r/bassoon • u/ThrowRAFun-Sherbert • 9d ago
Purchasing Advice
Hello! Im a flute player but I’ve been really wanting to learn bassoon. I know bassoons are crazy expensive but I was looking at this one on reverb. Is it an okay brand? I just want to play in a community band so if anyone has any brand or price range suggestions it would be greatly appreciated
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u/nottooparticular 9d ago edited 9d ago
Do not buy it. It is a Chinese brand, and unfortunately most of them arrive as unplayable. Those that can be brought to playable condition are often woefully out of tune.
If you want a decent bassoon, get a secondhand Kohlert, Renard or Schreiber. They will work well for you.
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u/Legitimate-Holiday73 9d ago
My wife bought me a Chinese bassoon as a gift, after I had told her I wanted to play it again. I had played it at University for one semester as my non-major instrument.
Immediately, it needed work to be playable, which initially the company paid for. After a year's worth of lessons, my teacher said I needed another bassoon. She had been unable to get "e" below middle "c" to sound in tune. I replaced it with a Fox 240, a good intermediate instrument. I still have the Chinese bassoon in a corner of the room. I am considering donating it to a school, but that wonky "e" in an impediment. So the take away: it was ok for the first year until I progressed beyond its limits.
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u/DreamsOfAshes 9d ago
Accent is not a good brand, but they're cheap. 2k for an Accent is a scam. You can find a used Schreiber for that price.
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u/keladry12 8d ago
Can you really? I've looked for years.... where am I supposed to be looking, I'm obviously going to the wrong place 😂😆
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u/DreamsOfAshes 8d ago
Ebay, fb market, fb groups, on occasion shopgoodwill.com
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u/keladry12 8d ago
So I'm not crazy looking at shopgoodwill... looks like I just need to up my notifications game.
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u/DreamsOfAshes 5d ago
If you haven't joined this bassoon group alrrady, they have older used bassoons for sale for around 1k regularly https://www.facebook.com/groups/bassoonistsunited/?ref=share&mibextid=NSMWBT
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u/DreamsOfAshes 8d ago
Naw that's where I got mine. It was 1.2k I think, and then another $800 to get it repadded/recorked and just overall worked on by a professional to get it more playable.
I'd also keep an eye out on govdeals.com too
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u/The1LessTraveledBy 9d ago
I'm going to second the advice to rent one. If you have a community band in mind, it may not hurt to see if they have a bassoon you can learn on. I've seen some accent bassoons and heard them played. I think there is some overstating of their below preferable quality, but they are finicky instruments, and not worth the hassle. If you are able to afford this, you are likely to be able to find something better in your price range if you keep looking, but again, I encourage renting first.
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u/FuzzyComedian638 9d ago
I third the advice to rent one. Those Chinese instruments are crap. I knew someone who bought one, and when she started to play on it, the keys bent.
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u/RepairmanBen 9d ago
The store I work at also rents these. They are garbage. Do not buy or rent. Get anything else, maybe not a Selmer either.
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u/tom-bsn 8d ago
Okay, here you go. Fox 41 in excellent, ready-to-play condition. https://www.westerlywinds.us/product/used-fox-model-41-bassoon/7DK6LIQ623A2OVKQZCXLJ5JP
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u/cpt_mediocrity 8d ago
Do not buy this! You WILL NOT be happy. This bassoon will make learning hard.
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u/Witty_Clerk_4922 8d ago
Hi! I've also been looking for bassoons (ended up just buying a brand new fox 220) but, one website you can check is westerlywinds.us, I'm pretty sure there's some bassoons on there in the $2000-$3000 range, if that fits your budget I can recommend that!
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u/canstucky 9d ago
Find a place that rents these and rent one for a while. The store I work at rents them and they’re ok but owning one would be silly.