As has been said before in this forum, all things being equal: material makes no difference.
In reality slight differences in manufacturing can make a sonic and tactile difference.
Again as it has been said before: the head is the most important part for sound on a flute.
I bought a DN model in 1977 with inline keys, open hole, low B, and high C facilitator.
Solid silver throughout. I tried different heads and bought a Muramatsu wing in the early 80s.
I can tell you that each head (even the same model) can be slightly different.
So try them side by side before you buy otherwise it will be subject to the room/day/mood.
The head I use now is a Sheridan. I tried 6 of the same design at a flute convention he was at and was almost shocked how similar they were in looks and sound.
A real master.

 

Thanks very much! I've read through a number of good threads here that discuss how the material itself makes no difference, and that's one of the reasons that it seems to make sense to go with the less-expensive EX model vs. the silver-body GX.

Still, as I peruse the websites and dream of a new flute, I wonder if there might be some advantage to the GX? (This is a more fun question to ponder than when the quarantines might end.)

 

I have a Muramatsu AD and love it. I would go for the GX if you can afford it. They are great!

 

I bought a lightly used GX III about 18 months ago. I didn't get a chance to try an EX but I did play about 10 other flutes before making a choice. I don't know that you would feel that much difference between the two but you won't know until you play them. I would suggest if you're willing to spend $5k+ on a flute that you try a bunch of different flutes not just settle on one without trying anything else. My second choice would have been a heavy walled Di Zhao Handmade which surprised me a bit since I preferred both it and the Muramatsu to flutes that were substantially more expensive. For me there was a definite point of diminishing returns. I couldn't really appreciate the the difference between a $5k and a $15k+ flute so I know flute shopping for anything more expensive than that is pointless for me.

 

You can go on the Muramatsu USA site and look at what they have in the pre-owned inventory. Sometimes, you can get a GREAT flute for less than you were going to pay for a lesser one new. They sent me three flutes to trial. I'm not sure if they're doing trials during the Pandemic, though.

 

Thank you for all the replies so far, very helpful.

Does anyone know whether there's a difference in build quality between the EX and GX? If not, and if silver doesn't affect the sound differently from silver-plated, then is there any reason to consider the GX over the EX?

 

Having owned and owning a number of good flutes, both plated and solid silver, I would say that the biggest difference between these two would be the feel. Silver is heavier and a bit "bouncier" in terms of how the keys feel when you close them. That alone can affect how someone responds to the flute, even if the sound is exactly the same. I would suggest that you try both, if you have a chance, and see if the difference in feel is enough to want to make you shell out the extra $$$.

 

Have you tried Altus, Sankyo etc.
I spent an afternoon playing a couple dozen Altus flutes from mid 2000s to solid gold.
It was very instructive. I did like the $25,000 solid gold but found some silver that sounded as good.

 

I played several models at FluteWorld in SF a few months ago, but not Altus and Sankyo, which I should try.

 

Nice flutes are nice but lots of practice is even nicer. My personal opinion is that a higher level flute is good if you are in a position to take advantage of what it offers ie: do you have enough chops.
There's no point buying a super fast car if you can barely control a Toyota Corolla.
Honestly I wouldn't bother spending more. A more expensive flute won't help your double tonguing, your ability to play T&G front to back or knock out Andersen op.33. Only lots of practice really helps you sound better. I wasted my time on flutes for years. Fact is, I couldn't play it for **** until I had some lessons with a good teacher and got stuck into the practise.
As for materials, maybe read this then make up your mind.
http://bulldog2.redlands.edu/fac/julie_rathbun/physclasses/brad.pdf

 

This is what I've been telling myself as well to try to stave off wanting to spend a lot of money on a flute, and I believe it. I ask myself, "Is your Yamaha 222 getting in the way of your improving? If not, stick with it."

That said, there was such a big improvement in the Yamaha over my old Gemeinhardt from the 1970's that I felt silly for having waited to upgrade. Also, the Muramatsu EX and GX's that I tried not long ago were terrific. It was a lot easier to play softly and to play high notes.

Thanks for the paper, that's interesting and argues for the EX between the two.

 

Some manufacturers are known to spend less time and care on the details of their less expensive instruments, and "less expensive" is also often equated with plated tubes and mechanisms.

Other manufacturers (Miyazawa, for one) make a point of saying that their plated-body instruments are just as "handmade" as their all-silver ones.

Frankly, nickel alloy silver plated is a BETTER choice for mechanism (it's harder and more wear-resistant) and tube (more dent-resistant) and it's actually more expensive to use silver plated nickel alloy than sterling as it's harder and will wear tooling faster, plus the added cost of the plating operation.

In the end, I expect you will not be able to tell a difference between how a plated-tube and a silver-tube Muramatsu plays. If you can, pick the one you like better.

 

Some manufacturers are known to spend less time and care on the details of their less expensive instruments, and "less expensive" is also often equated with plated tubes and mechanisms.

Other manufacturers (Miyazawa, for one) make a point of saying that their plated-body instruments are just as "handmade" as their all-silver ones.

Frankly, nickel alloy silver plated is a BETTER choice for mechanism (it's harder and more wear-resistant) and tube (more dent-resistant) and it's actually more expensive to use silver plated nickel alloy than sterling as it's harder and will wear tooling faster, plus the added cost of the plating operation.

In the end, I expect you will not be able to tell a difference between how a plated-tube and a silver-tube Muramatsu plays. If you can, pick the one you like better.

Thanks, this makes sense. I'm guessing I'll end up with the EX over the GX (unless I go down the rabbit of trying other flutes).

As an aside, wow, the flute with its different metals, mechanisms, head joints, etc. etc. makes the saxophone equipment choices look pretty limited by comparison.

 

Personally if I were in the market for a flute I'd do what I did when I was in the market about 20 years ago: try all the signficant high quality manufacturers.

For me, at the time, that boiled down to plated body and mechanism/silver head flutes (because most makers only offer a choice of headjoint cuts with solid silver head joints) from Muramatsu, Miyazawa, Sankyo, Yamaha, and Powell (I think it was "Sonare"?).

The Yamaha fell out first, despite being a really nice flute, it just wasn't as rich sounding as the others.

After using up every minute of trial time at home, I finally pulled the trigger on the Miyazawa and have never regretted.

 

Personally if I were in the market for a flute I'd do what I did when I was in the market about 20 years ago: try all the signficant high quality manufacturers.

For me, at the time, that boiled down to plated body and mechanism/silver head flutes (because most makers only offer a choice of headjoint cuts with solid silver head joints) from Muramatsu, Miyazawa, Sankyo, Yamaha, and Powell (I think it was "Sonare"?).

The Yamaha fell out first, despite being a really nice flute, it just wasn't as rich sounding as the others.

After using up every minute of trial time at home, I finally pulled the trigger on the Miyazawa and have never regretted.

Sounds like a great process, and that's exactly what I'm hoping to say twenty years from now.

 

Whenever trying an instrument always bring yours for comparison.
When I tried all those the Altus flutes i couldn't bring mine since it had been stolen.

 

https://forum.saxontheweb.net/showt....net/showthread.php?368210-FS-FT-Muramatsu-EXIII-w-solid-silver-head-and-b-foot

This guy is selling a Muramatsu.

 

Oh wow, that Muramatsu EX is tempting! But I think I want to take my time and go through the process of trying different flutes alongside my Yamaha 222 recommended by KeithL and adamk. I'm excited about continuing to practice so that when the stores open again, I'll be better prepared to see what the different flutes have to offer.

 

Another point to consider. Yamaha student flute bodies are quite good - another possible option is to try an aftermarket head joint. I have used a 221 body with a John Lehner and Yamaha EC head joint and was quite happy with both of the results. It was just a thought, good luck with your search.

 

That strikes me as an excellent thought! I mainly want the richer tone and ease of playing that I experienced playing the Muramatsu's; if a better head joint would get me at least 80% of the way there, it might be worth it - thanks!

 

Here's a follow-up on my flute search:

I was able to borrow a Muramatsu GX standard wall for a week. It took me a couple of days to get used to the open holes, but once I did, there was quite an improvement in sound over my Yamaha 222.

Yesterday I went to a flute shop and was able to try lots of makes and models:
- Muramatsu GX heavy wall
- Altus 907 and 1107 with different headjoints
- Sankyo 201 and 301 with different headjoints
- Powell Signature
- Yamaha 777 and a used 877 with Type A & K headjoints
- Type K headjoint on my Yamaha 222

I left with two flutes for a trial : the Mura GX heavy wall, and the Sankyo 301 with an RT headjoint/14k riser. I'm leaning towards the Mura, but the Sankyo 301 sure is nice.

The differences seem to reflect what people have said here: the Mura GX has a rich tone, on the darker side, and seems like it may be more flexible overall for different types of music. The Sankyo is easy-blowing and has a beautiful ring that's very seductive. I'd miss that ring, but feel I'd miss the GX's depth more, if that makes sense. If I were going to stick to classical flute, I might be tempted to go with the Sankyo. But since I want to play "all of the above" (baroque, Latin Jazz, and straight ahead stuff), the Mura GX seems like it might be the better choice.

Unfortunately, they didn't have a Muramatsu EX to try again (someone bought it the morning before), or the Miyazawa 402 and 602 (they forgot about those).

I probably need to try the EX and the Miyazawa's to make a final decision, but it's been great to see how different a bunch of great flutes can feel and sound. I would have hated to try only one or two and based my decision on that, especially given the cost.

Once I finalize the make and model, I feel like I should try several versions of the same flute. But the salesperson said that she felt there was such a consistency in the models these days that this wasn't necessary. It seems like I've read differently, so if anyone has a different opinion, I'd love to know.

I hope this helps anyone else thinking about diving into the flute world to upgrade their flute. It's a pretty big world!

 

It seems to me the salesperson ought to let you try several flutes of the same model. You're shelling out a lot of money for an expensive instrument after all. The setup can make a difference even if it's the same model and you should be given the chance to pick the best of the lot.

 

That's a great point about the set-up, thank you! My initial hope was to finalize the make & model, then try 3 or 4 versions of that flute before making a final pick. I think I'll stick with that.

As an aside, the salesperson said they'd been doing a brisk business selling flutes during the quarantine. Supposedly, people are seeing new value in old hobbies.

Thanks again.

 

I have the EX with a Brannon head joint. I'm quite satisfied as the flute is measurably better than my flute playing. You can't go wrong with it.

 

That sounds like a nice set-up. But wow, it's also a reminder of how many permutations there are with flute options - which head, which body, which mechanism, riser or not, silver, gold or platinum - quite the rabbit hole!

I'm having a hard time deciding whether I like the Muramatsu or Sankyo sound best - they're both great in their own special way, and that's the problem, ugh. I don't even want to think about yet another headjoint possibility.

 

I'm the proud new owner of a Muramatsu GX heavy wall.

I went back to the flute shop and was able to try the Mura EX, a Mura DS, and two Miyazawa's (402 & 602). All fantastic flutes, not a bad one in the bunch. But the darker colors of the Mura GX grew on me, and it seems to offer so much flexibility, as others have said.

KeithL was right above: it's hard even for the flute speciality shops to keep more than a couple of examples of the higher-end flutes on hand. With some of the gold flutes, they're doing good to have even one. So I felt lucky to get to try 3 Mura GX's, two heavy wall and one standard, before choosing. The differences were ever so slight, but were there.

 

Congratulations - I'm sure you'll love it. I wish I had a chance to play a few different models when I bought my GX but regardless I knew it was better for me than what I had and I'm very pleased with it. Enjoy.

 

So nice to have a new GOOD flute.