Artley vs. Gemeinhardt vs. Jupiter

leocuellar · Post by **leocuellar** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 4:56 pm

Hello, everyone, I am new at the forum and also at flutes, I am just starting to learn, I don't have a teacher but I am studying from a book. I have previous experiences in music, I play trumpet, harmonica, and now I am learning flute (I'm a 26 YO Computer Systems Engineer) . Actually I feel very enthusiastic at this because I am discovering that flute is the instrument I like the most so I plan to keep learning and playing.

Well I will tell you a bit of my story, when I just started thinking about learn flute I bought a cheap flute in eBay, that later a discover that was one of those Chinese bad manufactured flutes, so I sold the flute and now I just bought three used flutes, one Gemeinhardt and two Artleys. all of them will need pad replacement, which I will do in the next days with a professional near my area, and also I will send them all to the repair shop just in case they need any work. But I don't plan to keep them all, only one, and I will sell the other two, but my question is which brand do you recommend for a beginner who plans to continue playing over the years but probably never at professional level?

I know that each manufacturer may have positive and negative things and maybe neither of these flutes is better than the other, but I would like to hear your experiences with these brands and which one do you prefer, of course I will play them both and try to find out which one feels better but just in case I can't figure out by myself I would like to know your comments.

Thank you, and sorry if I wrote too many words to ask such a simple question.

Leo.

pied_piper · Post by **pied_piper** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 5:24 pm

It may depend upon the specific models you have, how old they are, and what condition they are in. Since you mentioned a professional tech in your area, you might consider asking him/her to look over all three and recommend which one could be put into good working condition for the least cost. Of course, if one of the flutes is a nicer model, it might cost a few bucks more to get it restored, but you would end up with a better result.

leocuellar · Post by **leocuellar** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 5:45 pm

Thanks for the fast response Pied Piper (is that the name of a J-Tull song?).

the flutes are a Gemeinhardt 2SP and two Artleys which I don't know the exact model, they are 80's models (serial numbers start with 64). Also the Gemeinhardt was made in the 80s (S/N E29XXX).

I plan to put all three in good working condition because I want to sell the other two flutes, but I surely will ask his (the technician) opinion also.

fluttiegurl · Post by **fluttiegurl** » Sun Feb 08, 2009 7:45 pm

They are all pretty much the same thing. I would have them overhauled, then decide which one plays better. After they are in good playing condition, it should be an easier decision.

leocuellar · Post by **leocuellar** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 5:28 pm

Hello again, I just want to know what do you think about Jupiter 507 closed hole flute?? fluttiegurl, you told me Gemeinhardt and Artley are pretty much the same, in your opinion, is Jupiter also preety much the same, or a little bit worse or better?

Do someone here have Jupiter 507? have you had problems with this flute? does it require maintenance very often? is it durable?

thanks for your wise comments everybody.

Leo.

fluttiegurl · Post by **fluttiegurl** » Mon Feb 16, 2009 7:03 pm

Honestly, Jupiter flutes seem OK, but I have had some maintenance issues both with my Jupiter alto and with a student's student flute. For these reasons, I just avoid them. That's my personal take.

sidekicker · Post by **sidekicker** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 8:59 pm

I have a Jupiter 511 (inline G, C foot) that I bought new in order to play outside gigs and/or other playing opportunities to which I would never expose my handmade flutes. I just love that little Jupiter flute. Sure, it's not close to a handmade instrument, but for the money, I think it's about the best in its class these days. In the interest of disclosure, though, I must point out that I pair it with a handmade Burkart head with 14k riser; however, the head that came with it was far better than I had expected from such a cheap flute and I get a more than acceptable sound with it. I paid less than $500 USD for the flute and have yet to experience any problems.

SK

leocuellar · Post by **leocuellar** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 4:35 pm

Hey thanks four your good advice. What do you think about Yamaha student models? do you like them more than Jupiter's?

Phineas · Post by **Phineas** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 8:44 pm

Used Student yamahas are a good deal, but the new ones are WAY over priced!

Frankly, I overall like to student Jupiters better than the others mentioned. The only problem I have with student model Jupiters are more frequent adjustments on average. I will say the 511, or if you can find a Capital Edition seem to be a bit better than the 507.

I agree with Flutiegurl about the Alto Flute. I have checked them out, and although they play well, they did not seem as well put together as other Alto flutes.

Phineas

cflutist · Post by **cflutist** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 10:33 pm

I have a Gemeinhardt 3KSB (solid silver body, plated French pointed keys, 12K springs) that I bought as my camping/outdoors flute and I don't like it very much. It was my fault for not testing it out first.

The action is ok, but I don't like the "free blowing" "J" headjoint ... I guess I like a little more resistance like my Haynes, or my 14K Williams HJs have.

mike_s · Post by **mike_s** » Mon Jun 21, 2010 6:50 pm

the most important thing with what ever flute you choose is that it is well set up and not leaking... most of the student flutes you buy used second hand or on ebay will have problems and to make them right is probably going to cost a bit of money regardless of how wonderful the seller tells you it plays, plays great can mean, my 4 year old blew into it and it made a sound..

as was mentioned the yamaha student flutes are great, i would suggest that you get one of those (or the jupiter) and take it to someone who works specifically on flutes and have them adjust it. or look for a flute specific tech and ask if they have any student flutes for sale, while the 500 or 600 they may charge may seem like a lot of money up front, if they sell it to you adjusted and stand behind it (continue to do adjustments on it for say a year or two, you will save your self a lot of hassle.

also i say find a flute specific tech as not all techs are equal and someone who works on all sort of instruments may know a little about a lot of them and not the real finer points of all of them.

i am a professional saxophone tech and while i understand the concepts of flute repair (and can tell exactly what is wrong with one) i will not touch my flutes, i bring them to someone who i feel knows the flute like i know saxophones.

ask around and see if you can find a decent flute tech in your area (get recommendations) as there are some pretty shady flute techs out there as well, and some of them have very high opinions of themselves.......