Buffet Crampon B12 Student Bb Clarinet

On the advice of our son's clarinet instructor, we bought this clarinet from you and WOW, what a difference it has made. The overall tone and range improved my son's sound almost instantly. This has allowed him to play with others with much more expensive clarinets, and not feel embarrassed. His progression in ability, as well as overall sound, has made many question the short length of his clarinet lessons (2 years now, but only 1 when we bought it). We are very pleased.

The Buffet B12 is the best entry level student model clarinet out there. Key action is very responsive, sound quality is excellent, intonation approaches the mighty Buffet R13, and I recommend this model to my beginning students. The B12 will last advancing clarinetists for many years without hindering progress. To master the basic skills, a quality instrument is essential. The Buffet B12 is worth the investment for any serious student.

When choosing your young students clarinet, you want to be sure that they will stick with their instruments for years to come. This instrument gives them that opportunity. I now play on the professional level and still refuse to sell this beautiful instrument. I play on an R13 that's just gorgeous, and when comparing it to my b12, there are minor differences (with a good mouthpiece and reed, of course) Sure you can mess around with other brands and models, but trust me, they will all pale in comparison to the b12. The keywork and sound emission are just unbeatable for a student clarinet. Spend the extra money and save your self the trouble of having to constantly upgrade to a different clarinet.

I am a performing musician and private teacher and I have to say that for my students this is the best clarinet to get. It is not the cheapest student clarinet out there but that it is because has amazing quality for a student instrument. Normally I would recommend a Yamaha for my students that play saxophone and flute, but for clarinet I think that the Buffet B12 is superior in quality, sound and overall intonation. The B12 is pretty much a plastic E11 with nickel plated keys rather than silver. I feel that the B12 will definitely last throughout high school. It has many professional features that are found on the R13. The B12 is a very high quality clarinet that will last any student for a very long time.

I bought my B12 clarinet as a second clarinet for outdoor performances. I already have a R13 clarinet that I've had for years. The sound on the B12 is very mellow & rich for a plastic clarinet. I tested the intonation with my chromatic tuner and it is very well in tune compared to other student models I have tried. The keys feel just as nice as my R13; the main difference is that it is of lighter weight because it is made of resin plastic. I wish I had this B12 back when I was in junior high & high school; I played on an old Vito back then. If you are a serious student then I recommend paying a little more for the B12 entry clarinet, you won't be sorry! :)