Gibson Practice Chanter Reed

by Gibson Bagpipes

Product Features

• The Gibson practice reed, while ideally suited to Gibson practice chanters, is also an excellent reed for other brands.
• The blades are wide allowing for more air, thereby nearly eliminating the "shutting off" phenomenon.
• This design also produces a loud, full tone.

Product Details

• ASIN: B0002I8YH6
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,460 in Musical Instruments (See Top 100 in Musical Instruments)
  • #10 in Musical Instruments > Folk & World Instruments > Wind Instruments > Bagpipes

Product Description

The Gibson practice reed, while ideally suited to Gibson practice chanters, is also an excellent reed for other brands. The blades are wide allowing for more air, thereby nearly eliminating the "shutting off" phenomenon. This design also produces a loud, full tone. Made by Gibson Classical Bagpipes.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The New Standard, March 25, 2007

By 

F. Scott (Michigan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gibson Practice Chanter Reed

I am sorry to hear that the previous reviewer has had a hard time with his reeds. Indeed, the Gibson/Abbot style reeds are a departure from what many are used to. Often those accustomed to weaker practice chanter reeds are shocked at the amount of throughput the Gibson/Abbot reeds can require. The "duck call" noise he describes is generally produced when the tone is not supported, i.e. not putting enough air through the chanter.

The other consideration is that Gibson/Abbot reeds can be altered by proper sanding and/or trimming to alter both the pitch and strength of the reed. Such an endeavor should only be undertaken when one is fully aware of what he or she is doing. However, given the fact that normal "breaking in," humidity, and temperature can affect the way the reed sounds, the fact that the reed can be 'tweaked' should not be overlooked.

Overall, I would contend that the Gibson/Abbot reed is the new standard. The power, vibrancy, and responsiveness is unparalleled. Paired with the proper practice chanter, you will find a quality of tone you previously thought impossible in a practice chanter. Definitely recommended, provided you have a practice chanter that will accept wide-bladed reeds. For chanters that require a narrower blade and like a higher degree of backpressure, I have always enjoyed Warnock reeds for such a purpose.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the real deal, September 25, 2006

By 

David Corbett "BirlsGoneWild LLC" (Marion, AR) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gibson Practice Chanter Reed

good price on quite possibly the best practice chanter reed on the market. They do work best in the Gibson chanters, and very well in others that have a large reed chamber. Not quite so well in the slimmer practice chanters (like the shepherd, which sounds great with narrow bladed reeds).

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good if you can get them going, September 24, 2007

By 

Bagpipe Player - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gibson Practice Chanter Reed

These reeds push out a huge volume of sound. The sound is very nice, and they are particularly great in long-length practice chanters.

Unfortunately I'm not strong enough to keep these going for any amount of time so I can't play them, but if you're a bit stronger these are definitely worth a look.