How would you say they compare to LaVoz? I use LaVoz hard reeds on my tenor and alto.

 

I switched from the same thing. The cane in general is much more dense, so there is a really nice resistance. I find the pitch is on the upper side of the note, which is a great thing. It really allows for an open throat. As far as tone, the low end is much deeper and the high end seems to be extended in a very sweet and smooth way. They also articulate much faster then the LVs. If your using hards, try a 3 1/2.
 

Hey Euge, I play 2.
5 V-16's on my Sugal KWll copper 8* which ones should I try for comparison? to add my tenor is a Couf Suberba 1
 

Tough call on the strength. Try a 2.5 reserve. Everyone is different. V16s are pretty strong reeds, so I'd say stay the same 2.5.
 

I'm a Bari man myself. I've used both LaVoz and Rico and they both seem the same.
By the way, I soak them in iced tea! lol
 

hey Euge, I play on V16's for tenor but I always get like 2 or 3 and sometimes if I'm lucky I'll get 4 reeds out of a box of 10 that play good. Do you pre-soak your Rico's or do you play them out the box? I'm looking into the Rico Reserves becuase i spend money on these V16's and I feel like i'm not getting my monies worth.

 

Box of 10 V16s, I assume your speaking alto. I've not tried the alto Reserves yet. As far as the tenor, they sound very different from V16s. V16s lack the depth sound wise to the reserves. V16s have a harder sound in my experience. Less high end and less low end to the tone. More mid range sounding and harsher. The Reserves sound much sweeter, but still have a very responsive resistance. A more similar comparison to a Vando product would be the Blue Box. But I find the Blue Box to sound stiffer and less responsive. They also have a nasty buzz when used on my metal piece. The Reserves have more depth and much sweeter top. again, they are also very free blowing, but still have resistance. They just don't seem to hit that "brick wall" that I hit with other reeds. You can blow through them no matter how resistant they are.

I always soak the reeds for a few (5 - 10) minutes, rub the vamp to tip with the thumb while the table is flat on glass, then only play it for a few minutes (2 minutes) before putting it in a reed guard. Then the reed guard into a Rico reed vault at 73%. It seems the reeds really are in their prime 4 or 5 days later. I do play each reed a minute or 2 each day until they are ready. I have about 20 reeds in rotation at any one time. I have had a few reeds last for 3 shows, which is unheard of for me. Ever! Then they stay in rotation as a practice reed. I just couldn't get 90 minutes of hard performance out of it. I have 2 reeds that I've been blowin on since Halloween. They sound amazing for about 30 minutes. So they are great for studio and practice, where I can stop and change to another reed. I love these things.
 

Thanks for the info on the reeds. I play on v16's also and I'm needing a better reed.