I am more or less a beginner on the bass clarinet, not having played woodwind (sop. clarinet) for several decades since my school days, but my dream to get my hands on a bass has recently come true. I am really enjoying it and the fingering is all coming back to me.
At this stage, I have only invested in an entry-level Chinese-made instrument, and I am trying to improve it in simple ways to make playing easier and more satisfying. A Rovner ligature and Fibracell reed have helped to some extent, but most advice pointed towards a better mouthpiece - so I acquired a hand-finished Vandoren B45 which looks beautiful, but x**v@!! doesn't fit the Chinese neck. Yes I know, I should have checked earlier but was assured all tenons are the same size. It's not a matter of the cork just being tight, the black rubber of the mouthpiece has a diameter of 29.42mm and the neck has an inner diameter of 28.94mm, so I cannot put the mouthpiece into it at all.
So, where to go from here? I want to use the nice mouthpiece. But I am also intending to upgrade the instrument after a year in any case. Is it advisable to have the mouthpiece reduced in size with new cork so that it fits and then resized again later on? Is it possible to buy a neck that would fit the Vandoren mouthpiece properly - assuming it would fit to the receiver of the upper section of the clarinet - or would that be a false investment? Or shall I just hang onto the mouthpiece until I upgrade and make sure it fits the new instrument. I say new, but it's more likely to be a secondhand Selmer or Buffet. Do those all take the same size mouthpiece?
Any advice or guidance would be most welcome.
At this stage, I have only invested in an entry-level Chinese-made instrument, and I am trying to improve it in simple ways to make playing easier and more satisfying. A Rovner ligature and Fibracell reed have helped to some extent, but most advice pointed towards a better mouthpiece - so I acquired a hand-finished Vandoren B45 which looks beautiful, but x**v@!! doesn't fit the Chinese neck. Yes I know, I should have checked earlier but was assured all tenons are the same size. It's not a matter of the cork just being tight, the black rubber of the mouthpiece has a diameter of 29.42mm and the neck has an inner diameter of 28.94mm, so I cannot put the mouthpiece into it at all.
So, where to go from here? I want to use the nice mouthpiece. But I am also intending to upgrade the instrument after a year in any case. Is it advisable to have the mouthpiece reduced in size with new cork so that it fits and then resized again later on? Is it possible to buy a neck that would fit the Vandoren mouthpiece properly - assuming it would fit to the receiver of the upper section of the clarinet - or would that be a false investment? Or shall I just hang onto the mouthpiece until I upgrade and make sure it fits the new instrument. I say new, but it's more likely to be a secondhand Selmer or Buffet. Do those all take the same size mouthpiece?
Any advice or guidance would be most welcome.