Flute for college

[hawaii808]

Between a gemeinhardt 33sb, Sonare ps-505, and Armstrong Heritage 2 55B which one would be the better flute for tone and build quality? I'm currently looking for a silver flute for college. Any other past experience on them?

[RenzowithdaBenzo]

Between the three, the Sonare would by far be the best pick. Powell's handmade headjoint on the sonare body out preforms any Gemeinhardt or Armstrong for sure, especially going into college. I'm currently a senior in high school and I have the Sonare 705 and it's pretty amazing.

[laurenkaye1995]

Are you planning to major in music in college? If so, I wouldn't personally go with any of these flutes. Out of the three you've listed, the Sonare is easily the best because of its Powell handcut headjoint. The Gemeinhardt and Armstrong do not come close to comparing, and neither of these are really considered to be high quality instruments.

[fluteguy18]

Based on your post I would recommend doing a lot more research and truly evaluating your goals as a player. If you are looking to do anything more than playing in a non-audition band/marching band, I wouldn't go with any of these either. They're all step up flutes, and the Sonare is the best of them all (and even then Sonare can be hit an miss in terms of quality).

[hawaii808]

Well I'm looking for an upgrade from my Gemeinhardt M2 before I start college and I'm not good enough to major in music but still wanted to do band. I'm open to any suggestions just preferably under 1500, I only listed those because I could get them in my town used.

[RenzowithdaBenzo]

Oh I see, I thought you were majoring in music when you mentioned college. In that case, the Sonare would still be your best bet, it would most likely give you the most room to grow and improve. If anything try all the flutes that you can. Azumi and Amadeus are similar to Sonares where they have handmade heads and factory bodies. Pearl and yamahas also have plenty of options in your price range. Gemeinhardts and Armstrongs aren't really adequate for players beyond the beginner level.

[hawaii808]

So how would the pearl dolce 695 stack up against the sonare in terms of tone and build quality?

[fluteguy18]

I personally don't think that the Pearl really compares to be honest. And I have to differ with the recommendation on the Sonare when compared to Azumi or Amadeus. Sonare has had quality control issues because they keep changing factories. Sometimes they're great and sometimes they're not. Azumi usually hits it on the head every single time. Di Zhao flutes are also in a similar price range (as are Trevor James) and they're excellent flutes as well.

Really, you have to try them all to see what you like. We can't determine that for you. And there aren't many excuses for not being able to try them either. There are many companies that carry them around the world and many offer international trial programs where they will send them for you to try beforehand. Usually you only pay for shipping and maybe a nominal fee. If you tell us what region of the world you live in we can direct you to competent dealers who can assist you more directly.

[amoretto]

A pearl dolce, if in good adjustment, is probably the best playing flute in the sub $2000 price range. That being said you can find used Japan made flutes such as Yamaha 500 or Miyazawa 102 in a similar price range that would a much much better investment.

Pearl and KHS Music:Jupter/Altus have been making flutes in Taiwan the longest of any other flute maker and if you were to buy a Tawian made flute it should be from one of those makers.

The big American brands making flutes out of China and Taiwan are selling flutes that should not be sold, if you find a flute you like, make sure you take it to a flute specialist to review to make sure it is not a disposable flute. Some could be good, but there are some horrid flutes out there.

You can stick a handmade headjoint and a junk body and it may sound good new, but once that mechanism goes south, you'll find out why Japanese makers can put a higher price tag on their flutes.

That said Altus is known for filing flat tone holes, I personally own such a flute, its tone holes have been ground to flat tops measuring 0.030" wide. Rather than repair it I switched to a wonderful Sankyo. So I don't recommend Altus/Azumi for that reason.

[JButky]

That said Altus is known for filing flat tone holes, I personally own such a flute, its tone holes have been ground to flat tops measuring 0.030" wide. Rather than repair it I switched to a wonderful Sankyo. So I don't recommend Altus/Azumi for that reason.

Sheesh. Lots of makers file their tone holes. And it's more likely as they get more expensive, required if they have some type of synthetic pad. All the makers pretty much left tone holes too wide when they first started leveling. It's not a difficult fix to reprofile a tone hole. And a flat tone hole is better than a wavy one. You just need to reprofile the rim which is NOT a big deal.

[fluteguy18]

Reprofiling is not a big deal at all. Couple of minutes of work. TOPS.