Customer Reviews

Buffet B12 Student Clarinet

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've always been a fan of Buffet clarinets. I currently play a Buffet BC1193 and it's served me well over the years.
Parts are easily accessible should you need repair, this is a reputable brand, it is durable, and if you take good care of it, you can interchange parts (bell, barrel, mouthpiece) to achieve a better tone quality as the student gets to high school.

I bought one of these (used) to try to save some money. I initially had bought one of the $100 brands. Once I got this in, I quickly opted to return the cheaper brand. This one plays so well, makes me want to save up for the E11!

Overall, I am very pleased by spending more on the Buffet compared to the lower cost brand. I am slowly learning that price reflects quality without doubt in musical instruments. Being new to teaching myself 2 instruments, I had been lured into the lower prices at first and quickly regretted it. Go with Buffet and add some Vandoren reeds (I tried both Vandoren and Rico). You will not be sorry for spending the extra money for the quality.

I purchased a Buffet B12 student clarinet 10 years ago to play for fun on the side (I was in high school band as a flute player). It has held up wonderfully. I've never had a repair other than replacing pads (which is typical for any woodwind instrument with pads). I gave this clarinet a 4 simply because it is a beginner instrument since it is made of plastic, but for that it is high quality with a decent tone quality.

This clarinet is also a great purchase for clarinet players in a marching band that hesitate to take their wooden clarinet to games/practice etc. It is certainly good enough to play in a marching band without such a great concern for dropping it or having it be rained as you would with a more expensive, high end clarinet.