Miyazawa or Altus?

[KCMilo]

Went flute shopping today tried quite a few including Muramatsu, Sankyo, Powell. In the end I came home with a Miyazawa 602 and an Altus 1107 to try for a few days. Britannia silver and I got along well today! The flutes play quite differently but I like both equally at this point. There is a big price difference with the Miyazawa being $1300 more expensive.
Will both flutes let me "grow" equally? I'm sure I'm not seeing the full potential of either flute yet. Should I go for the more expensive one knowing that I'll get more out of it as I develop as a player. Or is the Altus going to serve me just as well?
Thanks for your help with this.

[fluteguy18]

You can't really go wrong with either of them. They're both great flutes. Get an objective listener's opinion and go from there.

[cflutist]

Should mention that the Miya has the Brögger mechanism (as does Brannen). It has a really smooth and buttery feel to it imo.

[Linda L]

I play a Miyazawa 202, and it was the "feel" of it that won me over. In my case, it was not the most expensive flute I tried, but it was definitely the most comfortable one to play.
I agree with getting someone objective to listen to a blind test of both. I liked the tone of both my top two choices, but my listener picked the Miyazawa repeatedly as sounding better.
I also liked the fact that Miyazawa has several head joint cuts to choose from, versus one or two. Getting the right head joint can make all the difference in your sound.

[KCMilo]

Thanks for all the tips everyone. The search continues. I'm liking the Altus even though it is the cheaper of the two. Will see if the store can get a Miya 402 so that I am comparing instruments that are more closely priced. Starting to have price anxiety!!
Also.. is it my imagination or are the much vaunted Straubinger pads noisy/ clicky??
And has anyone noticed much difference between the Miya MZ-9, 10, and 11 headjoints? The 10 seems to have more "noise" than the headjoint Im playing on now does .. maybe these are harmonics I'm hearing..I'm not sure.. will ask to try the 9 and 11 if my local store has them.

[Linda L]

My Miyazawa has the MZ-10 HJ cut, and I chose it over several others. Mine does has the gold riser and lip plate. I'm not sure what you mean by noise. I just know my tone was better with the MZ-10 than the several other Miyazawa HJ cuts I tried. The MZ-11 wasn't out yet, when I got mine.

[fluteguy18]

In reference to the Brögger system comment... yes they both have Brögger systems but I think the difference between the Miyazawa and Brannen versions is huge. The Miyazawa version to me is very springy and quick whereas the Brannen version to me is very light and fluid. Just my opinion on that...

As for the Straubinger pads... Some people love them, some people hate them, and some people grow to love/hate them. I loved my Straubs at first, but after a few weeks in I hated them because of the noise. It was only after a long talk with David Straubinger over the phone that I understood what was going on. They only click if they are installed improperly. The 'click' that I am talking about is audible over your playing when you listen back to recordings. As I understand it, it is the plastic backing that is flexing when you hear a click. This however is uncommon.

The noise that most players perceive at first is not in face audible to the listener, but only the player. The noise is the pad making a water-tight seal on the pads from the moisture from your breath. It sometimes sounds like clicking and sometimes like sticky pads (to the player). David indicated to me that those sounds were indicative of a good pad job with his pads.

It drove me nuts for about 6 months, but I love my pads now. I recommend doing a recording and with another listener. Ask them about the noise. If they hear it when you play (and you can hear it on the recording), go with a different flute that had a better padding job (not necessarily brand, just a different flute). If they don't, it's just the pad sealing on the tonehole.

[cflutist]

FG18,
I have never heard any "click" or other noise whatsoever with my Straub pads (that were installed by Brannen).

[KCMilo]

Thanks to all for the interesting opinions and information.. somehow by the end of the thread it looked like I was considering a Brannen.. I wish!!
For several reasons I have decided to go with the Altus.. have a 30 day return policy though... so I'll be playing my brains out so I can give it a really good try.
KC

[cflutist]

Enjoy !!! It is always exciting to get a new flute

[fluteguy18]

FG18,
I have never heard any "click" or other noise whatsoever with my Straub pads (that were installed by Brannen).

From what I've seen, Brannen usually does a fantastic job. I've never heard the noise with any Brannen flute.

[klucas]

I did exactly the same as you! About a year ago I wanted to upgrade from my Yamaha 211. I read about flutes and went to a shop. I tried both the Miyazawa and the Altus in a blind test and picked the Altus.

[flutego12]

My PA 202 started to click last week. Would've sooner had I been less precious about it and played it more. Didn't take long to be moist. Just a long session in our recent damp weather. =S

Is there a better suggestion other than to carefully clamp the keys onto cigarette paper (tally-ho) to wick away excess moisture? It tends to get moist quickly. But so far only one key is clicking, thankfully.

[fluteguy18]

See my above post. I had a lengthy conversation with David Straubinger about this very problem. Here's what you should do. Record yourself playing. If you can hear the clicking in the recording, get a tech to adjust them. If you cannot hear them in the recording then it means that they are sealing perfectly. In that case... you will get used to it. I ruined a few pads doing exactly what you're proposing to do (with paper) over a period of several months. The skins eventually tore and the pads had to be replaced. My tech at Miyazawa kindly replaced them for me for material cost only at my next COA.

So I think you're experiencing exactly what I did. It just takes time. Look up the thread about Straubinger pads on here. It's LONG and you can see the drama with my pads right there.

[flutego12]

See my above post. I had a lengthy conversation with David Straubinger about this very problem. Here's what you should do. Record yourself playing. If you can hear the clicking in the recording, get a tech to adjust them. If you cannot hear them in the recording then it means that they are sealing perfectly. In that case... you will get used to it. I ruined a few pads doing exactly what you're proposing to do (with paper) over a period of several months. The skins eventually tore and the pads had to be replaced. My tech at Miyazawa kindly replaced them for me for material cost only at my next COA.

So I think you're experiencing exactly what I did. It just takes time. Look up the thread about Straubinger pads on here. It's LONG and you can see the drama with my pads right there.

Thanks fluteguy - that's a helpful warning about the cigarette pads, I can't believe everyone seem to be so blah-say about this! Sounds serious and I shall stop using immediately!. I did see the comments on clicking and was merely co-miserating in empathy.