Yesterday I received the two flutes I had mentioned being interested in testing, the yamaha 321 and the jupiter 611. They're both really nice flutes, both with their own pluses and minuses.
I can give some impressions if anyone's interested. I'll just try to hit on some of the points that stood out for me, so feel free to ask any questions, as I'm not really experienced enough in flutes to know everything I should be looking for.
Out of the box both are very visually appealing. The yamaha has a little bit more of a "forged" look or something. Hard to explain because they're both shiny. But the jupiter is shiny more in a "mirror" kind of way, while the yamaha has a kind of "milkier" looking silver (though still shiny). I guess anyone who has a yamaha knows what I mean. Both are very nice in appearance, though. The yamaha case, on the other hand, is pretty crappy, imo, whereas the jupiter case is not only nicer, but also comes with a zippered and padded nylon cover bag that is pretty nice.
Back to the flutes, the yamaha seems to be a little better constructed. It just feels a little more "solid." The keys on the yamaha are very smooth, though maybe a little high and harder to press down. The jupiter keys have a slightly better "action" (easier to press down), but all the RH keys have a little bit of extra (and annoying) "clack" to them, especially the E and the C#. That is a major detractor for me, as it seems as if a new flute shouldn't do that, and is also part of the reason it feels less well constructed (not meaning poorly constructed, just not as finished as the yamaha). Maybe after a while the pad would get moisturized and expand a little, I don't know, but like now if you are doing an E trill, or even just pressing the keys, you can hear it clunking, etc. It's a little annoying.
Both flutes are comfortable to hold, but I'm used to plateau keys, so the yamaha feels more natural to me, while the convex keys of the open hole jupiter make the entire flute feel a little bulkier. The split E on the jupiter also contributes to the bulky feeling, and sometimes my hand seems to interfere with the mechanism. That would just take a minor adjustment, and I can see being used to either one.
The tone on the jupiter is definitely brighter, sharper, and possibly even a little less "refined," whereas the yamaha seems a little "darker," smoother, and I might even say richer. There seems to be a very good balance in the yamaha between the lower register and the second register, with the sound not thinning out at all as you go up to C, C#, D, and through to G3 (pretty much the top of my functional range right now). The jupiter is very good in that respect too, but I think because it starts out a little brighter, it tends to sound *slightly* more harsh in the second octave, but meaning only in comparison to the yamaha. The jupiter seems to have a more "direct" or "linear" tone, if that makes sense.
The split E doesn't seem to make the high E any easier on the jupiter than on my old flute (edit: no split E), but the E on the yamaha (edit: also no split E) is definitely harder to hit than all three flutes (that's always been a "problem note" for me). So I was disappointed that the split E on the jupiter didn't seem to afford much of an improvement.
The jupiter seems to have less air resistance, and is easier to get a note out of. And while I said the yahama was richer sounding, the interesting thing is that a lot of the lower notes (esp. D) can sound more resonant on the jupiter. A lot of that can be affected with technique, etc. but I mean just a vanilla note. I think because of the "brighter" or more forward/linear sound of the jupiter, maybe it just tends to resonate more in these acoustics? (playing in my kitchen
)
So which one am I keeping?
No, seriously, I'm asking: which one am I keeping?
Actually I'm joking, but what I mean is that I really can't decide so far. If either, I'm leaning toward the yamaha, because I like the tone better and it's slightly more comfortable to hold. If it's possible to lower the keys or loosen up the action on flutes, I think I would definitely go with the yamaha. As both flutes are now, the jupiter is a little easier to play -- it's strange with the convex keys, but its more of a feeling that the key is coming up to meet you, which makes it feel faster and easier to improvise on -- but I do prefer the tone of the yamaha.
I think actually so far, while I like both flutes, I am not 100% satisifed with either one, and might send both back and try something else, maybe even a step up or the Pearl 665. I still have until the end of next week to test these more and decide, but TBH, aside from the obvious mechanical advantages of the new flutes over a 30 y.o. flute that's never been serviced, is covered with tarnish, "dust gunk" in the mechanisms, etc., the tone and even playability of my old silver head armstrong actually stands up pretty well to these, amazing as it might seem. I'm seeing now that with some work, that would actually be a really nice flute (I actually like the tarnish, I think it makes it look cool :-o). So maybe I'll save up and increase the budget and keep looking at the next level. If I get the armstrong repaired, I don't really see much of an advantage to the yamaha and jupiter in comparison to it -- definitely not $700-800 worth of improvement (bought the armstrong for $50). I think I would have to go to the next level to get a meaningful upgrade.
I can give some impressions if anyone's interested. I'll just try to hit on some of the points that stood out for me, so feel free to ask any questions, as I'm not really experienced enough in flutes to know everything I should be looking for.
Out of the box both are very visually appealing. The yamaha has a little bit more of a "forged" look or something. Hard to explain because they're both shiny. But the jupiter is shiny more in a "mirror" kind of way, while the yamaha has a kind of "milkier" looking silver (though still shiny). I guess anyone who has a yamaha knows what I mean. Both are very nice in appearance, though. The yamaha case, on the other hand, is pretty crappy, imo, whereas the jupiter case is not only nicer, but also comes with a zippered and padded nylon cover bag that is pretty nice.
Back to the flutes, the yamaha seems to be a little better constructed. It just feels a little more "solid." The keys on the yamaha are very smooth, though maybe a little high and harder to press down. The jupiter keys have a slightly better "action" (easier to press down), but all the RH keys have a little bit of extra (and annoying) "clack" to them, especially the E and the C#. That is a major detractor for me, as it seems as if a new flute shouldn't do that, and is also part of the reason it feels less well constructed (not meaning poorly constructed, just not as finished as the yamaha). Maybe after a while the pad would get moisturized and expand a little, I don't know, but like now if you are doing an E trill, or even just pressing the keys, you can hear it clunking, etc. It's a little annoying.
Both flutes are comfortable to hold, but I'm used to plateau keys, so the yamaha feels more natural to me, while the convex keys of the open hole jupiter make the entire flute feel a little bulkier. The split E on the jupiter also contributes to the bulky feeling, and sometimes my hand seems to interfere with the mechanism. That would just take a minor adjustment, and I can see being used to either one.
The tone on the jupiter is definitely brighter, sharper, and possibly even a little less "refined," whereas the yamaha seems a little "darker," smoother, and I might even say richer. There seems to be a very good balance in the yamaha between the lower register and the second register, with the sound not thinning out at all as you go up to C, C#, D, and through to G3 (pretty much the top of my functional range right now). The jupiter is very good in that respect too, but I think because it starts out a little brighter, it tends to sound *slightly* more harsh in the second octave, but meaning only in comparison to the yamaha. The jupiter seems to have a more "direct" or "linear" tone, if that makes sense.
The split E doesn't seem to make the high E any easier on the jupiter than on my old flute (edit: no split E), but the E on the yamaha (edit: also no split E) is definitely harder to hit than all three flutes (that's always been a "problem note" for me). So I was disappointed that the split E on the jupiter didn't seem to afford much of an improvement.
The jupiter seems to have less air resistance, and is easier to get a note out of. And while I said the yahama was richer sounding, the interesting thing is that a lot of the lower notes (esp. D) can sound more resonant on the jupiter. A lot of that can be affected with technique, etc. but I mean just a vanilla note. I think because of the "brighter" or more forward/linear sound of the jupiter, maybe it just tends to resonate more in these acoustics? (playing in my kitchen
)So which one am I keeping?
No, seriously, I'm asking: which one am I keeping?
Actually I'm joking, but what I mean is that I really can't decide so far. If either, I'm leaning toward the yamaha, because I like the tone better and it's slightly more comfortable to hold. If it's possible to lower the keys or loosen up the action on flutes, I think I would definitely go with the yamaha. As both flutes are now, the jupiter is a little easier to play -- it's strange with the convex keys, but its more of a feeling that the key is coming up to meet you, which makes it feel faster and easier to improvise on -- but I do prefer the tone of the yamaha.
I think actually so far, while I like both flutes, I am not 100% satisifed with either one, and might send both back and try something else, maybe even a step up or the Pearl 665. I still have until the end of next week to test these more and decide, but TBH, aside from the obvious mechanical advantages of the new flutes over a 30 y.o. flute that's never been serviced, is covered with tarnish, "dust gunk" in the mechanisms, etc., the tone and even playability of my old silver head armstrong actually stands up pretty well to these, amazing as it might seem. I'm seeing now that with some work, that would actually be a really nice flute (I actually like the tarnish, I think it makes it look cool :-o). So maybe I'll save up and increase the budget and keep looking at the next level. If I get the armstrong repaired, I don't really see much of an advantage to the yamaha and jupiter in comparison to it -- definitely not $700-800 worth of improvement (bought the armstrong for $50). I think I would have to go to the next level to get a meaningful upgrade.
