To be blunt, i don't know of any difference between Rico and Vandoren. Ive used both in the past. But i do bleive Vandoren is used more often professionally due to the hardness of the reed. Right know, on bass clarinet , id be lost without a vandoren.

AKR

I tired Vandoren. i tried a lot of everything. I play on a Michele Lorie(sp). 3 and a half. They're my favorite though I continue to be sharp. A better reed will always sound better unless you're just amazing at your instrument. But it does help.

yup.
I would have to agree with harmonic_divine for I have used both Vandoren and rico.I have also been informed by my band that vandoren reeds are for players or musicians who are more experience with their instruments.

I prefer Vandoren Reeds over Rico..

When I began playing I started on Ricos

Man they are such ugly sounding reeds... Soo weak and squeek ALOT

I find I get a better tone and vibrating response from vandoren.

Vandoren are more for advanced players..

If you feel you cant break into them easily OR it takes ages then they arent for you

But me I break into them quite quickly..

I play a 3.5 Vandoren 56 Rue Lepic.

I used to play traditional Vandoren but found I received a better tone and response with Vandoren 56 Rue Lepic.

I practice 1-2h a day :D

So if you don't practice that much stick with ricos!

-ReubZ

I do like the Rue LePic reeds, too. They take longer to break in for me, but they last longer. Vandoren has a better response than the cheaper brands, especially in the upper register. There are other pricey reeds that are great and very consistent, but for an all-around reed, Vandorens work.

I switched off vandoren to La Voz(made by rico) for a few months last summer/fall... my friend gave me her last unused reed when she graduated because she wasn't going to play in college, and I liked it, i think it was slightly softer and got a easier response without being too soft.... so I bought my own. when they ran out, I used a vandoren again... and WOW! my sound didn't seem to get worse when I switched to la voz, but when i switched back, it was suprisingly better. i'm not sure if i just didn't notice it get worse, or if i did something and adjusted to the other reeds that then helped when i switched back to the better reeds... but i'm sticking to vandorens for now.


anyone used a legere? opinions? i have one. i'm not excessively fond of it.

Vandoren are more consistent, it seems. A few years ago, the now defunct 'Clarinetwise' magazine conducted a blind test of several brands of reed. They gave each of several well-known, professional players several unmarked boxes of reeds and asked them to assess them. Vandoren came out top with pretty much every player, and each said there were more usable reeds in the Vandoren box than with any of the other brands.

I use a Legere most of the time on the clarinet (which isn't a lot, because I don't play clarinet much these days). For tone, there's barely any difference, and I like the smoothness of it, because it means I can play comfortably even with a cracked lip, which I suffer from a lot. However, I have a friend who does a lot of semi-professional classical work who says that although he likes them, he can't use them very often. Reason being that when they're being used for long concerts, the plastic warms a little and has a tendency to soften and go slightly out of tune - he says.

I did try Vandorens a while back, but frankly I didn't notice much difference over what I'd been using. Dunno, maybe I'm just crazy.

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Because I do know a lot of people who swear by them.

So you're 13 years old. You're still pretty much a beginner (playing for two or three years?). Most beginners prefer Rico. They tend to be much softer, and are very cheap. If I remember correctly, my step-up reed after Rico was a LaVoz. I think I played a medium after a 2 1/2 Rico. (This was on alto sax, but I believe it's similar for clarinet). Vandorens tend to be much stiffer, and are more expensive. I started on Vandoren in high school. I still play Vandoren on bass clarinet. My clarinet instructor switched me to Mitchell Lurie for Bb clarinet.

As far as Legere, I have played one on bari sax and contrabass clarinet. I've had problems with my reeds drying out prior to getting this reed (including disastrous results, a sax quartet without a bari ) I found that the bari responded very well to the Legere. It was easy to play. On the contrabass, I used some old used reeds (no other choice at the time), and those hardly played. I got the brilliant idea to try my new Legere, and it worked like a charm. Of course, it required some tweaking as the mouthpiece near the tip was about 1 mm wider on each side, but it was much better than my other options. With a Legere, you must remember that the reed strengths are different than your normal reeds. I believe the Legere web site has a comparison chart. WWBW has all of their Legeres for $15.

I love vandoren reeds because of the quality of them. They don't chip or crack as easy as rico dose.

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I love vandoren reeds because of the quality of them. They don't chip or crack as easy as rico do*.

vandoren v12 reeds are a little more expensive than traditional vandoren reeds, but i find that there are more quality reeds in the box of 10 than in any other i have tried. they also produce the most even and rich tone. this is partly due, however, to the fact that they are slightly thicker, so perhaps not particularly good for the beginner.

Does anyone know where you can buy vandoren reeds in Louisiana? Most kids in my band class use Rico.. It's cheap and plays well, but they break really easily. I want to try some Vandoren reeds......

Hmm, thanks for bringing my head out of the sand. My school started in on a different brand of reeds this year and it's that type. Also this year I had to move up to a size 3 1/2 reed because they make better noise for me. I wonder. I will have to try different reeds next year for marching band and see what happens. thanks

"I must admit that I would never touch a Rico reed unless it was the last reed left in our reed bag!"
-(Someone else who posted on this thread... I'll add in his or her name)

I don't know what it is, but Vandoren is just better. Rico does squeek continually and makes the clarinet (in my opinion) sound almost like it's a brass intrsument. Vandoren gives that rich, wooden vibration that is the goal for every clarinetist. But, it's all personal opinion and personal style, so I would just say try out both, and whatever works best you should keep.

I think vandouren is just for more advance players. I started using vandouren three weeks ago and it worked perfectly for me. I use 2 1/2 as for ive been in band for only 3 years. Use a reed that does not make a fuzzy noise as for the number is to high. Start using ricos for about 2 years then try Vandouren reeds. Vandouren, in my opinion, improves your tone and is better to play high notes in, even though i still cant repeatedly tounge high notes. How long have you been playing the clarinet?