[mmichel]

I had seen these mentioned earlier (including in this thread), but they were hard to find online or in stores, so I dropped the idea of trying them.

However, WWBW has recently been advertising them pretty heavily, so I decided to try a 3-pack of the tenor reeds (strength 3), and they're great.

As far as I can tell, they are virtually identical to Java green box reeds. I had heard that these were Vandoren's attempt to compete with the orange box Ricos, so I thought that the cane blank might be thinner (as Ricos are to Jazz Selects, for example) or that the cut might be less precise or something, but I can't detect any difference in the cut or in the thickness of the blank.

These could be a great and inexpensive option if you play Java greens in strength 3 or softer.

 

[bandmommy]

The music shop where I do most of my business carries Juno reeds. They are definately NOT inexpensive.
They are priced higher than better quality reeds being sold by other vendors.
If you are a die hard Vandoren user, fine, but I'm not paying an additional 25-50% more for reeds marketed towards students.

 

[mmichel]

I didn't mean to imply that they were a great or inexpensive choice for students. If you read through my post above, you'll see that I don't mention students at all. Moreover, I specifically added the caveat that it's an inexpensive option "if you play Java greens in strength 3 or softer". I think this makes it obvious that I'm talking specifically to Vandoren users.

I just wanted to inform users that the quality and cut seem identical to green box Javas, but at a substantial discount. I.e., based on the prices at WWBW, you'd save more than 25% on a box of 25 tenor reeds vs. buying the equivalent number of green box Javas.

If you look at my linked post in the earlier thread, I was asking whether Vandoren introduced Juno reeds as a form of naked price discrimination. Based on my testing of the reeds, it seems that they have.

 

[milandro]

I am interested, these are very cheap.

Any idea of where they are made? Does it say on the wrapping?

 

[mmichel]

I am interested, these are very cheap.

Any idea of where they are made? Does it say on the wrapping?

"Same cane, same factory as other Vandoren reeds".

The packaging says "Made in France".

 

[milandro]

Thank you, very interesting I will be trying this when my stash of cane will be thinned

 

[Benjamin Allen]

I had seen these mentioned earlier (including in this thread), but they were hard to find online or in stores, so I dropped the idea of trying them.

However, WWBW has recently been advertising them pretty heavily, so I decided to try a 3-pack of the tenor reeds (strength 3), and they're great.

As far as I can tell, they are virtually identical to Java green box reeds. I had heard that these were Vandoren's attempt to compete with the orange box Ricos, so I thought that the cane blank might be thinner (as Ricos are to Jazz Selects, for example) or that the cut might be less precise or something, but I can't detect any difference in the cut or in the thickness of the blank.

These could be a great and inexpensive option if you play Java greens in strength 3 or softer.

This is really good information. Thank you. I'll order some since most of my mouthpiece work is done around Vandoren Java and Rigotti.

 

[bandmommy]

I didn't mean to imply that they were a great or inexpensive choice for students. If you read through my post above, you'll see that I don't mention students at all. Moreover, I specifically added the caveat that it's an inexpensive option "if you play Java greens in strength 3 or softer". I think this makes it obvious that I'm talking specifically to Vandoren users.

I just wanted to inform users that the quality and cut seem identical to green box Javas, but at a substantial discount. I.e., based on the prices at WWBW, you'd save more than 25% on a box of 25 tenor reeds vs. buying the equivalent number of green box Javas.

If you look at my linked post in the earlier thread, I was asking whether Vandoren introduced Juno reeds as a form of naked price discrimination. Based on my testing of the reeds, it seems that they have.

If you read MY post I said that at local shops they are NOT inexpensive.
If you read the actual box and Vandoren promotional material Juno reeds are marketed as a STUDENT reed.
Not everyone shops, or can shop at WWBW.
Please, I wasn't rude in my reply, there is no reason for you to be in yours.

 

[mmichel]

Please, I wasn't rude in my reply, there is no reason for you to be in yours.

Sorry, I didn't mean any offense. How was my reply rude?

If you read the actual box and Vandoren promotional material Juno reeds are marketed as a STUDENT reed.

I am, of course, aware of this. The point of this thread was to inform other potential users of the reeds that, despite the marketing, it is in fact a high-quality reed available at a substantial discount from its "pro" equivalent.

I was curious and I figured other players might be as well.

 

[MM]

Any idea what cut the Juno clarinet reeds resemble? Seem that V12 work best for me, followed by V21 for me on clarinet. I don't care for the blue box.

So to save 25% on sax reeds, I will need to purchase a box of 25. That is becoming an expensive experiment so I may start with a box of 10.

 

[KeithL]

Yeah, I obviously don't understand reed marketing these days since what D'Addario is doing with the Venn and what Vandoren is doing with these Juno reeds doesn't make much sense to me. The Juno tenor reeds are almost the same price as the regular Vandoren reeds (Java, Traditional, V16, etc.) unless you buy a box of 25 of them. The difference for a box of 5 on a per reed basis is only about $.35. Is that really enough to justify these as "a student reed"? Rico orange box run about $33 for a box of 10. It seems to me if you wanted to compete directly you would offer a box of 10 Juno reeds for $35ish. Realistically I suspect a box of 25 is targeted more at the middle or high school band director that occasionally must provide a student with a reed or maybe stores that still open boxes and sell reeds a few at a time (do they even do this?) than the typical band parent. I know my parents would have laughed me right out of the room if I suggested getting a box of 25 reeds when I was learning to play. I was in college before I ever bought a whole box of reeds. I suppose they figure just marketing them as a "student reed" is enough.

 

[mmichel]

So to save 25% on sax reeds, I will need to purchase a box of 25. That is becoming an expensive experiment so I may start with a box of 10.

The sell them as 3-count cards (three sealed reed packets glued onto a card), which is what I bought. This is perfect for just trying them out.

 

[mmichel]

Yeah, I obviously don't understand reed marketing these days since what D'Addario is doing with the Venn and what Vandoren is doing with these Juno reeds doesn't make much sense to me. The Juno tenor reeds are almost the same price as the regular Vandoren reeds (Java, Traditional, V16, etc.) unless you buy a box of 25 of them. The difference for a box of 5 on a per reed basis is only about $.35. Is that really enough to justify these as "a student reed"? Rico orange box run about $33 for a box of 10. It seems to me if you wanted to compete directly you would offer a box of 10 Juno reeds for $35ish. Realistically I suspect a box of 25 is targeted more at the middle or high school band director that occasionally must provide a student with a reed or maybe stores that still open boxes and sell reeds a few at a time (do they even do this?) than the typical band parent. I know my parents would have laughed me right out of the room if I suggested getting a box of 25 reeds when I was learning to play. I was in college before I ever bought a whole box of reeds. I suppose they figure just marketing them as a "student reed" is enough.

Yeah, this is pretty baffling to me too, but I agree that they're probably intending to aim at band directors.

Another piece of the puzzle may have to do with the difference between the MSRP and the market price. According to Sam Ash, there's a greater than 25% difference between the MSRP for a 5-count box of green box Javas ($41.99) and the Junos ($29.00). Of course, virtually no one sells reeds at the MSRP. My guess is that Vandoren sells the reeds at comparable wholesale prices, relying on shops to enforce a greater price differential (and thus create the desired market segmentation). The shops, however, are just charging what the market can bear (which appears to be considerably less $40 for a box of 5 reeds).

 

[KeithL]

I suppose. Honestly I never really look at the MSRP on reeds just what the "street price" is from Sax Alley or occasionally WW&BW. However, now that you mention it I've seen reeds for sale at music stores that mostly cater to rock bands (guitar, bass, drums, keys, & PA equipment) marked at around $40 for a box of 5 when they were selling at the horn retailers and sax shops for $17-$18 a box so I guess there are folks who are basing their pricing off the MSRP.

Don't want to over think it but there's not a lot else to do so; is the pricing reflective of Vandoren not being able to make a reed and put it in a box with their present process and, IMO, grossly overdone packaging for less than X or could they actually sell these reeds cheaper but they're worried that longtime players are going to figure out the reed is just a Java in a white box with "student reed" printed on it and stop buying the more expensive product if they could really save some money. So in order to actually save much of anything they make you go for the equivalent of 5 regular boxes figuring that that is a win for them as well. Either way it's clearly their attempt at increasing their market share in a space they haven't marketed to much in the past.

 

[mmichel]

I finally got around to trying these on alto, and they are awesome! I think I'm going to switch over to these full time.

Unlike on tenor (where I currently have several boxes), I haven't played green box Javas on alto in many years, so I can't confirm whether they appear to be the same cut.

I initially tried the 3's but they were a bit too stiff. The 2.5's are perfect. I normally play either Jazz Select 3S's or Rigotti 3L's on alto. I like the body and control that I get from the Jazz Selects, but I find that they tend to play a bit dark. On the other hand, I like the brighter sound and power I get with the Rigotti's, but I find that they are a bit harder to control and their sound can get thin and brittle, especially in the palm keys and altissimo.

The Junos seem to give me the best of what I like about the RJS and Rigottis without any of the downside.

FWIW, my main alto mouthpiece (and the one I'm using with these reeds) is a Mouthpiece Cafe NYC 7 (0.082").

 

[MM]

Wondered if anyone else has tried the Juno reeds lately and could add to the reports. Thanks.

 

[MM]

Nobody recently try these Juno reeds? Also, mmichel are you still on them? I noticed in a strength chart comparison shows Junos to run softer than Javas.

Lately Java greens feel stuffy for me on alto.

 

[mmichel]

Nobody recently try these Juno reeds? Also, mmichel are you still on them? I noticed in a strength chart comparison shows Junos to run softer than Javas.

Depends on the mouthpiece.

On my Mouthpiece Cafe NYC or the refaced Meyer that I discussed in this thread, Junos are still my go-to reed (both of the clips I posted in that thread were played on a Juno 2.5).

However, I've recently been spending more time playing a Klum Acoustimax on alto, and the Juno 2.5's sound a bit too buzzy for me on it. On the Acoustimax, I tend to use either Rigotti 3L's or Juno 3's. The Juno 3's sound great on that mouthpiece, but are a bit stiffer than I'd like, so I'm mostly using the Rigotti's.

On tenor, I've played the 3's and they play exactly like my Java Green Box 3's. I've still got a bunch of boxes of Java's, so I haven't yet bought more Junos.

As with alto, it also depends on the mouthpiece. I prefer the Junos/Green box Javas for my Wanne Gaia 7* and Link Mouthpieces, but I've been playing primarily on a Marantz Double-Ring Legacy for most of the past year, and that mouthpiece seems to prefer a Rigotti 3L.

 

[StefGrani]

For some reason, I don’t seem to get anywhere with Vandorens. I’ve tried every color or letter combination one way or the other. I can’t adjust to their numbering system either. I bought some Java’s (1.5 and 2) in Seattle (Kennely Keys) for sop and alto. They were expensive (at least a year ago). I actually initially liked them, but then they fell out of circulation. Now I’m on Rigotti’s on alto and sop and La Voz on bari. Sure, everybody has his/her sound concept. To me, the Rigotti’s were a game changer (Florida era Link 6* on sop and Theo Wanne NY bro’s 6 on alto). Then, I landed on the La Voz on bari and was totally sold. To the degree that I’m not even thinking of looking at new mouthpieces (I play Link slant)!!! For me, that is a new world altogether. So, I gave Juno’s a chance, but they obviously were not for me...

 

[High Fly]

If you read MY post I said that at local shops they are NOT inexpensive.
If you read the actual box and Vandoren promotional material Juno reeds are marketed as a STUDENT reed.
Not everyone shops, or can shop at WWBW.
Please, I wasn't rude in my reply, there is no reason for you to be in yours.

Rude?...huh?