Comparison Chart

Please find our our 3D comparison chart as download at the link below: (Mouthpiece + Reed combination = suggested Forestone Reed)

Click Here

What you still should keep in mind:

There is no one-size-fits-all solution to fitting a reed to a mouthpiece. Not only do mouthpiece facings, tip openings and bore dimensions vary widely, but clarinet and saxophone players are highly individualistic in how they form their embouchures, the amount of jaw pressure they employ, how they blow, and so forth. Even the kind of music one performs — classical, chamber, orchestral, jazz, folklore, popular,  Klezmer ― influences how one plays and therefore the choices one makes in pursuit of an ideal setup.

Every woodwind player has a different comfort zone and it is for this reason that reed manufacturers offer different profiles and strengths to the clarinet and saxophone community. Forestone clarinet and saxophone reeds come in a range of strengths. There are seven clarinet strengths and nine strengths for each of the four saxophones (soprano, alto, tenor and baritone).

The amount of wood fibre in the material determines the strength (blowing resistance). In every case, the lowest number F1 has the lowest percentage of wood fibre and therefore the lowest blowing resistance. At the other end of the spectrum, the F5 has the highest percentage of wood fibre and therefore the highest blowing resistance. Here are three points to bear in mind in choosing your ideal strength of Forestone reed. Reeds in the middle of the range are most suited to mouthpieces with a medium tip and medium facing curve.Reeds at the lower end of the range are most suited to mouthpieces with a relatively open tip and a shorter facing curve.Reeds at the higher end of the range are most suited to mouthpieces with a relatively close tip and a longer facing curve.

There are, of course, endless permutations and combinations in mouthpiece design and fabrication, so that the foregoing should only be taken as a general guideline in choosing your ideal strength. Rest assured that all seven Forestone strengths will produce a clear, full bodied, stable and robust tone on the right setup.