new synth chanter reed

[uilleannfinlander]

Quite nice sound indeed:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rURTpmiUSGA

[kings taxes]

yeah, it's not a bad sound at all. Anyone out there had experience with this type of reed?

i doubt very much it would ever compete with cane at the top level of piping, but could be a great tool for learners- may help reduce the number of crap sounding bagpipes in the world!

[ausdag]

> i doubt very much it would ever compete with cane at the top level of piping,

Hi, I'm the guy who shot the video...

I'm not a good highland piper myself yet, but I do specialise in other bagpipe reeds so I know what differences in tone means for a piper.

I've been in the same room with Cory and Malcolm when both cane and the plastic reeds have been played and if you read the statement by Cory on the video, I reckon it's damn good competition for a cane reed.

to quote the video spiel -

"They have been played by many pipers ( some "A" grade ) in solo competitions and demonstrations here ( and overseas ) and have not been picked as a plastic reed, as the tone is so close to that of a traditional cane reed, only the most well trained ear can pick it."

The most important factor in these reeds is that they are maintenance-free, once set up correctly, and tuning overall is reduced to a minimum.

Remember, cane reeds don't sound that crash hot on computer speakers either.

Cheers,

[Celtpastor]

Tried it - liked it!

[kings taxes]

i am still sceptical as to the claimed high end quality of this product. who in scotland plays this reed? where can i buy one? how much? website?

piping live next week would be a great place to launch this kinda product

[ausdag]

i am still sceptical as to the claimed high end quality of this product. who in scotland plays this reed? where can i buy one? how much? website?

piping live next week would be a great place to launch this kinda product

If you click on the link in the first post above, you will see all the information you require regarding contacts.

Cheers,

DavidG

[James J]

I just got my reed from Malcolm McLaren and gave it its inaugural blast yesterday. I'm thrilled to bits with it. Now I can spend more time playing rather than mucking about and cursing. (I'll leave the cursing bit to the neighbours now.)

[AaronMalcomb]

Overall the sound in the clip is pretty impressive. You can still hear the plastic in the topmost notes, especially High A and also in G gracenotes. I wonder if maybe the pressure of the GHB pipe chanter pushes the limits of plastic's acoustic qualities. Hearing one in person would obviously be better to assess.

A showing at Piping Live or the Worlds could have been advantageous. Clanrye even had a booth at the Worlds.

[ausdag]

Malcolm has a new website -

http://www.reedsmclaren.com

[ausdag]

.

[ausdag]

I'm now looking for a different host for the mclaren site. Will let you know when we have it up and running.

[ausdag]

It's back on a new server -

Malcolm McLaren Synthetic Reeds

Cheers,

DavidG