[Jcam44]

I'm not into the Silverstein hype but do love their ligatures. Still don't know anyone who has tried their alto mouthpiece. I've used Legere Sigs, but am currently back of cane with Rigotti Golds that I'm very happy with and not looking to try these but found them interesting.

Concert Grade AMBIPOLY Reed

• Concert grade reed with round and warm sound
• Rich harmonics over full dynamic range
• Perfect and clear altissimo

Just Like a Cane Reed

• Wets like cane (moisturizes in 3 minutes)
• Feels like cane (Less "plastic" feel)
• Plays like cane (Breaks in and align to your mouthpiece and embouchure)

Consistent and Reliable

• Made with the most advanced symphonic material called 'AMBIPOLYMER' for perfect consistency among all reeds
• Very stable against climate variation

Hand Adjustable

• Just like cane reeds, adjustable with a reed knife or sandpaper.
• Precisely customizable as you require.

Longer Life

• Does not degrade over the course of use
• Never generates any 'micro crack' and never frays

Premium Quality Material

• Made with food-grade AMBIPOLYMER
• Eco-friendly
• Individually serial numbered

Introductory price of $40 a reed

 

[LostConn]

Introductory price of $40 a reed

Egad! And how much do they charge once the initial thrill is gone?

How can they say that the reed "breaks in" but at the same time "does not degrade with use"? Breaking in is a mild form of degradation.

 

[Jcam44]

Egad! And how much do they charge once the initial thrill is gone?

How can they say that the reed "breaks in" but at the same time "does not degrade with use"? Breaking in is a mild form of degradation.

All excellent and unaddressed hyperbole...er... questions. I actually thought the same thing about the "break in" to degradation.

 

[Benny]

Either they sound like **** or Silverstein needs to find better players to demo their reeds

 

[LostConn]

Looking more closely at the Silverstein website, it appears that this synth reed is available only for clarinet. There's no mention of any sax reed.

 

[Jcam44]

Oh. That was my error. I must have subconsciously thought it was Alto because they called it Alta. My bad.

 

[sopsax]

I worked for a time at a design/marketing/branding firm. Here's what we'd have advised Silverstein:
* Don't name your clarinet reed Alta, it sounds too much like Alto.
* Don't call it symphonic material when you mean synthetic.
* Explain how a polymer item can be "eco-friendly" yet non-biodegradable.
* Explain how a reed requiring lengthy moistening can steal market share from instantly playable synthetic reeds.
* Tone down the hyperbolic lingo, you sound like con artists.
* If your retail distribution is spotty & your products in short supply, don't charge an arm & a leg for shipping on items purchased directly from your website.

Having taken less than 10 minutes to identify these errors, naturally we'd have sat on the report for two weeks & charged a humongous consulting fee. :twisted:

 

[soybean]

* Don't name your clarinet reed Alta, it sounds too much like alto...:

Yes. That reminds me of an even worse choice of name. The Bari reed. As in, "I would like to buy a Bari tenor reed."

 

[Jcam44]

got the email its available for alto and soprano now.

 

[LostConn]

got the email its available for alto and soprano now.

They appear to have both classical and jazz models for alto sax, which is interesting

I was actually prepared to order one of these reeds just out of curiosity, even though at $39 (why is every Silverstein product so overpriced?), it's twice as expensive as a Forestone Black Bamboo, and 30% more than even the notoriously pricey Legere Signature. And they charge shipping on top of that -- either $5.50 or $10 for one reed! But the Silverstein website won't process your order unless you also create an account with them with a user name and password. Sorry, but that's too many demands for one imprudent purchase by me.

 

[sopsax]

Yes, Silverstein's prices are outrageous. I think their OmniCap is a great product, but they make the customer jump thru ridiculous hoops -- requiring account registration at the site, high prices, limited availability, no discount for multiple items per order, expensive postage the only option, overly elaborate nonrecyclable packaging -- for a small soft silicone sleeve!

It's almost enough to induce one to consider those inexpensive Chinese knockoffs.

 

[awesomesaxophonist]

Any other experiences with these reeds? I am particularly interested in hearing further reviews regarding the altissimo which was the worst part of Legere reeds for me (aside from them cracking with 1-2 weeks). Do they have a textured or smooth surface on the surface of the reed that touches the bottom lip?

 

[emeraldcity]

Any other experiences with these reeds? I am particularly interested in hearing further reviews regarding the altissimo which was the worst part of Legere reeds for me (aside from them cracking with 1-2 weeks). Do they have a textured or smooth surface on the surface of the reed that touches the bottom lip?

Yes, I have experience with them and it is not a good experience. First I purchased a 3.5 but I couldn't get it to play, so got them to exchange it for a 3+. That doesn't play either. I'm probably going to have to try adjusting it, but for the $39 I spent on it, not happy about the need to try that. I can't really explain what is wrong with it, except that it just does not play. I tried it with about 6 or 8 mpcs. I'll try it sometime again. About the texture, it is smooth against the lower lip. I, too, am interested in hearing from other people who have tried it.

 

[dtedsax]

Six months later..... anybody have have positive experience?

 

[liggy]

I bought one for my alto. It’s the best non-cane reed I’ve tried and it’s fine for practicing. Plays down low pretty well and altissimo is good - not quite as good as cane but it’s a brighter than I’d like.

My natural sound runs a little bright to begin with so I tend to go for darker sounding reeds like Vandoren blue box etc.

I do bring it along on an extra mouthpiece to gigs just in case something crazy happens and I need to pop on a new reed - it plays right away.

My normal setup for reference is a silver plated YAS 62 ES with a Yani 9 refaced by John Yoakum.

 

[Sivari]

I received today a 2 1/2 and a 3 for tenor. I tried them in a big band concert today and I’m amazed, I wonder If I will ever go back to cane.
I used them on a Phil Tone Intrepid 7*. I ordered today also a 2 1/2+ which will probably be the ideal size for me. My main reed on the Phil Tone was a Lavoz MH .

 

[JoAnnPeeler]

I just tried out a 2.5 Alta Classic for alto on a C** soloist and I found the reed had a more even response up and down the horn than Legere Signature reeds do. They also seem to run a little softer than I expected. I thought a 2.5 would be a little harder than my 2.75 Legere but it seemed a little softer. I'll have to try a 2.5+ or 3 when I have the funds to buy another one. Articulation was also cleaner. I also agree with Liggy that they are a little brighter, but probably not too bright for my setup. It has been several years since I've played on cane so I can't make any comparisons there. (I bought a box of Hemkes recently just for kicks buy one of my dogs go a hold of them before I could try even one of them.)

 

[Sivari]

I just went through 15 of my selected regular reeds and the Silverstein is in the top 3

 

[Instrument Attic]

I tried some of these at NAMM after hearing a lot of buzz about them (these, AM mouthpieces, and Key Leaves were by far the most talked about sax products). I generally like Legere Signatures and also use cane depending on the situation.

The Alta has a big sound, lots of bite, definitely on the brighter side, and exciting to play right from the first blow. But the more I played, the more I noticed there were missing harmonics - lots of mids but not enough lows or highs. Altissimo didn't pop well enough for me and subtone thinned out a lot.

They're quite nice reeds overall that didn't quite give me the full spectrum I look for in a rich sound.

 

[Sonny S]

Hi Mr. Attic - I'm interested in these reeds. Thanks for your review. Did you try both The Classic and The Jazz cuts? And did you try them for tenor and alto?