T
Wow, amazing!
I have just bought a Vandoren V16 mouthpiece, which I am very pleased with. It sits nicely between the very dark Jody Jazz HR and the very bright D'Addario Select Jazz mouthpieces I already have, and suits me better. However, the ligature I have isn't a very good fit for the V16 so I decided to get a new one and chose the Vandoren Optimum as the one that was likely to be the best match. To be honest, I thought that the claims about the benefits of 3 different plates was snake oil so I was very surprised to discover that they do actually make a difference.
The ligature is very well made and makes the business of attaching the reed to the mouthpiece very easy. The Optimum delivers a marked improvement in tone compared to my old ligature. The combination of the V16 mouthpiece and Optimum ligature is a very substantial improvement on what I had before.
The plates are very easy to put on and remove, and each of them has a distinctive tone. Two of the three are quite appealing to me and one I wouldn't use. Vandoren does quite a good job of describing the differences in how they sound, though I'm not sure how much help that is beforehand. It's only when you try them that you really understand what they are saying.
I am really amazed that the purchase of a mouthpiece that suits me better and a matching, high quality ligature has made such an improvement to my tone. I thought the problem was all down to my playing. It probably was, but with a mouthpiece and ligature that works better for me, I can do a better job.
The ligature is very well made and makes the business of attaching the reed to the mouthpiece very easy. The Optimum delivers a marked improvement in tone compared to my old ligature. The combination of the V16 mouthpiece and Optimum ligature is a very substantial improvement on what I had before.
The plates are very easy to put on and remove, and each of them has a distinctive tone. Two of the three are quite appealing to me and one I wouldn't use. Vandoren does quite a good job of describing the differences in how they sound, though I'm not sure how much help that is beforehand. It's only when you try them that you really understand what they are saying.
I am really amazed that the purchase of a mouthpiece that suits me better and a matching, high quality ligature has made such an improvement to my tone. I thought the problem was all down to my playing. It probably was, but with a mouthpiece and ligature that works better for me, I can do a better job.
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J
Beware - does not fit Selmer mouthpieces!
Although the website here states it fits Selmer mouthpieces, it does not fit the tenor S80 and S90 mouthpieces I have. I thought that at first I was missing something but it is way too tight. A pity, as it seems Vandoren could easily made that screw go round two more times and it would've been perfect.
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B
Beautiful, but tight
Great working ligature, but a bit too tight in my opinion, even when used with Vandoren V16 mpc
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H
Nice but pricy ligature
Upside:
+ the nice sound, which you can also influence using the different plates;
+ good construction;
+ the ease of use;
Downside:
- Fairly pricy (though not nearly as pricy as a Silverstein ;-));
- Does nog work well on all mpc's (both in fitting and in sound);
+ the nice sound, which you can also influence using the different plates;
+ good construction;
+ the ease of use;
Downside:
- Fairly pricy (though not nearly as pricy as a Silverstein ;-));
- Does nog work well on all mpc's (both in fitting and in sound);
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r
No warries about it
Great perforance as always.
I use Vandoren optimum ligature on all of my clarinets, bass clarinet and saxophones, so there is no two opinions on this - if you want classical secure, stable, solid, good and easy working, nice price, and good-looking designed mouthpiece - get this piece immediately!
I use Vandoren optimum ligature on all of my clarinets, bass clarinet and saxophones, so there is no two opinions on this - if you want classical secure, stable, solid, good and easy working, nice price, and good-looking designed mouthpiece - get this piece immediately!
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A
Does not fit Selmer mouthpieces
I love the Vandoren Optimum ligature on Selmer alto mouthpieces (S80, soloist, concept) and bought the tenor ligature without questioning whether it would fit my Selmer mouthpieces (S80 and soloist) for tenor. It doesn't, it is way too tight for them.
I award 3 stars as a compromise between admitting my own mistake about a good product and being annoyed about not being warned about the specific fit.
I award 3 stars as a compromise between admitting my own mistake about a good product and being annoyed about not being warned about the specific fit.
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