jeremyjuicewah
Senior Member
- 1,879
After yet more help. Since moving back to the sticks I practice much much more with lots more volume and my playing has leapt forward light years and new difficulties appear every week as I become more critical and the pieces I play become more complicated, faster, cover more ground, need to be more musical to satisfy.
The Martin Indiana is 1952 and I love its sound. I play all over it quite easily, but things are not quite right. Couple of newish pieces, quite fast, mostly in the upper octave, and problems are creeping in.
My favourite mpc, Jumbo Java T55 (I thought it was a 75 till I checked today) is become a squeaker. Tried selection of other mpcs, its the Java not the horn or the reed. Could be me, of course it could. Low down its ok, but up high it squeaks. Have checked the octave pad, it does not leak. Otto Link is fine, in fact it works very well indeed, swapping from very mellow to quite harsh (for a Link) with a little shift in embouchure. But to get a rich and full sound up high I have to use my old standby reed, a Rico plasticised 3. I find it a bit heavy going really, and too hard low down, but anything else, like my Alexander 2.5s and La Voz 2.5s give such a thin quivery sound in the upper octave that I just don't like it.
Otherwise I find these reeds comfortable and fine in every respect, low down no problems, up high not good.
I am prepared to buy a new mpc if need be, or rather I mean a vintage one, but I don't ever hear anyone else say that a 2.5 is a thin sounding reed, but the difference between the Rico 3 and the others is huge.
Any thoughts anyone? Had hoped by now to be a net giver of advice, but I need more advice with every advance I make.
Cheers
Mike
The Martin Indiana is 1952 and I love its sound. I play all over it quite easily, but things are not quite right. Couple of newish pieces, quite fast, mostly in the upper octave, and problems are creeping in.
My favourite mpc, Jumbo Java T55 (I thought it was a 75 till I checked today) is become a squeaker. Tried selection of other mpcs, its the Java not the horn or the reed. Could be me, of course it could. Low down its ok, but up high it squeaks. Have checked the octave pad, it does not leak. Otto Link is fine, in fact it works very well indeed, swapping from very mellow to quite harsh (for a Link) with a little shift in embouchure. But to get a rich and full sound up high I have to use my old standby reed, a Rico plasticised 3. I find it a bit heavy going really, and too hard low down, but anything else, like my Alexander 2.5s and La Voz 2.5s give such a thin quivery sound in the upper octave that I just don't like it.
Otherwise I find these reeds comfortable and fine in every respect, low down no problems, up high not good.
I am prepared to buy a new mpc if need be, or rather I mean a vintage one, but I don't ever hear anyone else say that a 2.5 is a thin sounding reed, but the difference between the Rico 3 and the others is huge.
Any thoughts anyone? Had hoped by now to be a net giver of advice, but I need more advice with every advance I make.
Cheers
Mike