I just saw this Amati full Boehm clarinet. It was ok, nothing special to be honest. I actually prefer to play a regular 17 keys & 6 rings clarinet, with none of the extra keys, but it was interesting enough to take a photo.
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Amati full Boehm clarinet
- Thread starter clarnibass
- Start date
I have one of these (an older issue, though) for sale.
My main issue with them is that the bridge key sometimes jams against the LJ C#/G# mechanism's post nearby; because of the metal-sleeved lower joint the two joints may twist against each other easier than anticipated. A soft-locking alignment aid would be a good improvement.
Build quality is very good, but I don't know how much is factory and how much has been tweaked in the past. Wood is excellent.
Where do you have it listed?
(Man, am I gassy!!)
I haven't listed it. I don't need to find buyers. Buyers find me.
You mean I should put it into the marketplace thingy?
I don't see anything out of the ordinary with the C#/G# key stuff.
After my Amati experience (my Oehler horn), I'd not rush out to buy one of their horns. Mine was fraught (fraught, I tells ya!) with design issues, rough edges (literally so), and poor workmanship. The Godless ex-Commies who work on these things must be getting about five kroner an hour.
It took my local repairman (Fred Freeman, who unfortunately died a month or so ago) a solid week of "when he had time" to put it to rights, and that's not counting the additional time spent "fixing" the tuning vent pads.
After my Amati experience (my Oehler horn), I'd not rush out to buy one of their horns. Mine was fraught (fraught, I tells ya!) with design issues, rough edges (literally so), and poor workmanship. The Godless ex-Commies who work on these things must be getting about five kroner an hour.
It took my local repairman (Fred Freeman, who unfortunately died a month or so ago) a solid week of "when he had time" to put it to rights, and that's not counting the additional time spent "fixing" the tuning vent pads.
Leblanc was fitting those to their low end horns a few years back. Nothing more than a cylindrical post let into the wood on the lower joint, half of which protruded past the ring; and a similar, semi-circular cutout in the joint above.
For the casual student, it's a nice reminder. But, for a serious student, the correct alignment should be drummed in by the third week or so.
Perhaps children are dumber these days, but I somehow doubt it. As for us old folks, a couple of scribed lines should suffice...
It had a decent tone and intonation, felt pretty good too. Nothing special though and not what I would consider a very good clarinet.
I noticed that too. They could have shaped the part to be a bit more worry-free but it just meant to notice the alignment when assembling. I didn't consider it a major issue. The alignment of the joints was fine with no tendency to twist at all. In fact the lower bridge key had a better design than most clarinets (pretty much parallel to clarinet body when raised).
Maybe yours is better than this one. Build quality was about average and this is one of the better Amatis I've seen. Some problems with screws, free play in some keys, binding keys, unlevel tone holes, poor design of some key arms, combined with problematic metal (e.g. too springy for its design), etc.
Okay...I should have said considering its age the buld quality is very good.
Means...even if the plating is worn and the horn has more than 30 years on its ticker, it's not about to fall apart. The rough spots are long gone and the keywork may have some play (inevitably), but structurally it's a solid horn. Heck, they're built like tanks (and some may argue they also sound like that) but as a humble serviceman I've never discovered any nasty surprises. That doesn't mean it's a "good" instrument from a perfectionist standpoint, but a very solid piece of work. Maybe not more, but certainly not less either.
Having learned to play on an Amati, I may be partial, agreed. But after quite a number of different instruments, I think I could have done worse.
And yes, I know the Leblanc and others' alignment gizmos. I also know that a seasoned player will assemble his instrument carefully. But I also expect that during a performance the setup doesn't budge. A new cork may help, but a locking mechanism may be even better.
Means...even if the plating is worn and the horn has more than 30 years on its ticker, it's not about to fall apart. The rough spots are long gone and the keywork may have some play (inevitably), but structurally it's a solid horn. Heck, they're built like tanks (and some may argue they also sound like that) but as a humble serviceman I've never discovered any nasty surprises. That doesn't mean it's a "good" instrument from a perfectionist standpoint, but a very solid piece of work. Maybe not more, but certainly not less either.
Having learned to play on an Amati, I may be partial, agreed. But after quite a number of different instruments, I think I could have done worse.
And yes, I know the Leblanc and others' alignment gizmos. I also know that a seasoned player will assemble his instrument carefully. But I also expect that during a performance the setup doesn't budge. A new cork may help, but a locking mechanism may be even better.
That, like many other perfectly clever and serviceable ideas, is all well and good. But, just try to get them past the "It's not the same as every other clarinet that I've ever touched" barrier.
From what I've seen of Amati instruments, the best repair tool to apply to them would by the lead hammer my mother sent me when I was in the Republic of Vietnam - I used it to hammer reluctant torsion bars and final drive connections into place. Two blows from that tool and any Amati clarinet will be fixed for once and for all.
From what I've seen of Amati instruments, the best repair tool to apply to them would by the lead hammer my mother sent me when I was in the Republic of Vietnam - I used it to hammer reluctant torsion bars and final drive connections into place. Two blows from that tool and any Amati clarinet will be fixed for once and for all.
No problumo
My beloved lead hammer (which got left behind in my driver's toolbox when I was brought home early with serious wounds) would work equally as well on such a beast, requiring only two more hammer strokes to accomplish the repair...
In lieu of a lead hammer, I now have a very capable "dead blow" hammer, a plastic five pound sledge filled with small lead shot. I imagine that it would do the trick as well.
My beloved lead hammer (which got left behind in my driver's toolbox when I was brought home early with serious wounds) would work equally as well on such a beast, requiring only two more hammer strokes to accomplish the repair...
In lieu of a lead hammer, I now have a very capable "dead blow" hammer, a plastic five pound sledge filled with small lead shot. I imagine that it would do the trick as well.
Purchase yourself an MG with knock off wheels. They come with a dandy lead hammer.
A lot of issues with this one were seperate from its age (e.g. design issues), though some were because of age and previous problematic repairs too. Plating was excellent, almost no wear at all, eventhough it was used by an excellent folk musician for years. It wasn't anywhere near falling apart. Only a much lower quality or far worse condition of instrument would fall apart. I just thought design and manufacture on this one were at most average.
If someone is big/strong enough and/or doesn't mind the weight/size of the extra keys/length, it would be absolutely fine to learn on. It would be fine for many people as a clarinet to play too. It doesn't have any unusual intonation or response issues. Not great, but definitely ok. However in comparison with what I consider very good clarinets, that I would want to play, it's no where close in tone, response and feel.