Legere Baritone Saxophone Reed, Signature BSG2.00

I play bari in a community band that practices together once a week for a few hours and then I practice on my own a few hours a week as well. That said my traditional reeds were warping quickly due to moisture and drying and I was wasting a lot of money on new reeds. I decided to try these and they sound almost identical to my normal reeds, they play incredibly easily and don’t require prep. They are a bit harder on the mouth, but that is quickly adjusted for. Quality is great, it looks like a normal reed but clear. If you bump something you don’t need to worry if your reed chipped which is also nice. The only downside you’ll notice is having to empty your spit valve as these don’t absorb water.

I play on a Jody Jazz Jet 7 and these reeds in a 2.75 work great for me. Lasts forever and sound the same every time!

Always dependable

First off, this reed is not so good as the best natural reeds I have played; however, it is definitely better than the average of a box of a dozen. I would say typically 1 or 2 reeds in a 12 pack equal or better this reed!
I am an amateur played in a couple of New Horizon Big Bands – getting 10 hours a week of sax time, and this reed works well for me and many of the guys I play with. I let my instructor (who is internationally known, gets a minimum of 8 hours sax time every day!) try one and he was impressed with the overall “playability” of it, but it did not convert him from using natural reeds. He knows how to salvage some of the natural reeds, and also does more stuff like harmonics/altissimo and growls, etc. Whether he is just used to how a natural reed behaves or if the natural reed is more capable I cannot guess.
However, for me, this solves many problems. The Benefits for me:
1) Consistency between reeds. I won’t say every reed plays exactly the same but they are extremely consistent compared to natural reeds!
2) Always ready to go!
2) a) I am “schedule challenged” and not having to wet the reed to get it past the warp before playing is a big plus.
2) b) The same goes for practicing at home. I leave my sax on the stand and it is much easier to pick it up and play when I have 15 minutes free when I know I can immediately begin playing!
2) c) Doesn’t apply too me, but some of my friends double, playing sax with an occasional clarinet part. They find putting a Legere Signature reed on their clarinet just makes life easier!

I have been playing these reeds for over 3 years and here are some tips I think will help the next guy:
1) Subtract 1/2 to 3/4 from the natural cane reed hardness! I play a #3 natural reed and found the Legere #2-1/4 to be the best match. More recently, I have started playing a #2-1/2. I assume (and like to think) that is because I am getting better and more aggressive in my playing, but I would advise anyone to buy at both 1/2 and 3/4 below your cane reed preference to see which is better for you. Legere has a return policy that allows you to swap reeds while determining your correct number. Go to the Legere website to get details. I am not positive that Amazon orders will adhere to this policy – probably so, but make sure!
2) Buy a second as soon as you determine what number. So, if you tried 1/2 and 3/4 below your normal and returned one, you should now have two of these, so this is covered! The reason it is important to have a second reed is it is the only sure way to determine if the reed you are playing is getting worn out. Essentially, the reed gets softer as it is played. I have not kept track, but would guess I get about 6 months out of a reed. Of course the change is gradual and I subconsciously adjust my embouchure to match the reed. Eventually, I realize I am struggling to pop out a high note (on Bari Sax) and impress myself with how gently I can get a low A to speak at pianissimo levels! That is my clue that the reed is getting past its prime. However, I find a better approach is to have a new reed available for comparison and any time I have a major gig coming up, I will throw on the new reed to see if I like it better! If you are really thrifty, you can switch back to the old reed after your gig (considering it a “practice reed”), but I usually toss the old reed in the trash because otherwise I end up with a collection of old reeds that I will never play again!
3) Break-in the reed! I have no way of knowing if this is real or just psychological, but it seems to me like spending a few minutes with a fresh synthetic reed blasting out low notes helps loosen up the reed. It makes sense in keeping with how the reed changes over months of use, and it seems reasonable that the first few minutes of play on a reed that has not yet been flexed is liable to change the properties. I feel this gets it past those first changes of break-in into a more stable reed for the coming months. I also want to do this before comparing it with an older reed (item 2 above).
4) Soften sharp corners. I don’t know why, but every now and then I’ll get one of these where the edge of the reed is sharp and feels like it is cutting my upper lip on either side. This would never happen with a cane reed because natural rood fibers are rounded. If this happens you want to gently soften the corner. Obviously you do not want to change the reed much and it only takes a small change to fix this. Probably the safest way to do this is with some 200 or higher (finer) grit sand paper. Do not press (you are only wanting to alter the tiny edge of that corner of the plastic reed). Give it two light strokes straight down (not across!) the sharp edge of the reed. That should do it, but test it to be sure.
Another technique for this:
I usually don’t have sandpaper handy, so I usually take a razor sharp knife or box cutter and turn the blade 90 degrees to the reed and lightly slide it down the edge. You probably won’t even see the plastic coming off (if you did, it would be a “wisp”), but one pass should do it. The trick here is to a) keep the blade right at 90 degrees so it doesn’t try to dig into the plastic, and b) use a very light touch so there is no “chatter” as the blade slides along the corner!

So, you will have to find the right one for your situation. They sound great, once you get used to the way they play. They always work. They never dry out. They don’t care about humidity or temperature. They just work. It’s a great way to test to see if there is something wrong with an instrument or a traditional reed because they are that predictable and reliable.

I will always order the same make

It’s so good especially if you are in marching band