cons to the flute.
pros: It's a bargain for its playing ability. Plays all octaves with ease.
cons: This is just from experience of using it for around 2 years.. I don't find Pearl's key mechanisms all that reliable. I also didn't like how it was almost too pretty.. it wouldn't project very far.
As for where it's made: As far as I know the Elegante series is the highest quality flute made by Pearl in Taiwan. Most of it is made in Taiwan and finishing touches are done by hand in Japan. Bottom line, I hope you enjoy your new flute and sound great on it!