Wish me luck!(although our clarinet choir needs far more luck than my solo! Eeek.)Įb clarinet: 1965 Selmer Series 9, Greg Smith mpc, Vandoren Whitemaster or traditional 3.5's, BG Revelation and Tradition ligs.īb Clarinet: 1993 R-13, Clark Fobes 67mm barrel, Frank Kaspar-Chicago mpc, Frank L. Do other people have this problem with recent Vandorens? Oh well.Īlso, as a sidebar-we have District Solos and Ensembles on Friday. I'm just stuck on Vandoren, I guess, but I always have to modify the reeds. I use a Buffet R-13 clarinet(it's just 2 years old), a Vandoren 5RV Lyre mouthpiece, an Optimum ligature, and Vandoren #4's. The key is not the receiver as much as the mouthpiece.New Topic | Go to Top | Go to Topic | Search | Help/ Rules | Smileys/Notes | Log In Most doublers tend to use a smaller mouthpiece and I think it comes off a bit 'tromboney'. I really like the horn with the small shank when I use my Wick 4AY. A 3rd party slide from Ferguson in So Cal added a long full step (?) to provide alternate fingerings for the low range. The Yamaha model added a 1/2 step to the tuning slide so that 4th valve range down to B natural could be more in tune. They both came with a rotary '5th valve' that extends the tuning slide. In addition - For a small period of time two different valved tuning slides have been available. Later horns have used variations of laser engraved logos. My Adams E3 still has a full length 3rd valve slide.Ĥ. Essentially this is what modern horns like my Sterling do. Then one pushes the cutoff pieces all the way up the 3rd valve ferrules to the top. You could have yours shortened by a tech by carefully cutting the slide and finishing the ends where you cut it. The reason for the long slide is that the slide goes all the way up the ferrule to the elbow that comes out of the 3rd valve, just like 1, and 2. Don't know if the newest have a shortened 3rd valve slide. The newer ones have a flat edge that is completely knurled. The older models had a beveled edge with only a small amount of knurling. Not only the finger buttons changed, but so did the valve caps. This is a weakness in all Yamaha baritone/euphonium/tuba with the same piston guide mechanism.Ģ.

Solution is to take the piston out, loosen stem and hold down washer, push guide towards the center and re-tighten. Band Director, I keep oiling my first valve and it still sticks'. Students keep oiling and then tell their teacher: 'Mr. Idle hands are the devils workshop! They idly turn the valve button, loosen the stem and guide hold down washer, and the guide loses its adjustment, tending to bottom out in the slot tab, causing the valve to stick. All Yamaha piston horns with modern guides suffer in student hands from kids fiddling with the 1st valve stem when not playing. Later guides have a thin metal plate molded into the bottom of the plastic that takes the force of rough handling in the tab slot, and wears MUCH better than the older guides. Early plastic guides were all plastic and tended to chip and break off the tab. Plastic guides and felts on the new 321 are the same as the 621, 631, 642, and 842. Mine came with the smaller buttons but the newer larger buttons fit my horn.ġ. I don't think I will ever sell it.Ģ, Change from small to larger finger buttons. I mostly play my Neo these days but I still love my old 321. I have the second iteration.Īnything else? Nothing so dramatic as the changes on manufacturer's models but of interest to me nonetheless. There are at least 3 versions of the case that they've used over the years. My horn has no stamp but the newer horns I've seen are stamped Yamaha.ĥ. The original models had a model stamp that you could scratch off (at least the 201 I played in junior high did). Did they really shorten it on newer horns?Ĥ. Shorter third valve slide? I haven't seen a recent vintage 321 lately but my third valve slide is pretty long. Mine came with the smaller buttons but the newer larger buttons fit my horn.ģ. Change from small to larger finger buttons. Change from metal to plastic valve guides.

What changes have occurred with this model? These are the changes I've noted. All the recent discussion on the evolution of the Besson/B&H Imperial/Sovereign/Prestige/York instruments got me to thinking about the changes to the Yamaha YEP-321 since its introduction in I believe 1969 or so.

Yamaha yep 321s euphonium